Homes and cars are typically two of the biggest expenses for most people. With a house, just think of the mortgage, the property taxes, and the insurance. With a vehicle, even if you don’t have a loan, just think of today’s mortgage-like fuel expenses and the insurance. But wait. I missed something. Did you notice? […]
At a time when “job security” has become an oxymoron, wouldn’t it be nice to generate some income apart from your 9-to-5 job, especially if it didn’t take a ton of time? And what if that other source of income could be done from home, didn’t require you to hit up your friends and neighbors […]
Not long ago, a friend went through his closet and gave away literally half of his clothes. Rather than missing the items, he said life felt less complicated. Instead of feeling deprived, he felt freed up. Jane Hammerslough, author of Dematerializing: Taming the Power of Possessions, describes how a roof repair gone wrong forced her […]
Anyone enjoy filing papers? I didn’t think so. But you’ll be glad to have done the job with some sense of order should Uncle Sam ever come calling with a question about what you put on line 43 of your 1040 from ‘08. I recommend keeping financial paperwork in three different places: an easily accessible […]
There are some personal finance teachers who believe no one should have a credit card. They seem to think that carrying credit cards is like carrying little sticks of dynamite that could blow your finances to smithereens at any time. While there are definitely some people who would be better off not using credit cards, […]
With the school season coming to an end, a parent’s thoughts quickly turn to, “what are we going to do with the kids all summer?” Fortunately, lots of movie theaters offer discounted tickets to G- and PG-rated movies. There used to be a tradition of offering free kids’ movies in the summer, with theaters trying […]
It used to be that a lot of people were confident they’d be able to retire comfortably one day. Funny thing was, even in those good old days, far fewer people were actually taking the necessary steps, like saving enough money. Today, things have changed. More people are facing the fact that they’re behind on […]
Congrats to the graduating college class of 2011. Since most of the money management lessons I’ve learned since college have come about by making mistakes, here’s my attempt at sparing you the pain. Find a Mentor. Once you find a job, notice who’s doing what you’d like to be doing in five or ten years. […]
In recent weeks, I’ve written articles designed to help you figure out whether you need life insurance, and if so, how much. Once you’ve taken those steps, the next decision will be whether to go with term or permanent insurance. What’s the Difference Between Term and Permanent Life Insurance? Term life insurance. Term life insurance […]
The fact that you’re reading a personal finance blog says a lot about your commitment to manage money well. However, I’m curious to know more about your motivations. To use a question frequently asked by our two-year-old: “But why?” Are you trying to get out of debt? Build savings? Figure out the best way to […]
