Personal Finance Advice

The other day someone mentioned to my husband something about the fact that I always find the best deals and I always have a coupon for something. That’s actually a pretty true statement. I can sniff out a coupon a mile away. It’s almost like a game for me — to see if I can [...]

“Act now, and you may be able to pay less than you owe!” proclaims an ad for debt consolidation services. I’m all for paying off debts, but I was offended. Why should some people be allowed to pay less than they owe when others (like me) are habitually denying themselves things they want in order [...]

When saving money, meals in restaurants are rightfully one of the first expenses to be cut, but if you hate to cook as much as I do, budgeting for a meal or two out each week may save enough of your sanity to be worth the expense. On the days you do choose to eat [...]

Christmas cheer kicked in when I returned from my vacation and decorated my house. I emptied my Post Office box into a bag, then onto my table. Christmas cards (I scribble on a notebook some addresses before the envelopes disappear), bills (none unexpected), a couple of coupons, and junk mail galore. While booting my budget [...]

In recent weeks I’ve seen reports flying around the Internet that some Wal-Mart stores are accepting only ten coupons or less per transaction. For a heavy coupon user like me, this is bad news. I had hoped that perhaps it was just one or two stores that were doing this but, unfortunately, this policy has [...]

I became intrigued with collecting sheet music for various instruments, most of which I play, ever since my mom came home from an auction with a box full of sheet music in pristine condition, dated in a range of the past 100 years. She was really pleased with the score, no pun intended; it is [...]

By Jennifer Derrick I recently returned from two weeks of traveling for both business and pleasure. As I was setting up the components of the trip (hotels, rental cars, etc.) I was disappointed to discover that there were virtually no deals to be had. This surprised me because there’s usually some sort of deal available [...]

This morning it was 2 degrees outside when I woke up. When it’s that cold outside, most people tend to want a hot cup of coffee or hot chocolate to warm them up. However, I made myself an iced latte this morning. Most people think I’m crazy for drinking iced coffee when it’s hardly holding [...]

I know many kids who grow up and go to college on their own dime, spending all their own hard earned cash for the next twenty years getting out of that debt. I also know of several kids who had a stockpile of cash they could use for tuition, even if they skipped a couple [...]

As a child, I went grocery shopping with my adult sister at a store that didn’t exist in my hometown. When she checked out, the cashier gave her a number of stamps based on how much she had spent, and she discovered that she had enough saved to treat me to a toy chosen from [...]

Other than our mortgage and utilities, the majority of our regular spending goes to consumables. It’s amazing to think how much it costs to keep our bodies fed, clean, and healthy. Penny pincher that I am, I try to squeeze every last bit out of our consumable items before I throw them away. Each little [...]

We recently had our first snow of the winter and now my city is under a blanket of white. Snow sure makes everything more beautiful (except the roads and my car). Many people take advantage of winter sports like skiing, snowboarding and snowmobiling, but these activities can come with quite a hefty price tag. If [...]

Some people are “pound wise and penny foolish.” That is, they focus their savings efforts only on big items while letting small amounts of money slip through their fingers. Having tallied up my “penny savings” from last year, I can tell you that small amounts of money can quickly add up to big savings. Last [...]

“Countercultural” is one of the last things most people would call me, but the description that fits me well. Chances are, if you are reading this article, you are countercultural, too. Living within your means and saving for the future are pretty radical ideas in our culture of easy credit and instant gratification. In addition [...]

Personal finance books and articles offer many simple ways to save money — cut out a daily trip to Starbucks, turn down the heat by one degree, order water at restaurants — and all of these tips are useful, but we often ignore the fact that the best way to save money is not so [...]

We haven’t had a significant salary raise in this household for quite some time. Yet, despite the fact that our income hasn’t gone up very much, our standard of living has increased. We’re able to travel more and buy more of our wants. Not all, but some. I wondered how this could be. If our [...]

I try to live an environmentally friendly life. Among other things, I drive a smaller car, I recycle, and I use compact fluorescent light bulbs. I’m interested in doing more to help the environment, but sometimes I find myself stymied by the cost of becoming truly green. Environmentally friendly detergents, cleaning products, light bulbs, clothes [...]

I was recently on a lengthy cross-state drive with a few family members that took us through miles and miles of farmland. Along the way, my brother in law asked “What do farmers do in winter?” Now, I’m no farming expert, but I always like to share my ideas as possible answers when a question [...]

In recent weeks I’ve felt a distinct discomfort when listening to the media, the government, and even my acquaintances talk about money. It’s always been pretty clear that I’m not normal and that I don’t fit financially into this society. I’m a saver and a proponent of more frugal lifestyles. I’m not a big spender. [...]

Coupon clippers and other frugal types are under constant scrutiny by those who are eager to call them “penny wise but pound foolish.” “You might be saving pennies there,” the naysayers say, “but you waste dollars on the big things.” While penny pinchers who overlook big savings are common enough to make “penny wise but [...]