My wife and I hate the idea of renting forever and we want to buy a place of our own. Originally, we thought that buying a place of our own would be more affordable in the new city, but we soon realized differently. Because we want to live close enough to downtown, it’s going to cost us a pretty penny. While my wife and I recently started earning a little extra income, we’re far away from having enough for a 20% down payment. Since I want to buy our own place sooner rather than later, this means one thing: operation save down payment.… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Manage Your Finances
How to Break a Spending Habit
Ever since college, I’ve had a bad spending habit – or an addiction, if you will. In the early years I didn’t see it as an addiction – instead it was something that made my life more valuable. Unlike other people’s bad habits, this one did not ruin my health or cause me to go into debt, but it did cost me thousands of dollars. If I haven’t built up the suspense long enough, my addiction was buying… Continue Reading
What’s the Average Easter Budget?
In a little more than a week, many of us will be stuffing plastic eggs full of money. Where we aren’t giving it away, we are stocking up on things that cost money. Millions of Americans will be celebrating Easter with their wallets doing a great deal of heavy lifting. There are traditional brunches to attend, candy to buy, gifts to hand out and spring clothing to don. When all is said and done, Easter adds up to be the third most expensive holiday of the year.… Continue Reading
How To Handle A Part Time Side Business
There are a large number of people that work a full-time job and have a passion for starting a side business to bring in additional income. I am not talking about getting a job working nights and weekends in retail, but actually starting your own business. When starting off, you are overcome with excitement and anticipation for what might be. For many, that “high” quickly wears off when they realize that starting a side business is actually a lot of work. Below are some tips on how to handle starting a part-time business on the side and keeping your sanity.… Continue Reading
Does It Matter If Your Car Loan Is Underwater?
You hear about underwater mortgages in every other finance article in the major publications. Does it matter if your car loan is underwater? I get excited when writing about finances online, because when you do people will invariably talk to you about finance. If there is one thing I love more than writing about finances, it’s helping actual people with their finances. That’s why I wasn’t surprised to get a finance-related call from an old friend of mine. As most of finance conversations go, my friend tossed several interesting financial concepts at me.… Continue Reading
Ways to Make Extra Money
I hate to use the ‘Woe is Me’ expression when I talk about young adults, but this is often the reality for young adults, especially when it comes to personal finances. Young adults not only have lower salaries than other age groups, but they also are paying off student loans. Making extra money, for anyone regardless of age, can be extremely important because it provides you with the ability to do more. Given the challenges that young adults face, this can be even more important. Despite the recent downturn in the economy, I’ve found many ways to make a little extra money for our household.… Continue Reading
Reasons I Prefer Tax Software to a Tax Professional
It is tax season. With about a month left to file your taxes, I am sure preparing your return is on many of your minds. You’re probably asking yourself not only, “How much am I going to get back?” but also, “How should I file my returns?” If you are doing your taxes for the first time, you may not know that there are several ways to prepare your tax return. You can do them yourself, downloading the necessary tax forms off the IRS Website. You can also buy a tax preparation software like TurboTax, or use a tax professional. There are many other options that are a combination or compromise of those three options, but as I shared my story in going to HR Block, I don’t recommend this at all.… Continue Reading
Why Young Adults Need to Use Credit Cards
Unfortunately, financial advisers have related mixed opinions when it comes to using credit cards. I say unfortunately, because there is nothing to dislike. I got my first credit card when I was 18 and have been using it since then. Not only has it earned me thousands of dollars in rewards since then, but it has added other benefits as well. Despite what people may think, using credit cards is an important action for any young adult to take. Here’s a list of reasons why you NEED TO START USING A CREDIT CARD if you are not already using one.… Continue Reading
How We Spent (and are Spending) Our Extra Money
After college, my wife and I started with jobs that paid very little money. We didn’t have a lot, but we paid our bills every month and avoided debt. About a year and a half ago, we finally found some breathing room as we both got promotions and better-paying jobs. We wanted to be intentional in how we spend the extra money. Here’s what we did (and are still doing).… Continue Reading
How to Do Your Taxes for the First Time
In many ways I still feel like a person with a lot to learn, but on the other hand, I feel like I am finally getting a good understanding of some things. One of the most complex and confusing systems is the U.S. tax system. Not only are there a number of different types of taxes (federal, state, property, etc.), but there are also a number of different deductions. While I’m not a tax professional, I’ve learned the best way for me to do my taxes.… Continue Reading
