Your Guide to Financial Freedom.

According to the National Retail Federation, Americans spent more than $21 billion on Valentine’s Day in 2021. The good news is this was down from $27.4 billion spent in 2020. Good, you say! Are you some old unromantic grump? Well, as a matter of fact… The National Retail Federation reports the average spend per person was $164.76 down from a record $196.31 spent in 2020. Men spend more on gifts than women by about 2:1. In another interesting twist, 27% of Valentine’s shopper

Credit Creep 📷During this season of ghosts, goblins and witches, I would like to discuss another type of creep. Credit Creep. One version of credit creep goes like this. Accumulate $25,000 to $35,000 of credit card debt caused by buying stuff on your credit card that you cannot afford to pay. No problem you say. I will go to my friendly lender and borrow a debt consolidation loan in the amount of my credit card balances. This may make sense because the interest rate on a deb

We may be looking at the democratization of banking and Investing! I have written about predatory lenders, especially pay day loans that average about 400% interest and set up vulnerable people to enter a negative debt cycle. Fortunately, a few tech savvy individuals and corporations created alternatives that a worth looking into by the under and unbanked population. A friend of mine, a manager of a Walmart store, told me that Walmart created or works with a subsidiary called

Part of the American Dream is to own a car and I have noticed lately that this rite of passage has gotten more expensive recently. The generous American stimulus package placed thousands of dollars in American pockets allowing them to freely spend on anything and everything. Due to the pandemic, computer chip producers shifted production to simpler chips to satisfy the demand for “living at home” tech, like web cams. This reduced the global inventory of more complex and expen

This is the season where parents and prospective college students are completing plans to march off to college this Summer or Fall. Do not forget to ask your young adult to sign a durable power of attorney and a health care proxy. In addition, discuss with your newly minted college student in advance, how much access, you the parent, should have in their lives. Parents have no legal right to see your student’s college transcript. HIPPA rules block you from receiving any healt

The Universe is calling. Call it the Universe, God, Karma, destiny. Call it anything you want, but most people I talk to believe that humans are part of a spiritual realm. Have you heard the statement, “We are spiritual beings in a human experience?” “Ken, what in the world does this have to do with my family budget?” Everything my friend, everything. Expect to get what you give: If you project vinegar to the world, you will receive vinegar in return. That old saying, “You ca

Children with credit cards to access Online Video Games. What could go wrong? Well, a lot. There are many stories on the internet sharing the traps developed by the gaming industry. It is a free country. Adults are free to max out their credit card dressing their character in a video game. But what if I told you that children under 18 play video games allowed by their parent and then rack up thousands of dollars in credit card bills by purchasing additional “In App” purchases

The Canadian department store Eaton’s actually started the American tradition of Black Friday in 1905. They started their tradition by hosting a parade that encouraged shopping the day after Thanksgiving. A tradition that Macy’s did not begin until 1924. What you and I should be really concerned about is how much we spend on gifts for Christmas gift giving. Christmas gift spending is a budget buster for many families. The guilt felt by parents after a divorce regularly result

I read an article that made its way to CNBC limiting your car budget to 10% of your adjusted gross annual income. If you make $50,000 per year, spend only $5,000 for your car! Wow! That’s harsh! I recommend purchasing a 2-4-year-old car after the value reducing depreciation has stabilized. It is possible to find good quality good used vehicles that are a few years old in the $10,000 to $15,000. Then drive the car six to eight years enjoying maximum benefit of owning a reliabl

www.WalletWise.org One of the biggest budget busters I see is overspending on eating out. Americans spend about 40% of their total food budget eating out and that percentage is increasing. Americans are in love with the convenience of eating out despite the increased cost. Some Americans budget and plan there eating out so their budget stays intact. The rest rack up tens of thousands of dollars of credit card debt paying for daily visits to their favorite take out food. Let’s