It’s the end of another year. Here are some end-of-year financial “chores” that you might consider as we close out 2020 and head into 2021. Adjust W2 Withholdings I track my expected tax burden in a custom spreadsheet and tailor my withholdings to be as close to zero as possible. I’m okay with underwithholding, but… Continue reading Year End Financial Chores – 2020 Edition
Over the past twenty years I’ve had checking accounts at nine different brick-and-mortar banks, including: First Security (defunct), Wells Fargo, Charter One (defunct), Fifth Third Bank, Washington Mutual (defunct), Chase, PNC, Suntrust, and M&T. Why so many? After all, changing banks can be a bit of a pain. Most of the changes were due to… Continue reading Branchless Banking
In 2017, Equifax announced they had a security breach where the personal information of 147 million users was released. As far as breaches go, this was a big one. If you are American and have bought a house or car in the past couple decades or even just used a credit card, it’s highly likely… Continue reading Why I Have Frozen My Credit
Years ago, my first job was delivering newspapers for the local paper. Well, first if you don’t count selling tomato plant starts door-to-door to the neighbors. I have fond memories of delivering papers in sub-zero degrees early Sunday morning. Times have changed. For years now, I’ve been building my own personal “newspaper” or “magazine” of… Continue reading How to Build a Personal Newspaper
If you’ve read any of the Harry Potter books, you’re familiar with Hermione Granger, one of Harry’s friends at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She’s a planner and an anticipator. She’s also a bit of an optimizer. She is anything but a procrastinator. In many ways, I understand Hermione. When planning and executing… Continue reading Hermione Loses
I’ve had a Google Voice since 2007. That was actually in the pre-Google days when it was called Grand Central. I love a lot of things about Google Voice beyond the frugality of it, but there’s also some annoyances. My Google Voice Setup Google Voice provides a single phone number that you can route to… Continue reading Saving Money Using Google Voice
The A1C is the number that a diabetic uses to determine how well they’re doing managing their diabetes. Over time, a diabetic who consistently runs a high A1C, they face significant health risks. By checking their A1C regularly, diabetics can track how well they’ve been managing their diabetes over time. When I read about J.… Continue reading My Financial A1C
It’s that time of the year when offers to lock in natural gas rates show up in my mailbox. The offers usually employ fear driven marketing, preying upon consumers’ fear of paying too much in utilities and of “unexpected” charges. The offers typically refer to the local utility with terms like “unpredictable”, “unexpected”, “gambling” and… Continue reading Locking in Natural Gas Rates
We’re barely into 2020 and already my goal to simplify our family’s financial picture is being challenged. I find myself tempted to open another bank account. What?!? Bank error in your favor, collect $600 Let’s back up a bit. Last year when we were preparing for our family DIY study abroad to Spain, we opened… Continue reading Are Banking Signup Bonuses Worth It?
Hi. My name is David, and I have a problem. I have too many accounts. More than 53 different checking, savings, brokerage, credit cards, store cards, and retirement accounts. Spread across more than 16 different providers. Seems a little excessive, doesn’t it? How did this happen? As I look back across the accounts smeared across… Continue reading Joyless Banking Accounts
