How to Lower Your Sallie Mae Student Loan Interest Rate
If you’re trying to lower your Sallie Mae student loan interest rate, you’re not alone. One reader of AskTheMoneyCoach.com shared their frustration about consolidating loans with Sallie Mae back in 2001 at a fixed 7% interest rate. While payments have been consistently made for over a decade, Sallie Mae offered no solutions when asked about […]
Calculating Your Social Security Benefits
A reader of AskTheMoneyCoach.com had a question about their social security benefits. Here is what the person asked: Q: Where can I go to calculate my future social security benefits? A: The official website of the U.S. Social Security Administration is the best and easiest resource to calculate your social security benefits. You can find […]
How to Invest Better
Investors too often lose money by worrying too much about investment products, rather than directing their attention to the process of investing.
Will This Woman Go Down as the Rosa Parks of the Occupy Movement?
The Occupy Wall Street movement is gaining steam all across America, and one of the key flashpoints right is in the San Francisco area, where a woman may ultimately be heralded as the movement’s Rosa Parks. In one section of San Francisco called the Bayview District, which is predominantly an African‑American neighborhood, there are more […]
How To Stop Spending Like A Shopaholic
Quite often how and why we spend money is tied to our is tied to our emotional state. Sometimes we spend money completely on a whim because something struck us a being a “must have” item in that moment. At other times, our purchasing decisions are wrapped up in the way we feel overall . […]
I Paid My Student Loan In Full But I Received Yet Another Bill For Interest Due. Should I Pay The Bill?
Q: Hi. I just paid my school loan in full by the due date. However, I just received a bill for additional interest. Am I obligated to pay it? A: You likely received a bill — even after you paid your student loan in full — because your lender was probably charging you per diem […]
Want a P2P Loan? See This Profile of a Typical Peer-to-Peer Borrower
When you think about an individual who would borrow money from strangers, rather than fill out a loan application at a bank, what kind of image comes to mind? Do you think the borrower is desperate, has bad credit or has mismanaged his or her finances? Or maybe you think the person has few economic […]
Should You Walk Away from Mortgage Debt You Can’t Afford?
If you’ve been struggling to keep up with mortgage payments for a while and simply can’t afford your home loan, walking away from your mortgage may be a last resort. In the wake of the recession, millions of Americans have had to give up the American dream of living in their own house and have […]
New Bank Fees Are Coming: Here’s What to Expect
Consumers scored a victory recently when Bank of America and a host of other banks decided to forgo charging fees on debit cards. But that doesn’t mean Americans won’t face other new fees and unexpected charges by the banking industry. Here are several ways that U.S. banks are likely to sneak in new fees – […]
What are the Age Rules Regarding an IRA Withdrawal?
Q: I am retiring and want to roll over my deferred account to an IRA. Which is the best IRA account? And how old do I have to be to withdraw without getting penalized? And what will the tax rate be?” A: Under current IRS guidelines, you must be at least 59 1/2 years old […]
When to Refinance Your Mortgage
Q: We have a 5% loan and we owe a little over $132,000 left on it. It was appraised at $168,000 in June 2010. We are now looking at refinancing it at 4.25%, and it was appraised at $148,000 dollars. Since the appraisal was low, we will have to take out PMI but it is […]
Even Before BofA Dropped Its Debit Fee, Occupy Wall Street Had Already Won
Ever since the Occupy Wall Street protests that launched in New York City began, many people have questioned whether this loosely defined group will “succeed” – and if so, how its success will be measured. In my view, even before the news broke that Bank of America was dropping its planned $5 debit fee, Occupy […]
Should You Start a 401(k) After Age 60?
A reader of AskTheMoneyCoach.com wanted to know whether or not it’s a smart decision for them to launch a 401(k) or 403(b) investment plan later in life. The person asked me simply: Q: “Should I start a 401(k) or 403(b) investment plan at 63 years of age?” A: Yes! Actually, I think it can be […]
College Scholarships for Students in High School, Middle School and Kindergarten
Since my oldest daughter entered high school in September, I’m going all out to help her hunt for scholarships and aid her in scoring some free money to pay for college. I figured we’d be getting an “early” start, by looking for scholarships while she’s just now in 9th grade. Boy, was I wrong! Little […]
Peer to Peer Loans: 6 Things You Need To Know
Many people who have heard of peer to peer lending understand that it is a form of social lending that removes the bank as the middleman. However, there are a lot of other factors about peer-to-peer loans, the peer to peer lending process or the P2P industry in general, that many people don’t understand. Here […]