Ask Chuck: Watch Out for Extended Warranty Rip Offs!
Dear Chuck, I bought a car a few years ago from a dealership. It came with a limited one-year warranty. How do I know if any of these extended-warranty offers are legitimate? Warranty Worries Dear Warranty Worries, They say there are now three guarantees in life: death, taxes, and receiving a “final notice […]
Ask Chuck: Is Now the Time to Buy a Car?
Dear Chuck, Should I buy a used car now? I’ve been told to just buy new, but I don’t want a car payment. Needing Transportation Dear Needing Transportation, My perspective is that neither is a good option right now. I suggest you try to hold off until market conditions change. Some context will help. […]
Ask Chuck: Concerned About Gas Prices
Dear Chuck, I’m getting nervous about the rising cost of gasoline because of my long commute each day. How can I avoid having my budget whacked? Bring Back Cheap Gas! Dear Bring Back Cheap Gas, You have good reason to be concerned, but it is not all bad news. There are plenty of reasons […]
Ask Chuck: Should I Buy an Electric Car?
Dear Chuck, I need to replace my car this year. I’m trying to decide if I should buy an electric vehicle or not. What would you do? Car Choice Dear Car Choice, This is a timely question as a great deal of policy is attempting to move us towards electric vehicles with the assumption […]
How To Reduce Financial Stress
With many things causing stress in today’s world, here is a short list of financial practices that will reduce your stress, make managing your money simpler, and generally improve your quality of life. 1. Spend less than you earn. It sounds easy, but this is too often our greatest financial challenge. The vast majority of people that […]
Ask Chuck: When Should I Buy a New Car?
Dear Chuck, I want to replace my mother’s clunker and am considering financing a new one. My father died unexpectedly and I want her to hold onto what little savings she has. What would you do? Taking Care of Mom Dear Taking Care of Mom, It is wonderful that you are helping your mom. […]
Ask Chuck: New Car Before Baby?
Dear Chuck, My husband and I drive older, paid-for cars. His is 11 years old and mine is 9. Neither give us any issues. People are telling us we need to buy a new car before the arrival of our first baby at the end of the year. We’re not convinced. What do you think? […]
7 Rules for True Riches
Most of the financial principles I live by I learned because I was doing it all wrong. For the majority of my young adult life, and well into my marriage, I was focused on all the wrong things. Being a success in the eyes of the world was the most important thing to me. I […]
3 Little Things That Are Wrecking Your Budget
Benjamin Franklin said, “Beware of little expenses; a small leak will sink a great ship.” Does this describe your finances? More often than not, budgets are wrecked or debt is accumulated by little things. Sure, those big surprise expenses also strain our finances, but we can probably credit smaller, sneaky expenses for doing the real […]
6 Car Tips to Save You Money
Did you know that roughly 43% of the entire adult American population has a car loan? That’s about 107 million people. What’s even more shocking is that 6 million of those people are 90 or more days late on their car payments. They’re essentially taking out loans for an item they can’t afford, but still […]
