Personal Finance Advice

A lot of frugal people have stashes and stockpiles of items that they are keeping for use “someday.” These may be retail items acquired for free (think free samples and toiletries acquired through couponing or rewards programs). Other items frugal people keep are things like spare parts, extra hardware, magazines with useful articles or tips, [...]

Here’s a case study to think about: A member of my family has large retirement funds and savings accounts, a good income, no mortgage, and no other debt. She does not buy the top of the line in anything and is as frugal as they come. She buys very little that isn’t necessary and gets [...]

Weekend reading is a round-up of personal finance and money related stories that caught the eye of our forum members this week: Circuit City to liquidate remaining U.S. stores Congress considers ‘cash for clunkers’ proposal This is why you continue to get those Nigerian scam emails Chef Amanda Freitag Tries To Prep Family-Friendly Dinner On [...]

Weekend reading is a round-up of personal finance and money related stories that caught the eye of our forum members this week: WSJ Tries Blaming Economic Woes on People Being Frugal Porn industry seeks federal bailout If You Don’t Need It, It’s Not A Bargain At All Lenders digging up more than your credit score [...]

Weekend reading is a round-up of personal finance and money related stories that caught the eye of our forum members this week: How we went from $42,000 to $6,500 and lived to tell about it The difference between a recession and a depression The Worst Financial Predictions About 2008 The Credit Card & College Link [...]

Weekend reading is a round-up of personal finance and money related stories that caught the eye of our forum members this week: Americans’ debt shrinks – 1st time ever Trickledown Downsizing Eight of the market’s sharpest thinkers: The future is frightening Recession Special: Buy one car, get one free Why Bailouts Are Dangerous Buy Short-Term [...]

Weekend reading is a round-up of personal finance and money related stories that caught the eye of our forum members this week: Black Friday 10: Retailers that may not survive until 2009 The Holiday Season Is Already Over For Retailers Drinking tap water can save you $1,400 a year 20 tycoons who have lost billions [...]

Have you poured a half finished glass of orange juice back into the carton? Have you taken toilet paper down from your trees after being TP’d to use for its original purpose? I have heard of people doing just that. Have you done outrageous things just to save money? Are you happy with this lifestyle? [...]

Frugality and thrift are far from the predominant mindsets in our culture, even among the multitudes of people who are taking control of their finances and paying down debt. In times past (the Great Depression comes to mind), “thrift” was seen as a virtue, but not so much anymore. Frugality could, however, become popular again…someday. [...]

A friend and I were talking the other day about jobs and money (actually, we were whining about our jobs and money) and he brought up the concept of Voluntary Poverty. I’ve never heard of voluntary poverty outside of certain orders like monks and nuns, so I asked him to explain. Turns out that there [...]

When many people today think of frugality they think of a life filled with deprivation and sacrifice. They think of people who are living on the fringe of society; people who make all their own clothes, eschew modern technology, aren’t knowledgeable about popular culture, and mail-order worms for their compost heaps. While some frugal people [...]

Since when did choosing to live a frugal life become a political issue? I don’t make a huge deal about my frugal lifestyle, but when it “shows” in public, more and more people are feeling perfectly free to slap some sort of political label on me. Maybe it’s because it’s an election year, because the [...]