Latest Personal Finance Hot Deals

ShareBuilder $90 Costco Cash Card Promotion - Open an account and make 1 trade at ShareBuilder and receive a free $90 Costco cash card if you're an executive member. I took advantage of this and bought $150 worth of Class B shares of Berkshire Hathaway. Now I can receive those famed shareholder letters that Warren Buffet sends out. I opened two individual accounts and one joint account.

5% APY Washington Mutual Online Savings Account - WaMu quietly rolled out its new 5% APY online savings account that you can link to an existing checking account. It may not be the very tip-top highest rate, but the convenience may be worth it for current WaMu aaccount holders. I can deposit checks directly into the 5% APY savings account at an ATM, maximizing my interest. Can't do that with an online bank. I can then move money into the checking account instantly online as I need it. WaMu has ATMs all over my area as well so withdrawals are easy too. If you're a current WaMu customer, it takes about 5 minutes to open an account. Combine this with...

Washington Mutual "New" Free Checking Account - We just converted our old free checking with WaMu to this new one. What's notable are the many free perks: No minimum balance or direct deposit requirements, free basic checks for life, no ATM fees on their end, one free overdraft per year, free outgoing wire transfers domestic and foreign, free debit MasterCard with rewards (3% cash back), and free ID theft services.

6% APY FNBO Direct Online Savings Account (until 9/28) - Another online bank, FNBO Direct, has entered the fray. They are offering a 6% APY savings account until 9/28. After that, the interest reverts to a still-high 5.25%. I opened one last week to hold the funds from our 6.01% CD that matured last Monday. The opening process was easy and it took about 1 week to fully fund the account.











Citi Driver's Edge MasterCard - up to 6% back via gift cards, cash towards student loans, or cash for auto expenses. You get 6% back on gas, groceries, and drugstores for the first 12 months. After that, you still get 3% back in those categories. Everything else gets 1%. The rebates must either be redeemed for car-related repairs (tires, oil changes) or via ThankYou points (convertible to gift cards for hundreds of retailers). Plus, you can also get Drive rebates for miles driven, at the rate of 1 mile = $0.01. For commuters, this card is a great deal. I don't yet have this card as my Chase Rewards Plus Visa pays me 5% cash back on gas, groceries, and drugstores (I've already received $100 from them), but when and if that rewards program ends, I will surely switch to this card.

Vanguard Simplifies Low-Balance Fees - If you have an account with Vanguard and agree to to get electronic versions of statements and other documents, all the fees are waived. Previously, there were $10 fees that applied to balances of less than $10,000 to index fund accounts, Roth and regular IRA balances of less than $5,000, and non-retirement accounts with balances of less than $2,500. The waiver is available immediately, so switch now. If you have $100,000 in total balances, you're also fee-free.

Zecco Online Brokerage with Free Trades - They offer 10 free market/limit trades per day with a maximum of 40 free trades per month. You only need a $2,500 deposit to open, but since there are no maintenance requirements you can even take that out if you wanted to. Finally, with no inactivity fees it seems like a great account even for someone who doesn't trade frequently. Some other brokers offer free trades, but none with such a low balance requirement. I haven't opened one up as I do not trade individual stocks anymore, but this is a great option.