Perfect grass seemed like the ultimate suburban pursuit. I’ve always envied lush green lawns and sharply trimmed edges — the kind you fear stepping on at wealthy over-55 communities. But after ten years of living on a quarter-acre lot, my lawn is mediocre. A diverse patchwork of weeds and crabgrass decorate our front yard. Each…
Smart money habits will help you reach your financial goals, with patience. Most of us aren’t looking for extravagant wealth. We want sustainable and long-lasting wealth that provides financial security for our families and enough money to fund our desired lifestyle. That kind of wealth is more attainable than most people think. But there are…
The U.S. government is borrowing $1.9 trillion to provide pandemic relief and stimulate the economy. A big chunk of that will be direct payments to Americans. I won’t get into the details of who gets what; you can find that here. Long story short, many Americans will get more than a thousand dollars deposited to…
I’m obsessed with money. I think about earning, saving, and growing money most of the day. I’ve written about money for more than seven years. Saying someone is obsessed with money might conjure to mind words like greed, fame, power, influence, and opulence. Picture a celebrity flashing fancy clothes and jewelry on Instagram and their…
In a recent article published at CNN.com, author Tami Luhby writes that only half of Millennials earn more than their parents did at age 30 — an all-time low (see chart in the article). That means the other half may be worse off than the previous generation. This reminded me of an article I wrote…
A former manager was into office gift-giving. Most of the team was over 50. As a joke, she gave everyone a pocket guide to texting acronyms. The “older folks” were still learning about terms like LOL, TL;DR, LMFAO, OMG, and WTF. This was around 2014 before we had our third child. Flipping through the pages,…
A few years ago, somebody asked how much money is enough for me to retire. I used a back of the napkin estimation based on the financial independence number and answered. This was 2015-ish. At the time, I thought the number would be more than enough to live comfortably for the rest of our lives,…
A mortgage refinance can be an excellent way to increase cash flow in your monthly budget if the numbers work. But how do you know when to refinance a mortgage? Spoiler alert — it depends. I’ve gone through five mortgage refinances since 2006, and I’m working through number six now that rates are at historic…
I first learned about compound interest in my high school economics class, and it immediately clicked. Earning interest on interest seemed like an obvious path to grow wealth. Why wasn’t everybody doing this? The 10 compound interest examples in this article give you the basic to intermediate knowledge to utilize compound interest to grow your…
The U.S. government is taking extraordinary measures to inject trillions of dollars of economic stimulus into the economy through a variety of lifesaving financial flotation devices. The numbers are staggering, and it’s hard for average onlookers like you and me to comprehend the scale or effectiveness of what’s happening. It’s all so nonchalant, $2 trillion,…
The 2020 Recession is here. Financial decisions we make today will help or hurt us later on. In a recent blog post, I wrote about having an investment strategy as the markets fall. The primary message was to be patient because the corporate fallout from the health crisis is an incomplete story. Q1 2020 corporate…
Patience is not a skill or an inherent ability. It’s a practice, one that does not necessarily develop with age or wisdom. Successful investing takes patience because as you extend your investment horizon, your chances of success increase. You can’t expect good results in the short-term, but you can expect excellent results 10-20 years out…
I’m grateful to work for a high-quality employer that appreciates my contributions and pays me a reliable paycheck 26 times a year. The retirement plan is best I’ve seen anywhere. The healthcare plan is first-rate — our family never worries about coverage or costs. It’s challenging work, and I occasionally even feel like I’m making…
Are you thinking about what financial goals to set this year? According to a motivational flyer in my office, 71% of Americans make resolutions, but only 8% succeed. Put me in that 8%. This year, I’d like to lose about 15 pounds. I also ate a lot of chocolate last week. With setting financial goals,…