For five years, it killed me (okay, not literally) to write out a rent check. In fact, in that time, I spent about $135,000 in rent. I felt like I might as well have been lighting my cash on fire. I wouldn’t see any of it again. This was painful, especially for me since I had dreamed for decades of investing in real estate. Earlier this year, I took a big step forward. I purchased Read more
When my kids were seniors (yes, they’re twins), I wanted to make it a great year. We had an amazing Christmas, and I decided to take them on spring break…just the three of us. They were going out of state for college, and I hadn’t seen their schools. So we flew down, rented a convertible, and had a vacation that we will all remember for a long time. I tried to keep some costs down. Read more
By now, I found myself getting upset each month as paid bills. I kept spending and spending, and I didn’t like the balance I was seeing in my checking account. I knew I needed to find a way out of this mess I had gotten myself into. I had to get control over my spending. So I decided to track every single expense. There are so many ways to set this up automatically, and I Read more
They say hindsight is 20/20. That sure was the case for my son participating in club volleyball. He started to play when he was in middle school when I was still married and in a two-income household. At the time, the travel was mostly drivable, and the costs weren’t as high as they later became. Starting off, he really wanted to play volleyball…a sport his other parent also plays. And my son was good at Read more
About two and a half years into my separation, I made the decision to move for a third time. When I first moved out, I found a nice townhouse in the same town so it would be easy on the kids. It was in good condition, and I was hoping to stay there longer. Unfortunately for me, the landlord decided to sell the place, and so I quickly had to find another place to rent. Read more
Five years ago, I was married with two kids, a dog, and two cats. I owned my own home, had good retirement set up, and some money in the bank. I thought I was doing well, but a divorce set me back financially. Half of everything was gone. Even with a six figure income, I found myself renting (not owning) and living far beyond my means to try to keep my kids and myself living Read more