Money Advice

"Why am I so unlucky with not just money, but anything in life? Someone please help me understand."

If you have ever wondered this, or something remotely close, you probably want to drop what you’re doing and keep reading.

Well, first of all, I don’t really believe in luck. I do believe we are all on our own journey and here to learn the lessons that we are meant to learn. I also believe we are conscious co-creators of our lives, and that we don’t just let life passively go by.

A Zen "koan" is a Buddhist riddle designed to get you thinking. So here is one: your money situation is not really about the numbers.

That is what Bari Tessler wants you to ponder for a minute.

The Boulder, Colorado-based financial therapist and author of the newly-released book "The Art of Money," who puts her master's degree in psychology to use by running a year-long "money school" for clients. She also knows that behind every budget or spreadsheet, there is layer upon layer of volatile factors, including emotions, family histories, habits and dreams.

Melissa Byers and Rich Rauh began stashing away money in 529 college savings accounts for their sons not long after they were born.

When their older son graduated from the University of California, San Diego, a public university, he still had money available in his account. But their younger son, who elected to go to Chapman University, a private and much costlier school, needed more than what was in his 529.

So the couple, who live in Lake Forest, California, took advantage of the flexibility they initially admired in 529 plans: They simply changed the beneficiary on the account from one son to another—without facing any taxes or penalties.

We live in an abundant world where there is unlimited wealth for every one of us. You’ve probably come across dozens of articles, books, even movies that talk about how to manifest money and attract wealth. Few people, however, can actually achieve it. It’s not for lack of desire, or lack of doing it correctly. It’s not even for lack of believing. Many people wholeheartedly believe that if they read or listen to the steps and follow directions they can turn their financial rut into financial bliss. But, when they can’t, they give up.

Here’s the thing if you are one of them: You’re not lacking motivation, focus or belief—what you are lacking is self-love. If I had to say what the top three best tips on how to bring in money were, this is how I would sum it up:

Parents these days are expected to pull off a financial Mission: Impossible. Cover the monthly bills, pay down debts, help elderly parents, save for retirement and for kids' college costs, all with incomes that may have been flat for years.

Facing such a demanding feat, here's some advice you may not often hear: When it comes to your kids' college costs, maybe you are doing too much.

To wit, 42 percent of parents are actually losing sleep over college costs, up from 28 percent just two years ago, according to new data from the Parents, Kids & Money survey by Baltimore-based money managers T. Rowe Price.

In the Greek myth of Sisyphus, he was condemned for eternity to roll a boulder up a hill, just to see it roll right back down.

For those of us trying to build up emergency funds of short-term savings, it can feel like a similar exercise. As soon as you manage to put some cash aside, you have to draw it down for sudden expenses—and then start all over again.

Natalie Smigielski knows the feeling all too well. About a year and a half ago, the 33-year-old from Toronto had scrimped and saved enough to come up with a $5,000 emergency fund.

Now that the housing market is robust again in most geographies, it’s time to revisit the facts about mortgage fraud to help you be more aware as you consider the purchase of your next home. The FBI defines mortgage fraud as "a material misstatement, misrepresentation, or omission relied upon by an underwriter or lender to fund, purchase, or insure a loan."