It’s a question I’m asked every time I swipe my debit card — and which path I choose doesn’t seem to make much of a difference to me. I walk out of the store with my purchase, and the money is deducted from my checking account. But if we look under the hood, there’s a significant difference in what happens with each answer. [ continue reading… ]
Even though the recession has technically been over for a few years, the reality for many Americans is that it’s still hard to pay their bills, including their mortgages. While the number of home loans in distress has fallen in recent years, there are still a number of homes on the brink of foreclosure.
Perhaps you’re one of those who is contemplating letting their home go to foreclosure, or you’re concerned about what to do next. If you want to avoid foreclosure, but don’t know how you can afford to keep your home, Matthew Reischer, Esq., and CEO of LegalAdvice.com, says that a deed in lieu of foreclosure might be the answer. [ continue reading… ]
Gasoline prices are a hot topic. They feed debates around the water cooler, incite noon-hour rushes to fill up before price hikes, and even motivate boycotts. Because our mobile society still relies heavily on gasoline and diesel fuel for our transportation needs, this will continue to be an issue that affects just about everyone. Although prices are lower than they’ve been in previous years, they’re still trending higher than ever before.
I remember a time when gasoline was regularly under $2 a gallon (I’m sure many of you in the older generation will remember it even lower!), and yet I doubt we’ll ever see those prices again — especially if the proposed fuel tax increase goes through.
Before you start complaining, however, keep in mind that there hasn’t been an increase in the federal fuel tax since 1993. The proposed tax increase is 12 cents, split into two installments of six cents. In case you aren’t aware, the current federal tax is 18.4 cents on gasoline and 24.4 cents a gallon on diesel.
At first I thought it was junk, since I didn’t know why else a medical center in Florida would be sending me mail. After opening the envelope and finding myself staring at a bill for $54, it suddenly came back to me. When my family was on vacation in Florida at the end of April, my wife developed an itchy and painful rash above her left eye. After she suffered with the rash for a few days, we decided it was time to have it looked at.
We thought we’d done everything right, as we’d taken the following actions: [ continue reading… ]
Summer time. The kids are out of school; baseball games, soccer practices, and swimming lessons are in full swing. The weather warms up, and your focus moves to fun.
The only downfall? The busyness of the summer months usually equates to blown budgets. After all, who wants to be cooking in a hot kitchen or poring over their budget when they could be outside soaking up the sun?
Not me.
When it comes to budgets, mine is often blown by food. To be specific: eating out way more than I should.
But with some fierce determination, I decided I was going to nix this habit — and I haven’t eaten out for the entire month of June. So far, I’m spending about half as much on food as I normally do! [ continue reading… ]
The love of a lush green lawn is a trait my father passed down to me. As a teenager, I was in charge of mowing and watering the lawn by manually moving a hose and sprinkler during the summer. Because of that responsibility, I learned to appreciate the hard work that went into keeping the lawn looking great.
When I bought my first home, my dad sat me down and gave me “the talk.” Meaning, that conversation every father should have with his son about how to properly apply fertilizer and weed killer to his lawn during the growing season.
After 15 years of doing it myself, a new neighbor told me he did commercial lawn care as a side business. I figured it wouldn’t hurt to get some information to see how paying a commercial lawn service stacked up to doing it myself. [ continue reading… ]
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