Today I’m going to review the United First Financial The Money Merge Account® Program; also know as a MMA for Money Merge Account.

They say, “Eliminate Your Mortgage.
The Money Merge Account program pays off mortgages faster using an interest-cancellation strategy. While many homeowners realize that they can save money by reducing the interest rate they pay on their loans, few think about the length of time they will be paying. The Money Merge Account program combines innovative software with traditional banking systems and personal coaching to drastically reduce your mortgage term and minimize your interest.”

So far so good; I totally agree with paying off all debt.

So how does the MMA system work?

First buy their system for $3,500.

Then they say the user will

1. Need a deposit account; usually a  checking or a saving account.
2. What they call a Facilitating Account which is a savings account or a Line of Credit.
3. Need their software to tell them when to transfer money between accounts.

What I’m not liking here is the idea of using debt to pay off debt. Not to mention that banks aren’t really excited about Home Equity Lines of Credit at this time.

What I’m seeing is that if you were spending less than you make the software might have you fill the facilitating account with surplus money and then pay off debt with that money.

Or as I saw with friends who bought this program, for $3,500, the software told them to pay off a higher interest rate truck loan with their Line of Credit and then there was nothing they could do until the paid down the Line of Credit.  All that advice for $3,500?

One of the reasons they say you can’t do this yourself is that it’s too complicated and requires very sophisticated software.

I just don’t agree – you could do this with a pencil, paper and calculator and some basic personal finance principles.

My opinion is save the $3,500 and do it yourself.

Here are the steps I teach in my personal finance class:

1. Save a $1000 Emergency Fund
2. Establish a budget
3. Start using the cash envelope system
4. Begin paying off your non-mortgage debt from smallest balance to largest
5. Consider selling anything that will take longer than 18 months to pay off
6. When your done paying off your non-mortgage debt, grow your emergency fund to equal 3 – 6 months of living expenses
7. Begin saving for financial independence
8. Begin saving for college, if you have kids or someone you want to send to college
9. Begin saving a $20,000 major medical fund
10. Begin paying off your home aggressively

I tend to put paying off your home last in the the process, but that is because I value peace of mind over not having a mortgage.

Don’t get me wrong – I want that mortgage done ASAP too.  I just don’t happen to believe in magical software and borrowing to pay off debt.

I ran into a friend of mine this morning and as we stood talking on the sidewalk I noticed that he had a Porsche keyring in his hand.  While we’d been talking I’d been admiring the Porsche Boxster parked right in front of us.

I asked him if it was his – knowing that he’d been wanting a Porsche for some time.  He’s retired and can well afford one.

What surprised me was that he said, “Matt, I did just what you said to do. I paid cash!” You need to understand that this is gentleman became financially independent with no help from me, but he loves my class Creating True Financial Independence and the concepts I teach.

He went on to tell me how he’d saved for three years for this car.  Three years ago he’d looked at a new one priced at $44,000.  The one I was looking at was a 5 year-old Boxster with just 16,000 miles.  He paid $26,000 for this one; instead of $47,600 for a new 2010 model.

He went on to add that he carries liability only insurance.

Here’s the three lessons from this story:

1. Financially independent people got that way by saving for their purchases.
2. Buying used cars is important.  Cars go down in value in the first few years of ownership.
3. Insure only what you can’t afford to replace.  This goes for electronics, cars and all other possessions.

Congratulations friend you deserve this Porsche!

Here’s what will happen next.

• I will give you a call (If you haven’t given me your phone number then please email me.)
• We will schedule a time to meet on the phone.
• If you have any questions, then please call me at (970) 335-8182 or email me matt@debtfreetribe.com

Creating True Financial Independence Now Online

Our Next Class to get you Debt Free begins March 25th Online

This is a four week course.

Each week will have a lesson

Each Week will have a Conference call to answer your questions.

One Person’s experience taking Matt’s Creating True Financial Independence Course.

We’re Thinking about offering this class Online Beginning March 25th.  Interested?

It will be live but you’ll still have access to the class at your own convenience (You can watch and learn on your own schedule)

If you even think you might be interested, then here’s the list to get on.

Demand is High, so we expect the class to fill.

This list will be for early access to the sign up page.  We’ll also send you our report on 10 ways to find $300.

What to do if your debt card has been declined?

1. Contact your bank immediately to determine the reason.
2. Review your account transactions to determine if there have been any fraudulent charges.
3. Dispute any fraudulent transactions – the bank will put the money back into your account. Just like with a credit card you are not liable for fraudulent charges.
4. If there has been fraud, close the card and destroy it.  Have your bank reorder a new debit card. Request a rush order to be placed if you have an urgent need for the card.  The bank may charge a $50 rush fee and you may be able to get them to waive the fee.

After graduating from Thunderbird School of Global Management with a Master of International Management in 1991 I began a sixteen-year cycle of accumulating credit card debt and paying it off by rolling it into my mortgage and declaring, “Never again will this happen!”  Without any skills or tools to change his behavior, it happened again and again.

