Articles on Personal Finance

Grandpa’s Penny: “If you never spend it, you’ll never be broke!”

With the holiday season upon us, it seems everyone just wants us to buy. Apply my Grandpa's simple principle to avoid drowning in purchases.

AD&D Insurance: No Good, No Bad, Just Ugly

Accidental Death And Dismemberment insurance. Wow – doesn’t that sound just lovely? I mean, at least Life insurance has a euphemistic name (they call it “Li

Product Feedback Is Worth Your Time

Taking time to give quality feedback is an opportunity that can often reap great rewards. Go ahead and let companies know how you feel.

Living within your means isn't nasty

How bad could things get? The New York Times asked that question about the economic situation. It's a good question, but they gave a really bad answer.

The sinking dollar, as viewed from overseas

To someone in the US, the decline in the value of the dollar has mainly made itself felt up to now in the form of increases in the prices of globalized commodities--everything from

Revive Old Toys for Extra Christmas Savings (and Sanity)

It has officially begun. My four-year-old has tuned out the real world in favor of loud Saturday morning commercials advertising the best of mu

Doubling Your Money with the Rule of 72

Did you ever wonder how financial professionals can so quickly mentally calculate how much money you’ll have in 30 years based on an investment return? Seems like magic, huh? Well,

The Dirt on Travel Insurance

In the world of travel insurance, no two policies are the same. Different activities and locales are covered in different ways between insurance companies, and even within the same

When poor folks have better crap than you

Every notice how upset people get, when someone poorer than them has better crap? I'm talking about the guy agonizing over whether to spring for a 32-inch flat screen who find

The Truth about Wealth

Is wealth about money, or having goals, or achieving milestones, or something completely different? Read on for a description of what a wise friend told me wealth might actually b

Why mortgages have eaten Americans out of house and home

What lessons can future homeowners take away from today's "mortgage crisis?"

Interview with AFFIL executive director Jim Campen

Early in the subprime lending collapse, Wise Bread posted a report from Americans for Fairness in Lending explaining how the subprime lending boom hurt everyone. Since it's a

Money Matters: Why All the Secrecy?

As I alluded to in another article, I am amazed at how people will si

Roll your own cost-of-living index

If you have a budget--more specifically, if you track your spending--you have the data you need to track changes in your own personal cost of living. That's a lot more useful

Top 7 Reasons Why I Use My Credit Card for Everything

I charge absolutely everything to my credit card. Everything. Here are the reasons why I am a credit card junkie.

Variable prices, and what economists like about them

From the buyer's point of view, a "market price" is great. This is not only because he or she doesn't have to get a bunch of prices quotes to avoid being cheated

Can you talk to your friends about debt?

Can you talk to your friends about your debt? Can you talk to your friends about their debt?

The Quiet Millionaire: Part 3 - Money for Now, Money for Later

You've figured out how to have positive cash flow (aka spend less than you earn) for now; but will you have enough money for later? Funding for future requirements, such as

Best asset allocation for your portfolio

This is the first Wise Bread post that I've been afraid to write. I've thought about it many times, but haven't even gotten as far as making notes until today, when I

Manage your charitable giving

Are you one of the people who responds to begging letters from national charitable organizations by occasionally sending money? I used to do that. In my case, it was mostly envir