Personal finance is largely a matter of preference. You don’t need to use a budgeting strategy to manage your money any more than you need a car to get around your city. Some people see it as the easy mode of transportation, while others find the maintenance, insurance and fuel costs a hassle. Whatever you… Read More

Social Security numbers: Most people in the U.S. have them, considering you need them for so many things. Kids need them so their parents can claim them as dependents for tax reasons, you need one to apply for a job, and they’re necessary for collecting many government benefits. If you’ve applied for a credit card… Read More

Tax fraud is one of the most common forms of identity theft. You don’t want tax season to be any more complicated than it has to be, and you also don’t want someone messing with your personal information. Sometimes you have no control over the situation: Perhaps your Social Security number was stolen in a… Read More

Looking for ways to shield your credit from fraud? A credit, or security, freeze is an option you may want to consider, but there are some caveats. Credit freezes enable you to prohibit third parties from accessing your credit profile. This can help prevent new credit – including loans, mortgages, credit cards, auto loans and… Read More

Budgeting doesn’t have to be so mind-numbingly tedious. It’s as if everything we now know about budgeting was written by accountants for people who think like accountants. The rest of us need intuitive tools fit for English majors. I must confess that I have never, not once, balanced my checkbook. A recent survey of Bogleheads… Read More

Following a year of increased home sales and prices, it remains to be seen if that trend will continue in 2014. The same goes for auto sales. So far, both markets saw declines in January. Consumer use of nonrevolving credit (like auto loans, personal loans and other financing options) tends to correlate with home and… Read More

Cyber criminals are expected to have a banner year in 2014 by continuing to exploit vulnerabilities in computer devices—and the people who use them. Securing these devices will continue to be a challenge for industry as well as consumers. Business leaders must focus on assessments to evaluate and identify possible exposures from weak processes or… Read More

If you’ve had to go get a new passport lately, you have learned (like me) it’s no longer the easiest thing to prove that you’re you. If you’re a first-timer, you must show up in person with a birth certificate, at least one government-issued ID (two if it’s out of state), photocopies, forms and fees,… Read More

At the start of a new year, many of us make resolutions. Often, these resolutions can seem to contradict each other. For example if getting healthy was on your list, you might have joined a gym. But that added cost is cutting into your goal of saving more money in 2014. The two resolutions don’t… Read More

The holiday season is a peak time for shopping, and also for signing up for those ubiquitous store credit cards. But with holidays behind us and spring around the corner, what should you do with all of the store credit cards that now fill your wallet? Here are a few ideas for how to manage… Read More