Dear Dave,: Should you still pay debts that are in collections, even if they have been dropped from your credit report? The one in question is from 2011, and I assume it isn’t showing on the credit report anymore because it’s nine years old. — Sam
Dear Dave: I went through a divorce a couple of months ago, and I’m not sure what to do next. I received custody of our kids, ages 13 and 15, plus I have a good job and I got the house in the settlement. It’s a nice, simple home, but it’s paid for and worth about $200,000. I receive $1,400 a…
Dear Dave: My husband and I had our first child in December. We bought a house not long before the baby was born, and since then we’ve been getting mail and phone calls about buying mortgage protection insurance. We’re both 27, we have good jobs, and our mortgage is $105,000. Would it be a g…
Dear Dave: My husband passed away last year at just 45 years old. We always tried to be careful with our money, and we were in good enough shape financially that I paid for his funeral with cash. A few days ago, I started getting letters from the funeral homes in town encouraging me to pre-p…
Dear Dave: My husband and I are on Baby Step 3b, and we’re saving for a house. We’re out of debt and both of us make good money, plus we each have 20-year level term life insurance policies with coverage equaling 10 times our individual incomes. We also have an emergency fund equal to six mo…
Dear Dave: I’m beginning to think we got in over our heads with our house. My wife and I make about $125,000 a year combined, but we’ve never been able to put anything aside for an emergency fund. Our mortgage payment is 35 percent of our take home pay each month. We have two young children,…
Dear Dave: We’re debt-free except for our home, and we’ll have our fully-funded emergency fund of three to six months of expenses, we’ve agreed on six months worth, saved up by the end of February. We’re also setting aside a little each month to buy a newer car with cash later. We’re about $…
Dear Dave: I’m trying very hard to get out of debt. I have my beginner emergency fund in place, and I’m living on a monthly budget. Is it okay to include a little wallet cash in my budget at this point, just in case? — Andrew
TFP Nutrition announced this week that its Board of Directors has named Ben Wright as the company’s president and a member of the Board of Directors, effective Jan 21.
Dear Dave: My wife and I made a resolution this year to pay off $20,000 in credit card debt we’ve accumulated. I want us to follow your plan, and live on a really tight budget. She wants us to use a debt consolidation company, like some of her friends have done. I’m really against her idea, …
