We cover the basics and more about personal finance, answering frequently asked questions about credit and debt, identity theft, saving for college, retirement, estate planning, insurance, taxes, job hunting, and raising money-savvy kids. Check out the articles, columns, blog posts, radio shows and videos for tons of personal finance advice.
Save Money By Booking Travel Online
Save money by searching online travel sites for the best deals. All this is possible because planes to Europe are empty and airline and hotel operators are getting desperate. Check the Web sites listed below for other good deals that may be available today.
Consumer Advice: Save Money During Holidays
When the holidays come around many people spend a lot of money on gifts. How can you save money during the holidays? Consumer advice includes cutting back on alcohol purchases and staying out of your favorite store. Find out creative ways to spend the holidays that may not cost a lot of money and will save you money instead.
Pay Off Credit Card Debt
You'll never get anywhere in life with credit card debt. Pay off your credit cards before making any large purchase like a house. Only charge what you can afford to pay off at the end of each month.
Interest Rate Changes Affect Consumers
Whenever the Federal Reserve raises or lowers interest rates, those changes affect the loans that consumers have that are tied to those rates. Interest rate changes affect mortgage loan rates, credit card interest rates and the rates that government bonds pay. Learn how the Federal Reserve may lower interest rates to try to boost the economy.
Opt Out And Prevent Identity Theft
Guard against identity theft by "opting out" of identity sharing arrangements. Companies share your information within their own corporate world, to the different companies they own, and they share information with outside companies, vendors and organizations with whom they do business. The Fair Credit Reporting Act gives you the opportunity to limit the sharing of information both within the company and to the other companies with whom they do business.
50 Simple Things You Can Do To Improve Your Personal Finances
How to spend less, save more, and make the most of what you have, brought to you by money-saving expert Ilyce R. Glink.
Financial Books You Should Have
With many of us still financially hung over from all the shopping we did in December, publishers have the perfect antidote: A whole new crop of books about making money and managing your personal finances. Here's a look at some of the personal finance books worth checking out
After College Pay Down Non-Tax-Deductible Debt
Many people who graduate from college have a lot of student loan and credit card debt. Which debts should recent college graduates pay down first? You should always pay off your highest, non-deductible debt first.
Pay Off High-Interest Credit Cards First
You should always pay off your high-interest, non-deductible debts first. When you prepay a debt, you're effectively earning the interest rate the debt carries on each dollar. Once your debts are paid off, you start savings the cash you would have paid each month to service the debt. Consider using your tax refund to pay credit card debt, or take out a home equity loan with a lower interest rate than your credit cards.
Personal Finance Management: Pay Credit Card Debt Before Car Loans
If you have extra cash, what should you pay off first to boost your personal finances: credit card debt or car loans? Ilyce recommends paying off high interest credit card debt with extra cash before car loans and other loans. Credit card debt usually has higher interest than a car loan, so paying off credit card debt first and prepaying a car loan later is the best first step to personal finance management.