| |
| |
| Top Ten Ways to Improve Your Finances | |
| |
| |
| Introduction | |
| |
| |
| |
| Single Mothers and Personal Finance | |
| |
| |
| Everyone Needs a Personal Financial Plan | |
| |
| |
| Your Feelings about Money | |
| |
| |
| Surrender the Fairy Tale | |
| |
| |
| How Money Myths Affect You | |
| |
| |
| How Your Past Shapes Your Future | |
| |
| |
| Divorcing Your Marital Habits | |
| |
| |
| |
| On Your Own...Again | |
| |
| |
| Making Smart, Necessary, Immediate Decisions | |
| |
| |
| Establishing Your Bottom Line | |
| |
| |
| Making Long-Term, Calculated Decisions | |
| |
| |
| Assuming Fiscal Responsibility | |
| |
| |
| Keeping the Ex-Husband Accountable | |
| |
| |
| A Healthy Foundation for New Relationships | |
| |
| |
| |
| Where You Want to Be: Setting Your Goals | |
| |
| |
| Why Goals Are Important | |
| |
| |
| What to Do First | |
| |
| |
| How to Create Long-Term Goals | |
| |
| |
| How to Create Short-Term Goals | |
| |
| |
| How to Monitor Your Progress | |
| |
| |
| |
| Becoming Financially Literate | |
| |
| |
| Learning the Lingo | |
| |
| |
| Creating a Workable Budget | |
| |
| |
| Calculating Your Net Worth | |
| |
| |
| Consulting a Financial Advisor | |
| |
| |
| Establishing Your Values and Trusting Your Instincts | |
| |
| |
| Investment Clubs Versus Investing Solo | |
| |
| |
| |
| Banking and Short-Term Investing | |
| |
| |
| What You Need to Know about Banking | |
| |
| |
| Selecting a Bank | |
| |
| |
| Controlling Your Finances | |
| |
| |
| The Virtues of Short-Term Liquidity | |
| |
| |
| The Virtues of Mid-Term Liquidity | |
| |
| |
| |
| Assessing and Conquering Your Debt | |
| |
| |
| A Maxed-Out Economy | |
| |
| |
| Good Debt Versus Bad Debt | |
| |
| |
| Pros and Cons of Credit Cards | |
| |
| |
| Avoid Department-Store Credit Cards | |
| |
| |
| Create a Game Plan to Reduce Debt | |
| |
| |
| Develop a Cash Mentality | |
| |
| |
| |
| Repairing Credit and Improving FICO Scores | |
| |
| |
| Credit Reports Defined | |
| |
| |
| Credit Report Errors | |
| |
| |
| FICO Scores Defined | |
| |
| |
| How to Improve Your FICO Score | |
| |
| |
| When and How to Take Drastic Measures | |
| |
| |
| |
| Avoiding Identity Theft | |
| |
| |
| Identity Theft Defined | |
| |
| |
| How Does It Occur? | |
| |
| |
| How to Protect Yourself | |
| |
| |
| If Your Identity Has Been Stolen | |
| |
| |
| |
| Starting Your Own Business | |
| |
| |
| Time to Start Your Own Business | |
| |
| |
| Assessing Your Motives | |
| |
| |
| Assessing Your Skills and Talents | |
| |
| |
| Spotting Global and Regional Trends | |
| |
| |
| Creating a Business Plan | |
| |
| |
| Creating an Action Plan | |
| |
| |
| Financing Your Business | |
| |
| |
| The Pros and Cons of Franchises | |
| |
| |
| |
| Budgeting for Wealth | |
| |
| |
| Mapping Out Your Real Situation | |
| |
| |
| Establishing Concrete Savings and Investment Goals | |
| |
| |
| Saving Early Can Make You Rich | |
| |
| |
| Investment Goals Based on Age | |
| |
| |
| Managing Income Property | |
| |
| |
| Inheritances Can Make You Wealthy | |
| |
| |
| Rules for Creating Wealth | |
| |
| |
| |
| Deciding Whether to Rent or Own | |
| |
| |
| The Pros and Cons of Renting | |
| |
| |
| The Pros and Cons of Home Ownership | |
| |
| |
| All about Condos | |
| |
| |
| Buying a Home | |
| |
| |
| Using a Real Estate Agent | |
| |
| |
