Personal Finance Blog, Your Guide to Financial Fitness
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Kira Botkin
If you’ve recently filed your taxes and were expecting a nice fat refund check, you may be shocked if you check the tax refund status and discover that it’s no longer coming.
Believe it or not, there are several situations in which the IRS can rightfully seize your refund. Therefore, before crying foul and blaming the government for making a terrible mistake, consider whether any of the numerous reasons for tax refund seizure could apply to you.
Michele Lerner
The best way to ensure that you build wealth and avoid debt is to diligently plan and save as much money as possible for both future needs and desires. However, exactly how you handle your savings can depend greatly upon your financial habits. Some financial experts recommend setting up a simple savings account tied to your checking account, while others advocate opening multiple accounts to be used for various savings targets.
There are pros and cons to each approach. Of course, a major part of your final decision depends on your financial personality.
Michele Lerner
These days, drivers keep their cars longer than ever, as the average age of the 240.5 million cars and light trucks in the U.S. is almost 11 years. And since that’s an average, you can assume there are plenty of cars older than that riding down American highways.
A car that lasts for years is great, but the older it gets, the more likely it is to face mechanical trouble. The Toyota Tercel I drove for more than a decade regularly racked up repair bills of up to $900 until I finally realized I could save more money by simply buying a new car. Financially savvy owners with deep savings accounts and emergency funds are prepared for unexpected problems, but those of us who haven’t thought ahead can quickly wind up stuck with significant bills.
Michele Lerner
Many home buyers fall in love with their house, sometimes at first sight. However, it is important to be careful when you open up your heart – otherwise, you may get trapped in a money pit. Your first step to avoid falling into that trap is to complete a thorough home inspection with a reputable, licensed inspector. Once this is done, take your investigation a step further by requesting a comprehensive loss underwriting exchange (C.L.U.E.) report from the sellers.
Jacqueline Curtis
Okay, I’ll admit it: I’m addicted to magazines. I love mindless entertainment to decompress from my day – grab a magazine, flick on “The Bachelor,” and my night is pretty much set.
But unfortunately, magazines aren’t necessarily cheap, and the cost of one or two subscriptions can really add up. And while you might be tempted at the supermarket checkout to grab a pack of gum and the latest issue of “Vogue,” you shouldn’t ever pay newsstand prices for magazines. A typical magazine costs around $3.99 – if you’re grabbing one per week, you could spend well over $200 per year.
Michael Lewis
The words of Saint Paul to Timothy in the Christian Bible have resonated throughout the ages: “For the love of money is the root of all evil.” Therefore, it should come as no surprise that the Federal Reserve System (otherwise known as the “Fed”), the mother of all money in the United States, has been publicly reviled since its formation in 1913.
Charles A. Lindbergh, Sr., father of the famed aviator, claimed that “This [legislation] establishes the most gigantic trust on Earth…the worst legislative crime of the ages is perpetrated by this banking and currency bill.” Henry Cabot Lodge, Sr. said the Federal Reserve Act “seems to me to open the way to a vast inflation of the currency,” a consequence abhorrent to anyone with significant wealth that would be devalued as a result.
Money Crashers
It seems as though more and more horror stories involving debt collection agencies pop up every day, and recently, one of the worst occurred in Texas. According to Blake Ellis’s recent CNN Money article, Debt Collection Horror Stories, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) closed down a Houston-based debt collector for using deceptive measures to force people to fork over their payday loans.
Other abusive allegations of agencies include constantly calling debtors, claiming they will put the consumer in jail, threatening to take away children, promising to hurt pets, and even threatening to dig up dead bodies.
Michael Lewis
Do you find it hard to make ends meet these days? You are not alone. For millions of workers, wages and disposable personal income have flat-lined or fallen during the last decade. According to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, median income for working-age households (headed by someone under the age of 65) slid from $62,541 in 2000 to $55,640 in 2011, a 12.4% decline. While wages have been stagnant, the prices of everything from healthcare to housing has risen dramatically above the rate of inflation, leaving almost half of Americans living paycheck to paycheck.
Jacqueline Curtis
It can be a challenge to keep the costs of bridal shower decor within reason. However, considering that you may spend a fortune on the bridal shower menu, it is also very important. Unfortunately, cliché cutouts, paper wedding bells, and other cheap, plain decorations can take an otherwise perfect shower and turn it into something that even the most tolerant bride could dislike.
Sure, fresh-cut flowers and a champagne fountain could really brighten up the room, but you don’t need to spend big for classy, quality ornamentation. Homemade and from-the-heart adornments can pack a big punch while being easy on the bank account. The bride never has to know that you skimped on spending, because everything is going to look perfect.
Jacqueline Curtis
What do sites like ideeli, Gilt, HauteLook, Fab, and NoMoreRack all have in common?
In addition to offering great deals, they’re all considered “flash sale” sites, which are often confused with group shopping sites such as Groupon and LivingSocial. Flash sale sites represent a new breed of consumerism, offering steep discounts on in-demand items, but with a catch: The sales only last for a few hours.
You might think flash sale sites are all geared toward female shoppers, but you’d be wrong. Fab.com caters to the indie crowd, while DoggyLoot targets pet owners. No matter who you are, chances are there’s a flash sale site for you.
Michael Lewis
Sales of private label brands have exploded in the past half-decade as consumers have done the best they can to get through the economic recession. According to market researcher Packaged Facts, store brands accounted for almost one-third of new food and beverage items introduced in the United States in 2011.
While monetary savings are usually the primary impetus for choosing private label products over national brands, purchasers have discovered that there is little tangible difference between the two categories of products in taste, use, or quality of ingredients. The lack of differentiation and the clear cost advantage of private brands are imposing fundamental changes on the retail industry today, affecting pricing, advertising, merchandising, and product selection.
Jacqueline Curtis
Ah, that fresh new budget smell. You know the one – it’s laced with the good intentions of making a commitment to spend better. You might print it out and stick it to your fridge, or simply vow that you’ll live by it faithfully from now on.
Of course, after the honeymoon period, there’s a slip-up. Not a big one, but something that makes the importance of your budget diminish just a little. Over time, it slips your mind more and more, until soon, that well-intentioned budget is completely forgotten because it was just too hard to stick to.
Michael Lewis
At some point in your life, you have likely heard the phrase, “You can’t go home again.” However, as popular as the saying may be, it’s entirely wrong: Millions of young adults are moving back home to live with their parents, sometimes with children of their own.
Susan Borowski
During flu season, if people start coughing and sneezing around you, it might be wise to run. Those viruses are equal-opportunity invaders, and any nearby host will do.
However, as you know, it’s not possible to barricade yourself within a germ-free fortress when the cold and flu season comes around. Although it may seem like getting sick is inevitable every winter, there are several ways you can strengthen your defenses and minimize the chances of coming down with an illness.
Jacqueline Curtis
Have you ever wanted to go on a date with your spouse but you couldn’t find a good babysitter? I love the summertime because all the teens in my neighborhood are home and ready to work. During the school year, however, it’s a lot more difficult to find someone at the last minute. Furthermore, it can be a drain on the wallet – in many cases, a night out can require $20 or more spent on babysitting before you even get your first appetizer.
