Personal Finance Advice

Golf balls end up in some strange places. The woods, the water, people’s yards (or windows), and in swimming pools. All those lost golf balls can mean money for you, if you have the energy and desire to collect them, clean them up, and resell them. There are varying levels of dedication to the craft [...]

When it comes to bettering your life, one of the chief obstacles is breaking out of old habits. It’s often necessary to look at situations from different perspectives. While solutions may look daunting at first, many times the solutions are much easier than they first appear. I love the story of the square watermelon because [...]

You may not think of your morning shower as a great opportunity to save money, but there are a lot of little things you can do to reduce your cost of keeping clean and neat. Even if you’re still half asleep, that doesn’t mean that you want money needlessly running down the drain. Here are [...]

Normally I write about ways to save and make money. It’s a necessary part of life, particularly if you want to live responsibly and well. But today I am reminded that, while money may matter, it is far from the most important thing in life. My area was hit by deadly tornadoes this week. The [...]

April 16 -24 is National Park Week which celebrates and recognizes national and state parks, national monuments, and historic sites in the U.S. All national parks have free entrance this week, so you still have time to visit a national park near you for free this weekend. If you do go, one of the things [...]

Social networking can be a useful communication tool. It can also be an easy way for thieves to guess your passwords. I never really thought about this, but in conversation with an IT guy, it came up that someone has guessed his friends’ username and password for his banking site. The thief proceeded to transfer [...]

If you’ve ever wished that you could get paid to go out on a date, maybe you should sign up at What’s Your Price. This site matches “generous” users with “attractive” people (these are the site’s words, not mine). Generous users are those who are willing to pay for the date, while the attractive people [...]

Lately I’ve been watching TLC’s new show, “Extreme Couponing” which is sort of like watching a train wreck. You know you should look away but you just can’t. The show profiles people who get hundreds or thousands of dollars worth of merchandise for free or close to it, thanks to their use of coupons. This [...]

Dumpster diving can be a great way to both make and save some money. You save money when you find things you can use and you make money when you find things you can sell. Many things that are thrown away are usable. In my time I’ve found a working treadmill, tons of toys, a [...]

If you are unable to complete and file your federal individual tax return by the April 18, 2001 deadline, you can request an extension of time to file. By filing for this extension, you will automatically be given until October 17, 2011 to submit your tax return to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). By filing [...]

Years ago, I was having a conversation with a very wise friend. I was lamenting how it seemed like I was living a small life where nothing very interesting happened. I wasn’t very happy. My friend asked me what my dreams were. I listed some common, expected things like getting a house, advancing at work, [...]

One of the most common complaints I hear from people who are trying to get their finances (or any other aspect of their life) in order is that they don’t have enough time. The thing is, in most cases this is just an excuse. Most people have plenty of time. What many people mean when [...]

When it comes to ways to save on food bills, there are sales, coupons, meal planning, loyalty cards, and eating leftovers. You can also stop eating out and brown bag your lunches. But the best (and least used) way to save money on food is to simply eat less. Why is this strange? Because no [...]

Even though it’s still cool here, I know summer is just around the corner. It’s time to relax and have some fun, but summer can also be an expensive time of year. There are vacations, activities for the kids, lawn care, and air conditioning bills. It’s time to get ready and start thinking about ways [...]

Lately I’ve noticed two things: First, there is an increase in coupon use thanks to the Great Recession. Second, thanks to the increased coupon use there is a more vocal judgement of coupon users on Internet forums and at my local coupon swaps. People are not shy about criticizing others for “eating nothing but junk” [...]

Many people mistakenly believe that caring for a septic tank is expensive. I’ve seen several people refuse to buy houses that they loved because they had septic tanks. There is an illusion (perpetuated by the people who want you to buy chemicals and have your tank pumped) that you have to buy all kinds of [...]