TessMore Finance Blog

Buying your first house might be the biggest financial investment that you’ve ever made to this point in your life, and possibly the most complicated. In addition to determining if you’re making a sound financial investment, owning your home is just as much an emotional decision. That’s because where you choose to live affects things like who you will meet and become friends with, your daily commute, your children’s friends and education and so much more. While there is no one-size-fits-all decision for deciding if you should buy a house now, there are a few things that you’ll want to keep in mind when making that decision. What to Consider Before Buying a House Here are a few of the most important things to consider before buying a house : Savings — Make sure you have enough money saved up not only for a down payment but for costs that come with being a homeowner Location — Location, location, location — there’s a reason that’s one of the most common real estate maxims. Check...

I love credit unions. In fact, my first “bank account” was at a credit union – Teachers Federal Credit Union . I qualified because my mom worked for our school system and that was a way to gain membership. Back then, we didn’t have a bonus or any enticement. We just walked in, opened a share draft account, and walked out with a piece of paper with our details and a checkbook. If you’ve been looking at credit unions and want to get one that will give you a bonus, PSECU might be up your alley. Table of Contents Who is PSECU? How to get $250 from PSECU How Does This Offer Compare? Who is PSECU? PSECU stands for the Pennsylvania State Employees Credit Union and they are an NCUA insured credit union ( NCUA #64131 ) that was founded in 1934. Having gone to college in Pittsburgh, I’m familiar with the working class culture that is much of Pennsylvania and their founding story resonates with that history. It was founded by 22 state workers looking for a better way to bank and so...

It’s no secret that the cost of college has increased faster than the rate of inflation for many years. According to The College Board , inflation-adjusted tuition at four-year, public universities has increased 158% between 1991-92 to 2021-22. So while it may have been easier for previous generations to pay for college with scholarships and a part-time job, many current college graduates turn to student loans. Student Loan Forgiveness With more and more college graduates entering the workforce with significant amounts of student loan debt, calls have grown for some sort of student loan forgiveness. Student loans, and the cost of college generally have become mainstays in the political planks of various candidates for state and federal offices.  There are a wide variety of opinions on whether student loans should be forgiven at all, and if so, to what degree. Some people feel that forgiving student loans benefits mostly relatively well-off people at the expense of those who did...

If you’re like most people, your finances get more complicated with every passing year. That’s especially true if you’re a business owner or have built an extensive investment portfolio. Regardless of your situation, there comes a time when you may need to hire a financial advisor . Unfortunately, plenty of people are out there claiming the title . I recommend that you limit your search to fee-only financial advisors. They are more likely to put your financial interests ahead of their own since they don’t earn commissions from selling you products and services. In this article, I show you how to find a fee-only financial advisor and explain why fee-only is necessary for most (not all) people. Table of Contents What Is a Fee-only Financial Advisor? Why You Should Work with a Fee-only Financial Advisor Downsides to Working with a Fee-only Financial Advisor How Much Should You Pay for a Fee-only Financial Advisor?  Additional Fees How to Research Fee-only Financial A...

It's Sunday morning as I write this, and my weeklong adventure at Fincon 2022 in Orlando has come to an end. I'm exhausted. As has become customary, I didn't actually attend any workshops or keynotes or breakout sessions here at Fincon. Instead, I spent the entire week connecting with friends: I enjoyed chatting with Rob Berger about how he's managed to grow his excellent YouTube channel from 0 to 63,000 subscribers in two years. He now makes more than he used to earn with his blog (and he made plenty with his blog). He does this by putting his audience first and only promoting a handful of products that he actually uses and endorses. Love it. Rocky Lalvani from Richer Soul told me about Marisa Peer and the biggest disease affecting humanity . As a guy who has struggled plenty with his mental health, I like Peer's message: “I am enough.” (This is now the lockscreen on my phone!) Donna Freedman told me all about her frugal adventures in Anchorage, Alaska. Don...

Cryptocurrency seems to repeatedly come close to gaining acceptance and then throwing away its newfound cachet. It gains ground with mainstream investors, then sacrifices those gains to volatility with investors retreating to the sidelines yet again. Institutions, likewise, talk the game yet seem to talk more than to act. There are some notable exceptions; some organizations have made significant investments or commitments into cryptocurrency or related activities. These organizations are outliers. Many are looking at crypto; fewer are taking significant action. Despite crypto’s wild ride and propensity to appear to resist becoming “acceptable,” many institutions and investors feel that cryptocurrency and decentralized finance (DeFi) are going to be a significant power in the future. Which begs the question of what to watch for in cryptocurrency. What might be the signs that crypto will soon be emerging from its teenage angst and ready to play a meaningful role in society? Regulati...