| When You're Ready to Buy | |
| |
| |
| How to Sell a Home | |
| |
| |
| Buying a Car | |
| |
| |
| |
| Investing in Stocks and Mutual Funds | |
| |
| |
| How to Establish Realistic Goals | |
| |
| |
| The Virtues of Long-Term Investments | |
| |
| |
| Mutual Funds | |
| |
| |
| Variable Annuities | |
| |
| |
| Individual Investing | |
| |
| |
| DRIP Investing | |
| |
| |
| Do Your Research | |
| |
| |
| |
| Protecting Your Assets | |
| |
| |
| Why You Need Insurance | |
| |
| |
| Health and Dental Insurance | |
| |
| |
| Life Insurance | |
| |
| |
| Home and Mortgage Insurance | |
| |
| |
| Car Insurance | |
| |
| |
| Disability, Long-Term Care, and Children's Life Insurance | |
| |
| |
| How to Research Insurance Options | |
| |
| |
| How to Find a Reputable Broker | |
| |
| |
| Naming Guardians and Beneficiaries | |
| |
| |
| Wills and Trusts | |
| |
| |
| |
| Affording Child Care | |
| |
| |
| The Family and Medical Leave Act | |
| |
| |
| Day Care Options and Their Costs | |
| |
| |
| The Pros and Cons of Nannies Versus Au Pairs | |
| |
| |
| The Pros and Cons of Day Care Centers | |
| |
| |
| The Pros and Cons of Family Day Care Centers | |
| |
| |
| How to Lower Child Care Costs | |
| |
| |
| |
| Funding College | |
| |
| |
| Weighing Your Options | |
| |
| |
| Coverdell Education Savings Accounts | |
| |
| |
| Section 529 College Savings Plans | |
| |
| |
| Custodial Accounts | |
| |
| |
| Education Savings Bonds | |
| |
| |
| Education Reward Programs | |
| |
| |
| The Hope Credit | |
| |
| |
| Lifetime Learning Credit | |
| |
| |
| Federal Student Aid Programs | |
| |
| |
| Other Ways to Maximize College Savings | |
| |
| |
| |
| Funding Your Retirement | |
| |
| |
| Take Control of Your Retirement Savings | |
| |
| |
| Tax-Advantaged Retirement Savings Accounts | |
| |
| |
| Employer-Sponsored Defined-Contribution Retirement Plans | |
| |
| |
| Alternate Employer-Sponsored Plans | |
| |
| |
| Individual Retirement Plans | |
| |
| |
| Self-Employed/Small-Business-Owner Retirement Plans | |
| |
| |
| |
| Maximizing Your Tax Advantages | |
| |
| |
| Special Tax Breaks for Single Parents | |
| |
| |
| Tax Deductions Versus Tax Credits | |
| |
| |
| The Dependent Exemption | |
| |
| |
| Child Tax Credits | |
| |
| |
| Child Care and Dependent Care Tax Breaks | |
| |
| |
| Health Care Tax Breaks | |
| |
| |
| Ways to Maximize Your Tax Advantages | |
| |
| |
| |
| Teaching Your Children about Money | |
| |
| |
| The Benefits of Starting Early | |
| |
| |
| How to Develop a Wealth Consciousness | |
| |
| |
| Why Allowances Must Be Earned | |
| |
| |
| They're Never Too Young to Save | |
| |
| |
| The Pros and Cons of Credit Cards for Kids | |
| |
| |
| Using the Internet as a Teaching Tool | |
| |
| |
| |
| Living a Frugal Life | |
| |
| |
| Changing Your Money Attitudes | |
| |
| |
| When You Need to Spend Lavishly | |
| |
| |
| When a Bargain Is Not a Bargain | |
| |
| |
| Having Fun Without Spending Money | |
| |
| |
| Concrete Ways to Foster Frugality | |
| |
| |
| Other Fun Ways to Live a Fabulously Frugal Life | |
| |
| |
| |
| Avoiding Common Financial Mistakes | |
| |
| |
| Face Reality and Make a Plan | |
| |
| |
| Establish a Retirement Fund | |
| |
| |
| Watch Those Deductions | |
| |
| |
| Get in the Game! | |
| |
| |
| Investing Pitfalls | |
| |
| |
| |
| Resources | |
| |
| |
| |
| Additional Reading | |
| |
| |
| Index | |