Our own Jason Cochran was aboard the maiden voyage of the Oasis of the Sea. Here's what it looks like from the inside! Read more!.

WalletPop Wire

Target coupon generator an easy way to get coupons

Julia Scott Nov 24th 2009 @ 5:00PM EST Filed Under: Bargain Babe

I never knew there were so many coupons for Target!

Print multiple quantities of hot coupons using AFullCup's Target coupon generator. There were almost 100 to chose from when I last checked. Only catch is you have to register on AFullCup.com to print the coupons.

Here are some of the Target coupons I found when I checked the generator recently. Many are great for Christmas presents.

$1 off family sized Dorritos
$5 off Lego Toy Power Miners Cave Crusher or Space Police
$5 off Thomas and Friends Wooden Railway Coal Loader Set
$10 off Blu-Ray copies of both Up and Monsters Inc.
$10 off LeapFrog Tag Reading System
$10 off two Xbox, Wii/DS, or PSP games (don't think you can mix and match)
$25 off PlayWonder Dollhouse
20 percent off Scooter or Pocket Rocket Hot Wheels Folding
Free Our Generation Deluxe Doll Outfit with purchase
Free Monopoly Deal or Scrabble Slam Card Game with purchase

Expiration dates vary. Remember to read the fine print so you don't bring an expired coupon to the store!

552 banks are currently at risk for shutting down

Geoff Williams Nov 24th 2009 @ 4:30PM EST Filed Under: Banks

Could your bank fail? There's still a chance, but if you study the numbers, the odds are still highly in your favor that your financial institution will be sticking around.

Earlier this week, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. came out with its third-quarter report, stating that the number of troubled banks has climbed to 552.

The report reveals the health of the banking system as of late September. The current total of troubled banks is up from 416 at the end of June, and 305 at the end of March.

Continue reading 552 banks are currently at risk for shutting down

Want a smaller home? What would you give up?

Amy Pyle Nov 24th 2009 @ 4:15PM EST Filed Under: Budgets, Home, Real Estate, Saving Money, Mortgages

Survey after survey shows that, in the name of affordability, post-crash home buyers are opting for less square footage -- down 100 square feet or more on average.

People can't afford a big house and they can't afford to heat and cool it, either.

Smaller means less, of course and consumers are facing choices among some of the excess that had come to define the modern home: living rooms AND family rooms, big master bedrooms AND big master baths, walk-in showers AND jacuzzi tubs, the pantries the size of closets AND closets the size of bedrooms.

Take our WalletPop poll to see what you would choose to jettison:

View Poll

Continue reading Want a smaller home? What would you give up?

What to look for if selling your home with seller financing

Zac Bissonnette Nov 24th 2009 @ 4:00PM EST Filed Under: Real Estate, Mortgages

Think rich people pay cash for 8-digit trophy homes? Think again.

According to the Malibu Real Estate Blog, there are 18 homes in the Malibu market where sellers have specifically noted in the MLS listing that they are willing to provide financing to the buyer: "Homes range from $1.1m for a mo-bi-yal home in Paradise Cove to a $10m hillside mansion with jetliner views. There is even a newly remodeled home on Point Dume with tennis court, pool, and beach rights whose owner will carry."

The increase in seller-financing on high-end homes is a direct result of the tightening in the jumbo mortgage market. Without alternative sources of financing, buyers can't buy and sellers can't sell, and that's driving an increasing in seller financing.

Continue reading What to look for if selling your home with seller financing

A Black Friday real estate deal, of sorts

Ann Brenoff Nov 24th 2009 @ 3:30PM EST Filed Under: Real Estate, Black Friday

Not to be left out of the Black Friday hype, Beazer Homes is offering special Black Friday deals at five of its Orlando-area communities.

