In a world of electronic communication, who doesn’t love getting a letter? As long as it’s from a friendly face and not signed, “your friend, the Internal Revenue Service.” But if you’re one of the lucky millions who receive a letter from the IRS each year, what should you do? Job one: OPEN THE LETTER. Anything […]
Labor Day is a bittersweet holiday, isn’t it? The end of the summer, squeezing in the last bits of fun and adventure, all the while looking forward to the return to normal structure September brings. I love the leisurely pace of summer but by the end of August I can’t wait to get back into […]
Have mercy! Does the IRS actually have mercy? Believe it or not, in some cases they do, and you shouldn’t even have to beg too hard to get it- at least if it’s your first time asking. IRS penalties are no joke. They can make credit card late charges and interest look tame. The two […]
You can never be too rich or too thin. While I don’t think Wallis Simpson is quite right about that, it does speak to two of the most popular resolutions made each new year: To lose weight and save money. Neither is complicated — to lose weight you need a calorie deficit; to save money, […]
It’s been six months now since the IRS gave out raises, have you been enjoying yours? Back in February the IRS adjusted the tax withholding tables to take out less federal income tax based on anticipated savings under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. That’s nice to give out the savings in advance, but the […]
If you’ve read my articles for any length of time, you may have noticed I’ve leaned toward the frugal side of spending for well, most of my life. Recently though I’ve learned to loosen up and allow myself some wants as well as needs, and to spend a little extra for things that add beauty […]
You likely have heard the news about the Equifax security breach, but in case you haven’t, hackers gained access to the personal credit information one half to possibly 2/3 of the American adult population. The stolen information is sufficient to steal your identity and open credit in your name. With a breach this big, you […]
It seems almost inevitable these days that your credit card information will be at risk from a retailer’s system breach or worse, your card number stolen and used for fraudulent purchases. Clearly the established credit payment systems are lacking. Next generation payment methods like mobile pay and chipped credit cards promise improvement; whether they will […]
A penny saved is a penny earned, Ben Franklin said, and I hope you’ve saved some pennies with the shopping tools we looked at in the last column. But look out Ebates and Target Cartwheel, there’s a new generation of rebate apps out there vying for our attention. These new rebate tools get you […]
Admittedly, I’m not much of a coupon clipper. At least not paper coupons. I lose them, forget to use them, find them to be annoying to keep track of in general. But electronic coupons and money saving apps? I’m in. Beyond the usual Googling for promo codes before pressing “place order,” I’ve found there are […]
