Clever Dude founded CleverDude.com in June 2006 while working as a technical analyst in the Washington, D.C. area. A Penn State graduate, he built the site as a side project alongside a white-collar career that included earning a master’s degree and multiple promotions.
In five years he wrote nearly 1,300 articles on personal finance and life lessons drawn from his own experience. The blog grew from a hobby into a recognized early voice in the personal-finance community and generated meaningful revenue. He sold the site in 2010, continued as a guest contributor through 2015, and returned in 2023 after further career advances, paying off his home, and extensive travel.
Where to start? First, due to the changes in mortgage rates and house prices, we've had to think about refinancing. As I mentioned, we're rather stuck with lower property values infringing on the equity we need to be able to refinance both of our … [Read more...] about Rerouted Debt Payment and Debt Scale Changes
A short time ago, I wrote a review of an eBook called Save to Quit. Along with the book, you get another eBook titled 500 Ways to Save Money that gives general saving ideas as well as ideas across a number of categories. This article is part of a … [Read more...] about Ways to Save Money #4: Pay with Cash
UPDATE: A comment reminded me that you might not all know my status. I graduated college with an undergrad about 7 years ago, but I just started my masters degree in fall 2007. Now back to the story: I found out something interesting this weekend. … [Read more...] about The Government is Paying My Student Loan Interest!
Is it just me or did the first half of January fly by while the second half just dragged on? Well, it's finally the end of the month and you know what that means, right?STATISTICS! January 2008 Top Traffic Referrers First, let's see the 5 … [Read more...] about Thanks for the Hits: January 2008 Top Traffic Referrers
So I've been at my new job for 3 weeks now, and I still don't have a badge. That means that someone needs to escort me everywhere. Basically, by security's rules, I can't even be unattended in my office without a badged employee or another contractor … [Read more...] about Being Trapped at Work Saves Me Money!
A short time ago, I wrote a review of an eBook called Save to Quit. Along with the book, you get another eBook titled 500 Ways to Save Money that gives general saving ideas as well as ideas across a number of categories. This article is part of … [Read more...] about Ways to Save Money #3: Buy Used
Inspired by FiveCentNickel, I looked into refinancing both our loans into a single 30-year mortgage. If you recall, we're 100% financed on our home with 2 loans. The first (80%) is an interest-only, 5/1 arm that's up in November, 2009, while the … [Read more...] about The Housing Bust Hits Home
A short time ago, I wrote a review of an eBook called Save to Quit. Along with the book, you get another eBook titled 500 Ways to Save Money that gives general saving ideas as well as ideas across a number of categories. This article is part of a … [Read more...] about Ways to Save Money #2: Scour the Web for Free Stuff
