At the end of last year, I stated that I wanted to pay down ~$34,000 in consumer debt (outside of my mortgage). I am writing today to report on both a level of success and a switch in strategy. How am I faring? In short: decently. I am not currently on track to hit my […]
FICO is a Corporation
Much has been written about the recent change in the FICO scoring system from both mainstream media and personal finance blogosphere. Using my compelling inside information and incredible subject matter expertise, I can insist that it will not make much of a difference. What? Huh? First, a little background. Fair Isaac (FICO) is a publicly […]
Time and Well-Being
Everybody has heard the old adage “Time is money,” but very few have considered what it means in their own lives. Every hour you spend on something could potentially be costing you lost wages, leisure, lost weight (through exercise), skills, hobbies, etc. When taken literally, time is entirely interchangeable with money. Money can buy you […]
Emergency Funds are Overrated: Part Three of Three
(Read parts one and two in the emergency funds series) In the first two articles, I covered: How important it is to be cash flow positive How to cover very small shortfalls with credit How to cover truly large expenses with different forms of insurance. The most important large unplanned expenses that could potentially be […]
Emergency Funds are Overrated: Part Two of Three
In part one on Monday, I wrote about how credit cards can provide short-term liquidity where emergency funds would typically be recommended. In this article, I will write about how most “emergencies” people list as reasons for an emergency fund are not true emergencies and can be easily planned for (and anything that is above […]
Emergency Funds are Overrated: Part One of Three
Emergency funds are a controversial topic that have always irked the writers here at DQYDJ. Okay: overall, we think they are a decent idea… but the singular focus on obtaining one despite the (usually ignored) costs is the incorrect focus for most financial prioritization decisions. In this series, I will lay out three reasons why […]
It’s a Matter of Principle (Principal)
I try to run my personal finances like I would run a business: Use debt to leverage high ROE assets. Limit expenses and maximize revenues by exploring future potential revenue streams. This manifests itself in many ways in my life… and how I pay my bills. When a bill is due, I wait until the […]
Maintaining a Debt Paydown Strategy
My relationship with debt has been much different than the average American. I took out ~$65,000 in student debt to attend a private university and I have regretted this 0 times. I chose a major that I thoroughly enjoy and that has paid me sufficiently and I do not feel that I would have the […]
My Resolve About Resolutions
It’s the time of the year for New Year’s resolutions and an assessment of how 2013 went for myself. Financially, it was a good year for the market, with the S&P 500 returning ~31% with dividends. I did a little better in my 401k at 34% so I must say without a shadow of a […]
Keeping Up with the Joneses: Risk Tolerance
The idea of lifestyle creep is the slow build-up of “necessary” expenses as your income increases. I myself have experienced a bit of it in my career, noticing small purchases that I used to consider luxuries as being more commonplace. What I want to touch on in this article, however, is something I think is […]