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By Kevin M
 Last week yet another of those struggling-on-a-six-figure-income stories came out on the web, but this one was at least a little bit more tolerable than such accounts usually are. The writer provided some hard numbers that gave some credibility to the claim making it, I think, a decent point to debate.
An income of $100,000 per year puts a household in the top 17.6% of highest earning households nationwide, which is to say that earning that much money isn’t average, and it isn’t middle class. It’s somewhere in the upper tier. Not rich necessarily, but most definitely in the financially blessed region.
It’s hard to be sympathetic when you see such statistics, yet part of me understands this woman’s “dilemma”. Most of me, however, feels other factors are at play.
Continue reading Struggling on a Six-Figure Income →
By Kevin M
 Pssst…wanna lower your cost of living—I mean really lower your cost of living and do it for good?
Ditch your car. No, I’m not kidding, ditch your car!
Most people cut costs by trimming along the edges—clipping coupons, reducing eating out, eliminating vacations and the like. But sometimes that isn’t enough. You can cut all of those and still end up with a tightly stretched budget, one that doesn’t allow much room for savings and investment, for debt pay down and payoff, or for a plunge into the career unknown—a major theme on this blog.
It comes down to a choice between micro- and macro-frugality–do you cut your smaller expenses across the board, or do you target two or three of the biggest? For most people, housing is the biggest single living expense, but cars are a comfortable second. For many, cutting or eliminating car expense is far easier than making the same choice on a home.
How much can you save by not owning a car?
Continue reading How Much Can You Save by NOT Owning a Car? →
By Kevin M
 I’ve written much on the subject of credit cards—mostly that they aren’t your friend, but more like having an enemy living in your own camp. I’m not backpedaling on any of it; credit cards have been the enabler that has led many to financial ruin. But are there times when you’re better off having a credit card?
Absolutely. Even a zealot like me is prepared to admit to that.
There are at least five reasons why having a credit card is a “must”—just as long as you don’t overdo it by running up your balance and applying for- and loading up on- more cards. (No, credit card rewards isn’t one of them—I’ve never bought that argument.) Used responsibly, there are situations in which a good credit card is well worth having.
Continue reading Five Reasons You DO Need a Credit Card →
By Kevin M
Do you ever find yourself wondering—perhaps when you look at your paycheck or even your W2–I make a good living, why don’t I have more money saved up?
You might look at your income and your regular expenses and think that you should be saving more, but somehow it all seems to just disappear, almost as if there are termites gnawing away at both your wallet and your checking account. And perhaps there are a few termites infesting your finances. Call them “stealth expenses”—stealth because we usually underestimate them—if we even notice them–expenses because that’s just what they are.
We all have fixed expenses that we know only too well—house payments, car payments, student loan and credit card payments. There are also day-to-day survival expenses, like groceries and gas. We’re very familiar with all of these, but it’s those others, the variables, that slowly suck the life out of a budget. Those are the stealth expenses, the ones that aren’t always so easy to measure or even to prepare for.
”Where does all my money go?”
Continue reading Are “Stealth” Expenses Killing Your Budget? →
Guest Post by Jodie McDonnell
 Many people across the United Kingdom fall victim to financial strife, often due to factors that are out of their control. A loan—when taken out for the right reasons—can help individuals who are in need of money for obtaining a mortgage, car loan, or other loan among other things.
Even more important is getting the right loan, a loan that will solve your problem and not make your financial situation worse. In order to do that, you need to approach borrowing with the proper attitude and a few tools that will help you to get the best deal to work within your circumstances.
Many times the reason people get into credit difficulty happens at the very time a loan is taken. The person could have been borrowing more than he could afford to repay, or doing so with stiff repayment terms he could never meet. You’ll only have one opportunity to prevent that from happening, and that’s when you are applying for the loan. It is therefore critical that you get this right at the very beginning when it counts most, and that means getting the very best loan you can.
Continue reading Get the RIGHT Loan for Your Needs →
“You have to spend money to make money” is a popular business adage but the wisdom of this advice can be applied to your personal finances as well.
Spending money in business is all about assessing risks, taking chances which will grow your brand, and looking for opportunities. These are all attitudes you should take toward your personal finances in order to make your money work even harder, and to have the skills and knowledge to make the best investments.
