The Easiest Way to Save On Your Taxes

January 20, 2016

I think one of the reasons these mid-January and February days are so dreary is that it’s also tax time. Your mailbox and even your email inbox these days are being graced with tax forms, reminding you that preparing your income taxes is looming over your head. One of the reasons I dread tax time is because I can no longer procrastinate getting my records organized, and in doing so, it inevitably adds a bunch more to-do’s to my list of things I’d rather not be doing in my free time. Continue reading “The Easiest Way to Save On Your Taxes”

How to Survive the Holiday Break With Your Kids

December 22, 2015

I really do love my kids. But after two weeks of being indoors with them, we both welcome the new school year. I am always on the hunt for inexpensive things to do to keep my kids occupied during this season. Here are some of my favorites: Continue reading “How to Survive the Holiday Break With Your Kids”

Can You Walk Your Way Out of Debt?

November 06, 2015

I was talking with one of my fellow financial planners, Cynthia Meyer, about a wide range of topics recently. During our conversation, I laughed that I was feeling too lazy to walk the two blocks from where I live to the grocery store. That’s when she told me this story of when she decided to walk EVERYWHERE…. Continue reading “Can You Walk Your Way Out of Debt?”

Finding Some Good In My Worst Financial Decisions: Part 2

November 02, 2015

Last week, I started a series of blog posts discussing some of my personal financial mistakes and the lessons that I’ve learned from them. I don’t know what has gotten into me lately but I am really starting to make a habit out of picking on my own money mistakes. Last month, I wrote in Forbes about some of the things that I have been spending money on in The Last 10 Things That I Bought and was able to identify just how easy it is to get off track with our spending plans. Continue reading “Finding Some Good In My Worst Financial Decisions: Part 2”

When Is Student Loan Refinancing A Bad Idea?

October 20, 2015

I was recently at an event at my church talking to a group of wonderful women in their 20s. After getting over the horror that most of them were born after I graduated from high school and I was the same age as one of their mothers, we starting talking about what we did for a living and I mentioned I was a financial planner. The conversation stopped immediately. They all looked at me and started asking financial questions, many related to student loans. Continue reading “When Is Student Loan Refinancing A Bad Idea?”

How This Married 37-Year Old CPA and Financial Planner in Chicago Spends Her Money

October 14, 2015

When my colleagues, Scott and Tania, joined this Last 10 Buys Challenge on Forbes, I took a look at my spending and initially thought, “No way…this looks BAD!” But then I thought about how I actually like it when my instructor at the gym confesses to struggling with her diet so I figured I should bare it all with thoughts on how I could have done better. Here are the last 10 things I spent money on this week:

Continue reading “How This Married 37-Year Old CPA and Financial Planner in Chicago Spends Her Money”

How Far Would You Go To Get Rid Of Student Loan Debt?

September 17, 2015

A colleague of mine recently shared this article titled “How Far Would You Go to Get Rid of Your Student Debt?” that focused on the extreme lengths many people were willing to go to get rid of their student loans. It’s not surprising when you consider that the average college student graduated this year with over $35k in loans. If they pay just the 4.66% interest rate on federal student loans for undergrads, they’ll pay almost $9k in interest by the time they pay it off in 10 years. But if they can put an extra $300 a month towards their debt, they’ll pay it off in under 5 years and save more than half the interest. They can then put those payments towards buying a home or becoming financially independent. Continue reading “How Far Would You Go To Get Rid Of Student Loan Debt?”

Bite the Travel Bug Back

September 15, 2015

 

I love to travel. Big trips are great, of course, but I’ve come to appreciate weekend getaways just as much. Earlier this year, I was browsing Groupon and found a hotel deal for $49/weekend night in Las Vegas. Considering Vegas is one of my favorite cities, I couldn’t pass it up.

Continue reading “Bite the Travel Bug Back”

Is Uber Cheaper Than A Car Payment?

August 24, 2015

My colleague Doug Spencer asked himself that question when his oldest daughter began to drive and so far for him, the answer is “yes!” Like many families, they have two busy kids going in different directions for school, activities and work and with a third driver, a third car seemed like the answer. For many people it probably is, but here are the reasons that Doug has decided to hold off on purchasing another car: Continue reading “Is Uber Cheaper Than A Car Payment?”