In February 2007 my wife, Cheri, and I began attending the thirteen-week Financial Peace University.  Over the following fifteen months we paid off $165,000 in debt and saved $20,000.  No, we didn’t have huge incomes.  We had received a $40,000 inheritance when my parents passed away – which we didn’t use to go to Hawaii.  Instead, we paid off debt.  In addition to using the $40,000 to payoff debt we harnessed our $80,000 annual income to payoff an additional $25,000 in debt and save $20,000

Since before we were married we had talked about taking a year off from work to travel the world.  At times, when our debts had been rolled into our mortgage, the dream seemed more likely to happen.  Of course, moving debt from one place to another did not really ever pay it off; it just hid the reality of their situation.  Then, thanks to getting all of our debt paid off, except for our mortgage, the dream became a vision.

The remaining $100,000 debt payoff came from this shared dream.  Realizing that paying off our home would be a key component to being able to freely travel around the world, we decided to downsize our condo.  We sold their $300,000 condo that had a $200,000 mortgage and bought a $200,000 condo using a $100,000 down payment.  We like the new smaller condo better and can foresee the day when we will embark on our journey around the world.

After having gone through the process of getting out of debt, our marriage is better, there is more ease in our life, and we are happier.  And the best thing is that I found a passion and a gift for helping others get out of debt too.  I have developed the class Creating True Financial Independence after taking this class most people can be debt-free, except for their mortgage, in 12 to 18 months.

In addition to teaching Creating True Financial Independence I do private coaching.

3 ways to sell your old electronics that are collecting dust

From Bob over at christianpf.com

Who or what has influenced your major financial decisions?

If you aren’t doing what you want in life, whose dreams are you fulfilling?

When you think about your financial past, do you see any patterns?

What financial advice from the past sticks in your mind today?

What messages about money did you get as a child?  How are these reflected in your actions?

What does money mean to you? Power? Security? Sex Appeal?

Have any life crises altered your thinking about money?  How and Why?

Have you ever felt poor or wealthy?  How would you define poor or wealthy?

How much time do you spend with popular media such as television, newspapers, magazines?  How do these contribute to your view of financial situations?  Your wants and needs?

Who is your financial role model?  Is there someone that you compare yourself to when it comes to money?

What makes you feel “real” – that you really matter?

• Extra Bike(s)
• Extra Outdoor Gear
• Kitchen Gadgets
• Jewelry
• Books
• Collectibles e.g. baseball cards and comic books
• Musical Instruments
• Furniture
• Tools
• Cars

4. Stop Going Out to Lunch
5.     Bring Your Own Java
6. Stop Drinking Soda and Energy Drinks
7.     Quit Smoking
8.     Eat Dinner at Home
9.     Drop Cable/Satellite TV
10. Pay With Cash
11. Rediscover the Library for Book and Movies
12. Get Rid of Your Storage Unit
13. Eat Less Meat and Cheese
14. Stop Buying Convenience Foods
15. Stop Incurring Overdraft Fees – Balance Your Checkbook
16. Raise Your Auto Insurance Deductible
17. Cancel Your Land Line
18 . Stop Buying Junk Food

I attended the first Living the Dream workshop and highly recommend it.  Check it out http://thedreammanager.com/living-dream-event-sign

Living The Dream

Since the release of Matthew Kelly’s best-selling and award-winning book, The Dream Manager, there has been enormous interest from people about how to go deeper with the remarkable concept and principles outlined in the book. Companies are contacting Floyd wanting to learn how they can begin a Dream Manager Program… Managers are asking how they can use ideas in the book with their direct reports… Teams are wondering how they can create the dynamic teamwork depicted in the story… Many more are curious about how the idea can transform their family, relationships, career, and life… And not surprisingly, hundreds have decided that they want to become Dream Managers themselves.

This overwhelming response confirms what Matthew suggests in the book — it’s a wonderful thing to achieve our own dreams, but it’s an incredible feeling to help others accomplish theirs!

If you are interested in learning more about…

• How to define and pursue your dreams
• How to help others achieve their dreams
• How to introduce The Dream Manager concept to your workplace
• What skills make a good Dream Manager
• How to become a Dream Manager
• What the coming HR Revolution means to you and your company

…we would like to invite you to a special, one day training that will take your knowledge and understanding of The Dream Manager concept to a new level. Spend a day with Matthew Kelly and the Floyd team…it will change your life forever!

What?

Living the Dream: Mastering The Dream Manager Principles!

When and Where?

Monday, October 26, 2009 — 8:30am – 5pm
UBS Tower
1 North Wacker Drive
Chicago, IL 60606

Why?

To learn how to take your career, team, business, marriage, relationship, family, and life to a new level by passionately and purposefully pursuing your dreams and helping others to do the same!

Investment?

$595 per participant. Special rates are available for groups of five or more. Please contact Becky Freking at bfreking@floydconsulting.com for more information.