Successfully making money by spending it will mean following these four tips to ensure you choose the right spending options which will make you money.
Continue reading How to Make Money by Spending Money →
This is a guest post by RP who is a regular writer for various finance related communities. She holds a degree in Marketing and Finance and is currently working in a reputed bank as a relationship manager. She writes articles on debt consolidation, debt settlement, frugality, savings, economies of states etc.
It can be quite a complex situation that you face when your relatives ask you about your financial situation. If your finances aren’t in the best of shape, you may be embarrassed to answer their questions. Financial discussions of any type can put us—or even the people we’re talking too—in an embarrassing situation. You can find ways to channel the discussion into something that can save some embarrassment to all parties involved.
Much of our willingness to discuss finances with the people who are closest to us may depend on the state of our financial affairs—whether we’re struggling with money, or if we’re doing well.
Continue reading Should you tell your friends and family about your finances? →
By Kevin M
Okay, the holidays are over—and the free spending with it! It’s time to clean up the mess before it becomes an even bigger one!
Despite everyone’s best intentions, overspending at the holidays is pretty standard. It isn’t until January when the bills come in that the extent of the damage is fully realized. There’s always an extra gift or two (or three or more) that we forget about, a holiday dinner out with friends or co-workers, some extra heavy travel expenses not budgeted for—it all adds up, but heck, we’re human. But not to worry, we have an entire year to get things back in order before…the next holiday crush.
And maybe we can even make some permanent changes for the better along the way.
Try a few of these in the next few months and see if they help…
Continue reading Happy New Year – It’s Time for a Financial Luggage Check! →
These days, gadgets are high up on people’s wish lists. Thanks to gadgets, a good number of American consumers have racked up a lot of credit card debt. This is an alarming development, but fortunately, there are ways to resist the temptation to buy, buy, and buy more stuff. Here are our suggestions for taming and controlling the gadget-greedy monster in ourselves.
1. Schedule your gadget purchases and follow it strictly. Say you have a weakness for mobile phones. Set a schedule of buying mobile phones that cost over $50 around once every few years. If you’ve managed to stick to that schedule, take it up a notch and see if you can stretch the use of your phone out a bit longer. Should your phone break down before then, replace it with a cheaper version. There are basic Nokia phones up for grabs on eBay. Who knows? You could get lucky and get one for dirt cheap!
Continue reading Tame The Gadget-Greedy Monster In 5 Easy Steps →
By Kevin M
Vacation season is upon us and plans are now being laid for what could be the single most expensive week of the year for more than a few people.
Vacations are often the biggest single component in the family entertainment budget, and often (and easily) can run into thousands of dollars for a single one week trip. In many homes, the family vacation has become an annual rite, bordering on necessity.
But in a lot of households, the past few years have been draining on the budget, with one or more periods of unemployment and possibly investment losses as well. Recovery from such hits is often only gradual in coming and it may be best to come out of the gate slowly if you’ve experienced either or both situations.
From a pure financial standpoint the best advice would be to not take a vacation. Vacations are NOT necessities, no matter what the prevailing attitudes in your community or in the culture at large, and you should not be leaving bills unpaid or your bank account empty to make them happen. This truly is an expense that should not be incurred unless all other expenses are paid AND some money has been put away for savings AND the trip can be paid for without incurring significant debt.
With that caveat on our minds let’s focus on ways to take vacations at much lower cost.
Continue reading Save Money on Vacations →
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General: Any information in regard to money, credit, personal finance, or in regard to any other monetary topic, provided or shared on OutOfYourRut.com is presented for information and entertainment purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. It is intended to provide general information only and does not constitute personal financial advice in regard to your specific circumstances...MORE-->
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Struggling on a Six-Figure Income
By Kevin M
An income of $100,000 per year puts a household in the top 17.6% of highest earning households nationwide, which is to say that earning that much money isn’t average, and it isn’t middle class. It’s somewhere in the upper tier. Not rich necessarily, but most definitely in the financially blessed region.
It’s hard to be sympathetic when you see such statistics, yet part of me understands this woman’s “dilemma”. Most of me, however, feels other factors are at play.
Continue reading Struggling on a Six-Figure Income →