Money guides
Step-by-step guides that walk you through the big money decisions — and link the calculator for every step.
First Time Home Buyer Guide: Your Step-by-Step Path to Buying Affordability, down payment, closing costs, and getting financially ready — step by step. How to Buy a Car: A Smart Step-by-Step Guide Set a real budget, get preapproved, know the interest, and dodge the dealership traps. Am I Ready to Retire? A Step-by-Step Retirement Readiness Guide Five steps to test if your money lasts — projections, 401(k), net worth, withdrawals, and timing. Passive Income Ideas: A Math-Honest Guide to What Really Works Dividends, REITs, HYSAs, rentals, digital products — with the setup work and taxes each one really takes. Tax Tips: A Practical Checklist of Planning Moves to Consider Retirement accounts, HSAs, tax-loss harvesting, brackets, and standard vs itemized — the moves people often miss. How to Choose a Financial Advisor: A Step-by-Step Decision Guide Fiduciary vs suitability, fee-only vs commission, CFP credentials, and how to verify a real advisor. Is a Financial Advisor Worth It? What the Research Actually Shows What advisors cost, what Vanguard's research says about the value they add, and when DIY investing wins instead. Is the 60/40 Portfolio Dead? What the Historical Data Actually Shows The 2022 downturn that sparked the debate, the recovery since, and whether the classic 60/40 mix still earns a place in your plan. Money Market Account: A Practical Guide to MMAs vs HYSAs and CDs How money market accounts work, MMA vs HYSA vs CD, FDIC coverage, and when to use each. Money Market Accounts With Debit Cards: What to Know Before You Open One Which money market accounts offer debit cards, how transaction limits work, and when checking is the better tool. Back Taxes Guide: What to Do When You Owe the IRS Unfiled returns, IRS notices, and relief programs — a step-by-step guide for when you're behind. First Time Estate Planning: Documents, Costs, and Order of Operations The core 4 documents, DIY vs attorney costs by state, and the 2026 estate tax rules — step by step. Probate Process Guide: What to Do After Someone Dies Executor duties, timeline, small-estate procedures, and how to avoid probate — step by step. How to Protect Assets From Nursing Home Costs Medicaid Asset Protection Trusts, the 5-year lookback, home protection, and CSRA — the legal tools that actually work. What Is a Trump Account? Rules, Eligibility & How to Open A tax-advantaged investment account for children, with a $1,000 federal seed for kids born 2025–2028 and up to $5,000 a year in family contributions. Are Trump Accounts Worth It? Should You Open One for Your Child? A balanced, no-hype verdict on Trump Accounts: the free $1,000 seed, the real catches, and who should skip them. The Trump Savings Account: How It Works and Who Qualifies "Trump savings account" is just a nickname for the federal Trump Account. Here's the $1,000 seed, the rules, the taxes, and whether it's worth opening. Trump Account for Newborns: The $1,000 Baby Seed Babies born 2025–2028 get a free $1,000 federal seed. Here is how the Trump account for newborns works and how to open one. How to Open a Trump Account: A Step-by-Step Guide The step-by-step path to opening your child's Trump Account — the official site, documents, trustees, and funding. Trump Account Eligibility: Who Qualifies? Two eligibility rules, not one: who can open a Trump Account, and who gets the free $1,000 seed. Plus the checklist to know where your child stands. Trump Account Rules: Limits, Deposits, and Access The clean rulebook: contribution caps, seed money, who can pay in, investment limits, and when the money unlocks. Trump Account Taxes: Is It Deductible and How Is It Taxed? How a Trump Account is taxed: not deductible, not tax-free, just tax-deferred. See what you owe and when. What Are Trump Accounts Invested In? Every Trump Account holds one low-cost S&P 500 index fund. Here is why it is restricted and what that means for growth. Trump Account Alternatives: 6 Better Ways to Save for a Child No seed money for a kid born before 2025? Compare the six best Trump Account alternatives and see which fits your goal. What Happens to Leftover 529 Money: Your 5 Options Five ways to use unused 529 funds without wasting them — including the new $35,000 Roth IRA rollover. 529 Qualified Expenses: What a 529 Plan Can Pay For Tax-Free A plain-English list of what a 529 can and cannot cover tax-free — plus the room & board rule most families miss. The Best Investment Account for Kids: How to Choose (and Layer) Them A decision framework across every kid account type — Trump Account, 529, custodial brokerage, custodial Roth IRA — with a clear which-to-pick matrix. Custodial Account Taxes and the Kiddie Tax Explained Who pays tax on a custodial account, the 2025 kiddie-tax brackets, and how to keep a child's investment income under the threshold. Custodial Roth IRA for Kids: How It Works A tax-free retirement account for kids who earn income — plus the one rule that decides whether they qualify. How to Open a Custodial Brokerage Account for Kids A step-by-step guide to opening, funding, and managing a UTMA/UGMA custodial brokerage account for your child. UTMA Custodial Account Explained: How It Works, Pros & Cons A plain-English guide to UTMA custodial accounts — how they work, the tradeoffs, and who they suit. Trump Gold Coin: Is It Real, and What Is It Worth? The new $1 US Mint coin featuring Trump — is it real gold, what it costs, when it drops, and how to avoid the fakes. 