Here are 5 great money ideas to help you get ahead or move into a better financial position.   Make savings automatic. Take steps to make your savings happen automatically. Setting up automatic transfers for a certain day of the month or payday can help you shore up regular savings before the money gets spent elsewhere….

Think twice about automatically paying the amount due on a notice Here are several quotes from actual IRS correspondence that serves as evidence that our national tax collection agency is not always right:   Thank you for your correspondence. We currently do not have a copy of the correspondence we sent to you regarding your…

Here’s a roundup of several recent tax court cases and what they mean for you. Blogging for Taxes (Thomas v. Commissioner of IRS, 160 T.C. No. 4) The innocent spouse relief rule allows one spouse to avoid paying taxes caused by the other spouse due to their actions on a joint return. The spouse seeking…

A silver lining to continued interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve is being able to earn more interest on cash stashed in your savings accounts. How much interest, exactly, you can earn depends on where you do your banking. Consider these tips to earn as much interest as you can, even if it means…

Artificial intelligence got pushed front and center in America’s classrooms with the release of ChatGPT in late 2022. As a new school year gets underway, here are some ideas for both students and teachers to harness the power of AI in the classroom. AI Tips for Students Get personalized feedback. Real-time feedback can help students master…

There are many tax benefits built into home ownership. Here is a review of the most common.   The home gain exclusion. When you sell an asset for a profit, it creates a taxable event. If the asset, though, is your primary residence, you can exclude up to $250,000 ($500,000 if married filing jointly) of these…

Companies want to make it easy to buy their big ticket items, especially at times of economic uncertainty. A popular technique is to offer 0% financing when you buy furniture, electronics and other household items. You can also take matters into your own hands with a credit card that offers 0% APR on purchases, balances…

If you’ve been feeling the pinch of higher auto insurance rates along with other rising costs, you should know some factors that impact these rates are well within your control. Consider these tips to pay less this year and beyond.   Improve your credit score. Many insurance companies consider your credit score and overall creditworthiness when…

Solving a difficult problem isn’t reserved for only the world’s greatest thinkers. Great creations are simply well-crafted solutions using organized, creative thinking. Here is a four step process so you, too, can become a great creative problem solver! Step 1 – Define the problem This step is the most critical. Albert Einstein once said, “If…

The average credit card balance in America ballooned to $5,910 in 2022. This figure is up 13.2% from the year before according to Experian, and it spells out a worrisome (and costly) trend for consumers. After all, credit card interest rates were on rise throughout all last year and well into 2023, mostly due to…