Interview: John Hauserman on Retirement Planning

This morning I had the chance to chat with my friend John Hauserman of RetirementQuest.com. I’m a little ways down the road from retirement, but that’s the perfect time to start thinking about it—when it’s not an urgent, pressing need. By then it’s too late. I asked John a couple of questions that have been on my mind. John, I’m not a risk-taker, and I love it when people can give me a heads-up so I don’t make a huge mistake. What do you consider the single biggest mistake people make when it comes to planning for retirement? The single … Continue reading →

The End of Free Checking? – Interview with a Banker

Last week, I had the chance to chat with my anonymous banker friend, and he gave me permission to pass along some very interesting information. Here are his thoughts: Some banks have stopped offering free checking. But why? Is this just a matter of the banks getting greedy and looking for ways to stick it to their customers? Are they trying to make up for money lost from loans gone bad? No. There are many factors, but I’ll try to keep it fairly simple. First of all, banks are in business to make money. Shocking, I know! Even though they … Continue reading →

There’s No Place like Home …

And yet, having a home of one’s own seems like a nearly impossible dream in this economy. It takes a long time to save up the money necessary for a down payment, and having a large down payment seems the only way to bring the monthly payment down to where it can really be afforded. Many renters feel trapped right now, thinking that they will never be able to break out of their current situation and achieve their dream of ownership. My husband and I own our trailer home, but it’s only a three-bedroom, two bath, and with four children, … Continue reading →

The Saver and the Spender Get Married

Money is one of the leading causes of contention in marriage, and is ranked by some statisticians as the number one reason for divorce. I would say that failure to communicate about money is the real culprit, rather than money being the culprit itself. And when you have one spouse who feels more secure with money in the bank and the other spouse who gets comfort from going shopping, you have a situation where both spouses feel insecure because of the actions of the other. If he’s the saver, she may feel as though he’s depriving her of comfort, and … Continue reading →

Certificates of Deposit

Interest rates are not good right now. When I opened an ING savings account years ago, it had the best interest rates around for a basic savings account. That account earns very little now, while it’s still at a better rate. More recently I opened an ING Electric Orange checking account. This checking account earns a little bit of interest, which is a nice bonus. I’m using the account mostly for storage, but I need more access to the funds than a savings account affords. If I really wanted to get a better interest rate, I’d open a certificate of … Continue reading →

Tips For Saving For A Rainy Day

For the past two days I have been cooped up inside because it is raining. What does this have to do with money? Well, there is always the popular saying “saving for a rainy day”. The phrase implies that it is important to set aside money now so that we will have it available when we need it later. There are many unplanned expenses that can come up, and having a “rainy day” fund can help to lessen the impact on your regular budget when, say, the hot water heater breaks or you suddenly find yourself jobless. In the current … Continue reading →

Do You Keep Money In Your House?

The recent disaster in Japan has had many impacts on the people of that nation. From a tsunami that caused tremendous loss of life and property to a nuclear disaster that is now being compared to Chernobyl, the Japanese have been hit hard. There have also been some interesting events unfolding in the weeks after the earthquake that show just how great the financial impact of the disaster is. For example, among the items that are now being washed ashore are hundreds of safes. The safes are being held by police until their owners can be identified. Also, envelopes and … Continue reading →

Invest in Flying Cars

Cartoons have come a long way since I was a little girl. Cartoons were on only in the morning before school, afternoon after school, and Saturday morning. I had a preference for the cartoons shown on our local Channel 11 over those shown on local Channel 13. Two of my favorite cartoons were The Flinstones and The Jetsons. Funny thing was they were basically the same cartoon but one was in the Stone Age and the other in an imaginary futuristic Space Age. The Jetsons were so cool. The house cleaned itself and got everyone up and ready for the … Continue reading →

Start Saving Now

I love shopping. One of my favorite book series is the Shopaholic books by Sophie Kinsella. When I worked as the senior community moderator for iVillage’s Money Channel, one of the more popular message boards was for compulsive shoppers. I have lists in Amazon for myself and each of the girls filled with things I want to buy. Saving is better. We should have three to six months’ salary in savings in case of an emergency. There is nothing quite as satisfying as looking at a large bank balance. Saving isn’t always easy. If you’re living paycheck to paycheck and … Continue reading →

What is Your Real Attitude toward Saving Money?

We’ve all been taught since we were knee-high to a nickel that we should be saving money. We should put aside 30%, our parents taught us. We know it’s wise, we know we should do it … but do we want to do it, or does it feel like one of those “have to” things, like taking our medicine? Do we ignore the advice because we don’t want to follow it? I would wager that many of us who do save only do it because we know it’s the right thing to do. We know it logically, and yet, we … Continue reading →