A study conducted by a Wharton professor—whose research was all conducted well before the recession and the housing crash—shows that despite all the hoopla about the white-picket-fence American dream of owning a house, homeowners are no happier than renters. Whatever joy homeowners derive from their properties is offset by …
Borrowing
Home Buyers: Purchase What You Need, No More
This advice is probably a little late for owners of the 1.5 million homes in foreclosure, but a WSJ story succinctly tells the big reason anyone should become a homeowner—because it saves money compared to renting, not because it’s going to make anyone rich. Many speculators are learning that buying a property you cannot afford will do …
Foreclosure Watch: At Some Point, Is It Smarter to Walk Away from Your Mortgage?
The news is making the rounds that in the first half of 2009, 1.53 million properties in the U.S. were in the foreclosure process. That’s up 15 percent companred to the previous year. The figures are certainly the result of the rise in unemployment and slow, confusing relief efforts from the government and lenders. It’s also likely that …
Doing the Math to Wipe Out Credit Card Debt
How much does credit card debt really cost you? Most people don’t even want to think about it, let alone do the math themselves. But with the federal reserve’s free and simple credit card repayment calculator, you don’t have much of an excuse.
California Budget Solution: Tax Pot Sales
Few groups ask the government to tax them. But in light of California’s budget woes, a pro-marijuana group is advocating that the state government—that’s right, THE MAN—should take a piece of the action in pot sales.
College Kids Are Not Loving This Summer
The summer of 2009 is proving to be a reality check for college students and recent grads. Instead of rollicking trips abroad or working at no-pay internships that their families can no longer afford to bankroll, college kids are grinding out the steamy days of summer doing manual labor—and they’re happy to have the work.