“Best Personal Finance Apps - AskMen” plus 1 more

Posted: 16 Feb 2010 12:02 PM PST

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If your New Year's resolution included some sort of financial goal, odds are you've struggled to keep up with it already. While most people know they should keep some sort of budget, and many genuinely try to, most run into the reality of it all: tracking all those receipts and logging each purchase takes a huge amount of time. Even for those who started with the best intentions, most soon fall behind. That's why a growing number of people are turning to web- and mobile-based personal finance solutions. Plus, you can access your data from anywhere and it's easy to keep up with your expenses.

If your main struggle with finances has been forcing yourself to sit down after a long day at work to balance your checkbook, read on for our roundup of a few tools that can turn the tide with the best personal finance apps out there.

you want to:

Manage your accounts with the least work possible

Mint.com

Web, iPhone (free)

Mint is a free web-based application that tracks your spending and your account balances. Mint's claim to fame is that the site automatically retrieves your financial data from your banks, credit card companies and the like, and tracks your net worth, spending and even divides your purchases into categories for you -- so that Amex charge from Taco Bell at 1:43 a.m. on Saturday will automatically get classified as "food." From here, it's easy to set budgets for each category and even receive texts or e-mails when you're low on funds or about to go over your budget in a category.

The downside to all this is that, yes, you're giving Mint.com all your financial information so they can review your complete financial picture. The information is held on their servers, and they claim to use the same level of security as bank websites do, but you'll need to head over to Mint.com to see if the security policy is something you're comfortable with. If you are, mint is a free, powerful and nearly totally automated service to track your finances.

Pros: Free, versatile, automatic, good companion website
Cons: Requires you to share your financial data, not as powerful as more complex tools

you want to:

Control what gets tracked and how by hand

Pocket Money

iPhone ($4.99)

If you're hesitant to hand your finances over to a company like Mint.com to be automated, no need to worry: There are lots of options that allow you to track your spending by hand. And if you own an iPhone, then Pocket Money is worth checking out. Features on Pocket Money include support for multiple accounts -- checking, savings and credit cards -- and a deep set of options to configure repeating transactions. So you can put in your car payment to apply monthly rather than having to do it by hand each month. The budgeting section allows you to set up the required monthly budgets, but also supports other budget lengths from daily all the way up to annually. Once everything is in, the reporting feature will give you access to graphs and charts to help you analyze your finances. Finally, your information can be exported to both Quicken and MS Money, so you log spending on the road and then work with the data when you're back home.

Of all the apps we reviewed, this one has the most competition in its category. There are many alternatives to Pocket Money, so look at a few before deciding -- many apps have a free demo version available, so there's no reason not to take a few for a spin. Still, Pocket Money gets our vote for having a large feature set, the ability to export data to other programs, and it even allows in-app purchase of additional reports, graphs and so on for people who want even more features.

Pros: Flexible account setup, repeating transaction and auto-repeat speed up entry, powerful budget features
Cons: iPhone only, $4.99 while some other apps are free, advanced features require additional in-app purchases

We have a few more of the best personal finance apps out there for the average guy and his iPhone... Next Page >>

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Friday's Personal Finance stories - Marketwatch

Posted: 19 Feb 2010 02:29 PM PST

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By MarketWatch

Don't miss these top stories:

When you hear there's been a drop in the rate of homes entering the foreclosure process -- finally! -- and you read about a fourth-quarter decline in the rate of home loans that are 30-days late and about how there's never been a decline of this "magnitude" in the fourth quarter before, you start to get a little bit excited about a possible end to the travails of the housing market. Enough crisis already! Let's celebrate!

Oh wait.

The same mortgage bankers' report that found some slight glimmers of hope also found that the portion of home loans currently in foreclosure is at a record high. So is the number of home loans that are 90 days late.

And, as Steve Kerch, MarketWatch's assistant managing editor for personal finance, points out in his First Take commentary today, we are not there yet. For one, we're not even close to getting back down to 2008 foreclosure figures. And what about that job market? Let's not go there.

I guess that's why the mortgage bankers are saying the current data is "a concrete sign that the end may be in sight."

Initially, I focused on that comforting word "concrete." But "may be" is the operative phrase, for now.

-- Andrea Coombes, Personal Finance editor

Beginning of the end for housing crisis?

A smaller percentage of mortgages were delinquent and the rate of those entering the foreclosure process slowed in the fourth quarter, possible signs that the foreclosure crisis that has gripped many of the nation's housing markets is finally starting to ease, a trade group reported on Friday.
See Real Estate.

Commentary: Foreclosure troubles only hibernating

You would like so desperately for our housing woes to end that you want to believe the latest numbers on mortgage delinquencies and foreclosures signal a turnaround in the fortunes of American homeowners. But the numbers just don't ring true.
See MarketWatch First Take.

Is it time to give up your low adjustable-rate mortgage for a fixed-rate loan?

Low mortgage rates over the past year have inspired many Americans to refinance their home loans, but some eligible borrowers haven't made the leap. Often that reluctance to refinance stems from the fact that interest rates on their adjustable-rate mortgages have fallen below 3% -- a better rate than they'd get by switching to a fixed-rate loan.
See Real Estate.

How lenders decide whether to modify your mortgage

Question: As one of the 160,000-plus people waiting in the pipeline to apply for a mortgage reduction at the same lender mentioned in your recent [newspaper] column, I was greatly puzzled by one point in your article: "If you show negative cash flow, your application will be denied, period."
See Realty Q&A.

Obama targets five states for home-loan help

Facing millions of foreclosures and high unemployment, President Barack Obama on Friday announced a $1.5 billion fund to help unemployed homeowners and other struggling borrowers in a handful of states.
See Capitol Report.

Lessons learned from mid-Atlantic snowstorms

A key rule of thumb to follow when the snowstorm of the century bears down upon you is to not drink too much red wine the first night of the blizzard. And don't feel too smug either. Expect the worst and plan for it.
See story on how blizzards can bring lessons in preparedness.

HEALTH CARE

States grapple with health-insurer rate hikes

As health-insurance premiums rise beyond what many people can pay, some states are experimenting with more aggressive ways to protect consumers from skyrocketing premiums in the individual market.
See Vital Signs.

Once detractors, medical groups say health reform a must

A decade and a half ago, a number of groups like the American Medical Association opposed the Clinton administration's version of health-care reform, and helped in ultimately defeating that effort.
See Health Care.

TAXES

Stressful tax problems are common, but the IRS isn't always to blame

We've all heard of road rage, but plane rage? If you've ever tried to figure out an IRS notice or clear up a problem with your tax bill, you may understand Joseph Stack's sense of helpless frustration.
See TaxWatch.

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Personal Finance

Sunday, February 21, 2010