Money Tips Network

It’s been exactly one year since my husband and I purchased our first home. As one might expect, we’ve learned a number of valuable lessons this past year. There are plenty of articles full of useful tips for first-time home buyers. I am not going to repeat them. Instead, I will list the lessons I personally learned that I didn’t find covered anywhere else.

In general, I’m pretty strongly opposed to the idea of leasing a car. In most situations, a car lease is a long-term financial mistake. Compared to a cycle of buying late model used cars and driving them to their replacement point, auto leasing is very expensive.

Still, there are exceptions to every situation. A recent Reader Mailbag question, in which a reader was struggling with a particularly peculiar lease situation, led me to realize that there are, in fact, situations where a lease might make more financial sense than buying a car.

Mostly, these situations revolve around turning elements that might be negatives regarding leases into positives. Note that this is a might – you’ll want to simply take a closer look in these situations and buying is likely to still be better.

Let’s take a look at three of them.

What is the financial value of a hug from one of your children?

You might scoff at this question or think that it’s somehow foolish, but I’m serious. What is a hug from one of your children worth?

Five dollars? Ten dollars? Thousands? Nothing?

It probably has a lot to do with your own internal values. If you relish being a parent, a hug likely has a higher value than if you dislike parenthood. If you had a deep connection to a child when they were young and now they’re older, a hug probably has a premium, too.

Not a parent? A hug from a child may have little value, or none at all.

The challenging part of a question like this is that a hug, like many other things in life, can be given freely with no real cost to the giver. The same is true of a kiss or a kind word or a laugh or some companionship.

Yet, by giving such things, value is received by the recipient and, often, by the giver as well.

The best credit cards generally offer low interest rates, great perks, and no hidden fees. However, that doesn’t mean the “right” card is the same for each person. Because each credit card offer is as different as we are, the best card for your needs depends on your spending habits, credit score, and personal credit goals. Use this post as your guide to match up your needs with the benefits you desire most.

Apply Now
on Chase.com’s secure website

I really enjoy a big gulp of orange juice. That mix of tartness and sweetness across my tongue is just sublime.

I relish the feeling I get from pulling the plastic off of a new board game and popping out all of the pieces. The smell, the sound, and the tactile feeling all bring me joy.

I like the sense of fullness I get after a really delicious meal, where I sit around the table with friends nursing a beverage and having a great conversation.

I love that twinge of pleasure from a scone that’s been dipped in coffee.

These little pleasures are nice things, but they each last for only a moment or two before they drift away.

Although the specifics of that little pleasure are usually forgotten, we implant a little memory in ourselves, one that simply tells us that the experience is a good one and that we want it.

So we seek it out, again and again.

Welcome to Wise Bread's Best Money Tips Roundup! Today we found some amazing articles on financial tips from dad, managing your money in retirement, and financial goals everyone should strive for.

Top 5 Articles

Father Knows Best — Financial Tips From Dad — Did your dad teach you that money can't buy happiness? [MintLife Blog]

9 Steps to Manage Your Money in Retirement — To manage your money in retirement, maintain at least a year of cash and rebalance to stay aligned with your goals. [Free Money Finance]

Them.

It’s easy to blame them.

If it wasn’t for them, I would have a good job. I would have a publishing contract. I would have more money. I would have that promotion.

If it wasn’t for them, I would have the life I dream of.

Here’s the truth: whenever you waste a second of your energy or your thought blaming them for outcomes in your life that you don’t like, you’re spending a second ensuring that things won’t get better for you.

No matter what, there are always going to be other people that affect our outcomes in life. Bosses. Doctors. Interviewers. Lawyers. Politicians. Salespeople. Marketers. Friends. Family.

Sometimes, their impact is going to be positive. Sometimes, it is going to be negative. There’s nothing you can do about that.

Do you wince when you open up your monthly credit card statement? Do you look at the savings in your bank account at the end of the month and wonder where all of your money went? You're not alone. A 2013 study by FINRA Investor Education Foundation found that 41% of people spend less than they earn, 36% spend as much as they earn, and 19% spend more than they earn.

If you find yourself living beyond your means (or close to them), here is a daily practice that you can employ to get your spending under control: Write it down.

Money magazine asked its readers over 50 what is the most effective way to build wealth. The results: