Radical Finances

The Roth IRA danger zone (part 1): What to do when you almost make too much to contribute

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A Roth IRA is awesome. There are lots of reasons, but the main one is that your money can grow and be withdrawn tax-free. So whatever you have in your account, that’s yours. Got a hundred grand? You’ve got a … Read More … Read More

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Inviting the repo man in: Using a home equity loan to pay off credit card debt

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Some people cut up their credit cards. Some people have them but keep them in a drawer. Some people may use them, but pay them off at the end of the month. I can see arguments for all of these, … Read More … Read More

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The bridge: What you need when you retire early

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One of my life’s goals is to become financially independent. This means that I won’t need to rely on work to earn an income. (Yeah, it would be nice if we as a society could move to something approximating universal … Read More … Read More

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Book review: Everyday Millionaires

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I review the book “Everyday Millionaires” by Chris Hogan and its fundamental question: can anyone truly become a millionaire? The word “millionaire” has a lot of emotional meaning. It carries the weight of financial success, even if it doesn’t necessarily … Read More

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When to create a savings bucket

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A bucket is my term for a savings account, used for either one-time or ongoing purchases. It’s certainly not a standard financial term. I don’t see it used much on personal finance sites. But the analogy should be clear enough. … Read More … Read More

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How to find the sweet spot for paying extra on a debt

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If you have debt, some of the mandates are clear to you: Pay it off, obviously. Pay down a single debt at a time. Pay either the highest interest rate debt first (which makes sense on paper) or the lowest-sized … Read More … Read More

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When you’re asked to buy a protection plan, do this instead

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I have a pretty nice laptop. It was bought for me as part of my previous job, and when I left, I negotiated to be able to take it with me. Along with ownership of the laptop came the warranty, … Read More … Read More

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Make your bills less lumpy

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There is a difference between bills and expenses. A lot of people who talk about personal finance don’t distinguish between them. They say it’s all your “outgo” or just “what you spend money on”. But a car insurance payment is … Read More … Read More

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Dark waiting

One day, you too may not receive a paycheck. Here’s how to prepare.

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Unless you live under a rock (and even rocks seem to have good WiFi these days), you know that as of the time of writing, the United States is undergoing the longest partial government shutdown in history. About 800,000 federal … Read More … Read More

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Stockberg panorama

Year in review 2018: Your top 10 favorite posts

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It’s the end of the year, and I’m recapping the best posts on this site for 2018, as I do every year. In my last post, I recapped my favorite posts of the year. But today, I’m recapping the most-viewed … Read More

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