Articles on Personal Finance

Dealing with Nasty Debt Collectors

You may (or may not) be delinquent with a debt payment, but debt collectors don’t have carte blanche with regards to how they can hustle the money from you. Some can be rude, make

Search Online for a Fix before You Toss that Broken Gadget

My husband and I often search online for fixes to our electronics problems because if a gadget is out of warranty it often costs quite a bit to get it fixed. When we find a soluti

Taxes on irregular income

This is really a non-issue, if you work a regular job:  Your employer withholds taxes.  It's also not much of an issue if you're self-employed and your income is reasonably

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

What's the Best Way to Get out of Debt?

Debt is the hottest topic on personal finance blogs around the world. Why? I would venture to guess it is because so many people are drowning in it

Left a job? Do a rollover.

I saw this poster on the window of a store-front brokerage firm office near the grocery store.  Although the firm in question has an obvious self-interest in getting you to consoli

How To Read an Annual Report

If you're like most investors, those bulky annual reports that arrive on your doorstep are a waste of time and resources. If you want to get the most out of your annual reports,

If you're so smart, why aren't you rich?

You don't hear it much any more, but for a long time, "If you're so smart, why aren't you rich" was a pretty effective line for the average Joe when dealing w

You must file a tax return to get economic stimulus tax rebate

Surely by now everyone has heard of the economic stimulus tax rebate. To get it, though, you have to file a return.

Would you end your marriage for $100,000?

How about $200k? Or $500k? Well, I guess it all depends on the state of your marriage, but the bigger question is this: what would you do for money? I ask because I’m getting a lit

Could Your City Go Bankrupt?

I never knew that cities in America could file for bankruptcy until recently a Northern California city named Vallejo made the news for being on the edge of bankruptcy. So how doe

Rebuilding After A Disaster: Create A Home Inventory Now

It seems like, every other week, there is some natural disaster threatening people’s homes. Worrying about that sort of thing has lead me to be a little more prepared than I might

Retirement on the installment plan

Among the fraction of the population who manage to put money aside, many view their investments through the lens of retirement.  They've got a number in mind--call it $X--enoug

7 Reasons To Take The Bus

Low cost airlines are finally taking hold in the United States, offering a greater range of route options and discounts. At the same time, concerns over security, environmental imp

So You Want to be a Landlord? Part II: How Do You Actually Make Money?

The truth is that rents sometimes do not cover the monthly costs of owning the rental home, so how is it that these real estate gurus make their money? A lot of people think that i

Do You Always Keep the Money You Find?

I am pretty short so I am close to the ground, and oftentimes I spot a coin or two and keep it. However, there are times when we find larger sums of money laying on the ground. W

New $5 bill starts circulating today

The new $5 enters circulation today with a ceremonial "first spend" at the gift shop of President Lincoln’s Cottage at the Soldiers’ Home in Washington, D.

Your equity was always imaginary

You used to hear the term "land rich, cash poor" for people who owned valuable land but didn't have quite enough money to make ends meet.  It's an expression that

How to get your car stolen

Every 26.4 seconds, a vehicle is stolen in the U.S.* If you want yours to be one of those vehicles, just follow these simple guidelines and the thief will be driving away in your n

90% off is not a deal if you don’t need it.

I found myself in a strange battle of wills last week. My favorite store, Target, was having another one of those spectacular sales. Red tags featuring the 75% off, and the rare 90