Awareness

Student loan collections are coming: Here’s how to protect yourself

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on April 28, 2025 | Featured

The Department of Education announced it will resume sending any student loan that is in default to collections. Here’s what you should do now. … Read More

Tags: student loans

Can off-peak energy plans reduce your electric bill?

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on January 20, 2025 | Featured

I signed up for my electric provider’s off-peak “time of use” energy pricing plan to see if it really does save me money. … Read More

Tags: electric bill, electricity

How to handle the feeling of being in collections

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on January 13, 2025 | Featured

Being hounded by collections agencies or just people who want your money can be a scary experience, but you can manage your own experience. … Read More

Tags: collections, debt

Why food banks shouldn’t exist

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on January 6, 2025 | Featured

Food banks are a short term solution to a problem—hunger—that is solvable, if only we decided that we wanted to solve it. Have you been on food stamps (SNAP) before? I have. There’s no shame in it, and I hope … Read More … Read More

Tags: food banks, food stamps, hunger, SNAP

Year in review: The best posts of 2024

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on December 30, 2024 | Featured

I review the best posts of 2024, from the posts you liked the best to the ones I’m most pleased with. … Read More

Tags: best of, end of year, my favorites, reader favorites, top 10, top 5, year in review

Everything you need to know about locking your credit card

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on December 16, 2024 | Featured

A credit card lock can be a useful action to take when you don’t want your card used. I’ll lay out all the details here. I’ve always said that the best place for your credit card is in your desk … Read More … Read More

Tags: accountability, credit, credit card, credit cards, credit freeze, credit monitoring

Do you want others to make less money? The challenge of solidarity with wages

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on December 9, 2024 | Featured

A union dispute with a local grocery store leads to a bigger concern with wages. Is solidarity possible when we believe in a zero-sum economy? … Read More

Tags: New Seasons, solidarity, unions, wages

The country feels poor. Are they wrong?

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on November 18, 2024 | Featured

Everyone says that the economy is terrible, but if that’s the case, why do the economic indicators say otherwise? I wrote last time about my current take on the sentiment of the majority of the country. “Forget about women’s reproductive … Read More … Read More

Tags: economics, FRED

Why markets rally during catastrophes

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on November 11, 2024 | Featured

After a election that feels more like a catastrophe, I try to understand why the financial markets are having such a strong rally. … Read More

Tags: economics, economy, policies, politics

5 crazy facts about student loans in 2024

Posted by Mike Pumphrey on October 28, 2024 | Featured

The situation with student loans in the U.S. in 2024 is chaotic and uncertain. To show this, here are 5 crazy facts about student loans. … Read More

Tags: student loans

Awareness

Student loan collections are coming: Here’s how to protect yourself

Can off-peak energy plans reduce your electric bill?

How to handle the feeling of being in collections

Why food banks shouldn’t exist

Year in review: The best posts of 2024

Everything you need to know about locking your credit card

Do you want others to make less money? The challenge of solidarity with wages

The country feels poor. Are they wrong?

Why markets rally during catastrophes

5 crazy facts about student loans in 2024

Empathic Finance - Mike Pumphrey, AFC®

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