Foolish Saving
I am pleased to offer this guest post from Margaret Lukens, Productivity Trainer and Certified Professional Organizer. One result of these turbulent economic times is to turn people who are usually money-savvy into foolish savers. Do I sound like a spendthrift? Isn’t saving money the one thing we’re all supposed to do more of? Let me share a few of examples of foolish savings that I’ve noticed: A h

Financial Organizing Soap Opera Episode #4: Owner-Builder
Heather is delighted to be the proud new owner of a charming Victorian home in San Jose. As Four Pillars notes in 5 Ways To Make (Or Lose) Money With Investment Properties – Part 5 – Buying at a Discount, you can sometimes get a killer deal if the home

A Tool for Comparing Roth vs Traditional IRAs
This subject has been covered extensively by other personal finance bloggers and authors; the purpose of this post is to provide links to articles covering the basic concepts, and a simple tool for comparing taxable, tax-free Roth and tax-deferred traditional IRA and 401 (k) accounts. Investopedia author Rich White explains the tax neutrality of traditional vs Roth IRAs in

Should You Invest in Real Estate?
Bodie, California Ghost Town - Photographer: Jon Sullivan It can be tempting to consider buying real estate as an investment, i.e., not as your primary residence, especially given the recent wave of foreclosures, but the prudent investor will want to carefully evaluate the risks involved. The July 17, 2007 MSN Money article

Financial Organizing Soap Opera Episode #3: QuickBooks Surprise
This morning, Holly had a date with Jack to sit down together and review his QuickBooks file. Though she offered, Jack never wanted her help reviewing the books before this. But his bookkeeper quit unexpectedly, and Jack decided it was time he knew more about his business bookkeeping. Holly was planning to bring a copy of Mike Piper’s book reviewed in the previous post as a backup resource for Jack after their session. Instead, Holly finds herself alone in Jack’s office, staring in disbelief at Jack’s QuickBooks balance sheet report. The sudden change in