Best of December 2009

December capped a great 2009. We saw the stock market recover a lot of lost ground. Interest rates and inflation remained low. And the Buckeyes won the Rose Bowl (ok, that was technically 2010). And during this time, a lot was happening here at the Dough Roller.

We’ve grown to over 5,000 subscribers (we had just 1,800 at the start of the year). By the way, subscribing to the Dough Roller is free and makes it easy to get access to all of our new content as soon as it’s published. We have several subscription alternatives, which you can check out here. More than 700,000 unique visitors stopped by in 2009, and that number is trending upward significantly.

The most popular posts on the Dough Roller for 2009 were a mix of both old and new posts. Here they are listed in order beginning with the most visited:

1. Money Saving Tips–75 Painless Ways to Save Money
2. 10 Online Budget Tools
3. Get Free Digital TV | Cancel Cable | Save a Bundle!
4. 10 Fun and Free Websites to Lookup the Value of Your Home (and your neighbor’s home)
5. 0% Balance Transfer Offers | A Big List of 0 APR Balance Transfers
6. How to Get Out of Debt Fast | 23 Tips and Tools
7. 100+ Free Resume Templates & Samples To Help You Land Your Next Job
8. 0% Balance Transfer for 12 Months
9. How to Buy a Refurbished iPhone
10. Multiple Income Streams: 10 Ways to Earn Extra Income

2009 was also a great year for investments. While I’m still calculating my actual returns for last year, it looks like they will come in in the high 20’s. The S&P 500 returned 26.46% in 2009 according to Standard & Poor’s, and I think I may have just edged out the index.

Interestingly, my investments in LendingClub and Prosper Notes did well in 2009, too. As of December 31, 2009, the return on my LendingClub Notes is 12.44%, and returns for Prosper Notes are similar. In both cases, I have one Note that is past due, but the rest are either paid in full or paying on time. I expect my investments in both LendingClub and Prosper to increase significantly in 2010. You can check out my review of LendingClub and Propser, or go directly to LendingClub and Prosper to learn about investing and borrowing.

Now to some great articles, blog posts, and other odds & ends from the past month:

Study: Tiger’s scandal nuked up to $12 billion in shareholder value: Tiger Woods is living proof of the wisdom of Warren Buffett: “It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.” Apparently his reputation is not the only thing to take a beating. This article links to a study estimating that the Woods scandal has cost sharehilders $12 billion.

As the government undertakes social re-engineering on a massive scale, this video says it all:

In a move that gives crooked politicians a bad name, Senator Nelson of Nebraska sold his vote on health care reform in exchange for a deal that Nebraska not have to pay its share of Medicare costs. Who will pay it? Federal taxes to the tune of $100 million over the next 10 years. Now, several state attorneys general are threatening lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of the “deal.” Even Nebraskans are disgusted with their own Senator.

Phillip Niemeyer of the New York Times put together this cool graphic reviewing 2000 to 2009:

Here’s another infographic showing the relationship between unemployment rates and education level:

Five Bubbles Set to Burst in 2010–The Street

If there’s anything that 2009 should teach us, it’s that we need to be more pro-active in spotting potential investing disasters. This article shows us 5 possible money sinkholes that you should definitely avoid.

7 Companies Whose Managers Eat Their Own Cooking–The Motley Fool

A great indicator of whether or not a stock can be successful is when those that run the company invest in themselves. If you find a public company with little to no stock owned by the upper brass, run like the wind!

After I Inherit a Roth IRA, Will I owe Income Taxes on Its Future Earnings?–Lynn Brenners Family Finance

It’s never easy to lose a loved one but it’s important to know how to handle your inheritance when the time comes. From property to retirement accounts, there are different tax rules that that must be followed.

What’s Your Biggest Financial Fear–Budgets Are Sexy

I always have random thoughts going in and out of my head but I have to admit, this one pops in there a lot more than the rest. Fear is a very powerful emotion and if you have the willpower, you can use it as an advantage and motivate yourself to make sure your fears don’t become reality.

Top 10 Sneakiest Business Tricks – Lazy Man and Money

Many people like to think that sometimes, businesses are made up of goodhearted people, that look out for others but sadly, that is rarely (if ever) true. A business’s sole responsibility is to make money so the business can continue to grow and thrive. As you’ll see with the above link, that means that sometimes, a mirage or two needs to be created.

