Manually tracking and categorizing your expenses - It’s something that nearly every financial guru recommends. However, in practice, it proves to be more cumbersome than it’s worth. That’s the same conclusion that Richard Jenkins, author and former editor-in-chief of MSN Money, came to. After two decades of laboriously attempting to organize his finances, he began... Continue Reading →
Don’t Forget About “You” When Budgeting
Bills. Expenses. Debt. Savings … There are a lot of hands reaching into your pockets and taking out money every month. If you’re like most people, then it most likely causes you to become stressed and sometimes feel as if all you’re doing is working to pay your bills. Perhaps the problem isn’t how much... Continue Reading →
Don’t Fall Into the Zero Percent Financing Trap
Chances are that if you’ve ever shopped for a new appliance, furniture set, the latest cell phone, or just about any major purchase of more than $1,000, you might have been offered the opportunity to finance it with a 0% APR. These types of deals can be very tempting since they quickly reduce a large... Continue Reading →
What’s a Good Investment Rate of Return?
We’ve all heard the stories of investors who’ve doubled, tripled, or even 10X their money. However, incredibly high rates of return are nearly always coupled with uncomfortable levels of risk and the prospect of losing every dollar invested. Unfortunately for many people, chasing after fantastic returns like these results in little more than gambling. But... Continue Reading →
12 Purchases That Will Save You Money In the Long Run
When your washing machine breaks or something in your house needs to be fixed, your first intuition may be to go with the cheapest replacement or solution possible. However, this could be a “penny wise, pound foolish” approach depending on the situation. Whether it's the vehicle you drive or a new household gadget, it’s true... Continue Reading →
Why 529 Savings Plans Are About to Get Better
Are you using a 529 savings plan to help fund your children’s future higher education expenses? According to the Education Data Initiative, only about 30 percent of households are currently utilizing these accounts. This relatively low participation rate may be due to a variety of reasons - one of them most likely being the fees... Continue Reading →
Should You Buy Gold from Costco?
Costco, the $250 billion wholesaler where families can buy everything from bulk food items to discounted gas now has another product that it would like to sell you: gold! Yes, as of October 2023, Costco has started offering one-ounce 24-karat gold bars to members exclusively through its online platform. And the crazy part - every... Continue Reading →
What Is An Assumable Mortgage?
Is it still possible to find a mortgage with an interest rate as low as 3%? With APRs creeping into the 7 and 8 percent territory for new conventional loans, unless you bought a house before 2022 then that ship has sailed. However, you may be surprised to learn that there’s a special arrangement where... Continue Reading →
When Is the Best Time to Invest?
If you’ve got money to invest or are planning on starting a retirement account, does it make sense to wait for a “good time” to invest? After all, we’ve all heard that iconic investing mantra, “Buy low and sell high.” So it stands to reason that there must be better opportunities than others to buy... Continue Reading →
Free Weekly Credit Reports Are Here to Stay
For the past few decades, consumers have been somewhat limited as to how often they can see what's in their credit history. As a matter of fact, it wasn't until the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003 that you could actually request a credit report for free from each of the three major... Continue Reading →