Personal Finances

Do You Have a Household Maintenance Plan?

True story: my husband and I bought our house when we were 23 and 21. We had no clue what was involved in home ownership — we’re talking about a ‘what are property taxes and why do we have to pay them?’ level of cluelessness. And maintenance costs? Nobody told us about maintenance costs! Yes,…

An Open Break-Up Letter to Obamacare

  • September 15, 2016
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  • Personal Finances
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Dear President Obama, I was such a fan of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. I even wrote an article about why I’m Republican and love Obamacare. In that, I talked about how the old health care system picked winners and losers – about how sick people couldn’t get coverage or were locked out…

Do you need life insurance?

We’ve previously talked about how to claim life insurance benefits from your husband’s policy. But now it’s time to discuss something else: do you need life insurance coverage yourself? If your husband had a life insurance policy, you undoubtedly know what a blessing it is to have an influx of cash at a time when…

5 Things You Need to Know About Using Real Estate for Retirement Income

  • July 30, 2016
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  • Personal Finances
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The blog has been silent this week as I’ve worked on some “pay-the-bills” writing projects. However, I’m hoping to get back to a more normal posting schedule next week. In the meantime, check out this article that originally appeared on Sixty and Me, an awesome site for women who are 60+. They’ve recently started a…

How to Create a Budget for the First Time

  • July 4, 2016
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  • Personal Finances
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Almost without exception, the family budget changes after a spouse dies. Not only will your income likely be affected but your expenses probably will too. If your household had a spending plan that was operating smoothly, you already have a framework from which to work. A few tweaks may be all it takes to keep…

Social Security for Widows and Divorcees

  • June 27, 2016
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  • Personal Finances
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This article on Social Security originally appeared on Sixty and Me. If you haven’t already, please head over to sixtyandme.com to check out this community of vibrant women. Note: You’ll notice in the comments of Sixty and Me that I left out an important point about claiming survivor benefits if you have a pension from…