Being a firefighter, police officer, or any other public safety position can make you much more susceptible to experiencing financial stress and failure. Over all the years since I started helping people with debt in 1994, I’ve helped many involved in public safety. They’ve had similar but distinct struggles. One of my past clients told …
Interest rates, as the tv hucksters constantly remind us, are near historic lows. So now is an excellent time to refinance your mortgage–maybe take out some equity to upgrade the bathrooms, take a little vacation, or purchase a home entertainment center. Or maybe it’s time to buy a new vehicle–perhaps a premium class crew-cab pickup, …
Most people dream of the day that they clock in to work for the very last time.In most cases, we imagine that’ll be when we’re a little grayer around the ears, but what if you could take the freedom and independence of retirement and experience it, say, thirty years earlier? That’s the basic principle of …
Having roommates can be a great way to reduce your monthly living expenses. It can also mean living in a bigger apartment or a nicer area than you could otherwise afford. But negotiating finances with friends (or strangers) also comes with potential pitfalls, especially if you have roommates who don’t always pay what they owe, …
If you’ve been watching this year’s tech stock rollercoaster with an odd sense of déjà vu, you’re not alone. Members of the market-watching media have noted the strong parallels between today’s tech sector and what went down when the dot-com bubble burst back in 2000. And those similarities—rising stock valuations, an increase in initial public …
Whether you got a nice bonus at work, an unexpected inheritance, or sold something of value, coming into some extra cash can be an awesome thing. However, it also means you have a decision to make–what to do with that money? Before you start spending it, you might want to take a moment to come …
Everyone has different needs, responsibilities, and spending and saving habits. Still, you may wonder how your spending lines up with everyone else’s. Or, if you’re in the process of creating a monthly budget, you may be looking to see roughly how much of your take-home income you should be setting aside for various living expenses. …
As anyone who has ever watched their bank account balance decline after paying bills knows, owing money is no fun. But debt often serves an important function in people’s lives, putting things that can cost tens of thousands of dollars or more—a college degree, a starter home—within reach. Such cases aren’t quite the same as …
It can be exciting to get your first paycheck, but it can sometimes be a little bit disappointing when you find out exactly how much you are taking home. Looking more closely at your paystub or direct deposit slip, you’ll see several line items that are called “deductions.” Deductions are all of the things that …
New babies bring so much to life—unconditional love, the joys of parenthood, snuggles, and a lifetime of new memories. But they also bring an entirely new set of responsibilities, lifestyle adjustments for their parents, and a swift and immediate knowledge on new topics like diapers (and their contents). And it’s true that every new parent’s …