We cover the basics and more about personal finance, answering frequently asked questions about credit and debt, identity theft, saving for college, retirement, estate planning, insurance, taxes, job hunting, and raising money-savvy kids. Check out the articles, columns, blog posts, radio shows and videos for tons of personal finance advice.
What You Should Know About Refinancing Your Mortgage Before Retirement
What you should know about refinancing your mortgage before retirement. Four things to consider when refinancing your mortgage before retirement. We recently received a long comment on one of our questions regarding a homeowner who was deciding whether to refinance their home before retiring. Our correspondent is a mortgage industry veteran of many years and [...]
Does a Quitclaim Deed Override a Will?
Does a quitclaim deed override a will? This reader wants to know which document is used to determine who inherits the property of a friend who passed. Q: My friend filled out a will before she married her last husband. She owned a house and when she married she did a quitclaim deed with her [...]
What Do You Do If You Can’t Afford a New Septic System?
What do you do if you can’t afford a new septic system? These homeowners want to know their options if the town requires a replacement they can’t afford. Q: We found out a couple of months ago that the leach field of our septic system has failed. The field is on our neighbors’ property. It [...]
How Do You Make a Consumer Complaint?
How do you make a consumer complaint? How to file a complaint against a company and the top 10 most common consumer complaints. Who do you complain to when the used car you bought breaks down as soon as you drive it off the lot? Or when the handyman you hired to work on your [...]
What Does Homeowners Insurance Cover?
What does homeowners insurance cover? What typical policies cover and how to adjust premiums and deductibles to get the right coverage for you. Homeowners insurance can shield families from devastating losses if they have the right amount of coverage but it turns out many are unclear what that looks like for their home. Nearly half [...]
How Can I Build My Credit If I Have No Credit?
How can I build my credit if I have no credit? This reader wants to know how to go about buying a car and a home with no credit history. Q: I'm in the process of buying my first car (researching, calculating finances) and I wanted to ask what your advice would be as I [...]
VIDEO: How Can You Help Better Protect Yourself Against Identity Theft?
In a 5-part series, Credit 101, Ilyce Glink, an award-winning personal finance columnist and CEO of the financial wellness platform Best Money Moves, details important information you need to know about your credit reports and scores. Create a myEquifax account (at www.myEquifax.com) to receive six free Equifax credit reports every 12 months. Watch [...]
COVID-19: Unemployment and the Mounting Financial Crisis
COVID-19: unemployment and the mounting financial crisis. Understanding how people live paycheck-to-paycheck and the implications of extended unemployment. Q: In your recent column in the Washington Post, it was stated that “nearly 80 percent of Americans were living paycheck to paycheck before the pandemic…” I want to know how do you define living paycheck-to-paycheck when [...]
How Can You Help Better Protect Yourself Against Identity Theft
How can you help better protect yourself against identity theft? The Coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic has presented new opportunities for identity thieves and other bad actors to use the stress of the current environment to their advantage. With no concern for your financial well-being, thieves can use stolen information to run up balances on credit cards or [...]
COVID-19 Scams: What to Look for in a COVID-19 Scam
COVID-19 scams: what to look for. How scammers are targeting Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic and what to do if you’re a victim of a COVID-19 scam. Update: The types of COVID-19 scams were updated to include a new national unemployment mailing scam on July 30th, 2020. Scammers have been working overtime this year, preying [...]