Living for today - Planning for Tomorrow
In May, inflation hit a 40-year high of 8.6%. The cost of essentials like gas and groceries has risen sharply, so we’re all losing purchasing power and feeling the pinch. This high-inflation environment is also eroding the value of our savings. Bank accounts don’t offer enough interest to outpace inflation, so we’re effectively losing money by parking our cash in savings accounts. With economists predicting
My partner and I just got married in March. We decided to keep the event low-key and have a small ceremony in our backyard with close friends and family. Thanks to their generosity, we’ve received a couple thousand dollars in wedding gifts. Since we didn’t expect to receive this much money, we’ve been trying to figure out the best way to utilize it. If you’ve
A few months ago I wrote a blog post about why I don’t do no-spend challenges. To me they seemed like the personal finance equivalent of crash diets. Instead of outright banning unnecessary spending for a month or more, I believed in taking a more moderate approach. I gave myself a small monthly fun money budget so I could still treat myself occasionally without going
Financial experts often recommend that you open multiple savings accounts, one for each financial goal you’re trying to achieve. I’ve followed this advice for years with pretty good results. But recently I’ve been rethinking whether or not this style of money management is right for me. My freelance writing business has gotten busier over the past few months. I don’t have as much time to
Lately economists have been warning that we may be heading for a recession in the next one to two years. Goldman Sachs recently estimated that the chances of the US entering a recession is about 35%. I knew that a recession was likely on the horizon in the next few years. But I didn’t expect it to be a possibility so soon. Economists can’t predict
Recently I heard a financial saying that was new to me online: you can’t out-earn bad spending habits. This is such a true statement. No matter how high your income is, if you don’t have financial discipline and try to live frugally, you can easily inflate your lifestyle to the point where you’re living paycheck to paycheck. After all, many lottery winners end up in
Before I moved to rural Michigan, I had always lived in cities or suburbs. I never imagined that I would end up living in a farmhouse out in the country. But my partner dreamed of moving back to the Midwest and settling down on a big tract of land in a quiet, small town. Since I can work from anywhere as long as I have
One of the biggest surprises when I moved out on my own for the first time was how much cleaning supplies and household goods like tissues cost. The average American household spends $40 to $50 per month on cleaning supplies and $60 per month on personal care products and services. But luckily you don’t have to spend $1,300 per year just to keep your home
When you first set a financial goal, working towards it feels new and exciting. You may spend a lot of time researching ways to save money and feel motivated to change your lifestyle to get closer to your goal. But after a while, the shine wears off and you enter into a phase called “the boring middle.” When you’re in the boring middle, you feel
If fast food is a big line item in your budget, you’re not alone. The average American household spends $250 per month on eating out. Investing that money instead can help you achieve your financial goals and build wealth. But how do you break the habit of hopping in the car and going to Wendy’s whenever you’re too tired to cook? Here are some tips
