Personal Finance

If you’ve ever shopped for baby stuff, you know that it’s very easy to see your paycheck disappear in a flash. So. Much. Stuff! Do babies really need all of these things, you might wonder? Probably not, but you ultimately buy everything…

A little over a year ago, I ditched my car. It’s a decision I’ve never regretted, and that’s saved us thousands of dollars. You’ll probably be surprised to find that my wife and I don’t live in a pedestrian friendly big city…

I have been working with a car dealership software company for 6 years. In that time, I have seen thousands of deals from a dealership’s point of view. The only difference between making a good deal and a bad deal is what you know before…

One of the longest held tenets of buying a car is that you shouldn’t buy a brand new car. As I once gracefully put it, “Buy used and let some other sucker pay the new car premium.” The tenet is true, buying a good used car will save you…

Most of us like to tell “fish stories,” and they often include tales about the great deal we negotiated on our new car or truck. But behind closed doors, many of us obsess that we really paid too much. At least that’s the conclusion…

I refuse to go to a car dealership for any reason. I don’t shop for cars there and I don’t get maintenance or repairs done there. They have a reputation for charging much more than smaller auto shops. So when my car’s keyless entry…

Every holiday season means that you get – and often give — lots of pointless stuff. You treat your aunt to yet another sweater while adding to the mountain of Legos and action figures in your family room. Your spouse buys more jewelry or…

It’s the most wonderful time of the year, they say, unless you’re talking about your finances. From a money perspective, the holidays put a huge strain on family bank accounts, especially when all of those extras – like year-end tips –…

When we buy new cell phones many of us hang on to our old ones. We rationalize that if the new one leaves us in the lurch, we still have a handset we can use. But after numerous upgrades, the pile of electronics taking up unnecessary space…

After the recent economic meltdown, a lot of people decided to cut up their credit cards and go to an all cash lifestyle. Whether it was self-preservation or just anti-big banks, a movement that started at least a decade ago has really…