Life Really Does Take Visa
It’s tough enough to teach kids how to manage money wisely, but now Hasbro has announced plans for a new version of its popular The Game of Life board game in which play money will be replaced by a Visa-branded card. According to _Kiplinger’s Personal Finance_ magazine, in the new version, called Twists & Turns, […]
Two Money Mistakes to Avoid
Just as today’s wants quickly morph into tomorrow’s needs, bad money moves often turn into recommended money moves. As reported on _MSN_ recently, borrowing against your home equity or retirement savings used to be considered bad ideas. But today many lenders routinely promote home equity loans as good ways to pay off credit card debt […]
Privileged Money Management
“For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the saints.” – 2 Corinthians 8:3-4 According to American Express, “Membership has its privileges.” Its copyrighted phrase is designed to […]
Taking the Financial Pain Out of a Big Stink
April showers sometimes bring more than sweet smelling May flowers. Every now and then they bring not such sweet smelling sewage water into people’s basements. And that makes now an ideal time to check whether you have sewer-backup insurance. As reported in the _Wall Street Journal_, most homeowner policies don’t automatically cover sewer backups, and […]
Getting on the Same Financial Page
Two recent surveys indicate that many husbands and wives are not just on different pages when it comes to financial matters, they’re using different playbooks. As reported by _MarketWatch_ recently, a Fidelity survey found that about a third of couples gave different answers to questions about everything from their expected age of retirement to whether […]
Eco-Friendly Money Management
All too often, buying products that are good for the environment is not so good for your wallet. In honor of Earth Day, _SmartMoney_ magazine offered up several eco friendly ideas that don’t cost an arm and a leg. For example, if you regularly dry clean clothes, opt for an ironically named “wet” dry-cleaner. The […]
Putting Idle Money to Work
If you have a brokerage account, chances are you have some uninvested money sitting in a cash account often referred to as a “sweep account.” Fidelity calls it a “core account;” Vanguard uses the term “settlement account.” According to a story in the _Chicago Tribune_, investment houses increasingly have been putting such money into low-interest […]
Marriage and Money
Everyone knows that money is a prime source of disagreements in marriage, but the _Wall Street Journal_ recently put a number to the issue: 75 percent of married adults in the U.S. quarrel about finances with their spouse. At least that’s how many _admitted_ doing so in a recent _Journal/Harris Interactive_ online survey. The most […]
Good Options for Rainy Day Money
Last month I emphasized the importance of an emergency fund and recommended money market funds from Fidelity or Vanguard as good options for those with the minimum required deposits of $2,500 and $3,000 respectively. However, I’ve since learned of some alternatives that offer similar yields of around five percent for much lower initial deposits. According […]
Online Money Lessons for Kids
Brokerage house A.G. Edwards has introduced a new online game for kids interested in learning about managing money. As reported in the _Chicago Sun-Times_, helps kids age nine and older learn how to allocate income for necessary expenses, deal with unexpected expenses, and save for future goals. Along the way they learn the hard reality […]