Have you ever wondered how to cash a personal check when you don’t have a bank account? Or where you can cash a check right now and what the charges would be?

You might need to cash a check from a friend because you’re traveling out of state, or you could have an online bank or you may simply not have a bank account at all.

If someone writes you a check and you don’t have access to your own bank, you may have a problem.

Don’t fret, there are several ways you can cash a check without a bank account.

Here’s how you … Read more »

Would you love to find the best mobile survey apps that could earn you money? We’ve done all the work for you by researching and testing them.

Do you enjoy sharing your opinion about things? Most of us do.

We’ve researched the 22 of the most popular survey apps that pay you for sharing your views.

The promise of making some money for answering questions might sound too good to be true. And there are some instances where it is.

It’s true that some survey companies might be less than ethical. But the list below only includes legitimate survey companies with good reviews.

These survey … Read more »

Are you going through a financial crisis or cut in pay? Has the Covid Pandemic created financial hardship for you?

If your income were to dramatically drop tomorrow, would you survive?

Would you spiral into a financial crisis or would you be able to keep your head above water?

Types of Economic Downturns

Over the past 40 years, we’ve seen a huge number of economic downturns. How many of these do you remember?

9 Economic Downturn examples:

Energy Crisis (Gas prices soared 50 percent) July 1981 – November 1982

The Savings and Loan Crisis in the 1980s – … Read more »

If you’re building an emergency fund, you’ll want to set some savings goals based on the five-category examples in this article. We’ll give you emergency fund examples, amounts and categories.

If you’re managing a budget and have extra money available each month, you’ll want to take note of our emergency fund examples.

We took several years to accumulate our 5 category Emergency Fund Savings account. We’ll tell you what the categories are, how much we saved and where we keep it (it’s in a special high-yield bank account).

We’d love your input on our Medical Coverage Poll below – if you have … Read more »

If you’ve ever wondered how to live on one income or whether your family can afford to do it or not, the following 5 email questions should help you get your answer.

1. One Income for a SAHM Wannabe

First I would like to say that I am very grateful to have found your book America’s Cheapest Family because ever since I picked that book up my husband and I have started changing the way we live.

We aren’t out of debt yet, but we have paid off some and are working towards paying off the rest.

I really want to be a stay-at-home wife … Read more »

Did you ever ask yourself, “How does a budget work?” Do you like the word “Budget?”

We often hear people refer to budgets in negative terms. Words that imply pain or restriction or deprivation. 

We have a different view of the way budgets work.

We look at a household budget as a positive thing.

It’s a tool that preserves our money and lets us enjoy life and the things we have.  We think a budget is very similar to a dam on a lake. Keep reading and find out why.

A BUDGET Like a Dam?

We’ve heard some people refer to trying a money management system … Read more »

If you’re looking for the best way to build financial confidence, try setting up a written budget.

We’ve spent the last few weeks describing different spending plans or budget systems.

We’ve described several options for budgeting success and the amazing key to our budgeting success.

Today we’re sharing five benefits to having a written budget like we use. And yes, we do understand that a written budget may sound less tech-savvy than using phone apps or online budget systems.

But honestly, most budgeting apps aren’t as usable as our system and the online (web-based) systems are very difficult to set up.

Our written … Read more »

Are you ready to learn about an amazingly easy budget-tracking tool? It’s the most unexpected, simple, and amazing key to an effective household budget ever!

We’ve got Budget Tracking secrets to help you become successful financially. 

Lots of people talk about household budgets at the beginning of the year. With the holidays quickly fading in the rearview mirror, we’re motoring at full speed into a new year, full of optimism and powered by new resolutions. While some cruise down that road with apparent effortlessness, others will hit speed bumps or have collisions with unseen obstacles. The road to resolution … Read more »

Why Budget? We’ve got six reasons why you should overcome your budgeting problems! One of the top two New Year’s Resolutions is to get personal finances in order. Many folks want to get out of debt or set up a budget.

But too often this resolution is made, and then quickly abandoned.

We’ve heard it, we’ve seen it, and we’ve helped many families to overcome it.

Any effort you make to manage your money will immediately start producing positive dividends.

We’ve created a four-part series that covers the benefits and “How To’s” of setting up a realistic, workable and maintainable household budget.

The Four … Read more »

Are you coming into an inheritance in the near future? Or have you already inherited some money? Are you wondering what to do with inherited money?

We’ve been going through the process for the past few years and have learned a lot. We’ve also met with some incredibly wise and experienced estate and investment experts in the process. In this article, we’ve reached out to Attorney Lyle Soloman, the principal from Oak View Law Group in Rocklin, California.

How Inheritances Can Be Received

There are several ways that most people receive an inheritance. 

You could inherit assets through a … Read more »

What does living below your means . . . mean? Does it mean a life of deprivation? Does it mean a life of constant coupon clipping, or a life of regularly saying, “We can’t afford it?”

Living below your means – something different.

Maybe it’s saying yes to your top priorities like paying off debt and building savings/retirement.
OR,  it’s saying, “I’d love to take a cruise, but this year we only have enough money for a driving vacation.” And then making it a fantastic, fun family memory.
Maybe it’s saying, “I’m making great money right now, but this may not last, so we’re going to … Read more »