Debt is a problem that haunts many of us for our entire lives. We rack it up when we are young and spend an eternity trying to pay it off. For those of us who bought homes or tried to finance our own businesses, the burden of debt can be especially high. The one grim comfort is the once we’re dead, it’s gone. Or is it? The Wall Street Journal recently reported that credit card companies and banks are stalking surviving family members to collect on the debts of the dead. Where they’re not doing
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American debt woes have most of us focused on the drama within our own borders, but it pays to look overseas. Europe’s debt crisis is turning into a grand game of posturing leaders and symbolic gestures by central bankers. However, underneath all the showmanship are some nasty, nasty numbers that just won’t go away. There’s no more “down the road” for many European countries. Within the next six to twelve months, most of them are going to have to put up some serious cash or shut up about some major changes. When it hits the
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Money, money, money … until we figure out a way to live without it, we have to figure out how to manage it. The statistics are not good when it comes to American finances. Most of us don’t have diddly-squat in our retirement accounts or our savings accounts either. Yet you don’t have to keep on being broke. In 2012, you have the chance to restart your financial future by following some smart money goals throughout the year. By next December, your finances and your future could be completely different. Take Inventory The first step
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A little extra income is always welcome, and it might be no further away than the ends of your fingers. Most of us are using the Internet already to find information, but you can also leverage the power of the Internet to get some extra income. This is not an article about online surveys, filling out “special offers,” or joining any sort of marketing club. Instead, I want to share with you three great places where you can sell your skills and homemade products online. These are legitimate marketplaces where thousands of people are earning
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The numbers tell us America is in decline… if not outright collapse. I say “the numbers tell us” because I’ve become very sensitive to the impact this kind of statement has on people. When I warned about the impending bankruptcy of General Motors in 2006 and 2007, readers actually blamed me for the company’s problems – as if my warnings to the public were the real problem, rather than GM’s $400 billion in debt. The claim was absurd. But the resentment my work engendered was real. So please… before you read this issue, which makes
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The end of the year is just around the corner, which means you need to think about closing the books on 2011 from a tax management perspective.  After all, while we are commanded to render unto Caesar that which is Caesars, there is no reason to give Caesar one penny more than he deserves.  A
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Consignment stores haven’t always been fashionable. In many areas they’re considered only a small step above Goodwill or Salvation Army. The perception is that they are smelly, overcrowded corners of the retail world where ugly clothes go to die. Nothing could be further from the truth.  Not in this economy. Consignment stores are back –
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The generation formerly known as Generation Y or the Millennials is now known as Generation Jobless. They are often presented as victims of a society going down the drain, betrayed by false promises about higher education guaranteeing them a job. Yet what’s the real story? Are these kids really victims, or are they just a
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One rising concern around the world is whether or not governments will allow gold and silver to continue to compete with paper currencies. Fiat money has been steadily declining in value, while the precious metals markets have been heating up. There’s no way the control freaks in government haven’t noticed. The question is, what can they really do about it? From the past, we know that one tactic is to make it illegal for private citizens to own gold and silver. This happened in the U.S. in 1933. While modern writers like to remember this
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Retail industry analysts are finally embracing the same reality millions of Americans have been living for years. The good old days of easy spending are gone, and they aren’t coming back. Instead, consumers who were burned in the days of easy credit have mended their ways and switched to cash for good. It’s a new era that retailers are calling “Forever Frugal” but consumers know as “Common Sense.” The Forever Frugal Mindset Forever frugal is the term retail industry analysts have come up with to describe people who cut back during the downturn of 2007
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