250th Anniversary Coins: America's 2026 Semiquincentennial Coin Guide Every coin the U.S. Mint is releasing for America's 250th birthday — and how to tell the official ones from novelties. Coast FIRE: What It Is and How to Tell When You've Reached It The retirement milestone where your existing savings can grow into your full number on their own — no more contributions required. Credit Card Cash Advance: Why It Costs More Than You Think Cash advance fees, interest, and credit-score effects — plus cheaper ways to get cash fast. Credit Card Perks: Which Ones Are Actually Worth Paying For? Most "premium" credit card perks are now standard across nearly every card — here's how to tell real value from marketing. What Credit Score Do You Need for a 0% APR Credit Card? Score ranges, what issuers actually check beyond your score, and the deferred-interest trap that isn't the same as true 0% APR. What Happens to a 401(k) When You Die: Beneficiary Rules and Taxes Who inherits your 401(k), the SECURE Act's 10-year rule, and how taxes work for the beneficiary. 529 Investment Strategy by Age: Age-Based vs. Static Portfolios How age-based glide-path portfolios work, when a static option makes more sense, and the twice-a-year rule on switching. Real Estate Investment Options: 5 Ways to Invest in Real Estate Without Just Being a Landlord Landlording, short-term rentals, flipping, REITs, and crowdfunding — the tax and liquidity tradeoffs of each. What Is an IPO? How Going Public Works and What It Means for Investors Private vs public, the IPO process, why going public can backfire, and the lockup and allocation risks retail investors face. What to Do With an Inheritance: A Step-by-Step Plan for Windfall Money A step-by-step order of operations for inherited money — debt, savings, investing, real estate, taxes, and when to get help. Concentrated Stock Position Risk: How to Tell If You Have Too Much in One Stock How much company stock is too much, the RSU/ESPP failure mode, and ways to reduce a concentrated position without a tax disaster. Personal Loans for Excellent Credit: What Rate Can You Actually Get? Realistic rate ranges for 720+ scores, why a high score doesn't guarantee the best offer, and the fine print worth reading first. Balance Transfer Credit Card Approval Odds: What It Really Takes The score and income issuers actually look for, why a good score alone isn't enough, and your next move if you're declined. How to Choose a Balance Transfer Credit Card Dedicated 0% card vs a rewards card with a transfer offer — the four questions that actually decide it. Student Loan Standard Repayment Plan: What Changed in 2026 Legacy 10-year Standard Plan vs the new balance-based Tiered Standard Plan — and which one your loans actually fall under. Side Hustle Ideas: What Actually Pays, and What It Really Costs You in Time Side hustles grouped by how fast you get paid and what they really net after expenses — plus the tax rules most lists skip. Chase Travel Portal: How It Works and When to Use It Baseline point value, which cards unlock Points Boost, and when transferring to an airline or hotel partner beats booking through the portal. Small Business Financing: The Complete Guide for Owners Compare factoring, merchant cash advances, and lines of credit by speed, cost, and fit — with free calculators for each. How Revenue Affects the Business Loan Amount You Can Get The funding gap by revenue size, why growth rate matters as much as revenue level, and how to size a request lenders actually approve. How to Account for Invoice Factoring Under GAAP Sale or loan? The GAAP journal entries, reserve accounting, and balance-sheet treatment for factored invoices, with a worked example. How Much Life Insurance Do I Need? A needs-based way to size your coverage, from the 10 to 12 times income rule to the DIME method. How Much Emergency Fund Do I Need? How much to save in an emergency fund -- sized on essential expenses, not income -- plus where to keep it and how to build it. How Long Will It Take to Pay Off My Credit Card? See how balance, APR, and payment set your payoff date -- and why a small fixed payment beats the minimum by years. How Much Tax Will I Pay? Estimating Your Federal Income Tax See why your top tax bracket is not the rate you actually pay -- and estimate your 2026 federal income tax with a clear worked example. Should You Pay Off Debt or Invest? A Simple Decision Framework Compare your debt's interest rate to your expected return, then follow the order: match, emergency fund, high-rate debt, invest. Build Your Own Retirement Calculator Spreadsheet Template Copy these compound growth and withdrawal formulas into Google Sheets or Excel to build your own retirement projection. Bitcoin Retirement Calculator: What to Know Before You Rely on Crypto The real risks of funding retirement with bitcoin or crypto — volatility, taxes, and no guaranteed yield. International Retirement Calculators: Find Your Country's Official Tool Our calculator models U.S. rules. Here's where to find official retirement resources for the UK, Canada, India, Australia, and New Zealand. High-Yield Savings Accounts for Kids, Teens, and College Students Custodial rules, joint accounts, and age limits for opening a HYSA for a child, teen, college student, or small business. International High-Yield Savings Accounts: Find Your Own Deposit Protection Our HYSA content covers FDIC-insured U.S. accounts. Here's where non-U.S. savers can check their own country's deposit protection scheme.