The point of me saying this is not to be judged, but to convey that when I consider what financial freedom means to me, that definition does not readily lend itself to a life of penny pinching and coupon cutting.

At this time I'll pull a loc and close a property in cash if I'm in a pinch and then I'll refine back out or sell it if I need to. 

. - maybe I'll try that first.A favorite realtor trick for open houses is to bake some chocolate chip cookies - but then again I don't want to ruin my appetite for chocolate chip cookies.

@Joel Owens people often blame engineers but it's really those penny pinching managers that make the engineers do the cheapest option that works rather than the one that works best for all involved.

It can make a great weapon in a pinch.

I haven't personally bothered with the freezing strategy.)Regarding rewards cards - the PenFed Platinum Rewards card is pretty good, and has the added benefit of being LOW INTEREST (you can probably get it at 8.9 or 9.9% APR whereas most rewards cards are 15-22% APR) which means that in a pinch, you could carry a balance without it hurting too much.

I can definitely see rising interest rates placing a pinch on growth.The thing I can't help but wonder about is whether bond prices will re-inflate to push interest rates back down once an economic hiccup comes along.I'm pretty sure that the Fed has been raising rates to store some ammo in their can so that they can push rates back down if they need to combat a recession.

Thumbtack is a great tool if you need affordable repairs or Reno in a pinch.

When I had kids, Vegetales came out with a spoof that my wife and I laughed our heads off at, "Hey Bob, I just bought a whole chocolate factory with no money down!"  

You can call 411 and get their phone numbers or mail them a letter, but you don't have the luxury of much time..In a pinch if sellers wont let you back out of the deal you could throw a sign in the front yard.Call every family member & friend you know that MAY qualify for a mortgage.How bad do you want the deal?