I'd like to take a minute to toot our own horn. The writing team behind the Plan Well Retire Well blog just won two awards for Internet Education Communications from the National Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (NEAFCS) at their annual conference held November...

Brightly colored scarecrows crowded by pumpkins, yummy pie recipes featured online, holiday lights displayed in local stores, it's that time of the year: the holidays are upon us! It can be a wonderful time of the year to catch up with friends and family, and enjoy the changing seasons. But with...

There's a new tool you can use to help predict if the person you are dating is a good prospect for a long committed relationship. It is your credit score. It is one more reason to improve your credit report and keep it good. A recent...

Recently I heard an excellent presentation by Ella York, an attorney from the Illinois Attorney General's office. Identity theft is the #1 issue that is reported by consumers to the Illinois Attorney General's office. I appreciated Ms. York's well-thought out presentation and came away with several...

Healthcare flexible spending accounts (FSAs) are great ways to avoid income tax on money you use for medical expenses. The tax isn't just deferred – you never pay tax on the money if you use it for qualified expenses. What happens to those accounts when you leave your job? There are...

Please welcome guest blogger, Tammy Greynolds from America Saves! Very few of us have money at the ready to cover an emergency, never mind the money for the larger purchases we'd like to make. This is why it's that much more important to prioritize savings to cover both...

When the topic of credit comes up in one of my classes, people tend to have lots of questions about it. However, I am always shocked on the amount of people who don't check their credit on a regular basis. Below are some great reasons on why you should check your credit report! Check Your...

Half the battle of paying bills on time, being reimbursed for expenses, and keeping financial tools like insurance up-to-date is finding the right document when you need it! And, one of the reasons it's hard to find the right document is that many of us keep too many documents. Everyone needs to...

As the Sasha Learns: How to Buy a House series comes to an end – the final step in the first time home buying process is moving in! When I first moved to Illinois I went through the moving process with my