It’s always strange to realize just how much we spend on things that we don’t consider regular, heavy expenses. American pet care is a $50 billion dollar industry and growing. As infrequently as vet visits seem to come up for … Continue reading →

Ever known anyone who was great at business, but stunk at personal finance? I’ve often wondered why more people don’t operate their household finances in the same manner they operate their business. Of course, the reverse of that is true as well. I have known quite a few business people ...

When I was growing up, and too small to mow the lawn at the house my mom and I rented, my mom hired someone to cut the grass, edge and trim the hedges. It was the only household chore she outsourced as she tackled all inside work, often worked 50-60 ...

Are we headed for a double-dip recession? Did we ever really recover from the last one? Who knows – ask ten economists and you’ll get ten different answers. What I do know is times are still tough for most people, regardless of what the government statistics report. It has never ...

This guest post is by Mr. Broke Professional: the husband in the husband/wife team behind Brokeprofessionals.com. Go on, you can admit it.  Sometimes you feel just a tiny little bit superior. Not in a “I’m so great, maybe even borderline perfect” kind of way,” but in a “I’m so reasonable”, ...

This post originally appeared back in October 2008, just about the time the bottom was falling out of the market. At the time, I hoped it might provide a few ideas to families worried about the reliability of their full-time income. Over two years later, we’re stuck with the same ...

A couple weeks ago a tornado was spotted close enough to sound the alarm, sending us running for cover. It reminded me that every now and then it’s a good idea to review emergency procedures at home, work and school. As usual, I thought about how this related to personal ...

The following guest post is from Elle, who writes for Couple Money – a personal finance blog about building financial freedom together. Each family has to deal with finances their own way, but there seems to be some common threads among all of us.   A successful marriage isn’t easy and it often ...

Ever heard that expression, “what’s mine is mine and what’s yours is mine?” When it comes to couples and money there is often some truth to that statement. Often, one partner is a spender, the other a saver. One partner takes the lead as the money manager, and the other ...

For most of my adult life I have avoided calculating my net worth, mostly because the number at the bottom of the calculation was always red. The thought of owing more than I owned depressed me. Looking back, I wished I had tracked net worth to show the positive gains ...