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Are My Co-Pay Medical Expenses Tax Deductible

Q: My wife and I are preparing our taxes ourselves this year. We have over $1000 worth of medical co-pay expenses but we can’t get these expenses accepted. What should we do? A: I assume you are using a computer software program to help you with your taxes. If you and your wife are under age 65,

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Payday Loans

Is That Payday Loan You Took Out Even Legal

If you’ve ever been strapped for cash and turned to a payday lender for financial help, it’s possible that the payday loan agreement you entered into is actually illegal. According to a recent story published on PublicIntegrity.org, a man from Puyallup, Washington got a payday loan from Ameriloan, but soon found that the lender was

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refinance

I Pay My Mortgage On Time but I Have Bad Credit. Can I Refinance?

Q: Our credit has been bad for the past 6 years. We have 6 years left on our mortgage and have never been late. Can we refinance our mortgage? A: Thanks for reaching out to me on AskTheMoneyCoach.com. You didn’t specify what your credit score is, but since you said you have “bad” credit, I

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Close-up view of a smartphone screen displaying various social media apps, including Facebook, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, Skype, and other popular social media platforms.

How Creditors Are Spying on Your Social Media Accounts

  You just bought a new car and are excited to share the news with friends and fans on social media sites like Twitter or Flickr. Or, maybe you just splurged on a luxury vacation and are sharing a public update on Facebook. Whatever the case may be, sharing information about purchases and finances could

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Two girls smile at each other while sitting at a table with ice cream in waffle bowls, a glass of juice, and toppings, enjoying the carefree moments that quality child care provides.

How to Use Tax Credits for Child Care Expenses

You finally found that perfect nanny or babysitter to care for your kids. Congratulations! But the work isn’t done yet. Did you know that hiring a caregiver comes with tax and payroll responsibilities? While most families are excited to find someone to help care for their little ones, the euphoria sometimes quickly disappears when they

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A stack of U.S. hundred-dollar bills, perhaps earnings from a side gig, protrudes from the back pocket of blue jeans.

Why You Should Make This The Year of Your Side Gig

  If making more money and having more freedom are on your list of goals this year, you might want to try a new job – creating your own job, that is. Too many Americans get held back financially because they’re tied to dead-end jobs that don’t give people what they want: not enough money,

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A woman with long dark hair, wearing a white shirt and gray sweater, smiles at the camera. The background is outdoors with blurred foliage.

Video: Can A Landlord Keep Pulling My Credit Report?

Can your landlord repeatedly pull your credit report anytime he or she wants? A reader of AskTheMoneyCoach.com claims that their landlord is constantly pulling her credit report month after month. Does she have the right to stop her landlord? Has your landlord pulled your credit report recently? Watch this video to learn your rights as

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A blue sign with a red no-entry symbol over the letters "D.U.I." Beneath it in white text, the sign reads "YOU CAN'T AFFORD A DUI.

Here’s How A DUI Costs You $5,000 to $10,000 or More

We all know you should NEVER drink and drive, but few people realize the huge financial ramifications of getting busted for driving under the influence of alcohol. A DUI can be enormously costly – mainly in terms of the potential physical danger you pose to pedestrians, other drivers on the road, passengers in your car,

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A woman sits in an eco-friendly car, giving a thumbs-up with one hand and holding car keys with the other.

Eco-Friendly Updates To Your Bathroom – Save Money, Save The Earth!

 Almost everyone has at least one bathroom that could use a little sprucing up. Why not install some eco-friendly fixtures or materials? These will improve the appearance, save money and help out the environment all at the same time! If you own your home, some of these cost effective upgrades will even increase the value. Let’s start

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A blue Capital One General Motors MasterCard with the card number, cardholder name, and expiration date visible. The new credit card features logos for Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, and Cadillac.

New Credit Card Offers Special Perks to Future Car Buyers

If my husband gets his way, in about a year from now we’ll be replacing our 2003 Chevy Tahoe with his dream car: a new Cadillac Escalade. In all honesty, I love the Escalade too — especially the new 2014 and revamped 2015 models. They really do set the standard for luxury SUVs. Still, I’m always

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