Sharing insights since 2007 on carefully saving money, investing, frugal living, coupons, promo codes because the little things matter in achieving financial freedom!
Money is so often a taboo subject that it can feel difficult to impart financial lessons to our kids – particularly when they’re very little. How do you teach young children and toddlers about money, while also protecting them from your money stresses?
Money management is just like reading (or any other complex skill), in that your kids need to learn age-appropriate little lessons as they take the path to proficiency. You don’t expect your kids to suddenly be able to read without first learning and practicing their ABCs, so you shouldn’t expect them to suddenly understand how to handle money because they reach a certain age. Instead, you need to start early.
Here are four money lessons you can teach your kids so they’ll be on the path to financial literacy — before they’ve even entered elementary school. [ continue reading… ]
For those of us who travel infrequently, taking a flight can be a budget minefield. It’s not just the constantly rising price of airline tickets, either.
If you don’t plan ahead the next time you fly to Aunt Sylvia’s for the holidays, you may find that the associated costs of flying — from checked luggage to parking to food — may just put a big hole in your travel budget.
Here are the ways frequent flyers keep their costs low:
Automation is a buzz word among financial advisors. And for good reason too. There are simply too many benefits of automating your finances for someone who cares about accumulating money to ignore. Whether direct depositing money into a savings or retirement account when you get paid, setting up automatic bill-pay, or investing in no-hassle index funds, automation can mean less stress, guess-work, and precious time managing your personal finances.
Complete automation can also have some serious disadvantages as well. Becoming aware of them can help you make more informed decisions about how — and how much — to use this strategy.
Here are three possible downsides to “set it and forget it” finances. [ continue reading… ]
Bursting the love bubble by sitting down and having a serious talk about finances is never fun, but open communication about money is a good idea in any relationship.
Those thinking of tying the knot should have a serious discussion about money at some point, preferably before you move in together or get married. Even if there are no plans to combine finances completely, it’s still good to clear the air and see if everyone is on the same page.
Here are five things that to talk about before moving forward: [ continue reading… ]
Last week, I wrote about how I moved across the country with my son in a bid to get a fresh start on my life after divorce. One of the reasons I moved was to experience a lower cost of living. While I probably could have afforded to remain put, and my career isn’t constrained by geography, a lower cost of living comes with a number of advantages for my son and me.
Indeed, before we moved, I talked with my son about the financial ins and outs of the move, as well as the social ramifications. This was a decision that my son and my ex were both involved with. So, while I’m not constrained by geography, being able to live somewhere with a low cost of living has provided us with the following advantages: [ continue reading… ]
My husband and I bought a 5-year-old vehicle 7 years ago, a particular make and model with high ratings for both reliability and owner satisfaction that holds its value well. The car has been incredibly dependable — even through a cross-country move a few years back.
Recently, however, we’ve noticed an uptick in our vehicle maintenance and repair costs so we have started thinking about selling or trading it in before the transport eats up more money than it’s worth.
With the aim of matching a newer vehicle price as close to the sale price of this one as possible—who wants a car loan? We’ve been car payment-free for over three years and loving it!—I’ve been looking for any bit of advice for squeezing every cent-worth of value out of it. Here’s what I found: [ continue reading… ]
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