Let me start by prefacing this article by saying that I do not advocate cheating on your spouse or significant other. I believe wholeheartedly in a monogomous relationship, however, unfortunately there are women (and men) that find themselves on the other side shocked that this happened to them. Here are a few signs that may send up a red flag. Each of these by themselves may not mean anything, but it’s good to be aware of the financial warning signs of cheating.

An unusual increase of ATM withdrawals and/or credit card cash advances.
Failure to mention overtime, bonuses, or an increase in …read more

With all of my close friends, I have noticed a similarity.  My personal finances and financial decisions affect them. 
They say opposites attract and I guess that can be true of friendships as well.  I have had three close friendships.  I’m talking tight, share all secrets with girlfriends.  All three of these ladies had issues with spending.  After being friends with them for a while, I noticed that all of them began to tone down their spending, their impulsive shopping, their wild credit card spending, and they began to look for bargains on the things they purchased. 

Of course when you are …read more

As Thanksgiving is coming near, stores are looking to lure you in.  One way that they do that is through rebates.  Promises of good savings from rebates is enough to get us in the stores.  The problem is that many times we forget to send in the rebates or the rebate has too many hoops to jump through.
There are some ways to make sure you get your rebate money.

1)  Make copies of everything before you send it in. My husband and I always make a copy of all of the paperwork.  This includes the papers we filled out, the receipt, …read more

Recently I was talking to a friend.  In the conversation, I mentioned that I was going on a business trip to New York and regretted that I couldn’t stay a few more days and site see.  When he asked why, I told him that we had recently purchased a home and didn’t have any extra money at the moment.  He replied that he had always been a renter and always would be because he liked having the freedom and extra money in his pocket.

His comment really got me to thinking.  Would someone really be a renter forever?  Here are some reasons why I …read more

With all of the layoffs, home foreclosures, and economy issues it may be hard to have anything good to say about the recession.  Believe it or not, the recession is helping to change some of our habits, for the good.

A few years ago, I send out an email ranting to my friends about Americans being frivilous and spending more money than they made.  If I remember correctly, at that time, Americans were spending $1.50 for each dollar they made.  That meant that we were in debt; in big time debt.  Being in debt like that really bothered me.  We are so …read more

Yesterday I told you about Dave Ramsey’s envelope system which helps budget your money so that you don’t overspend.  I’ve been thinking more about budgets and realize this is a subject that needs to be addressed and it’s also an area in which I need improvement.
A study of Harvard graduates showed that those with with written goals achieve more than others.  Some words from Dave Ramsey:
Your budget is a written goal for your money.  People who win at anything have written goals.  Goals are what you are aiming at.  Your money won’t behave unless you tame it.  You need to have a …read more

Debt is not a tool; it is a method to make banks wealthy, not you.
Dave Ramsey

Yesterday, I talked about comparison shopping by unit price.  There are a few things to remember about bulk buying or comparison shopping.

If the store you find the best deals at is far from you, consolidate trips or choose wisely.  You might do without for a few days until you can justify the trip
If you are out of only 1 or 2 items, it might be more frugal for you to get it locally if the price isn’t that big a difference.
Make sure you know your prices and watch sales.  I know that I can get Huggies diapers for 23 cents …read more

I have a sewing machine dilemma.  I am relatively new at sewing and want to buy a sewing machine.  I have 2 options that I want to run by you since I am stumped and can see both sides of the coin.

I can go to Sears and spend about $250 on a Singer machine that is an excellent machine. OR
I can spend $350 and get a Janome from my local sewing shop.

Careful … The choice isn’t so clear cut.  I would have no clue what to do if my machine acted funny or broke.  I used my girlfriend’s sewing machine …read more

According to ABC News, “the nation has 80,000 fewer workers on payrolls this month when compared to last . . .  This is the biggest one-month contradiction in job markets since March 2003.”  Many people are being laid off from their jobs and are having a hard time making ends meet. 
I was listening to The Cooper Lawrence Show podcast from Thursday night and one of the listeners called in with a credit card problem.  The caller is having a tough time right now making ends meet.  The credit card company keeps charging her late fees, which have caused her to go over …read more