Millions of Americans have found out this year that they are in dire financial straits and this came as a shock to most. Whether it’s a new variable rate on a mortgage, higher gas prices or just the higher cost of living, many of us are not as financially secure as we would like to [...]

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• The Truth about Credit Cards and Debt pt 1 This is part one in a two part series about credit card debt and where we actually stand as a nation when you consider the pure numbers. You have probably heard figures like "The average American carries more than $8,000 in credit card debt on average." But what does this......
• Basics of Budgeting 2 Tracking Your Expenses Now that you are familiar with how much income money you have coming into your home, it has become time for you to pay attention to the expenses that you have on a monthly basis. You should begin with the regular payments and the fixed payments that......
• Travesty of the Debt Snowball aka Hello World I have a passion for personal finance... I can't get enough...  I read about it, I think about it, and now I write about it. Why does the Internet need another personal finance blog?  All personal finance blogs that I have read vilify debt, demonize it even... While such a stance is......
• Creating a Household Budget With economic times being what they are, even people who have been more casual about their spending are now creating a household budget. A budget should not be seen as a restriction, telling you what you can't spend, but rather as an empowering tool, letting you know what you can......
• How to Invest Now Without a Dime in the Bank If you've ever had a chance to invest in a great stock but didn't have enough money put aside to take advantage of the opportunity, you know too well the agony of defeat. Most of us are under the impression that it takes money in the bank to start investing.......

Continue reading → 6 Steps to Get Back on the Right Financial Track

Larry Winget is a best selling author that is known for his no nonsense style and sometimes brutal prose. His latest book is quite a read and true to form, the man talks tough. However, if you need a wake up call to stop overspending, this is definitely a great place to start. You won’t [...]

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• Hydroponics Hydroponics Seed Starting Gardening Plants Yard, Garden Outdoor Living

• Start Treating Your Finances Like a Bank If you want to start making money, you’ve got to stop looking at your finances like a regular person and start treating your checkbook like you work for the bank. This is the key towards successful management of your finances and will help you grow your current income and create......
• How to Stop Living Paycheck to Paycheck Right now, more than 80% of households in the United States live on a paycheck to paycheck basis. This means that a lost job could result in financial disaster for a large chunk of the population. Once you get into the trap of relying so heavily on one paycheck, it......
• Untapped Riches: Never Pay Off Your Mortgage--and Other Surprising Secrets for Building Wealth by Susan Cutaia, Anthony Cutaia and Robert Slater On the surface, this book seemed like the ideal read. It has a strong premise of how to create multiple streams of income using debt leverage. That is a great premise and one that we follow and put into practice every day. It was such a disappointment that this book......
• Personal Finance Credit Crunch Budgets are unfortunately quite the necessary evil when it comes to managing your own personal credit crunch. Everyone is going through a credit crunch, even those who have relatively healthy credit. The only practical way to keep yourself financially stable in this volatile market is to get a grip on......
• The Quiet Millionaire by Brett Wilder There are so many personal finance books out there and most seem to fall into one of two categories – Get rich insanely quick or get frugal to turn your life around. For those of us that want a more solid and easy to accomplish means of developing a personal......

Continue reading → You’re Broke Because You Want to Be by Larry Winget

In the previous parts of this article we discussed how FICO score can impact your financial status as well as the initial steps that you can take to begin restoring your FICO score. We covered handling collections first since they do have a big impact on your overall score, but there are a few other [...]

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• The Truth about Credit Cards and Debt pt 1 This is part one in a two part series about credit card debt and where we actually stand as a nation when you consider the pure numbers. You have probably heard figures like "The average American carries more than $8,000 in credit card debt on average." But what does this......
• Learning Basic Money Management Skills Whether economics is your idea of a great way to fight insomnia, or you just didn’t get the benefit of learning about money management early on, it is never to late to learn the basic skills of proper money management. We highly recommend taking a brief course on finance if......
• Debt Warning Signs and How to Get Out Over the past decade, an insane amount of debt has been wracked up. Household debt has significantly eaten up a slice of personal income since around the mid 90s. Here are four clues that you are carrying too much debt: Clue 1 - Your debt to income ratio is too......
• 9 Steps for Establishing Credit Credit is the catch all term for the act of lending money. It can take the form of a credit card, in which the lender buys the things you want and you pay them back. Loans are where you have the money given to you with the promise to pay......
• How to Undo The Results of Financial Trauma Whether you’ve lost your home or your job, or your money management skills over the years have left you severely in the hole, it is never to early to start turning things around. You can bounce back from financial trauma, but it will take some effort and dedication on your......

Continue reading → Restore Your FICO Score – Part Three

If you are swimming in a sea of bad debt, keeping your head above water can be incredibly difficult. Thanks to our consumer culture, the availability of credit cards and a general lack of concern for what debt means, many people find that their bad debt is out of control. Luckily, there are a few [...]

