Lending Club has a new bonus offer. They sent an email a couple weeks ago highlighting the new Lending Club bonus offer. The $100 is this week’s Free Money Friday offer!

Recently a close friend and I discussed a debt she wanted to payoff. She has a car loan with a balance of about $10,000 at an interest rate just north of 5%. It’s killing her that she’s paying interest on it and wants to know if she should pay off the loan with her savings.

Mathematically, if she’s earning less on her savings account than she’s paying in interest on the car loan, it makes sense to pay it off.

Take your property tax deduction without itemizing. It’s another deduction you’ll want to claim on your 2009 tax return, as we continue our series on tax deductions. We recently reviewed the new car tax deduction.

When is the 2010 tax deadline for your 2009 tax return? As a tax junkie, the date is etched in stone in my mind. However, I realize that not everyone knows when taxes are due. The 2010 tax deadline for your 2009 tax return is April 15, 2010.

Like many people, you may have resolved to pay off debt or otherwise get your finances in order this year. If so, one of the first things you should do is pull a credit report on yourself and your spouse.

It’s Free Money Friday and this week’s is a good one! TradeKing is offering existing customers $100 for referring a friend. Hurry because the offer only lasts until February 11, 2010.

I find the story about Craig Cunningham very intriguing. His debt collection story was featured in Better Off Deadbeat.

When credit was free flowing, he borrowed over $100,000 and invested in risky stocks and the sub prime mortgage industry. The greedy extension of a well planned credit card arbitrage strategy.

Over the holidays I had the privilege of being a part of a very momentous occasion: my grandparents’ 50^th wedding anniversary. Celebrating 50 years of love, triumph, children, tears, and joy was such an overwhelmingly wonderful feeling, and one that I hope all of you can experience in either your own milestone anniversary, or through the celebration of others’.

Whether you are claiming the tax credit for existing homeowners or the tax credit for first time home buyers, it’s time to get your money!

How to Claim your Home Buyer Tax Credit

The IRS released the updated Form 5405 to claim your tax credit. Complete and attach Form 5405 to your 2009 tax return.

Leading up to my CFP(R) exam last fall, I set a little aside from several paychecks to save the total amount of my registration fee. When I registered, I depleted the entire amount I had saved – but the registration wasn’t the end of my exam-related expenses.

I forgot to take into account the $120 worth of study materials I had to purchase. Or the several extra meals I ate out in the weeks leading up to the test. Or the two times I let food spoil because I was so distracted by studying I didn’t put it away after cooking.