Hot Today

Wise Bread articles that are hot today.

Why Women Don't Negotiate

Women aren't as good as men at negotiating salaries, and that costs us. But there's a reason for it, and it's not just because we're scared to ask.

Will high inflation persist?

Every financial calculation that you make is influenced by your expectations for future inflation: how much to borrow, where to put your savings, and whether your last raise was a

College Financial Aid Options

By understanding the different types of financial aid available to college students, parents and students can determine the best types of aid for their situation.

Simple Living Through Capital

There are a lot of ways to live simply. My personal favorite is living simply through capital — and it's easier to do than you might expect.

Give it a REST!

So you've heard of a sleep debt. [more]

Working While You Wait

The bad thing about being unemployed during a period of high unemployment, besides the obvious of being jobless, is that the competition can be unusually fierce. Though I encourage

Spring into Cleaning Now

Trade your annual spring cleaning for deep-cleaning individual rooms more frequently to save time, lessen allergies, and keep your house looking great.

Travel on Amtrak

With each move by the airlines to claw back a bit of the profit that has vanished into the twin maws of competition and higher fuel prices, and with each move by the government to

The Best (Inexpensive) Souvenirs

As a rule, we don’t buy souvenirs for their usefulness. A t-shirt from the Hard Rock Café or a shell sculpture from Hawaii isn’t going to increase your productivity — in fact, dust

Me too, Secretary Paulson!

Dear Secretary Paulson: I've looked over the fact sheet on the proposal to give the Treasury the authority to purchase "troubled assets," and although I have some doubts about th

What Is Life Insurance?

Life insurance is a way to protect your family should the unthinkable happen to you. Jeff Rose, CFP, explains how life insurance works.

Calculating the Cost of College

One of the hardest parts of saving for your child's college expenses is calculating just what those expenses will total. Here are some ideas to get a better financial picture of th

47 Cheap, Fun Things to Do This Weekend

When lazy-day boredom sets in, it's time to get creative. Here are 47 ideas to get you started on a fun and frugal weekend.

Emergency belt-tightening

Typical personal finance advice would have you divide your budget categories into two groups: Your fixed expenses and your discretionary expenses. I generally don't like that dis

Software review: TurboTax

I wasn't looking forward to doing my taxes this year.  They were going to be more complicated than in years past, because I left my regular job and started working full-time as

Job Hunting Resources

The job search process is never easy, but there are ways to improve your chances of landing a job.

Book review: Supercapitalism

For most of the 20th century, capitalism and democracy seemed to go hand-in-hand. After all, every democratic country was largely capitalist and nearly every capitalist country wa

Choosing a Luxury Eccentricity

A useful tactic for dealing with those who think you need to spend more, a luxury eccentricity helps deflect criticism while allowing you to indulge.

Fixing the foreclosure crisis

Because homeowners are also voters, and because the subprime lending crisis threatens the whole economy, the federal government is trying to come up with ways to head off a massive

Downsizing With Kids

Downsizing is happening all over the place these days. Here's some ideas to help you do more with less.