Complete Coverage: Personal Finance

PERSONAL FINANCE

Checking out deep-discount brokerages

So you have a stack of checks that you got for your graduation and you're shopping around for the savings account with the highest yield.

PERSONAL FINANCE

Living large for less

You get what you pay for, unless you're apartment hunting in Manhattan.

Personal Finance

Keep your job, make more money

Living in the city comes at a premium and when you're starting out, there may be a tearful gap between your 9-5 paycheck and the cost of your desired lifestyle. Here are some money-making solutions that don't require quitting your day job.

Personal Finance

Avoiding the beach house blues

Three summers ago, Tracy Malm forked over $1,200 to share a 35-person "beach house" in Bridgehampton. She never went back.

Personal Finance

Checking out online bank accounts

The market for online checking accounts is rapidly expanding. Virtual banks like ING Direct and E*Trade have recently introduced checking accounts, and while more choice is ultimately a good thing, it may make deciding where to park your cash all the more confusing. Here are some questions to consider before opening an account.

One-minute career therapist

Signs it's time to move on

I believe it's always better to have a short, bad job than a long, bad job.

Personal Finance

Fighting telemarketers

Despite signing up to be on the national Do Not Call list, Americans are still receiving telemarketing calls. In fact, the Federal Trade Commission says close to 2 million people have filed complaints since the list was created in 2003.

Personal Finance

Preventing medical ID theft

Identity theft -- the country's fastest growing crime -- comes in various shapes and sizes. A lesser-known form is medical identity theft.

Personal Finance

Saving money on a home purchase

Closing costs are all the mandatory fees required up-front before receiving the keys to your new home.

Personal Finance

Romance without the sticker shock

As always, the commercial powers-that-be may pressure you to spend big today for your Valentine. But before you slap down your credit card for a pricey prix-fix dinner or a bouquet of long-stem roses, consider these last-minute romantic ideas for less.

Personal Finance

Avoiding furniture foul-ups

It's National Consumer Protection Week -- a swell time to bone up on a little-known red flag in the furniture industry: This $78 billion market is unregulated.

Personal Finance

How to dump your cell phone plan

A lot can change in two years -- the average length of time many of us commit to a cell phone plan. You may become dissatisfied with your service, move to a new location or need to change your number because your ex-girlfriend won't stop calling.

Personal Finance

Health savings accounts

Health savings accounts, or HSAs, insured an estimated 7.4 million Americans last year, according to researchers at Information Strategies. And the trend to adopt HSAs is growing, as consumers increasingly take on more active roles in their personal health care.

Personal Finance

Save energy (and lower your bills)

While it's been an unseasonably warm winter, you can always adopt energy-saving habits in any climate. You can significantly lower your monthly energy bill, not to mention save the environment and earn a tax credit or two.

Personal Finance

Gift card guidelines

Gift card sales likely jumped to $80 billion this last year. That's up 20% from the past holiday season, according to researchers at the TowerGroup.

Personal Finance

Shaping up your finances in 2007

Besides promising to hit the gym for a healthier body in 2007, how about getting your finances in better shape this year?

Personal Finance

Blogging for money

Blogging can be more than just a way to rant on politics, Paris Hilton and the latest PlayStation.

Personal Finance

Smart holiday tips

Ahead of the holiday travel frenzy, you may want consider investing in some travel insurance, which may come to the rescue in case you lose your luggage or passport, have a medical emergency or need to cancel a flight.

Personal Finance

Turning to annuities

Americans are living longer. Social security and pensions are hardly a guarantee, much less a viable source of income and increasingly, people are expected to pay more out-of-pocket for medical and health costs. 

Personal Finance

Cyber-shopping without the risk

Black Friday's Internet spending topped $430 million this year, a 42% jump from the same day last year, according to research firm comScore Networks.

Personal Finance

Boost your credit score

Whether it's to apply for a loan, insurance or a new job, your FICO or credit score can either hurt or help you obtain the best interest rate. If your score is lower than 700, you may want to think about giving it a boost.

Personal Finance

Getting help on your financial future

If you're reading this page, you may be a bit overwhelmed by money, numbers and investing. Not to mention budgeting, credit reports, taxes and college expenses.

Personal Finance

Spend less, get more at the grocery store

You may have to think long and hard for the last time you packed a lunch to work or came home and prepared a meal.

Personal Finance

How to save on rental cars

If you need a vehicle for a short time either in your own area or when you¹re away, renting may be the best bet. Here are some savings tips:

Personal Finance

Time to buy

The fall is the slowest time of year to buy a home.

Personal Finance

Avoiding 'charity' scams

Americans dig deep for charity, donating roughly $15 billion in 2005.

Personal Finance

Should you shop organic?

Health-conscious Americans love their organic wheat bread and pesticide-free blueberries.

Personal Finance

Boost your eBay profits

Online auctions are rapidly becoming major revenue streams. According to eBay, more than 700,000 people in the United States earn part or all of their income through selling on the site.

