Saving Money Is The Key To Financial Success
Preparing for the future is more important than ever as you can no longer rely on the money you will receive from Social Security when you turn 65. Most people put the future in the back of their mind and live simply for today. If they don’t have the money to purchase some coveted item, [...]
529 College Savings Plans For the Win
While we don’t have any children of our own yet, we do have several young nieces and nephews. We all live close enough together that every time one of them has a birthday, the whole family gets together for the birthday party.
For us, it usually means rushing out at the last minute to find [...]
Lowering My Broadband Bill
When we moved into our house, we signed up for high speed internet with a promotion for $29.99/month for 6 months. That 6 months expired a couple of months ago and since then we have been paying the regular price of over $50/month.
You don’t have to read too many personal finance blogs to find [...]
Do You Need an Emergency Fund?
We typically hear that everyone should have an emergency fund equal to three to six months (or more) worth of basic living expenses. But, do you really need such an emergency fund? I’m not sure you do.
Emergency funds give you something to fall back on if you become ill or disabled and can’t work, if [...]
Top Myths of Social Security
“Social Security is a real problem and we need to fix it and that involves pain” says Jeffrey Brown. Brown, an assistant professor of finance at the University of Illinois College of Commerce and Business Administration, says Republicans and Democrats are both guilty of exaggeration when debating Social Security reform and American citizens are [...]
I Bond Rates
The big news as of late is the new I bond rates. With the current fixed rate of 1.2%, I bonds bought between now and the end of the October will pay 4.8% for the first 6 months, and then 6.92%(!) for the next 6 months. The question, then, for those of you considering [...]
If Savers Are Losers…. We’re Winning.
The latest report of the Bureau of Economic Analysis shows that in August, just as it was in July, the personal savings rate in this country dipped below zero. That’s worse than simply not saving. It means that, on average, we’re spending more than we are earning. Personal saving was a negative $61.8 billion [...]
