Posted on February - 15 - 2010
Receive the latest Trees Full of Money articles FREE in your E-Mail or via RSS.
Even though my family and I repaid over $90,000 of debt in two short years, there were still times during the process when we would get discouraged that we would never reach our goal.
No matter how much debt you have, its easy to be overwhelmed with idea that it will be several years of hard work and sacrifice before your debt free efforts materialize. Not to mention the guilt you feel for having placed yourself (or your family) in that situation.
One of the best motivational techniques we found while working our way through a mountain of debt was displaying our progress in a highly visual place. For us, this meant using a dry erase marker on our bathroom mirror to keep track of how much debt we owed, how much debt we had paid off, and when our expected “debt free day” would come (using my debt snowball calculator)!
It may not seem like much, but it was just enough to keep us going between paychecks while our debt was sitting dormant, waiting for the next big “snowball payment” to come through.
Posted on February - 15 - 2010
Receive the latest Trees Full of Money articles FREE in your E-Mail or via RSS.
When it comes to teaching children and young adults about managing money, most schools in the United States get a failing grade.
Without a formal national or statewide curriculum in place, learning to balance a checkbook registry is about as far as most schools go (if you’re lucky) in teaching our kids financial responsibility.
Parents must take proactive measures to ensure their kids have the money skills they need to lead prosperous (i.e. less financially stressful) lives.
By no means am I an expert in early childhood development, instead I’ll share what worked for me growing up, and what seems to be working as my wife and I raise our own kids.
Teaching Your Toddler about Money (Ages 1-3):
The Concept of Buying Things:
Young children seem to grasp the concept of “buying” things at an early stage. From thei
Full Post…
Posted on February - 13 - 2010
By Jeff Apton
In today’s healthcare debate nobody seems to be talking much about the high cost of dentistry, or the lack of insurance coverage. Maybe you’re lucky and squeak by with a few cleanings and a filling here and there. For those who are not so lucky, the cost of dentistry can be devastating, with bills that can run up to $60,000. What can someone do who wants to keep their teeth but who does not want to empty their bank account (assuming they even have that money)?
One solution is “dental tourism,” the act of traveling out of the U.S. to receive quality care, save money and perhaps even make a vacation out of the experience.
The cost of dental care has about tripled in the past 20 years. For the 50% of Americans who have dental insurance, reimbursement is usually capped at about $1,500 a year, as it has been for decades. The 50%
Full Post…
Posted on February - 12 - 2010
Credit cards are far from one size fits all and the big names in lending know it. That’s why they’ve devised each credit card to target a specific demographic and income level. Whether it’s so you can get the most rewards out of the credit card or it’s so the credit card companies can get the most profit from you is debatable. Either way, it’s interesting to see the vast differences between luxury credit cards and plastic for the poor, unemployed and possibly even bankrupt. Check out some of these outliers on either side of the spectrum.
Luxury Credit Cards for Big Wigs and High Rollers
The American Express Centurion (aka the Black AMEX)
Centurion, literally, means an officer in the Roman army. In other words, one of the most powerful individuals amidst one of the most powerful empires in history. And that’s exactly the message that the Black AMEX means to convey. This invite
Full Post…
Posted on February - 12 - 2010
A visitor recently posted the following complaint about Advanta. While I ordinarily don’t post single complaints as blog entries, this complaint is astounding. Advanta, which went bankrupt and stopped issuing credit cards last year, has been increasing some interest rates to more than 30%. Here’s one customer’s unenviable recounting of an Advanta credit card nightmare:
“I have perfect credit with a middle credit score of 755 as of 02/10/2010. In January the prior month I went over the due date on a payment by several days. About 7 days after the due date I logged into my account to make my payment and to my surprise they had changed my interest rate to 32.99% from 7.99%. I was furious as I had never been late or missed a payment. I called Advanta no less than a half dozen times and they also called me constantly. I explaine
Full Post…
