Personal Finance Advice

I recently wrote about services that we never would have purchased forty years ago but which now are commonplace expenditures. Indeed, I suggested (or at least implied) that there was no real reason to ever use services such as a lawn service because most domestic services we could and should handle on our own. I [...]

People frequently ask me why I’m so committed to living without debt. Am I debt phobic? Afraid of bankruptcy? Am I afraid that I’ll get in over my head? Am I just out of touch with “the way people do things these days?” I always answer no to all of these questions. The reason I [...]

A lot of people are realizing that a life without debt is both liberating and safe. It’s something that more and more people are striving for. The problem is, many people who would like to live a life without debt have no idea what that sort of life looks like. They have spent so many [...]

Do you ever stop to consider all of the papers that you receive in the course of your daily life, but which you do not stop to read? Do you read the warranties on every product you purchase and the terms and conditions on every website that you visit? Do you even bother to read [...]

Part of what has gotten the economy into such a mess is the belief that everyone should be a homeowner. Everyone from the government, to the mortgage brokers, to the banks, to the realtors and the homebuilders thinks that everyone in this country has the “right” and “duty” to own their own home. “It’s the [...]

When you move into a new apartment, you will undoubtedly need or want some items that you didn’t have in your previous apartment. Every apartment has a different layout, different windows, different amounts of storage space, and other subtleties that can invoke the desire to buy something that solves a problem-whether it’s a new couch [...]

The business section of the Denver Post included a bit about Fannie Mae signing interim rental contracts with tenants of properties their landlords couldn’t pay for. What does this tell me? A renter doesn’t know the financial position of their landlords. It used to be that was a just fine arrangement, but maybe it is [...]

Generally, I don’t do New Year’s resolutions. I tend to decide to do things throughout the year and then just get on with them. New Year’s resolutions come with to much pressure and they’ve always seemed forced to me. So I tend to avoid them. But this year is different. I have one New Year’s [...]

You’ve already heard that owning a home can be a great way to build wealth and financial security and that there’s this mysterious thing called “pride of ownership” that makes it enjoyable to mow your lawn even when it’s 100 degrees outside. But the seemingly small benefits of living in a house that’s all yours [...]

Whether your furnace is broken or you’re just looking to save a buck, you might be surprised at how well you can get along without heat. Here are some simple and inexpensive ways to make cold days and nights more comfortable without touching the thermostat. Wear layers: I’m not just talking about wearing a long-sleeved [...]

In my neighborhood, all of the houses have two car garages. What amazes me is how few people use their garages for their intended purpose. When I go out for a run, I see so many garage doors open and the garages are full of stuff, not cars. There is barely room to walk in [...]

My father and I own a duplex. As the landlords for our small piece of property, we have seen plenty of tenants come and go in our college town. Most have been great. A few were not. In our experience, we’ve found that some behaviors can almost guarantee that your deposit will be history. For [...]

I tend to be a bit bullheaded at times. Well, maybe more than a bit, but just because everyone else is doing something doesn’t mean it’s the best thing to do. This is my opinion from my own experience and I suggest you do your own research to find out what works best for you [...]

There is a famous quote that says that money is the root of all evil. I think that statement is wrong. I think that the envy of money is the root of all evil. How can money be evil? Money is an inanimate object, and as such, is incapable of any action at all, let [...]

I was chatting with a neighbor the other day and he mentioned that he is having the entry to his home renovated. I was surprised, since his home is relatively new and, I think, quite nice. He laughed and said that his house does not have “foyer appeal” and that he wants it to be [...]

It has been unseasonably cold in Orlando for the past couple of weeks. Nights have dropped into the thirties and days have rarely made it past 75 degrees. While that may seem balmy to anyone living north of Florida, trust me when I tell you that I am not used to this kind of cold [...]

My driveway is in serious need of pressure washing. The need is so serious that my homeowners association has sent me a nasty-gram telling me that if I do not pressure wash the driveway by tomorrow, the association will refer the matter to its attorneys. Yikes. I have no desire to have to deal with [...]

The palm trees in my front yard are in need of trimming. I can trim the shortest of the three trees, but the other two trees are about 35 feet tall – about 10 feet taller than my courage will allow me to climb with a saw in my hand. My trees will continue to [...]

As my father says, “When you own a home, there is always something to do.” I might add that there is always something to spend money on too. In fact, when money is tight, it’s often home maintenance that suffers. Most people have at least half their wealth tied up in their home. Some of [...]

Is this a recession or opportunity knocking? I’ve seen this question posed all over the media. A lot of the articles are aimed at higher income execs who work the stock markets. But I’m beginning to see front porch lights coming on in businesses everywhere. Yes, we’re all still feeling the pinch of high unemployment [...]