By Gary Silverman We’re constantly searching for the secret, simple way to get to X. What’s X? It’s different for everyone. Perhaps it’s how to eliminate soap scum. Maybe it’s a 20% return on your investments.  Consider Isabel Allende’s observation of us in My Invented Country: “The most popular books are manuals: how to become [...]

By Erica Sandberg Dear Erica, This month we are unable to pay our credit card bills for the first time. We have no more money to give after paying for our house and food. My husband has been out of a job for eight months, and I am working at Target which supplies us benefits [...]

By Sara Gilbert Recent Associated Press headlines, and an article in May’s issue of Consumer Reports have identified student loans as the next potential head-on collision that Americans will have with their debts in the coming months and years. A few years ago over-extended mortgagors and a loose mortgage lending environment helped to initiate the [...]

By Gail Cunningham The NFCC is pleased to announce that it has established a dedicated toll-free number, (877) 339-6322, to assist homeowners nationwide who may be eligible for an independent foreclosure review. The funding for this service has been made possible through a grant from Bank of America. In April 2011, the Federal Reserve Board issued enforcement [...]

By Jason Alderman It’s hard to think of any act more generous than adopting a child. Not only are you bettering the life of a child in need, but many adoptive parents I know also tell me it’s the most personally rewarding thing they’ve ever done. But adoption is not cheap. Adoption-related expenses can quickly [...]

By Drew Kessler Before creating your monthly budget, it’s always helpful to have a good sense of where you stand overall with your personal finances.  Many times, families have a sense that they have  “a little too much” on their credit cards.  But this vague sense of a problem is often not enough to trigger [...]

By Matt Bell Every healthy relationship involves conflict. In fact, psychologist John Gottman, who has spent more than twenty years studying what makes marriages last, believes that “fighting . . . can be one of the healthiest things a couple can do for their relationship.” In his book, “Why Marriages Succeed or Fail,” which I [...]

By Stacy Johnson If you’ve ever had a mortgage during a period of falling interest rates, you’ve no doubt considered a refi. But how do you know if the math will work out in your favor?  Here’s a recent email… I have a 6% interest rate on a 30 year mortgage. Original final cost was [...]

By Gail Cunningham According to the March Financial Literacy Opinion Index hosted on the homepage of the NFCC website, www.NFCC.org, a strong majority of consumers, 56%, selected “improving my credit score” as the personal finance area in which they needed the most help.   What consumers continually fail to understand is that the credit score is [...]

By Lauralynn Schueckler Debt consolidation typically involves taking out a lower interest loan to pay off multiple high interest secured, or unsecured debts such as credit cards. The lowest interest rate consolidation loan is generally secured against the borrower’s assets such as a home or a car. Because credit card debts have such high interest [...]