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With the holidays approaching, retailers are hiring extra employees to work during the frantic holiday season.  As customers increase, the number of employees on hand needed to help those customers also increase.  Moreover, with more retailers staying open on holidays, employees are required to work.  Unfortunately, there is no federal law that prevents an employer from requiring an employee to work on a holiday even though most employers do try to work with employees to provide some time off … [Read more...]

Coaches are becoming increasingly popular as people seek help with every aspect of their lives from careers to money and weight loss.  Some life coaches specialize in money and finances to help people identify problems and find workable solutions.  Money coaches, unlike financial planners, look at the bigger picture to see how money affects your life and help you identify areas that need work.  Make sure that you check the coach’s training and experience before choosing a coach to work with your … [Read more...]

Bankruptcy is sometimes the only option that a person has when they are drowning in debt that he or she is unable to pay.  Unfortunately, when a parent files bankruptcy it can have an impact on his or her child’s college financing.  Parents are not eligible to borrow money for college tuition from the PLUS loan program for at least five years and it could be seven years or more before they would qualify for a private loan.  For undergrads, parents that are denied loans through PLUS may get more … [Read more...]

Our parents are the ones who cared for us and made sure that all of our needs were met growing up, including teaching us about personal finances.  They taught us how to pay our bills and manage our money.  Unfortunately, there may come a time when you must help your aging parent as they struggle to pay their bills. Because many parents want to remain as independent as possible, they may not ask for help so be aware of the warning signs that parents need help with finances.  Talk to your parents … [Read more...]

Laws exist to help property owners protect their property from trespassers.  As a property owner, you have the right to keep trespassers off your property; however, you must be careful that your efforts never cross a legal line.  First, you must legally notify people not to enter your property.  A no trespassing/no entry sign is usually effective.  Fences and cameras are also good deterrents to would be trespassers.  If someone does violate your privacy, you should contact the local authorities … [Read more...]

Do you wonder why your pay more for your health insurance than your brother or why your car insurance is higher than someone who has tickets and you have none?  There are factors that insurance companies use to determine your rates of insurance and some of those factors may surprise you.  For example, most of us understand that smokers pay more for health insurance than non-smokers do but did you also know that a poor credit score could raise your car insurance and life insurance rates … [Read more...]

As the federal government and state agencies try to “sell” the health care exchanges, one item is being left out of the advertising - - the penalty assessed to those who do not have insurance as of January 1.  Recent polls show that this is the least popular part of the program and the exchange operators and the President’s administration are downplaying it.  However, the penalty is a reality and individuals need to understand how the penalty works and how it will be assessed and … [Read more...]

In addition to the fact that you have more control over a home you purchase verses one that you rent (i.e. types of home improvements made, landscaping changes, etc.), there are several other reasons why it may be better to buy a house rather than rent.  For example, you can claim an income tax deduction for property taxes and mortgage insurance payments; however, if you rent, you are not even liable to pay these expenses.  Furthermore, owning your own home is an investment that should … [Read more...]

If you have heard of FlexScore, you may be wondering how it compares to your credit score.  A FlexScore is a new scoring system that is aimed at helping individuals improve their finances instead of simply revealing how potential creditors view them when applying for credit.  In addition to the standard question associated with credit scores (“How am I doing?”), the financial advisors who created FlexScores are also trying to answer, “How do I improve my current situation?”  The hope is to help … [Read more...]

When a disaster of any type occurs, the physical and psychological toll on individuals is devastating.  What few people understand is that a financial disaster often has many of the same devastating effects as other disasters.  The first step in recovering from a financial disaster, whatever the cause, is to acknowledge the pain caused by the situation. Once you accept the situation, you can begin to find ways to deal with your personal finances such as examining your balance sheet, finding ways … [Read more...]