First of all, let us define insurance. It is the transfer of risk–from you to the insurance company. Insurance is there to help you lessen the burden of something catastrophic that you hope will never happen, but there is a chance. I now hesitate to move on because the sheer mention of this phrase might cause some people to get on their political soapboxes, but it must be done. Health insurance–there, I said it. This post is NOT about the right or wrong way to give everybody access to health care. This is about the importance of having health insurance and why YOU and YOUR FAMILY need it. There are very, very few of us that will make it through life without getting sick or injured. In many cases, when we experience one of those misfortunes, we are able to wait out the problem and treat only the symptoms. However, there are times when we need the help of a trained physician (a doctor), and in some extreme cases, we need around-the-clock care (in a hospital). For reasons th...

I have never had the misfortune of having my house catch fire, but I have friends who have. In fact, I know two families who lost their homes due to fires–one from an unmonitored electric candle, and the other from a lightning strike. Both families were not only lucky, but they were also blessed; they were lucky because everyone was able to exit their houses without harm, and they were blessed because they both had the scruples to have the right amounts of the right kinds of insurances in place before the disasters hit. Insurance is one of those things that people just don’t want to talk about. Why? Well, honestly, insurance can be confusing, expensive (in certain circumstances), and seemingly unnecessary. So, this conversation becomes uncomfortable. Some insurances are VITAL to financial stability, yet, oftentimes, people quit paying for it when their budgets get tight. They are not just doing themselves a great disservice, but they are putting themselves in great danger. ...

A few years ago, I came across a cartoon created especially for this time of year. It showed a picture of an older couple walking by a store window full of what appeared to be mismatched decorations–Santa’s sleigh stuffed with a giant pumpkin and being pulled by a turkey, a snowman in a pilgrim’s hat holding a trick-or-treat bag, a Christmas wreath with ghosts, among other things. But what I found to be the funniest was the banner stretched across the store window that said, “Merry Thanksgivoween – Sept. 1 thru Jan. 1.” Obviously, retailers are trying to overwhelm us with the “holiday season,” and there is a reason for it. When we are overwhelmed, we are less likely to stick to a plan and more likely to spend money we don’t have. Well, we are ON TO THAT nonsense, and we have some ideas of how to save money, starting with the Fall kickoff holiday, Halloween. Costumes: trade with friends and family members, see what you can use around the house (as kids, my sisters and I once...

A few years ago, one of my adult daughters came to me asking for financial advice. She and her hubby were struggling to make ends meet. I asked her about all her debts–balances, payments, etc. I also asked her how much they made, and she wasn’t sure. Although her husband received regular paychecks, she dealt mostly in cash because she was a food server. I gave her the task of logging how much cash she took home each day she worked. Cell phones are great for things like that.  Well, two weeks later she told me they’d paid off $600 in consumer debt. Yeah, $600, and in only two weeks! As it turns out, they were better off than they thought they were. The only thing they did differently was to track what was coming in. This enabled them, in turn, to decide where it would go instead of just spending the cash they had on hand. Sometimes just finding out where you stand can alleviate a great deal of anxiety and stress. There are many people who just don’t want to know how many c...

Wow, I bet that title grabbed your attention! With that in mind, I want to take you back to a set of questions I suggested you ask your significant other last week. The first one is, “Do we get a big tax return?” If the answer to that is yes, then you are participating in interest-free loans. YOU ARE LOANING THE GOVERNMENT MONEY AT ZERO PERCENT INTEREST. Were you aware of that? So, if this is you, then we move on to the second question, “Should we change our W-4s to get more with each paycheck?” and the only answer to that is MOST DEFINITELY. If you have lots of debt (or even if you don’t) and are getting a huge refund annually, you need that money every month. Shoot, if you don't have any debt to pay with it, then invest it! What many people do not understand is that it is actually better to owe the government a little bit of money on April 15 than it is to get a huge refund. Claiming the correct amount of exemptions on your W-4 can be a guessing game. It is best to talk...