Buying a Home- Is it a Good Investment?

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Buying a Home Is it a Good Investment

Most people have been told at some point that buying a home is a good investment.  We’ve heard from our parents, the media, relatives, and real estate pros that buying a house is a good investment that will help you to secure your financial future. We’re told that investing in a home that appreciates over time will help you secure your golden years by paying it off in your younger years and leaving you without a house payment when your older.  It also provides you with a large chunk of money once you sell it and downsize to a smaller [...] Read more »

Be Honest with Yourself First

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The truth can hurt, but it can also help!

“The lies we tell other people are nothing to the lies we tell ourselves.” ― Derek Landy Self-deception is nothing new for human beings. Researchers have been studying why we lie for decades and the reasons run the gamut from self-preservation to biological imperative. Lying to yourself can be a useful tool if you are attempting to overcome a psychological obstacle or maybe psyching yourself into a stronger performance. Where things seem to take negative turn is when you lie to escape accountability or hide serious issues from yourself. Personal finance is one area where people seem to lie to themselves [...] Read more »

My Wife Doesn’t Stop…..Until She Gets What She Wants

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Phone

When my wife gets her mind set on a mission, her tenacity at achieving a goal is unparalleled.  This is true in every facet of life, including those times when she feels that she has been overcharged, or not getting what was promised to her. I got to see my fiery wife in action again this weekend. Back in our free spending days we had a subscription to Sirius/XM radio. We had purchased a detachable faceplate unit that fit into a mounting plate in our car, or on a portable radio that we commonly use outside. The $15 a month [...] Read more »

In Finances, Fitness and Life, Together We Stand, Divided We Fail

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teamwork

Over the weekend Vonnie and I watched the movie “This is 40″ with a group of friends.   I won’t give away many of the details of the movie for those who haven’t seen it yet, but the plot revolves around the fact that the two main characters are about to reach that milestone age of 40. The movie focuses on the changes that go on in people’s lives as they move into middle age, and their reaction to those changes.  I cannot confirm or deny that both Vonnie and I may or may not be reaching this milestone age [...] Read more »

Personal Finance Fortifies my Faith in Humanity

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I know what humanity is capable of

As a nation we were just rocked by yet another senseless and heartbreaking tragedy. Monday’s bombing in Boston left most of us shaken and emotionally bereft. Acts of domestic terrorism are becoming increasingly common for this country. This latest terrible event has left many of us with a diminished sense of security and a lingering question about the state of humanity. I too feel angry and along with that anger, a deep sadness for the changes that will come as a result of yet another violent act. BUT…I have not lost my faith in humanity, not yet. I see daily [...] Read more »

Getting Out of Debt – Practical Steps I Took to Slay the Beast

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Who would have thought that a bottle of wine might help me take the leap into self-employment and thereby free myself of crushing debt?

My last article about getting out of debt spoke to the idea of attitude. Without the right attitude, we'll go nowhere fast. As promised, I'm going to share with you some of the techniques I used to extricate myself from a world of debt (including consultation with a bottle of wine). I'd like to get down to specifics about how I put my attitude to work and the results I obtained. These techniques worked well for me in my particular situation. Of course, what worked for me won't necessarily work for others, but it's probably worthwhile getting it out in the open as an example to see if it might work for you or someone you know. Read more »

I Seriously Screwed Up!

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financial panic

Not long ago, I was reflecting back about the first time my wife Angie and I were scheduled to make announcements and greet visitors from the platform at our Sunday church service. I’m an introvert, so I was pretty nervous.  I wanted to make sure and do it right, make people feel welcome, and keep from screwing it up. So with Angie by my side we made it through the greeting and announcements just fine.  At that point I realized that no one had told me who to hand the mic off to next. I froze like a gallon of [...] Read more »

Are You One of the “Financially Fragile” Americans?

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financially fragile

I read in a Wall Street Journal article that almost half of all Americans would have to sell some of their possessions if they needed to come up with $2,000 cash within 30 days.  The author called these people “financially fragile”. Wow!  That’s disturbing statistic. It’s especially surprising when you realize that a normal emergency expense like a major car repair or a child’s broken arm (which happened to my son a few weeks ago) can pretty easily set you back a couple of grand. Why Are So Many of Us Financially Fragile? So what’s the deal?  Why is it [...] Read more »

Are You Financially Smarter Than a 5th Grader?

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I am a huge supporter of financial literacy, for both kids and adults. Financial literacy has become more complex since I was a fifth grader back in the 80’s (I know I am dating myself here). The financial services industry has exploded offering everything from online trading to debt relief. Tax laws make filing taxes a DIY nightmare, unless you purchase software like TurboTax with a step by step guide. And, applying for a loan or a credit card of any kind requires reading twenty plus pages of fine print. In a previous article, The Great Debate Kids and Money [...] Read more »

What Will You Do…With Your Tax Refund

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3288873847_fc158f64ab

If you are one of the millions of Americans slated to receive a tax refund this year, why not make your refund work for you? Of course you will be tempted to splurge on a vacation, start home renovations or maybe even buy something frivolous, but why not use it to improve your financial situation. If you are struggling with debt, have little to no emergency fund, or haven’t even begun to think about retirement those refund dollars could make a big difference. Reducing your debt and preparing for the “what if” are a great way to reduce daily stress [...] Read more »

It’s a Win-Win: Get Rewarded for Saving

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3568308839_596234587b

I recently heard about a really cool concept that started abroad and is making its way to the US—prize linked savings accounts. Just for doing what you’re already (hopefully, should be) doing, you are automatically entered to win a prize. Yes, adults like prizes and anything that is free just like kids do.; a novel idea that has more people thinking about saving for their future. This comes at just the right time, with the rate of savings in America at an all time low. A report issued by the non-profit Corporation for Enterprise Development, found almost one third of [...] Read more »

Just Say No!

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puppy

I’ve always had trouble with the word no even as a child. My mom claims she would have raised my brother ten times before having to raise me again. I was strong willed, stubborn and loved to say, “no”. Not much has changed since then, I am still strong willed and stubborn, the difference is now I can’t say no, to anyone. Extra responsibilities at work? Sure, no problem. We’d like you to be the head room parent this year. Ok, I can do that! Would you mind being the website coordinator for football? Yeah, I don’t see why not. [...] Read more »