Money Saving Tips I Learned As a Frequent Traveler

August 12, 2015

As a senior resident financial planner for Financial Finesse, my job requires me to travel from time to time. As you can imagine, there are several perks to business travel. For starters, you sometimes get to go to exotic places like Parker Dam, CA, Newcastle, WY, or Elko, NV and then there are the luxurious accommodations like the Budget Host Inn & Suites in Memphis, TN or the Rime Garden Inn & Suites in Birmingham, AL or a personal favorite of our planner team, the Hacienda Hotel in our very own El Segundo, CA. All kidding aside, it is fun to travel every once in a while, and you do pick up a travel tip or two along the way. Here are a few of my favorite tips to help the less-than-frequent travelers among you: Continue reading “Money Saving Tips I Learned As a Frequent Traveler”

How Not To Go Broke On Vacation

August 11, 2015

Okay, I will admit it. I am cheap. I hate spending money unnecessarily so when my family asked about a family vacation this year, I asked them if being together wasn’t enough. Apparently everyone, including my husband (traitor), wanted to go away for vacation so I immediately had to strategize on how to do this on a budget. Continue reading “How Not To Go Broke On Vacation”

3 Tips To Protect Yourself When A “Creditor” Calls

August 05, 2015

A few months ago, my wife received a call from someone claiming that we owed money from an unpaid medical bill. If you know anything about my wife, the idea that we owe anyone anything is troubling. Considering how many doctor bills, hospital bills, dental bills, and who-knows-what bills cross our table every year, it would not be inconceivable for us to have missed a payment. Fearing that perhaps one bill did go unpaid and the  possible threats of legal action and bad credit, my wife gave the caller our credit card information to satisfy the bill. Continue reading “3 Tips To Protect Yourself When A “Creditor” Calls”

My Top 5 Back-to-School Sanity Savers

August 04, 2015

Right before the school year starts, I hear this imaginary bell going off in my head with Michael Buffer saying, “Let’s Get Ready to Rumble.” My first year was utter chaos – registering my kids at school, understanding what they can or cannot wear, the infamous list of what feels like 1,000 items to bring to school, and dealing with picky eaters who liked one lunch one day and thought the same lunch tasted like garbage the next week. The following year, I swore I would develop a strategy to keep myself sane. These are my top 5 sanity savers: Continue reading “My Top 5 Back-to-School Sanity Savers”

How I Got My Teenage Niece to Save

July 28, 2015

Have you ever tried talking to a 19 year old about financially preparing for her future, especially one that considers shopping to be a way to serve her country? I was talking to my niece about getting her financial house in order. She actually tried to rationalize to me that shopping was really helping the economy out. Continue reading “How I Got My Teenage Niece to Save”

How My Tax Preparation Software Let Me Down

July 22, 2015

For the last seven years, I have used tax preparation software to help me file my federal and state income tax returns, and I’ve never had a problem…until now. You see, each year I’ve been entitled to tax refunds, and each year when the tax preparation software asks me if I want to have my tax refund directly deposited into my bank account, I would say yes, but this year was different. This year, instead of getting a tax refund from the state, I ended up owing the state more money, so instead of asking me if I wanted my tax refund directly deposited into my bank account the software asked me if I wanted to have my tax payment debited from my account.  Continue reading “How My Tax Preparation Software Let Me Down”

A Big Day And A Bigger Check?

July 17, 2015

Many moons ago, I remember going from catering company to catering company doing tastings for my wedding. Then there were the conversations with florists, musicians, photographers, venues, etc…it’s all a blur now. Because it was a long time ago and because I was trying to be frugal, the wedding came in well below the average cost of a wedding. I believe that all in, the cost was around $10,000 for everything. Sadly, the divorce 17 years later cost WAY more than that!!! Continue reading “A Big Day And A Bigger Check?”

Bigger Is Not Always Better

July 08, 2015

I recently took my son to a local family entertainment center to escape the heat and enjoy a little bowling, laser tag, and arcade action with his friends. After a few hours of running around, they all started to get thirsty so I walked up to the concession stand to purchase drinks. They offered drinks in three sizes: 16, 24, and 32 ounces. The 16 ounce drinks were $1.75 and the 32 ounce drinks were $3.25, making them a slightly better deal. Continue reading “Bigger Is Not Always Better”