When I was in college, my academic advisor used to say something fairly often that didn’t really resonate with me at the time, but now strikes me as very wise. The gist of it was this: When you are a child, you have energy and time but no money; when you are a young adult, […]
Pursuing cash back and travel rewards is an easy way to save money on family vacations, fun adventures, and educational trips. But did you know you could use credit card rewards to pay off student loans? By signing up for the right rewards card, meeting a minimum spending requirement, and earning a hefty sign-up bonus, […]
While watching a snippet of the Dr. Phil Show the other day, I heard a monologue that related intimately to personal finance. “You cannot change what you do not acknowledge,” snipped Dr. Phil, who was desperately trying to counsel a broken family on coming together. Later I learned this was one of Phil’s “life laws,” […]
Imagine you’re a family of four who just bought their first house, and you’re getting ready to celebrate your first Christmas in your new home. You’re planning to pick up a tree and decorations, shop for presents – and you want to host Christmas dinner, too. Hopefully, you’ve got some money stashed away, because Christmas […]
Most people know they need the protection of life insurance during their working years, but did you know some parents buy life insurance for their children, too? While some buy life insurance for kids for financial protection or a lifelong savings vehicle, others purchase it as a long-term hedge against the unknown. When it comes […]
What’s inside? Here are the questions answered in today’s reader mailbag, boiled down to five-word summaries. Click on the number to jump straight down to the question. 1. Holiday guests and hotels 2. Challenging home purchase decision 3. Frugal gifts for elderly relatives 4. Advance preparation for personal risk 5. Directionless 6. Identity theft strangeness […]
Diversification is a word you’ll hear a lot as you read about various investment strategies, and though it sounds fancy it’s actually a pretty simple idea both to understand and to take advantage of. It’s also the only way that you can decrease your investment risk without decreasing your expected return. That makes it a […]
A recent article over at Elite Daily, titled “Nearly Half of All 25-Year-Olds Are Living at Home With Their Parents,” starts like this: Think your life is a mess because you’re 25 years old and still living at your parents’ house? Don’t worry; according to statistics, nearly half of people your age are complete messes, […]
It’s a pretty familiar story. A person doesn’t pay any attention to retirement savings at the start of their career, deciding usually on the spur of the moment that it’s not really something they need to do right now. Usually, it’s not even thought about as something they should do “someday,” as it isn’t even […]
SUVs have gotten incredibly popular over the past two decades, and that trend looks set to continue — especially as gas prices have fallen in the past two years. Just about every major car brand on the market has come out with an SUV, and their large cargo areas, third-row seating options in many models, […]