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Managing money as a family isn’t always easy. Between paying bills, saving for your kids’ future, planning vacations, and preparing for retirement, it’s easy to feel like your money has a dozen different jobs. The right budgeting app can bring clarity to the chaos. Over the years, I’ve personally used or tested every budgeting app on this list. Some, like Monarch Money and Crew, have become part of my family’s daily financial life. Others I’ve […]
Don’t miss an episode of our podcast, Personal Finance for Long-Term Investors. Available on all podcast players. Here’s the latest episode: Reader Doug wrote to me this week: Any thoughts on using one of the ‘Big Three’ as a financial advisor. Fidelity, Schwab and Vanguard have different programs at different price points (shown below). For some background…it’s vital to remember that these companies swim in various lanes at the same time. They are custodians – places where you can open and keep accounts. They are fund managers – organizations that offer ETFs, mutual funds, etc. that you can pay to invest in. They also offer advisory services. These organizations can be great custodians and excellent fund managers, yet have different standards for their advisory services. I’ve got some thoughts for you, Doug. There’s a Spectrum I’m biased here. It’s important I disclose that. Though I’d like to think my bias is “pro-client.” Here are some great questions to help you discern between good, bad, and ugly advisors. And definitions about how fees are charged. I’d also recommend this podcast episode too: The broader point is that: Some advisors provide detailed planning. Others don’t. Some advisors sell commissioned products (insurance, annuities, etc) and others are fee-only. Some advisors charge high fees, others low fees. Some advisors intentionally work with 40, 60, 80 clients. Other advisors work with 200+. All else being equal, you’d probably prefer an advisor who provides detailed planning, is fee-only, spends plenty of time with you, and charges reasonable fees. So – is that what the “Big Three” provide? Service Tiers We should be looking at the “dedicated advisor tier” in the table below. The robo-only and hybrid tiers provide very little human expertise. They are essentially “investing-only” services. That’s fine – if that’s what you want. But if you are looking for true financial planning, we want to look at the “Dedicated Advisor” tier. Fees Vanguard is the clear winner here at 0.30%. Fidelity and Schwab charge fees much closer to what small, independent financial planners charge. Fidelity’s fees start very high. Well above 1.0% on the first $1M in a client’s portfolio. Schwab’s fees are more reasonable. Client Service and Planning Client service and in-depth planning are where the rubber meets the road. I’ve had a ~dozen prospective clients (and a handful of actual clients) talk to me after working with one of these Big Three. I also regularly read online communities – both of individual investors (customers of the Big Three) and of other financial advisors (including many who work for the Big Three). The commentary always sounds the same. Advisors at the Big Three are overworked. They have too many clients to serve each client well.
Share to Facebook Burnley has been named the cheapest place to buy a house in the UK, with an average price of just £117,636. That is less than half the UK average of £268,132, according to HM Land Registry data pulled together by the HomeOwners Alliance. Burnley tops a list dominated by former industrial towns in the north of England and Scotland, where property prices have never caught up with the rest of the country. […]
Share to Facebook Carlisle is the fastest place to sell a house in the UK right now, with homes going from listed to sold subject to contract in just 21 days on average. That is less than a third of the time it takes in the UK’s slowest market. The figures come from Zoopla’s October 2025 data, published in December 2025, and they cover how long it takes a property to go from “for sale” […]
Share to Facebook Glasgow has been named the friendliest city in the UK, and this time nobody’s really surprised. The city topped Conde Nast Traveller’s Readers’ Choice Awards 2025 in the friendliest cities category with a score of 97.00 out of 100, successfully defending the title it also won in 2024. Manchester came second, but not close. Edinburgh took bronze for the third year running, and five more UK cities made the top ten without […]
Opening a business bank account for your LLC sounds like one of those intimidating “I’m a real business owner now” tasks. Fortunately, it’s gotten ridiculously easy. I’ve opened business checking accounts with PNC, Chase, Axos, Bluevine, and Relay while running my businesses. These days, you can apply for many business checking accounts without leaving your chair, and the actual application can take around 30 minutes if you have your documents ready. The harder part isn’t […]
In this week’s episode, Brian Portnoy simplifies the complex world of money. Brian has over two decades of experience in the personal finance space, and he’s also an investor, educator, writer, and entrepreneur. In his book, The Geometry of Wealth, he tackles the challenges of making better investment decisions and how money fits into a joyful life. In this episode, we go beyond the numbers and talk about the behavioral science behind your relationship with money. Learn […]
