Category Archives: Budgeting

Blogs and Articles to help you budget better so you can keep more of what you earn.

Making Smarter Credit Decisions

Calculating Your Credit Score with FICO.

We don’t pay much attention to our credit score. When you live debt-free and don’t borrow money, it becomes a non-issue. But we do realize that there are times in life when your credit score plays an important role in your future.

We helped our kids establish credit using a credit card secured by their bank accounts. They only used it for purchasing gas. Over time, the limited use of this credit card helped them establish a good credit score.

We always recommend the consistent use of a budgeting system to manage your finances.

Your credit score can also come into play … Read more »

Is Budgeting Better With Credit Cards?

A silver and blue visa card in a blue jean pocket

Question about budgeting using credit cards

I’m using your America’s Cheapest Family Budgeting System and love it. I really like how the budget system allows for a family to “save” in advance for purchases and designates money for different specific categories.

Here’s my Budgeting Issue

We are not in debt. but we use our credit card for every purchase. And then we pay our credit card every month, completely. I know this is not the “norm” for most people.  We like this because we use fewer checks and we also receive cash back, which adds up quickly. We are able … Read more »

Which credit card should we pay off first?

A woman with two hands full of credit cards trying to decide which one to use.

Question: Would it be wiser to make extra payments to pay down a credit card that has a 0 percent interest rate with a somewhat large balance (around $6,000) or to make extra payments to pay down a credit card with a smaller balance (around $2,000) and 11 percent interest?  I’m trying to decide which one to pay down on first. The card with 0 percent is for the life of the loan.

Answer- Here’s how you can eliminate your credit card debt: 

It’s great that you want to pay off your credit cards. It’s one of the most rewarding financial goals you could … Read more »

How to Deal with Pesky Annual Bills

A long list of bills hanging in front of a man.

Fine tuning your monthly budget is always a good thing. But how do you manage expenses that only happen once a year?

A Reader Question

I have read a few of your books and they have immediately opened my eyes to different ways we can help ourselves become more economical.

At the end of last year I started to look at budgeting our money so that we can pay off those pesky credit cards, loans, and other debt. My wife and I each have incomes that don’t fluctuate much so we can predict what each paycheck is going to be. I also … Read more »