Money Advice

Almost everyone has met a natural-born negotiator. You know the type: the person who can drive onto a car lot and drive off with a bargain well under the sticker price… or go to a flea market or antique shop and get an 18th century armoire for a quarter of its tag price…or walk into their boss’s office and walk out with a raise, even during a recession. These people just seem to have an inborn gift. Too bad about the rest of us! We’re doomed to forever pay sticker price on cars and antiques and shy away from tough money talks at work…right?

Sure, you see the wisdom in cutting ties with the Joneses. You want to become more financially responsible while crafting a values-centered life for both you and your spouse, but you’re just not sure where to start. The solution is to think more like your grandparents probably thought—if you don’t really need it and can’t really afford it, don’t buy it. However, you may have to rethink a few things you currently categorize as "necessities." For example:

"Anythin fo' half-price is a bargain, irregardless o' what ya pay fo' it." ~ Mammy Yokum

A person's possessions speak volumes on what that individual regards as important. The advertising industry, devoted to identifying what the citizen considers significant, manipulates the market to create those choices. With massive sums to be spent, the competition is as fierce as it is grotesque.

Home ownership, a vital element in what constitutes The American Dream, is certainly a blessing. Unfortunately it also contains the seeds of what can be financial misfortune, perhaps never more graphically depicted than in a 1986 Steven Spielberg movie, The Money Pit, in which a young couple experiences every calamity possible in remodeling a dilapidated house. To help aspiring homeowners avoid some common errors, I want to pass on five tips.

Traditional spring cleaning seems to have gone the way of the drive-in movie. But for those of us of a certain generation, I’m sure we all can remember our mothers cleaning out the cupboards and closets as though it were yesterday, to begin the season with everything fresh and clean.

Ironically, many of us associate cleaning with drudgery, but clearing out can be a terrific stress reliever. The same spring cleaning mindset can be said about finances.

"I rob banks for a living. I consider myself on a higher moral level than the crooks who run those banks." ~ Willie Sutton

Over the past decade or so, banking officials made a fascinating discovery. They found their customers to be an untapped source of bounty, with depositors willing to accept minuscule interest on their savings while tolerating the payment of fees and assessments limited only by the imagination of the bank hierarchy.

You are now married. Congratulations! The wedding went off without a hitch and the honeymoon stage is in full swing. What happens, though, when all the fun is over and real life sets in? Before you know it, the line between your money and your partner’s money becomes murky. What were once your expenses are no longer just yours. What used to be your partner’s financial problems are no longer just his or hers. You have agreed to a lifelong commitment to one another—that includes your financial ups and downs. Yes, you made a commitment to be faithful and loyal in sickness and in health, good times or bad, and in sadness and in joy.