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Firstly, thank you to everybody who purchased the new book Household Cybersecurity over this last week! If you have any questions about the material, feel free to ask, as you’re probably not the only person with that same question. If you found the book to be helpful, please consider leaving a review on Amazon (or Goodreads), as that’s the best way to help others find the book. Other Recommended Reading 4 Practical Uses of TIPS […]

As Benjamin Franklin famously put it in a Constitution Center letter from 1789: “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes,” these two things, death and taxes, are certainties … Read more

DIY Investing vs. A Financial Planner: What Each Really Costs You Over 25 Years Are you wondering whether to hire a financial planner or DIY invest on your own? I hear this question all the time, and it’s personal for me right now, which I’ll explain below. Start with the number that gets everyone’s attention: a 1% fee. The average financial advisor charges approximately one percent of assets under management. It sounds like nothing. But on a $500,000 portfolio, that’s $5,000 a year, and over 25 years it can cost you more than half a million dollars. And that’s assuming that your portfolio value remains constant! This article may contain affiliate links which means that – at zero cost to you – I might earn a commission if you sign up or buy through the affiliate link. Does that mean you should never hire a financial planner? Not exactly. Let’s break down who should DIY, who should hire help, and the middle option that most people overlook. The Math: What a 1% Fee Really Costs Say you invest $500,000 and earn 7% a year for 25 years. With no advisory fee, you end up with about $2.7 million. With a 1% fee, your return drops to about 6%, and you end up with about $2.1 million. Same portfolio, same market. Roughly half a million dollars or more goes to fees. The Case for DIY Investing Self-directed, or DIY investing has a lot going for it. Lower cost. A simple portfolio of low-cost index funds or ETFs can cost a fraction of a percent per year. A basic U.S. stock market index fund like Vanguard Morningstar Total Stock Market ETF (VTI) has an expense ratio of 0.03%, while an international stock ETF like Vanguard FTSE Developed Markets Index Fund ETF Shares (VEA) charges the same low rate. On a $100,000 investment, the annual expense ratio of 0.03% equals $30. No additional fees apply! Full control. You decide what you own and when you change it. With a modicum of financial and investment education, you can learn how to to invest, and decide which investments fit your goals. Simplicity. A basic three-fund portfolio of U.S. stocks, international stocks and bonds does the job. Since each ETF owns thousands of individual companies, three ETFs offer excellent diversification. Solid performance. If you worry that a planner will deliver higher returns, that’s debatable. Plenty of data suggests index funds, which mirror the market, generally outperform most actively managed strategies. Tax efficiency. Taxes also make a difference when investing. In a taxable investment brokerage account, trading can rack up short term gains, which might up your tax bill. Whereas, investing in index funds, which have minimal turnover, tends to keep taxable gains at bay. [embed]https://youtube.com/watch?v=oHvlSW9iDCM&si=Ko7nc9FUtbfSzGmy[/embed] The Case for a Financial Planner A good planner is not just building your portfolio. You’re paying for something very different from asset management. Behavior coaching. The biggest wealth killer isn’t necessarily fees. It’s panic selling in a

I knew that September was going to be a tighter-than-normal month for our family’s finances. We live on last month’s income, so I knew at the beginning of September exactly how much we had to work with. I also knew that we would be having to spend money on several different stressful situations in the upcoming months. To help manage our tighter budget, I planned to have a lower-than-normal grocery budget in September.  Our grocery […]

For years we had our TV above our DIY electric fireplace. I know, I know, interior designers are probably cringing over this. Haha! It was fine until we decided that the placement was actually not ideal for the wall after rearranging our living room to be more toddler friendly. (Gotta keep eyes on her!) So we […] The post Budget Friendly Large Scale Canvas Artwork For Your Home For Less Than $100 first appeared on Whitney […]

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Listen to the pod According to Moneybox data, one first-time buyer every 10 minutes got the keys to a first home in 2025. Brian Byrnes, Head of Personal Finance at Moneybox, explains what it takes and what is next for the Lifetime ISA. Brian Byrnes is Head of Personal Finance at Moneybox and has given evidence to the Treasury Select Committee on the Lifetime ISA. He joins host Sammie Ellard-King on The Money Gains Podcast […]

For anybody considering hiring an advisor, it’s important to know exactly what you want. That is, it’s best if you go shopping for an advisor who meets requirements that you have selected, rather than letting somebody come to you to sell you their services. One way in which advisors can be categorized is by what services they provide. At a very high level, the options would be: Advice-only (i.e., they provide advice but do not […]

September is winding down, which means it’s time to get your October budget ready. What do you need to make sure your budget is ready for the month? The post EIGHT OCTOBER BUDGET MUST-HAVES appeared first on a life on a dime.

Learning how to be frugal can feel a little strange when you’ve never really had to watch your money before. Maybe you’ve always been able to fill your grocery cart without paying much attention to the total, replace something when it broke, grab takeout when you didn’t feel like cooking or buy something you wanted without giving it much thought. But sometimes life changes. Maybe your income has changed, you’re approaching retirement and realizing you want your […]

There are a lot more places that sell stamps than just the Post Office. You can buy postage stamps at grocery stores, pharmacies, warehouse clubs, convenience stores, office supply stores, and even some ATMs. You can also order them online and have them delivered to your home. The best place to get stamps depends on what matters most to you. The Post Office offers the largest selection, while grocery stores and pharmacies are convenient if […]

You’ve decided to buy a house. Congratulations! Now comes the hard part. Buying a home in Jamaica can be exciting, but if this is your first time doing it, the process can also feel overwhelming. Between finding the property, getting a mortgage, paying closing costs, dealing with lawyers, valuations, surveys and trying to figure out exactly how much house you can actually afford, there is a lot to think about. I bought my first home […]

WiseStacker Where to Buy Non VBV Data in 2026: What Non VBV Bin Security Means Where to Buy Non VBV Data & What Non VBV Bin Security Means The phrase “non VBV” gets used like it describes something permanent about a card. It does not. In 2026 the meaning has drifted, and the places people source these ranges are not the same as they were even a year ago. This guide breaks down what non […]