What's being given away is up to $2,000 in "free" appliances for contracts signed on Friday. But before you give up your place in the Wal-Mart line at 4 a.m., just know that in today's buyers-rule-and-developers-drool market, you can likely mosey on in any old day of the week and let the good folks at Beazer know which dishwasher you want them to throw in for free before you'll sign on the dotted line. Just saying ...

Beazer Homes USA, according to its Web site, "builds for the middle-class buyer who's ready to make the move into the white-picket-fence scene." They build homes with an average price of about $248,700 and courts the entry-level, move-up, and active adult markets.

As for Orlando-area buyers who want to be able to gloat about how they got their house in a Black Friday special, here's the skinny: The special one-day incentive is being offered at Heritage Commons in Winter Springs, The Legacy in Orlando, The Enclave at Moss Park, Sawgrass, also in southeast Orlando, and at Victoria Park Trails in DeLand.

The Federal Tax Credit for qualified new home buyers at $8,000 and $6,500 for existing home buyers is still available.

CPSC study confirms homeowner's worst fears about Chinese drywall

Tom Kraeutler Nov 24th 2009 @ 3:00PM EST Filed Under: Home, Real Estate, Health

A study of 51 homes released this week by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) found a strong association between homes with Chinese-made drywall and levels corrosive hydrogen sulfide, which gives off a smell similar to rotten eggs.

It was the largest investigation ever taken on by the CPSC, costing $3.5 million and involving 15% of the staff, according to the CPSC.

Continue reading CPSC study confirms homeowner's worst fears about Chinese drywall

Free coffee for USPS mail carriers Wednesday

Julia Scott Nov 24th 2009 @ 2:30PM EST Filed Under: Bargain Babe

On Wednesday, Nov. 25, any letter carrier for the United States Postal Service can get a free cup of coffee from Dunkin' Donuts. Any size!

The company wants to give back to the folks who make it possible for us to send cards and presents to each other during the holidays.

To get the deal, wear your USPS uniform or show your union card identification. No additional purchase is necessary, but how tempting is it going to be to buy a doughnut? Very!

Beachfront properties you can afford (prepare to travel)

Diane Wedner Nov 24th 2009 @ 2:00PM EST Filed Under: Bargains, Real Estate

For sale: Three-bedroom homes with heart-stopping ocean views. Big properties. Resort nearby.
Price: $139,000
Location: Not the Hamptons (or Malibu or Palm Beach)

What, you thought it was 1950? No matter. If you're willing to fly to Managua, Nicaragua, and make the two-hour trek to lovely San Juan del Sur, you will find your dream vacation house (or land on which to build it). High prices on home turf lured legions of American, Canadian and European buyers to this low-priced Pacific Coast town and other Central American destinations during the real estate run-up earlier this decade. When the bubble burst, investors stayed home, agents and developers say. Now, prices are in oh-my-god territory, and buyers are trickling back. In San Juan del Sur, you can build your own vay cay getaway for $85 a square foot. Compare that with $625 per square foot in Malibu last month. The median price of a home there was $2.1 million in October, according to San Diego-based MDA Dataquick.

Continue reading Beachfront properties you can afford (prepare to travel)

50 Cent smacks down Taco Bell for stealing his image

Tom Barlow Nov 24th 2009 @ 1:45PM EST Filed Under: Celebs & Money

Pity clueless musicians who spend more time on their music than their image. If they want to be rich, really rich, they should follow the model of one of rap's richest stars, Curtis James Jackson III, a.k.a. 50 Cent. He may have gained his fame at the microphone or by receiving nine non-fatal gunshots, but his $400 million-plus fortune comes from another source: endorsements. Taco Bell, which attempted to use his image without paying him for it, has found just how jealously he guards his money-maker image.

In 2008, Taco Bell publicly asked 50 Cent to consider changing his name to 79 or 89 or 99 Cent, to promote the chain's "79-89-99-Cent Why Pay More?" campaign. The company even sent copies of the request letter to news outlets, as well as the artist.

Continue reading 50 Cent smacks down Taco Bell for stealing his image

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