How National Health Care Will Improve Your Salary – Automatic Finances

If you take a look at the National Health Care Reform as a whole, there are more benefits than just nationalized health care. When you read this article, you might not be so quick to condemn the idea. (If you started that way!)

2010: 20 Ways to Save $10 – Money Management

$10 sure doesn’t sound like a lot of dough but if you can find ways to reuse these methods, you might be looking at a pretty penny’s worth of savings.

8 Great Stocks for 2010 – MSN Money

Picking sure things is well, no sure thing but it never hurts to have as much information as possible. MSN continues to compile a short list of stocks that could be winners and if you look back at their track record … it’s valuable advice.

The First 5 Questions To Ask Yourself Before Buying Anything – You Have More Than You Think

One of the biggest financial pitfalls for consumers is buying things they don’t need. A good deal does not mean that you have to buy something. Ask yourself these questions and more the next time you go shopping.

8 Techniques to Boost Your Emergency Fund – Poorer Than You

Any boy scout will tell you to “always be prepared” and having an emergency fund is crucial to that preparation. Some of the methods in this article are more drastic than others but they can provide a bigger bottom line for your emergency fund.

Hybrids May Not Be Your Best Bet in 2010 – American Consumer News

I drive a muscle car and I’ve always been weary about driving something smaller and more “fuel efficient”. Hybrids continue to be touted as the wave of they future and while that may be true, it’s no reason to make a poor financial decision and buy one if it’s depreciates quickly.

What Store Has the Best Loyalty Program – Bargain Babe

If you’re a true frugal shopper, then you shop at outlets and chains that give you rewards for the amounts you spend. Why not maximize those rewards and find out which stores offer the best reward bang for your buck.

Three Tips For Paying Off Holiday Debt – Not Made of Money

Celebrating the holidays can be a great time but it can also be an expensive time. Paying for a holiday party, gifts and travel expenses to see your loved ones can cost you an arm and a leg. While the above tips aren’t secrets by any means, they can help to alleviate your holiday debt.

5 MORE Ways to Screw Your Credit Card Company – Squawk Fox

The American Dream now consists of living off your money, having a family, owning a home, and wanting to screw your credit card company over every second. This article provides five practical ways to accomplish part of that dream.

The Most Shoplifted Items of 2009 – Main Street

One of the things that annoys me most about shopping for toiletries is that when I go to buy razors and razor blades, I have to ask a sales rep to get their key and open the plastic display case for me. The only reasoning I could come up with was that razors could be used as a weapon but apparently that’s not it. They just get jacked more than anything else in the store!

Dumpster Diving – 14 Amazing Finds – Main Street

I would never recommend that anyone go frolicking in a dumpster to find valuables that others have thrown away but if you can handle the smell and the shame you can find pretty awesome things. Talk about bringing the phrase “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure” to life!

7 Ways to Get Warm On The Cheap – Wise Bread

Winter weather means bigger gas and electric bills for those living where Frosty likes to be built. When the cost of gas goes up, so goes the cost of propane. That bigger house you bought is now costing more than you thought initially so take a look at this article so you can reduce your heating costs.

Best and Worst Tech Gadgets of 2009 – YAHOO!

I can only hope but laugh at some of the gadgets that made the worst list. Thankfully, none of them appear in my car, home or office so I guess I was able to avoid paying for crap this year. Wish I could say that about 2008.

10 Jobs That Will Get a Raise in 2010 – CNN

Undoubtedly, there will be many more than 10 jobs that see pay increases in 2010 but these guys are the ones with the best odds. Customer Service Reps put up with too much not to get a raise every year!

Building Credit Without Credit Cards – Eliminate the Media

What? Is this even possible? Actually, there’s a lot more to building credit than filling your wallet with thick plastic. Every credit score is made up of many different parts and the use of credit cards can only help in certain areas. This post shines some light on other important things you can do to build your credit.

And here are some personal finance carnivals from the last few weeks: The Last Carnival of Personal Finance of the Year!, Money Hacks Carnival #96, December 23rd, 2009 – The Holiday Edition., and Festival of Frugality #210: Frugal Masters of the Decade.

Get the book–99 Painless Ways to Save Serious Money!

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