At the end of a previous post, Stories from Strapped: Debt, I asked, How do you make people do the right thing for themselves? This new book Nudge, by University of Chicago professors Richard Thaler and Cass Sunstein, addresses exactly that question. Here’s a 8-minute video of the authors talking about this book. I find […]
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Recession and Wii
I want to buy a Wii. I played a Wii at my sister’s place and I liked it. Now I want to buy one but I can’t find one. Except on eBay, where it’s sold above MSRP, the Wii is out of stock everywhere. When they come into stock, the units are sold out immediately. […]
A Non-Deductible IRA Is Worth It For Me
In Alternatives to a High Cost 401k Or 403b Plan , I mentioned non-deductible IRA as one of the options. If you are not eligible to contribute to a Roth IRA, you can still contribute to a Traditional IRA. Even though the contributions are not tax deductible, the money in the IRA still grows tax […]
The Cost of Being Green
I love the Om Money column in the Yoga Journal magazine. It’s the first thing I read in every issue. The column features a question from a reader answered by two money experts. A previous column prompted me to write Unsure About Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) last year. Here’s another good question in the September […]
Stories from Strapped: Conclusion
Are you glad the Stories from Strapped series is finally coming to an end? In the last five weeks, we read some stories in the book Strapped: Why America’s 20- and 30-Somethings Can’t Get Ahead by Tamara Draut. Stories from Strapped: College Education Stories from Strapped: Paycheck Stories from Strapped: Debt Stories from Strapped: Housing […]
Stories from Strapped: Child Care
This is part 5 in the Stories from Strapped series. Previous posts in the series are: Stories from Strapped: College Education Stories from Strapped: Paycheck Stories from Strapped: Debt Stories from Strapped: Housing Chapter 5 in Strapped: Why America’s 20- and 30-Somethings Can’t Get Ahead by Tamara Draut is And Baby Makes Broke. Basically the […]
Stories from Strapped: Housing
This is part 4 in the Stories from Strapped series. Previous posts in the series are: Stories from Strapped: College Education Stories from Strapped: Paycheck Stories from Strapped: Debt Chapter 4 in Strapped: Why America’s 20- and 30-Somethings Can’t Get Ahead by Tamara Draut is The High Cost of Putting a Roof Over Your Head. […]
Sending a Small Amount of Money Overseas
For reasons I won’t go into details, I need to send US$100 to someone in Mexico. I’m not in a big hurry. The money doesn’t have to be there in minutes or hours, but I don’t want it to take weeks or months either. Obviously I’m interested in reliability and cost, both in fees and […]
Stories From Strapped: Debt
How do you like the stories from Strapped series so far? These stories get better and better. Previous posts in the series are: Stories from Strapped: College Education Stories from Strapped: Paycheck Chapter 3 in Strapped: Why America’s 20- and 30-Somethings Can’t Get Ahead is Generation Debt. I think we all know what that means. […]
401k Loan Double Taxation Myth
I don’t know who started it. Suze Orman certainly helped spread it. She says that you shouldn’t borrow from your 401k (or 403b) plan because you will be double-taxed. I did a Google search and I found this by Suze Orman: “Also, never ever borrow against your 401k plan because you will pay double taxation […]