Articles by Jill (Staff Writer)

Since passing my CFP® exam, more and more of my friends are coming to me for financial advice. Sometimes they have a specific question, sometimes they want to create a plan to get out of debt, and sometimes they just want some advice on how to manage their finances going forward. No matter what they [...]

I had a really bad banking experience last week – actually, it took place over 7 days and is still not quite over. I was going to blog about it and rat out the bank, but then some halfway decent customer service changed my mind. When I logged into my account today and saw YET ANOTHER [...]

According to one source, you can be up to four times more likely to become disabled during your working years than you are to die. Yet we hear about life insurance, its benefits, and the different types of policies much more frequently than we hear about disability insurance. If you are of working age, and [...]

Sometimes you just need to stop spending money for a few days. Maybe you are already over budget, or close to it, and the month isn’t over. Maybe you have savings goals with attached deadlines, and need to kick a little extra towards one of those goals before the deadline comes and goes. Or maybe [...]

On January 18th of this year, I finally decided I was ready to make some New Year’s resolutions. I’ve never really done the resolution thing in the past, and so I wasn’t compelled to do it come December 31 or January 1. But I recognize that goals are good — and so I came up [...]

As we approach the holidays and end of the year, many people are finding their wallets just a little thinner than normal. If you’re trying hard to stay within your December budget, consider some of these winter activities to save money this holiday season. Who said frugal activities cannot be fun and enjoyable? Enjoy movies [...]

At least once  a year, if not more, you visit the dentist and doctor to make sure everything’s working properly – why not give your finances the same opportunity? As we approach the busy holiday season, it’s easy to let attention slip from personal finance. If you find yourself barreling toward the end of 2009 [...]

It’s easy to be down in the dumps these days. The economy is bad, and may or may not be improving. Unemployment remains high, savings account interest rates low, and the stock market shaky. It’s getting colder outside, which some people (ok, me!) may hate. And yet, there is much to be thankful for. If [...]

While there are many different opinions as to how much debt is too much, the two ratios below are the most widely used measures of how much debt is manageable. These ratios are also known as debt to income ratios (DTI). Many of you are reading this and other personal finance blogs in an attempt [...]

There are less than two months until Christmas — do you have a plan for holiday spending yet? Some people have already finished their holiday shopping. Others have been diligently saving all year long. Still others might be dreading the upcoming holiday season because of the cash outlay it usually involves. If you fall into [...]