Personal Finance

How a Personal Finance Calendar for 2022 Helps You

Financial planning for 2022 now is not thinking about it too early. Planning for the future is complicated at best and can be a stressful, challenging process. There are so many events and deadlines to keep track of. And when it comes to personal finances, missing an important date could be very costly. To add a little sanity to your life, start planning now with a personal finance calendar covering all the essential dates for 2022.

Woman sitting at a computer displaying her personal finance calendar

What Does a Personal Finance Calendar Look Like?

A personal finance calendar lists monthly and other money and financial events, tax deadlines, holidays, and other important dates. Whether you’re a novice investor or just trying to save as much money as possible, it’s worth comparing your calendar of birthdays, anniversaries, and personal events such as weddings or retirement plans to a real list of key dates. This will ensure you won’t miss anything that might impact your finances. That’s why I recommend it and why you need a calendar.

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Personal Finance

Financial Challenges: Could 2022 Be Your Worst Year Ever?

When COVID-19 hit us all back in the beginning of 2020, we were shocked, surprised, endangered, and depressed. It seemed like the world was ending or at least that it might be as we stopped being the people we were and fear took over. If you were lucky enough not to actually get sick, you still probably stopped working, stayed at home, and hunkered down waiting to find out when life would resume to being normal again. We are still waiting for it even though over a year and a half has gone by. In our lifetime, this is the biggest disruption we’ve ever experienced. But with the financial challenges facing us in 2022, could it become the worst year ever?

Man with empty pockets representing how 2022 could be the worst year ever financially

What Happened?

First of all, I do not want to minimize the fact that 700,000 Americans have died during this pandemic and millions more around the world. That is the definition of a disaster. Millions more were and are ill and who knows the ultimate long-term effect these health problems will wreak in the end. No one does.

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Personal Finance

Shadow Inflation Is Costing You and You Might Not Even Know It

It seems every week we are hearing news about inflation and coming up with new names for an old problem. It is something to worry about especially when you may not be keeping pace with the rising cost of so many of the items you buy…if you can find them these days. So now a new one, shadow inflation! What is it?

A person’s lurking shadow, like the shadow inflation lurking in our goods and services

Less Is Not More “Bang for the Buck”

Consumers may be getting less “bang for their buck” as companies have now begun to offer fewer services in lieu of raising prices. Yes, paying the same or slightly more for something, but getting less, can fly under the radar and some companies are starting to figure that out.

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Home

Is It Worth Buying a Home Warranty?

For today’s guest post on buying a home warranty, please welcome Dividend Power.

The last two houses that we bought were older ones. The first house we bought was built in the 1980s and the second one in the 1990s. Both were good houses and well built. Older houses are also in more mature neighborhoods making them more attractive. However, there are often concerns about aging appliances, roofs, plumbing, electrical, and other systems when buying an older house. In addition, the cost of repairs or replacement can run into hundreds or thousands of dollars. As a buyer, you can often get the seller to include a home warranty for the first year as part of the deal. However, what about the second year, or suppose you have been in a house for a decade? Is it worth buying a home warranty in that case?

A house you might want to protect with a home warranty

What is a Home Warranty?

A home warranty is typically bought at the time of a home purchase. It provides a warranty on major appliances along with plumbing, heating, and electrical systems, and roofing. Major appliances include furnace, air conditioner, water heater, dishwasher, oven, stove, garbage disposal, and garage door opener. Other appliances can be included on an optional basis. A home warranty is valuable if the home purchased is old and has old appliances or systems. In general, a home warranty will cover the service and repair of major appliances and systems. A home warranty may also cover replacements of major appliances.

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Cars

What’s Driving the High Cost of Driving? Plus 12 Ways You Can Fight It

You not only see it, you “feel” it. The price of gasoline you’re paying today is skyrocketing. In fact, it’s more than a dollar per gallon more than it was just a year ago. This week nationally a gallon of regular costs $3.27 and last year the average price was $2.18. You’re feeling it in your wallet every time you fill your tank. But why is that? What’s driving up the cost of driving?

Woman driving car despite the high cost of driving

What Does the U.S. Government Say?

President Biden has called for an investigation into the current persistently high gasoline prices. He has suggested that the pandemic has fostered “gasoline profiteering” just as it has in other areas and that might be the reason you are paying the highest price for gasoline in over seven years.

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Entertainment, More, Personal Finance

Professional Sports Betting Is Sending Us to Hell

If you’re one who gets together with your buddies for a friendly game of pinochle or with family friends and play bridge, you are not unusual or alone. Those games are basically for fun and are harmless. But if you are thinking about making the jump from a casual game of cards to something even more serious, or even becoming a professional full-time bettor, you may be heading straight to hell. In case you missed it, betting—in particular professional sports betting—is becoming rampant here in the U.S.

NFL football game like the ones being bet on for professional sports betting

The New Roman Empire

It’s not new…I think gambling was pretty popular in the Roman Empire, too! They went to hell and we are heading there as well.

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Health

Medicare Open Enrollment: How to Stop Medicare Choice Confusion

It’s choice time for Medicare again, also known as Medicare open enrollment. If you are just getting involved for the first time or even have had coverage from it, it can be a very confusing time in your life.

Doctor in exam room representing Medicare open enrollment

Medicare, our national health insurance program here in the United States, began in 1965 under the Social Security Administration and is now administered by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. It primarily provides health insurance for Americans aged 65 and older. But it also covers some younger people with disability status as determined by the SSA, including people with end stage renal disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

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Income & Career

Easy Money Makers You Can Do Right From Home

Please note this post contains affiliate links which help to fund this blog at no cost to you. Thanks for your support!

Making money and building your wealth doesn’t always come easy. In fact, the road to financial wealth is often long and for most it’s the road to Neverland. A not-so-fun fact is that when it comes to making more money or accumulating wealth, things often take time.

Woman sitting on her sofa with laptop doing easy money makers

You can work really hard at your job and maybe get a promotion and then earn more. Or you start your own side hustle that can require months of effort before you receive any payout. Even if you start some great financial habits or develop some insightful investing or budgeting skills, it requires patience, persistence, and time. Sometimes, you just need quick and easy money makers and there’s no way around it.

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