In our previous post, we gave some insights into our city trip to Berlin. After being home for a few days, having done some laundry and garden work. It was time to hop on a train again and ride to London. We had booked another property through HomeExchange for another 7 days on Guest Points. So today London & Money: a love story! The Trip As mention in the last post, a while back we were discussing summer travel. We asked Miss CF what she wanted, and she noted that she wanted to go to Greece (still no idea why). One restriction, we didn’t want to fly. So we checked ways to travel to Greece for about 3 weeks in summer, using trains & ferries. This turned out to be more complicated than we thought, and we bumped into some issues trying to plan this. So eventually we gave up and asked Miss CF what the backup plan was. She noted city trips to Berlin and London. City trips it was! Planning trips to these two cities is much easier. We first found accommodation via HomeExchange, before we booked our train tickets. After a bit of effort, we managed to secure transport and lodging for both cities. Where we had some train delays to get to Berlin (and on they way back), we arrived on time in London. Also the return trip was very smooth. Just about 6 hours door to door. Not bad. London Impression As we have been to London before, we had a better sense of what we wanted to do and see (compared to Berlin). Obviously, the plan would be heavily influenced by Miss CF. We ended up doing a lot more than we had initially planned. Partially because we were able to combine a few things within a relatively small time frame. Using an unlimited travel plan for public transport really helped with this. Plus studying the underground map extensively also really helped. But boy, you really need a PhD to fully understand this thing! We ended up travelling to, among others and in no particular order, the following: London Eye (not nearly as scary as the Cable Car) London Cable Car (almost wet myself here) Queens House Maritime Museum Tate Modern Observatory at Greenwich Thames boat ride (Greenwich to Battersea Power Station) Battersea Power Station (shopping mall and residential area with fairgrounds) Tower Bridge Abbey Road (and studios) Kensington Gardens Buckingham Palace Guard Change (Boy was that busy!) Canary Wharf Portobello Road (Flea market & more) Piccadilly Circus 221b Baker Street (Something very fake but associated with Sherlock Holmes) London Aquarium Hamleys (Toy Store) Walked by Big Ben, Palace of Westminster, St. Pauls, Westminster Abbey, Trafalgar Square, Cutty Sark, and loads more Holy cow, did we do a lot… A quick impression: The Money A week in London, all-inclusive, what was the damage? Below a breakdown
Time is irreplaceable. How you decide to spend it means everything. The House Of Dragons recently wrapped up season three. A surprising character was the clear MVP. Roderick Dustin (Roddy the Ruin), Lord of Barrowtown, lead the Winter Wolves. This was a force of 2,00 Northmen who pledged their banners to Queen Rhaenyra Targaryen against Aegon II’s faction during the war known as the Dance of the Dragons. Here is …The post Your On The Clock appeared first on A Teachable Moment.
An £80 parking fine lands on the doormat. To some people, that’s an inconvenience. To an awful lot of us right now, it’s a full day’s wages, gone. Not because anyone parked dangerously. Not because anyone put a single soul at risk. Just because a foot of the car sat over a dropped kerb, or a parking app timer ran out two minutes early. We’ve just been through this ourselves. A parking ticket for parking […]
The Mom On Purpose Membership — reduce overwhelm, stress, and the mental load in motherhood. At Your Goal Weight — lose weight permanently without exercising or overhauling your eating habits by going into a calorie deficit (without counting calories). Listen to the Full Episode: Full Episode Transcript: Download Transcript Welcome to Mom On Purpose, where it’s all about helping moms overcome challenges and live their best lives. My hope is by being here, you are […]
By Marlyn Brown, Certified Financial Coach Founder, Wright Business & Advisory · Bachelor’s in Accounting · MBA in Finance Published: August 18, 2026. Before You Swipe: 5 Expenses to Review Before Using a Credit Card When money gets tight, using a credit card can feel like the fastest solution. Before adding another charge, review recurring […] The post Before You Swipe: 5 Expenses to Review Before Using a Credit Card appeared first on CuraDebt.
Recently, I made a significant change in how I describe myself professionally. For years, I have proudly carried the title Financial Dignity® Coach. It represents the work I’ve done helping people transform financial chaos into clarity, confidence, and peace. I still do that work. I still believe deeply in Financial Dignity®. And yet, I realized something important: The title no longer encompasses all of who I am. In fact, it feels confining. Have you ever experienced that? A role, title, or identity that once felt perfectly aligned suddenly feels too small because you’ve expanded beyond its boundaries. That’s where I find myself. To say that I’m only a Financial Dignity® Coach feels limiting to me. The Merchant Priestess encompasses more of who I am right now, both personally and professionally. So, let’s dive into how the title of Merchant Priestess came to me and what it represents. Origins of the Merchant Priestess I hesitated to include the origin story of how the phrase “Merchant Priestess” came to me, because it’s more than a little weird. It involves an Akashic Records reading and past lives in Egypt. And as you hear that, I suspect you’re having one of two reactions. Either it’s “Oh, hell no!” or “OMG, I love this! Tell me everything!” Honestly, I’m okay with either because your opinion of me is none of my business. I’m done editing myself or toning myself down for the comfort of others. When I traveled to Sedona for a retreat last May, I met a woman named Amanda Romania. Her presence drew me in immediately, and she was wearing a large gold ankh necklace. I’ve been enthralled with ancient Egypt since I was a little kid. I even purchased a copy of the Egyptian Book of the Dead at the mall bookstore in junior high. I had zero clue what it said, but I HAD to have it. Back to Amanda… She facilitated a shamanic journey for our Sedona retreat and afterward offered us the opportunity to book an Akashic Records reading with her for a special price, and I said yes. A few weeks after the retreat, I had my reading with Amanda. She revealed what she saw in terms of themes for my life and how they tied into past lives in both Egypt and Europe. “In all of your timelines, you are both merchant and priestess. You are adept at making and managing money, AND you are deeply connected with the divine. You ARE the Merchant Priestess.” I’d never heard those two terms together in that way before. And honestly, I had never used either term to describe myself. So, of course, being the “Word Nerd” that I am, I had to look them up. What Does the Word “Merchant” Mean to Me? The definition of Merchant is quite simple: A person who buys and sells goods or services for profit. Merchant is just another word for businesswoman, entrepreneur, or investor. You might think this is weird, but… I knew