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 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 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 [...]
Which Debt to Pay First When Improving Personal Finances
Which debt to pay first when improving personal finances. Which debts to pay down first to improve your credit score and start building your savings. Q: I am "getting back on my feet" financially and would like to know how I should continue to improve my personal finances. Is it better to prepay my mortgage, [...]
How Much Should I Spend on a Valentine’s Day Gift?
How much should I spend on a Valentine’s Day gift? Here are the best DIY Valentine’s Day gift ideas that show you care but won’t break the bank. Love is in the air and so are the sweet scents of chocolates and roses! And, who wouldn’t like either as a Valentine’s Day gift? Valentine’s Day [...]
Buyers Remorse: Is It a Bargain or a Bad Idea?
Buyer’s Remorse: Is it a bargain or a bad idea? Sponsored posts from influencers and ads in social media streams motivate Americans to buy into the hype. It’s the time of year when cash and credit fly around freely. But, it’s also the season of buyers remorse. It probably won’t surprise you to learn that [...]
7 Quick and Easy Ways to Save More Money in 1 Hour
Everyone could use some money help, but it seems like there’s never enough time to get started. But what if you could save more money each month and learn how to budget in just one hour? In honor of Money Smart Week, I’ve compiled 7 quick and easy ways to save more money in just [...]
Renting an Apartment on a Budget
Finding the right apartment to rent is tough enough. Renting an apartment on a budget is even tougher. Between the application fees, moving fees and stress of finding the right apartment (in the right neighborhood and at the right price), the best thing you can do is carefully figure out how much you can afford [...]
Holiday Spending Sends Financial Stress Soaring
Even though you haven’t set the Thanksgiving table, some consumers are already stressing about how much money they’ll spend this holiday season. According to a new survey from Experian, holiday spending is expected to go through the roof – along with consumers’ financial stress levels. The survey found that most stress comes from unexpected expenses consumers [...]
Tips for Keeping Your Taxes Organized All Year Round
Often, the most frustrating part of preparing your taxes is searching for the information you need—and that process can make tax time much more stressful than it needs to be. Trying to track down all of your forms by the April 15 deadline is enough to drive anyone crazy. On top of the added stress, [...]
Retirement Tips for the Self-Employed
When you are working for yourself, you may not have a human resources person or retirement specialist working for the company with which you are employed to help guide you through your retirement options. You may have to rely on yourself. As a self-employed individual, you have many of the same tax-deferred options as employees [...]