Personal Finance

Saving on prescription drugs

Paying for prescription drugs can be a pain, but there are a number of ways to save on medication. Here are some dollar-friendly strategies:

Personal Finance

Stock Options 101

Stock options are no longer exclusively reserved for top-tier execs. More employers are granting them to rank-and-file workers. If you're unfamiliar with how they work, here's a primer.

How to avoid identity theft

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in the country.

Personal Finance

Going out for little money

Want to paint the town red without spending a lot of green? Seems impossible in the city, but experts assure that it can be done.

Personal Finance

Maximizing your health benefits

If you're receiving health benefits through work, chances are you're ignoring a huge tax break.

Personal Finance

Planning your spending

No doubt we'd all love to have greater control over our spending. But here's a rule of thumb when figuring out how to divvy up your hard-earned money: Remember to eat!

Personal Finance

How to choose an IRA

Financial experts agree that no retirement portfolio is complete without an individual retirement arrangement or IRA account, which offers substantial tax benefits. Here's a primer on the two most well-known types -- traditional and Roth.

Personal Finance

How to handle a 401(k)

Even though most 401(k) plans offer free money, 30% of employees fail to take part in their company-sponsored retirement program.

Your Money

Investing with bonds

Individuals aren't the only ones who borrow money. Corporations, organizations and the government need to take out loans, too. They do this, in part, by issuing bonds to the public.

Personal Finance

How to get your money back

It's not fair -- the dry cleaner shrunk your cashmere sweater, your steak was overcooked, the flowers you sent grandma were wilted.

Personal Finance

Getting a deal at the gym

In the city, a gym membership can be a big investment. Here are some tips to consider before signing up:

Personal Finance

Better safe than sorry

We're quick to insure our lives, our cars, sometimes even our body parts. But we, a population of 6 million tenants in New York, often fail to inure the possessions under our roofs with renters' insurance.

Personal Finance

How to save on a cell plan

Talk isn't cheap. Americans spend an average $60 a month on traditional cell phone plans these days. Before you sign a contract, follow these cost-saving tips.

Your Money

Getting smart about credit cards

About 6 billion credit card solicitations were mailed last year, according to a survey by Mail Monitor. Here are some tips to consider when sifting through the offers:

Your Money

How to get discounts

Discounts are available on almost everything these days. The key is knowing how to get them. Here are some tips:

Financial advice

Life Insurance 101

About one in four American households has no tenant with life insurance, according to Life Insurance Market Research Association. But many financial experts agree that every adult -- whether young or old, single or married -- should at least consider the benefits of life insurance, which can offer financial security for loved ones in case of death. Here are some common questions and answers about life insurance:

Personal Finance

Loaning money to friends and family

A friend who's short on cash asks for $20 to pay for a meal. A cousin who's starting a business asks for a few thousand bucks to help get it started.

How to cut your energy bills

Energy prices may not fall any time soon, but here are some ways to conserve energy around your home and keep your energy bills low -- or, at the very least, affordable.

Funds for a rainy day

Compared with the rest of the country, New Yorkers spend the most and save the least, according to the data-collection firm Braun Research. For some reason, Braun found, many New Yorkers think they don't need savings.

Financial advice for couples

Disputes over money are a top reason why many marriages fail.

How (and when) to buy big-ticket items

Have your eye on that $4,000 50-inch widescreen plasma TV? Cash is always king. But for those who don't have the funds readily available, here are some payment strategies for big-ticket items.

Index Funds

Attention low-maintenance, passive investors: If you don't want to actively manage your portfolio or pay an expert to try to outpace the market, but still want to make a decent return on your investment, consider index funds.

Raising pennywise kids

If you're convinced your child thinks money grows on trees, you're probably right.

Investing in what you love

Investing doesn't have to be strictly business; it can also be personal.

What to know before you buy in NYC

For prospective home owners, banking on a home mortgage in New York City can be an overwhelming and time-consuming process. Here are some rules of thumb before signing off on a loan.

What to look for when buying health insurance

New Yorkers whose employers don't offer health benefits can enroll with an HMO or Health Maintenance Organization. Here are some tips to keep in mind before signing up with a plan.

Online investing guide

Years after a surge of investors began trading over the Internet, online trading activity remains popular. It's no surprise, considering it lets consumers avoid broker fees. But skipping the middleman means taking more individual responsibility for investments. Before making the leap, consider these tips on reducing the financial risk:

Student loans 101

When Dustin Newcombe graduated from Pennsylvania State University at the end of 2002, he got in his car and drove cross country to Hollywood with little in his trunk but a suitcase and a draft of what he still hopes will be his first hit screenplay. Like many degree-bearing students, he left college with great expectations and nothing was going to get in his way -- not even his $23,000 in student federal loans. "I haven't paid any of it back yet," he said.