Money Advice

Anticipating the birth of your first baby is at once exciting and intimidating. Along with the countless joys this new little person brings comes the insistence that you plan your family’s financial future wisely. Still, rather than be daunted by the facts—according to recent estimates, raising a child from birth to age 18 costs on average about $230,000—and that doesn’t include the cost of sending them to college.  It’s best to start at the beginning with a reasonable budget, thoughtful planning and a long-term dedication to savings.

Retirement can open up a whole new way of life for Americans ready to bring their working years to an end, but at least one thing doesn’t change. Uncle Sam continues to direct his gave toward you.

The IRS still keeps a watchful eye on your income, including whatever amount you’re pulling from the IRA or 401(k) that you spent decades building into a nice, hefty nest egg.

When it comes to romantic screw-ups, missing Valentine's Day is about as bad as it gets. But what if you miss it on purpose?

Kathryn Hauer does that every single year. Married to her husband for 33 years, she is not hung up on the actual date. Feb. 14 may come and go, but the post-holiday bargains are just too good to pass up.

"For us, it’s fiscally smart," said the Aiken, South Carolina, financial planner. "As a gal who loves the after-holiday sales, I’m all for scooping up deals for my husband."

Are you familiar with this holly-but-not-so-jolly cycle? As the holidays approach, you promise yourself that this year you won’t get caught up in a frenzy of overspending. You know that piles of gifts do little to enhance your family’s seasonal joy—and you definitely don’t want a debt hangover that carries into January. And yet, every year, your resolve disappears under a mountain of shopping bags and wrapping paper.

You can’t seem to stop yourself from adding one more person to the list; agonizing over finding gifts at the "right" price point so recipients won’t think you’re cheap; charging "just" one more gift for each kid so that the pile under the tree will be big enough, and so on.

Parents, particularly those under 35, are increasingly confident they can afford college for their children, but underlying that optimism is a hint of caution. A new survey from student loan lender Sallie Mae warns that if economic growth does not keep up with inflation, then they may not have enough despite their best intentions.

The latest “How America Saves for College” report, released by Sallie Mae on Thursday, finds that the number of parents saving for college jumped to 57 percent, from 48 percent last year. The average amount saved is now $16,380, up from $10,040 in 2015 and $15,346 in 2014.

If your kids' college savings are not walled off in some kind of separate account, how do you keep yourself from raiding the kitty?

Stephanie Sadural Heincker is one mom who does not trust herself: she has an automatic deduction from each paycheck go into 529 college savings plans for her two- and four-year-old.

Heincker's own parents dipped into the money they had set aside in a savings account for her, so she ended up saddled with a lot of student debt.

Your years of encouragement and supervision have paid off, and your teenager will be heading off to college this fall. But if you’re like most parents, your pride and relief are mingled with new worries. You want your child to thrive (or at least survive) academically. You hope you’ve made a lasting impression when it comes to teaching time management skills and making "responsible life choices." But is it possible that you overlooked one of the most important lessons of all: how to manage money?