Before my fiancé and I planned for our honeymoon, we never realized just how much work goes into planning a vacation! Though it may not seem like it, vacation planning can become a time consuming and strenuous task. Whether it is a weeklong vacation, staycation or weekend getaway – without proper...

I was talking with a coworker the other day about her family's financial goals and plan for the coming year. "We have decided not to use our credit cards-we want to pay them off." Great plan I said but as she looked glum, I asked what was wrong. She replied that she and her husband were calling...

I come from a long line of habitual expense trackers. Growing up, there was always a legal-sized ledger book in the drawer. A new page was started for each month. Every receipt was entered. There were often a few loose receipts tucked into the book, waiting to be logged. When my mom passed away and...

Dear 17 Year Old Me, I am writing to you in 2014 and we are now 27 years old. A decade has gone by since I was in your shoes and I have some financial advice just for you. Although you may not understand it now, please believe me – I have your best interest in mind! Save Every Penny You...

A recent report by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) indicates some of the business practices of large student loan lenders may be making it particularly difficult for borrowers to repay their loans. In the last year, the CFPB handled approximately 5,300 private student loan...

The holidays can be wonderful with fun activities and time with family and friends. The holidays also can be a time when you feel tired and overwhelmed from too much to do. Also, when overwhelmed and time is running out, it’s easy to spend more money than planned. This year, take time to...

You answer the phone. Or open a letter that came in the mail. It's from a collection agency. A medical bill that you never knew existed has been turned over to collections. What goes through your mind? "My credit score just went down the tubes." I may have some good news for you. Under FICO 9 – the...

Working families may get a larger tax refund this year because of the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), but to get it, you must claim it. Today, January 31, marks the 8th National EITC Awareness Day, a nationwide effort to increase awareness about EITC and free tax preparation sites. If you worked...

We're wrapping up the end of our 7th year of blogging here at Plan Well, Retire Well Blog. We aim to post about once a week and in 2014 we did pretty well with 54 blog posts. On average, a blog post in 2014 had about 340 page views. So, just what have we been writing about in 2014? And,...

America Saves Week, February 24-March 1st, is a time to review your finances, decide what you want to save for, and set up a system that will allow you to save automatically. That's why the America Saves Week theme is Set a Goal. Make a Plan. Save Automatically. Even if you are...

Recently, I have been receiving requests from many of my friends about what they can do to work on paying down their dastardly debt. Whether it is student loans, that amazing vacation you splurged on or that new 70 inch TV complete with Blu-ray and surround sound you financed via credit card, most...

When I faced a major life decision two years ago, looking at my financial situation was a big factor in the decision. I estimated what my future expenses would be, and compared those against my expected income. I did a ...

This year's tax season will soon come and go, and you may be unsure of what you need to do with this year's tax forms. Below are some questions you may have on what you should do with this year's 2013 – filed 1040 tax return. What should I keep? With any financial...

I love Money Smart Week! As Karen Chan mentioned in her blog post on March 12th, Money Smart Week is the best time of year

Summertime! It's a wonderful time of year to slow down and relax after a busy school year of homework, events, and bustling to be on time. Summer is also a chance for children to practice life skills including money management. Activities and conversations that involve our daily lives can help make...

What do young people do? They move: from home to college dorm, from one apartment to the next apartment, to the summer job, home again, to the next rental duplex, and so it goes! And in the process, stuff accumulates and stuff gets lost. One of the best financial tools I ever gave my sons is a...

People invest a lot of amount of time, energy and money to earn a college degree. The financial cost of attending college is much larger today than it was a generation ago. It's reasonable to ask, "Is it still worth it to get a college degree?" Recent reports from Pew Research Center's Social and...

I have been pushing people to get a current copy of their credit bureau report on a regular basis for a while now. It is a good way to have a snapshot of your credit accounts and payment history and a method to catch identity theft before it gets totally out of hand. To do this you should get a...

It's a scary to think of someone stealing our money. When we hear about millions of accounts being hacked, we wonder "What can we do to protect our identity and our money?" 1) Look at your financial account statements frequently and report anything that looks odd...

Many of us may have heard of the importance of having an emergency fund, but the value it can bring to our lives is often severely understated. Just recently my fiancé and I finalized saving for our very own emergency fund. Less than a week later we realized just how invaluable having a financial...