• Credit, Charge Cards Trading Cards Collectibles

• Is Consolidation Always the Answer? One of the most important things that you can come to understand regarding your debt and the concept of debt consolidation is this: You absolutely cannot borrow your way out of debt, in order to solve all of your problems. More than 80 percent of all individuals that managed to......
• Learning Basic Money Management Skills Whether economics is your idea of a great way to fight insomnia, or you just didn’t get the benefit of learning about money management early on, it is never to late to learn the basic skills of proper money management. We highly recommend taking a brief course on finance if......
• Don't Close These Credit Cards A lot of people tend to close out their credit card accounts if they get too far into debt with their creditors. Apparently they have some kind of notion that this will make the debt go away, when this could not be further from the truth. Not only is this......
• Where Do Small Businesses Go Now? Credit and money are still in really tight places, and this is absolutely no secret. What is unknown in the current economy is what small businesses should do and where they should go now. Many small businesses are finding themselves struggling and even drowning in an attempt to overcome the......
• Are You Managing Your Debt Correctly? Although debt is a dirty word to many, the fact of the matter is that the vast majority of us are in debt in some way or another. No matter how hard we try, there are times when you simply need something and cannot afford to pay for it straight......

Continue reading → 4 Tips to Getting Bad Debt Under Control

How can money management techniques be applied to my life?
- The first step is to realize that you could possibly have an overspending problem. This is the number one reason why people get over their head financially. You can easily consult with a money management counselor that will help you discover what direction your finances [...]

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• Signs That Your Teen Needs Money Management Help If you teen went off to college tomorrow, how soon would they call you asking for money? Would they be able to purchase their own groceries by the end of the month? Would they end up moving back into your basement when they cannot afford their apartment any longer? The......
• How Much Does Your Money Matter to You? If you were to ask anyone on the street that question, odds are the majority would answer, “very much.” However, these same people will easily turn around and drop a small fortune on something without a second thought as to how it would return to them. Before you get started......
• Ruin Your Credit Fast, pt1 Granted, there are a wide variety of different ways that you can ruin your credit over time, but do you want to know what the quickest and most dangerous ways are? Here are five ways that you can quickly and effectively destroy your credit. 1 - Break your budget. Sure......
• How to Keep Your Money Safe As some of the biggest and most respected banks in the world look as though they may be crumbling, consumers are wondering in greater numbers just how safe their finances are. In times of economic uncertainty, there are no real guarantees, but there are a few things that you can......
• The Total Money Makeover By Dave Ramsey Dave Ramsey is a popular radio talk show host and author and his latest book, The Total Money Makeover has generated quite a bit of excitement. He claims that money management is 80% behavior and 20% knowledge, and there is a lot of truth to that. While the book covers......

Continue reading → Money Management Questions and Answers

The last recession that our country experienced was, in truth, a mild one. The stock market and many corporate profits began to tank, but consumer spending seemed to dance merrily on through the recession without as much as a scratch. Consumer spending has long been the major engine driving the entire United States economy, which [...]

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• What is Debt Leverage? Leverage is a term that is often used synonymously with debt, and for this reason, it is important that people come to understand what debt leveraging actually means, and how it works in an ordinary financial transaction, such as buying a home for example. Let us suppose that you are......
• Protecting Your Investments In Times of Economic Crisis The United States economy is currently experiencing a serious financial shake up. No one really understands just how deep or how far reaching the damage is going to be, but what we do know is that there is going to be damage, and that we are going to be at......
• Do You Have What it Takes to Be a Millionaire? Every year, thousands of people become millionaires, while hundreds of thousands struggle to make ends meet. What is the difference between the two groups? In many cases, it comes down to whether or not you have what it takes to be a millionaire. While this may seem like oversimplification, there......
• Loans and the Credit Crunch The credit crunch is a hot button issue right now, raising red flags in the eyes of consumers not only all over the United States, but also elsewhere in the world. When the economy in the United States begins to have difficulties, the rest of the world is going to......
• Resisting Panic: A Quick Guide to Surviving The Credit Crunch A few years ago if you referenced the term "credit crunch", most people would be puzzled. Today barely a single day can pass without the phrase seeing consistent if not constant use in the newspapers and on television. The credit crunch is a crisis that is affecting numerous financial institutions......

Continue reading → Debt and the Credit Crisis

A lot of people tend to close out their credit card accounts if they get too far into debt with their creditors. Apparently they have some kind of notion that this will make the debt go away, when this could not be further from the truth. Not only is this completely wrong, but the closing [...]

• New Balance Womens Shoes
• Credit, Charge Cards Trading Cards Collectibles

• 4 Tips to Getting Bad Debt Under Control If you are swimming in a sea of bad debt, keeping your head above water can be incredibly difficult. Thanks to our consumer culture, the availability of credit cards and a general lack of concern for what debt means, many people find that their bad debt is out of control.......
• The Truth about Credit Cards and Debt pt 1 This is part one in a two part series about credit card debt and where we actually stand as a nation when you consider the pure numbers. You have probably heard figures like "The average American carries more than $8,000 in credit card debt on average." But what does this......
• Where Do Small Businesses Go Now? Credit and money are still in really tight places, and this is absolutely no secret. What is unknown in the current economy is what small businesses should do and where they should go now. Many small businesses are finding themselves struggling and even drowning in an attempt to overcome the......
• The Dos and Donts of Credit Scores Pt 2 In an earlier post we talked about the Do's for good credit, so now it's time to consider the Don'ts! A credit score is a really important indicator on how likely you will be to default on a credit card or a loan. Your credit score is determined by a......
• 9 Warning Signs That You Have TOO MUCH Debt! When it comes to accruing debt, it is really and truly tough for people to face the cold hard fact that they are in way over their head. It's much easier for you to turn things around when you are aware of what the signs are for too much debt,......

