As featured in The Wall Street Journal, Money Magazine, and more!

2013

Financial Role Models vs. Money Classes

by Luke Landes
Financial literacy and role models

Non-profit organizations and for-profit businesses promote financial literacy education as the solution to a society of citizens unskilled with managing their own money. If only we could have mandatory money management classes in high school and earlier, advocates claim, the United States would be a nation of savers, free of most debt other than mortgages, ... Continue reading this article…

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Anne and Matt March 2013 Net Worth

by Luke Landes
Anne and Matt March 2013 Net Worth

This month is Insurance Month in the series Naked With Cash. Each month, seven Consumerism Commentary readers anonymously share their financial reports to gain insight about their progress towards their goals. Read this introduction to learn more about the series. Anne and Matt are twenty-seven years old, living in the Midwest, with two children. Read ... Continue reading this article…

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What To Do If You’ve Donated to a Fraudulent Charity

by Luke Landes
Charity scam and fraud

It happened after September 11, Katrina, Sandy, the Boston Marathon, and other disasters, man-made and natural, around the world. After serious tragedies, when a compassionate public is at its most vulnerable, unscrupulous individuals find taking advantage the world’s generosity comes easy. Within hours — even minutes — of the news, new operations spring up, offering ... Continue reading this article…

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5 Responsible Uses for Your Tax Refund

by Luke Landes
5 responsible uses for your tax refund

For most citizens of the United States, tax season is over. There’s no longer a need to run around gathering documents. You’ll stop seeing television commercials for TurboTax and H&R Block in which each insinuates the other is a deficient company. You can stop thinking about government’s wasteful spending and income redistribution — which always ... Continue reading this article…

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Keep Your Old Credit Cards Open

by Luke Landes
Credit Cards

There may come a time when you have no need to keep your credit score as high as possible. Perhaps you have no need for debt now and in the future. It’s not common, but there are a few methods of arriving at that point. You’ve fashioned a life for yourself off the grid. You ... Continue reading this article…

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Pay Off a Mortgage Early, Affording a Smartphone, and JCPenney’s Gimmick

by Lance

A few times a month, Lance from Money Life and More will stop by to share some of the best articles from across a variety of publications, including other blogs and mainstream media. I am excited to be starting a new series here on Consumerism Commentary! The goal of my new series is to share ... Continue reading this article…

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Are Financial Planners Hurting Investors Approaching Retirement?

by Luke Landes

If you’ve watched the financial industry over the course of the last decade, you’ve probably noticed some important contradictions. It’s a good indication that taking generalized investment advice and applying it to your own situation is not a smart idea. Anyone who retired at the height of the recession is going to understand exactly what ... Continue reading this article…

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Prepaid Debit Cards Are Riskier Than Checking Accounts

by Luke Landes

Thanks to heavy marketing campaigns, including endorsements and partnerships with everyone from Russell Simmons to Kim Kardashian to Suze Orman (it’s hip! it’s popular! it’s financially smart!), use of prepaid debit cards has surged. Prepaid debit cards were once a fringe financial product. They were intended to be used by people who have a communal ... Continue reading this article…

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Psychological Barriers: Admitting There’s a Problem

by Luke Landes
Barrier

It’s difficult to get into this topic without sounding too much like a motivational speaker. I am strongly averse to most motivational training. Here’s my problem: Motivational training, in the corporate world, encourages teamwork — good — but often at the expense of personal identity and independent thinking — bad. The nuances are subtle, though; ... Continue reading this article…

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Who Needs a Budget?

by Luke Landes
Money Jar

There are a number of excuses for ignoring the concept of budgeting for one’s own personal finances. Budgeting has a poor reputation. It’s not fun, it’s time-consuming, it’s depressing. While budgeting can be one of the most important steps for beginning a journey towards financial independence, there’s a tendency to ignore this in favor of ... Continue reading this article…

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Damage Control: Taking an Unwarranted Vacation (From My Finances)

by Luke Landes
San Francisco

This week should have been a vacation. It has been, for the most part, but not entirely. While I’ve traveled occasionally over the past few years, and even chosen destinations meant for relaxation and time alone with loved ones, I haven’t had one of those fabled true vacations. My cell phone was still near by. ... Continue reading this article…

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Check Your 401(k) Fees: Invest in Index Mutual Funds

by Luke Landes
401k

A few years ago, new regulations mandated that 401(k) retirement plan administrators change quarterly statements to include more information about expenses about each fund in which the employee is invested. This was a good move. I have mixed feelings about 401(k) plans. Today’s world of employment is different than that from a generation ago. For ... Continue reading this article…

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Time-Barred Debts: Statute of Limitations

by John Ulzheimer
Time-Barred debts: statute of limitations

When you take on a credit obligation, or liability, you normally sign an agreement or promissory note requiring pay back of the debt. What you’ve just done is incurred what’s referred to as “contract debt.” If you default on a contract debt, such as a credit card, the creditor can and likely will vigorously pursue ... Continue reading this article…

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Calvin February 2013 Net Worth

by Luke Landes
Calvin Net Worth February 2013

Naked With Cash is the year-long series on Consumerism Commentary where seven readers’ households share their financial progress on a monthly basis. I’ve partnered with financial planners who will offer some guidance along the way. Read this introduction to learn more about the series. Calvin is in his early 40s, earning a salary of $120,000 ... Continue reading this article…

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The Psychology Behind Financial Wellness

by Guest Author
The psychology behind financial wellness

As far as I’ve come with my ability to manage my own finances, I often fall back into the comfort of unmanaged chaos. The comfort comes from the lack of work and the lack of worry, which often win the day over meticulous planning and consideration. I’m cushioned at the moment; I know that I ... Continue reading this article…

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Anonymous S February 2013 Net Worth

by Luke Landes
Anonymous S Net Worth

Naked With Cash is the year-long series on Consumerism Commentary where seven readers’ households share their financial progress on a monthly basis. I’ve partnered with financial planners who will offer some guidance along the way. Read this introduction to learn more about the series. Anonymous S is a 24-year-old engineer earning $67,000 a year plus ... Continue reading this article…

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How Credit Card Issuers Pay Rewards Without Going Broke

by Lance
Credit cards

This is a guest article by Lance, the founder of the blog Money Life and More. Earning rewards from credit card companies like cash back and sign-up bonuses, astute credit card users may be wondering how issuers afford to pay these bonuses for people who don’t pay interest or late fees. Lance takes a look ... Continue reading this article…

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LastDollar February 2013 Net Worth

by Luke Landes
LastDollar Net Worth

Naked With Cash is the year-long series on Consumerism Commentary where seven readers’ households share their financial progress on a monthly basis, and February is “insurance month.” I’ve partnered with financial planners who will offer some guidance along the way. Read this introduction to learn more about the series. LastDollar is thirty-three years old, an ... Continue reading this article…

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The Government Wants to Regulate Bitcoin and Other Virtual Currencies

by Luke Landes
Bitcoin

Currencies work as a means of storing and trading value because the people who use them have faith in their value. Faith involves putting trust in an entity more powerful than oneself, whether that entity is a market or a government. Even when the value of money was based on a commodity like gold, its ... Continue reading this article…

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SteveDH February 2013 Net Worth

by Luke Landes
SteveDH Net Worth

Naked With Cash is the year-long series on Consumerism Commentary where seven readers’ households share their financial progress on a monthly basis. I’ve partnered with financial planners who will offer some guidance along the way. Read this introduction to learn more about the series. SteveDH is retired, and he and his wife have two grown ... Continue reading this article…

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