Finance Globe

Why More Money May Not Solve Your Money Problems

Tue, 18 Jun 2013 23:30:00 -0500

How many times have you said to yourself �If I only had more money?� as you poured over a stack of bills or laid awake thinking about your finances? It may not be much consolation, but you�re not alone. Lots of people have the same thought, that having more money would solve all their money problems. Unfortunately, that may not necessarily be the case.

The money you have, or don�t have, isn�t necessarily the reason you have money problems. Sure, if you had more money you may be able to pay your bills, but if you didn�t have so many bills, you wouldn�t need more money.

The decisions we make are often the root of our money problems. For example, I recently overhead a person remark that their cable bill was one of their

Overspending Your Checking Account: Overdraft vs. NSF Fees

Mon, 17 Jun 2013 00:21:00 -0500

One of the basic rules of using a checking account is that you should never spend more money than you have available in your account. Break this rule and you'll receive a financial penalty, either an overdraft fee or a nonsufficient funds fee, depending on what the bank does with the offending transaction.

How Overdraft and NSF Fees Work

When a bank receives a transaction against your account, for example a check you wrote to cover your monthly rent or a debit card transaction for a hotel stay, the bank checks your account balance to confirm you have enough to funds to cover the amount. When you have enough money to cover the transaction, the bank pays the transaction and deducts the amount from your

Just Married? Joint vs. Separate Accounts

Thu, 30 May 2013 23:59:00 -0500

One of the happiest times in a couple�s life is joining together in holy matrimony. As you settle in your life together, one of the decisions you�ll have to make it whether to have separate or joint bank accounts. There are pros and cons to each, so think through the options.

Joint accounts

With a joint account, both spouses� names are on the account. You�ll probably both deposit your checks into this one account. When it�s time to pay bills, one or both of you will write the checks (or pay online) from this account. Other spending also comes from this account.

One of the benefits of having a joint account is that all the family money is in the same place. You

Five Smart Ways to Spend Cash Gifts

Tue, 28 May 2013 22:50:00 -0500

Graduation, birthday, wedding, Christmas are all occasions when you�re likely to receive gifts and what better gift than cash. With cash you can buy whatever you like and possibly an even better gift than the giver would have purchased in the first place. While you may be inclined to blow the cash on electronics, clothes, or a vacation, there are some wiser ways you can use your gift.

For a big occasion, like graduation or wedding, you may have cash gifts rolling in for a few weeks. Stack the cash instead of spending it and you may be able to do something bigger than if you spent the cash as you received it.

Catch up on past due bills.

When you�re behind on payments,

6 Easily Avoidable Ways To Waste Money

Thu, 23 May 2013 23:16:00 -0500

Do you often find that you run out of money before your next payday comes? Feel like your money should stretch further than it actually does? Do you frequently overdraft your checking account? If you make enough money to cover your living expenses, but you�re continually broke, you may be wasting money, you know, spending it on frivolous things. Here are some signs that you�re wasting money.

Pay for subscriptions you don�t use.

The gym charges your credit card upwards of $30 every month, yet you haven�t been to the gym since the beginning of the year. You can waste hundreds of dollars every year on subscription goods and services you never use, like magazine subscriptions. Review your credit card

Class Action Lawsuit for Many Overdraft Fee Victims

Wed, 22 May 2013 22:54:00 -0500

This situation may have happened to you: Your bank account is running low, but you have certain purchases you must make. So, you cleverly make your transactions in such a way that, when they�re posted, you�ll only overdraft the final one or transactions, thereby minimizing your overdraft fees.

Unfortunately, you may have been among the many consumers who found out the hard way that outsmarting the bank is tougher than that. Did you check your account the next morning only to see that the transactions posted to your account in a completely different order from the way you made them? Worse, you overdrafted by far more than you�d anticipated.

The Practice of Re-Ordering Pending Transactions

What Should You Be Saving For?

Tue, 21 May 2013 10:09:00 -0500

We know that saving money should be on everyone�s list of financial priorities, yet not many of us are actually saving money. The national personal savings rate as a percentage of disposable income in March 2013 was only 2.7%, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce Bureau of Economic Analysis. That means Americans only saved $2.70 for every $100 of disposable, or after tax, income. If you have big goals to reach, you may have to commit to saving more than a few dollars each month.

Retirement

Retirement age is generally in your early to mid-60�s, but many people are continuing to work full-time past that age because they haven�t set aside enough money to completely stop working. Your health

CFPB: Average Payday Loan Borrower Pays $574 in Fees

Tue, 14 May 2013 23:53:00 -0500

�Would you take a taxi on a cross country trip?� asks the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau in an infographic summarizing the findings of their recent white paper on payday loans (and checking account deposit advances). Of course you wouldn�t take a taxi on such a long road trip because it would be expensive. Though they are quite expensive, and heavily warned against, many consumers still take out these dangerous loans. In its white paper, the CFPB confirms just how expensive payday loans really are.

Average Payday Loan Statistics

Consumers borrowed, on average $392 for 18.3 days. While payday loan terms are generally 14 days, some lending periods are longer based on the borrower�s pay cycle,

Survey Respondents Say Moms Are Uncomfortable With Money Management

Tue, 07 May 2013 23:14:00 -0500

Growing up, we're repeatedly told, �Mother knows best,� but people don�t believe that�s true in all situations. In a recent survey from the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, a majority of respondents answered negatively about their mother�s personal finance skills.

21% said their mom was intimidated by financial matters and avoided them
26% said their mom saw managing money as a necessary evil and didn�t enjoy it
18% said their mom has never managed money on their own.

Only 35% responded that their mom was pretty savvy managing money and enjoyed it.

Close Friends Recently Engaged? Better Start Saving

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 23:05:00 -0500

The wedding industry is booming. In 2012, the average wedding cost $25,656, MarketWatch.com cites The Wedding Report. Much focus is placed on helping the bride and groom save on the money spent on their big day, but it�s not just the brides and grooms shelling out cash. Wedding party and attendees also spend several hundred, maybe even thousands of, dollars on the wedding, especially an out of town or destination wedding.

Expense of Attending a Wedding

According to the American Express Spending & Saving Tracker, 69 million Americans will attend at least one wedding this year and will spend 59% more than last year. Based on the survey, guests expect to spend $539 per wedding on expenses like