Continue reading → Don’t Close These Credit Cards

This is part 2 of a 4 part series on getting out of debt quickly. Make sure that you read all four parts in order to get the most out of this sequence of hints on getting yourself or your family out of the debt trap.
Next you are going to want to try to consolidate [...]

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• Getting Motivated to Organize Your Finances For many people, the first steps towards getting your finances under control are the hardest. Whether you didn’t spend enough time learning about basic personal finance principles when you were younger, or life happened and you’re now at the bottom of a very large problem, it can be difficult to......
• The Meaning of a Credit Score I do not suppose you know what your credit score means do you? Do you really? I think you might want to take another moment to think good and hard on that, because in September of 2004, the Consumer Federation of America reported that of one thousand Americans they surveyed,......
• These Things are Hurting your Credit Score A person's credit score has become very important in this day and age. Your score is what creditors and lenders look at to quickly decide if you are a good or bad risk to lend credit to. It is important that you learn what types of actions hurt your score......
• 3 Reasons Why Paying With Cash Hurts You in the Long Term Many of us have been conditioned to think that living debt free is the only way to be. While there is some truth in this statement, if you’re completely debt free and using only cash, you’re hurting your chances of getting a new home, and you may end up in......
• Paying off Debt in 9 Steps pt 2 Part two in the series on paying off debt: Throwing away your bills and shredding your credit card payment reminders simply is not going to make the problem go away. Debt is going to hover over you until you find a way to deal with it. Interest will continue to......

Continue reading → Getting Out of Debt Quickly pt 2

Are you saving your money for a rainy day, but feeling as if you are always struggling to get ahead of the financial storm? You are certainly not alone. Prepare your financial umbrella with this quick, no nonsense guide to saving money in five minutes.
- * First and foremost, stop making excuses because no [...]

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• Teach Your Kids about Money Management It is never too early to teach your children the basics when it comes to good money management. Teaching your children good habits is always wise, and money management is definitely a set of good habits that is better taught sooner instead of later. If you teach your children how......
• Using Credit Cards to Make More Money When it comes to credit cards, most of us think of them as a way to get things we really want right now. We may not actually "need" these things, but we sure do want them. Whether it's a new couch, a new stereo or even a new wardrobe, we......
• Save Time, Money and Space in Over 80 Ways If you're looking for handy gadgets, tools and various items that can save you time, money or space (or all three!) this list of more than 80 top products is just what you need. Everyone's got saving money on their minds these days. Some of us are always looking to......
• Saving Money with Your Credit Cards pt 1 When it comes to personal budgeting, we tend to try to think of ways that we can cut corners while cutting down on any frivolous expenses in our lives. What many people are not apparently aware of however is that you can actually make use of credit cards to help......
• Getting Out of Debt 102 Debt Elimination Step #2 - Next, you have to be able to establish an emergency fund. The step of establishing an emergency fund is going to take as many as several months longer, but it is well worth it when you see how far your savings have come in the......

Continue reading → Saving Money in Five Minutes Flat

Paying for college for yourself or for a child can drop you into debt faster than many other things. Aside from huge disasters like medical emergencies or a home fire, more people get into higher debt by paying for college than any other reason.

The best advice for long term financial health is to avoid paying [...]

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• How to Find Financial Stability in Unstable Markets Right now, the only news about the economy seems to be bad news, and it may take a few months if not years to improve. The dollar is weak, oil prices are still up and the cost of living has skyrocketed this year. These are unstable times, but that doesn’t......
• Getting Out of Debt 102 Debt Elimination Step #2 - Next, you have to be able to establish an emergency fund. The step of establishing an emergency fund is going to take as many as several months longer, but it is well worth it when you see how far your savings have come in the......
• Getting Out of Debt Quickly pt 3 This is part 3 of a 4 part series on getting out of debt quickly. Make sure that you read all four parts in order to get the most out of this sequence of hints on getting yourself or your family out of the debt trap. Make sure that you......
• Sunday Money Madness Welcome to a new edition of the Sunday Money Madness roundup. I hope you enjoy this light bit of weekend reading. Debt | Debt Leveraging: Cash Money Life presents 10 Ways to Pay Your Debt Off Faster. College Loans: Not Always Good Debt at National Payday explains. What do you......
• Is Consolidation Always the Answer? One of the most important things that you can come to understand regarding your debt and the concept of debt consolidation is this: You absolutely cannot borrow your way out of debt, in order to solve all of your problems. More than 80 percent of all individuals that managed to......

Continue reading → Should You Pay for Your Child’s College Education?