Money Tips Network

Full disclosure, folks — I’m a worrier. What’s been keeping me up at night lately? Unchecked financial optimism. The Great Recession ended nine years ago and the bull market we’ve been enjoying since can’t go on forever.

What’s inside? Here are the questions answered in today’s reader mailbag, boiled down to summaries of five or fewer words. Click on the number to jump straight down to the question.
1. Investing and DACA
2. Skipping Roth contributions
3. Does marriage make sense?
4. Too tired for side gigs
5. Emergency fund size
6. Healthy eating is expensive?
7. Tap Roth IRA balance?
8. Safety in stranger’s advice
9. Three paycheck months?

Americans owe billions of dollars in credit card debt, and the high interest rates that come with it can lead to a debt spiral that is very challenging to overcome.

Millennials, having lived through the financial crisis and other economic downturns, appear to be more wary of credit cards than...

Packing up the family for a European getaway can easily become the ultimate exercise in patience, resourcefulness, and self-restraint. Europe is one of the more expensive regions for Americans to travel to, and adding kids increases costs even more.

There's no doubt about it: People are living longer and need more money to support their extended life spans. In the U.S.

Do you find yourself scrolling through retail sites when you're stressed? Do you gaze longingly at all the clothes you want to buy? Are you anxious until you get your hands on the latest tech gadget?

If so, those are signs that you may be spending money that you don't have.

Last October, I decided I needed a new challenge. I’ve always been interested in trying new things to save money or improve my health, whether it’s eating an all-potato diet or taking freezing cold showers. So, what would be next?

I took a few minutes to think about what I could try that might boost my energy, save me money, and give me a sense of accomplishment.

Helped along by a pounding hangover that made my brain feel like it was being sauteed in hot oil, I decided to give up alcohol for three months.

I became a casual drinker 10 years ago, and I’d never really stopped. What would happen if I took a prolonged break? I got up, chugged 30 ounces of water, and set about life as a sober person.

When government shutdown looms, it pays for affected employees to be prepared for the worst …

When government shutdown looms, a lot of things hang in the balance.

If the government shuts down, various actions are triggered, including closing of national monuments and museums, suspension of non-essential services, and furlough of many government employees.

Government shuts down, but government reopens

The good news for the affected employees, even after a lapse like this, is that the government has started up again fairly quickly, so the effects of the shutdown are temporary.

Still, though, it's wise to prepare, both mentally and fiscally.

Imagine that tomorrow – or your next day at work – you go into your workplace only to find a pink slip waiting for you. You’re done. Your employer heard some horrible rumor about you, or maybe your organization is downsizing, or maybe you made a big mistake recently and it’s caught up to you. Whatever it is, your job is no longer yours. You have 15 minutes to clean out your desk and half an hour at HR to sign some papers and then you’re out on the street.

What now? What do you do?