The most basic purpose of any annuity is to provide a steady income in the future. Like most financial products, annuities have expanded in recent years and come in various flavors. A multi-year guaranteed annuity (MYGA) provides that income stream but does it in a way that is generally more conservative than other annuity types. You might think of an MYGA as the CD version of annuities. This article will explain how MYGAs work, including tax treatment, pros and cons, and how they compare to other investment vehicles. Table of Contents What Is an MYGA and How Does it Work? The Tax Consequences of MYGAs MYGA Pros & Cons Pros: Cons: MYGAs vs. CDs MYGAs vs. Other Types of Annuities Should You Purchase an MYGA? What Is an MYGA and How Does it Work? Like all annuities, an MYGA is an investment contract with an insurance company. You turn your funds over to the insurance company in exchange for a future stream of income. Annuities can be a preferred source of future i...

Healthcare and health insurance is a complicated topic, and there are many differing opinions on how it should best be handled. In many countries, there is universal healthcare for everyone, but that is not the case in the United States. While there are government-run programs for the elderly (Medicare) and those with low-incomes (Medicaid), most people get health insurance for their family through private health insurance companies, usually through their employer.  This coverage often extends to the employee’s family, including spouse and children. Most insurance plans have a limit on how old the employee’s children can be to still receive coverage. When the Affordable Care Act (ACA) passed in 2010, this limit was standardized to be 25 years old.  How Long Can You Stay on Your Parents’ Health Insurance? The Affordable Care Act standardized the age in which children could remain on the health insurance plan of their parents at 25. Before the ACA, it was common for insurance...

Bringing a child into the world may be priceless, but fertility treatments are anything but. This high price tag can put aspiring parents into a tough position, forcing them to choose between starting a family and avoiding massive amounts of debt.  Thankfully, there are several strategies you can use to reduce or eliminate the need to borrow money for fertility treatments. Here are some of the best options, along with some advice for those who find themselves needing to take on debt to pay the remaining costs. Understand your insurance coverage In 15 states, insurance companies are required to provide some amount of fertility coverage. This depends on the exact state. If you live in one of these states , look at your specific insurance policy and see what they offer.  Some employers also provide fertility coverage, even if the state doesn’t require it. Major companies like Starbucks, Apple and Amazon provide comprehensive fertility coverage for qualifying employees. Check...

This week I'm in Orlando for Fincon , the annual gathering of folks who work at the intersection of money and media. As a result, I haven't had time to do all of the things I normally do during a week. I haven't been reading or writing about money. Instead, I've done a lot of chatting with colleagues. We've been coming together at Fincon since 2011. At first, we were nearly all strangers to each other. Today, many of these people are my closest friends — but they're friends I see in person only once or twice each year. I value every moment I get to spend with them. On Tuesday, for instance, a group of us booked a private VIP tour through the Disney theme parks . We had a blast. I mean, look at this wretched hive of scum and villainy… Chatting with other money nerds this week has given me additional clarity about the future direction of Get Rich Slowly — on the web, on YouTube, and in the email newsletter. You see, most money bloggers (and podcasters and Yo...

If you love budgeting spreadsheets, there’s a good chance you’ve heard of Money in Excel. Unfortunately, Microsoft will no longer support the program after June 30, 2023.  If you’re a current user, it might be time to consider replacement budget software. The good news is that several alternatives also provide a spreadsheet experience. This article covers five Money in Excel alternatives you may want to try. Table of Contents Is Money in Excel Closing? Best Money in Excel Alternatives Tiller Personal Capital YNAB Mint Quicken Final Thoughts Is Money in Excel Closing? Microsoft announced in May 2022 that they would discontinue Money in Excel after June 2023. As a result, you will no longer be able to enjoy these features: Linking financial accounts Importing transactions Customizable budget templates Sharing budgets with partners and financial advisors Any financial details in your OneDrive cloud account won’t be deleted but will no longer work with this E...

I’ve been tracking our net worth like a weirdo since I started working in 2003. That’s nearly 20 years of data. Sweet sweet data. This post was originally written in 2017 but after the years we’ve had in 2021-2022, it rings even truer. I’ve updated it with two more lessons at the end. That first row is so simple. 2 bank accounts, 1 brokerage account, and what I considered an impressive net worth of $8,745.69. That’s the equivalent of $14,105.27 today (July 2022). $4,519.44 was my Roth IRA, accumulated during high school and college. The rest was a sizable signing & moving bonus from Northrop Grumman. My side hustle proceeds played a role too. Except I didn’t do it completely accurately. It didn’t include $35,000 in student loans… whoops. What’s most enlightening are the comments I left. They’re little notes in some cells to help jog my memory on what happened that month. They’re typically tentpole moments in my life, like moving, getting married, selling a business, or ...