Personal Finance

As the green revolution continues to gain popularity, homeowners are discovering practical ways to reduce their carbon footprint. One of the most meaningful ways is by making eco-friendly modifications to your home and making sure your homeowners insurance takes them into account. Whether you’re on the market for a new …

Photo by wavebreakmedia / Shutterstock.com People around the world are holding their collective breath, dreaming of the day a vaccine finally brings the coronavirus to its knees. Unfortunately, the reality is likely to be messier. Experts are divided about how quickly a vaccine might be ready and how effective it …

Once I had some appreciation of the value of financial goals, my first real financial goal was to pay off all of our high-interest debt. It was a very tangible, real goal — a nice short- to medium-term goal for which I could easily track my progress, easily figure out …

Photo by Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock.com We would all like to know where we are most likely to catch the coronavirus. Armed with such knowledge, we could simply make sure we never go there. Now, doctors are describing the places and activities that leave you most vulnerable to catching …

Photo by Dmytro Zinkevych / Shutterstock.com Retirees depend mightily on Social Security payments These stipends make up 50% or more of income for about half of seniors, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities says. About one-quarter of seniors depend on Social Security for at least 90% of their income. …

Recently, Microsoft released a powerful personal finance spreadsheet add-on for its Excel spreadsheet program, called Money in Excel. The name is a throwback to Microsoft Money, a separate software package for personal finance tracking that Microsoft discontinued many years ago. Now, it exists as a rather powerful spreadsheet template, one …

In 1940, about one-quarter of the U.S. population lived in homes with three or more generations of their family, forming what is known as a “multigenerational home.” But after World War II, the significant expansion of suburban housing developments and the concept of the “nuclear family” took hold. At that …

Photo by Slava Dumchev / Shutterstock.com When the community yard sale rolls around, do you struggle to muster excitement for it? Yes, it is a way to get rid of stuff. But who has the heart to haul discards outside at 6 a.m. only to haggle with shoppers over a …

Photo by Drazen Zigic / Shutterstock.com The traditional retail slogan “No shoes, no shirt, no service” has just gotten a pandemic-inspired update. A handful of major retail chains recently began requiring customers to wear masks in order to enter their stores. The new rule is an attempt to cut down …