Sugar Editorial Picks
Dec 31, 2009 -
The concept of spending less than we earn seems simple enough, yet many of us struggle to put the idea into practice. Living within your means is a great start to financial stability, but living below your means is a way to ensure that this path isn't disrupted.
Step one is eliminating a reliance on credit cards for anything but emergencies.
- 3 Comments
Apr 15, 2009 -
Meeting your emergency fund goal is a huge accomplishment. So, when it comes time to spend the money for an urgent or unexpected purpose like paying a big tax bill, draining the fund you worked so hard to build can be extremely disheartening. Having to fork over funds you've spent several months saving is a letdown and it's easy to lose momentum.
- 6 Comments
Mar 12, 2009 -
Emergency funds are more important than ever, but most people still haven't built theirs up enough to get through unemployment. Just take a look at the results from a recent MetLife study that asked Americans to evaluate how they'd fare if pink slips were handed to them.
50 percent of Americans say they are only one month — or only two paychecks — or less away from not being able to meet their financial obligations if they were to lose their job, and more than half of these, a startling 28 percent of the total respondents, couldn’t survive financially for more than two weeks.
- 39 Comments
Dec 31, 2008 -
The concept of spending less than we earn seems simple enough, yet many of us struggle to put the idea into practice. Living within your means is a great start to financial stability, but living below your means is a way to ensure that this path isn't disrupted.
Step one is eliminating a reliance on credit cards for anything but emergencies.
- 12 Comments
Oct 21, 2008 -
Forty-seven percent of you have credit card debt, and another 12 percent of you are almost finished paying off your balances — keep plugging away! It's common to lose momentum in becoming financially healthy once you are rid of debt; enjoy the feeling of having a huge weight lifted from your shoulders, but avoid the temptation to relax your rein on spending.
Hopefully you were able to put some money aside while paying off your credit cards, but when you're done with your debt, turn your main focus to saving and building an emergency fund.
- 7 Comments
Aug 28, 2008 -
Personal finance guru Dave Ramsey developed the debt snowball plan as the debt repayment part of his method for getting finances on track. The plan is based on psychology and relies on determination. The debt snowball plan goes as follows.
- 10 Comments
Aug 21, 2008 -
When disaster strikes and your internal panic button ignites, your frazzled instincts might tell you to tap into the first financial resource that comes to mind. Practice damage control by knowing which actions will cause the least harm to your overall financial health, and which will threaten it the most.
CNN Money lists 17 ways to get your hands on cash ranked from the best to worst.
- 9 Comments
Aug 08, 2008 -
More than half of you are still building up savings for a rainy day or haven't been able to save anything just yet. In order to be sure you're on track or to set a goal in the first place, you need to determine how much you'll need if emergency strikes. The biggest case for an emergency fund is job loss — if you lose your job or temporarily lose your ability to work then you'll need to rely on the money you've saved to get by.
- 16 Comments
Jul 24, 2008 -
Source
Your Two Cents: Do You Have an Emergency Fund?
Yes, I have an emergency fund.
I've started saving for a rainy day, but haven't met my goal yet.
- 29 Comments
Jul 09, 2008 -
We're taught to keep a first-aid kit in our car's glove box and jugs of water in our cabinets in case of emergencies, but preparing for a job loss isn't something that's a given when thinking about disaster prevention. Unlike buying canned items in bulk, there isn't anything that we can pick up at the store when we're setting ourselves up for success after potential job loss.
Even the most realistic person may find themselves uncharacteristically optimistic when reviewing their work situation because getting fired is just not something any of us like to think about.
- 6 Comments