Your Kid’s Money

Your Kid’s Money

With the holidays coming up, you and/or your spouse may eventually grow sick of buying presents for yourself and pretending they’re from your kids. That’s what allowances are for — the chance for your kids to buy their own gifts for you!  A kid’s allowance is likely...
Fixing Mistakes on Your Credit Report

Fixing Mistakes on Your Credit Report

As a business owner, I don’t want my customer feedback system to be described as “impossible,” or “rage-inducing,” or “a game of attrition.” The three major credit reporting agencies — TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian — don’t seem to share my concern in that regard....
Credit Card Chargebacks

Credit Card Chargebacks

It’s rough out there shopping on the internet. Even if you hedge your bets and usually do all your shopping on a big site like Amazon, you’re bound to use smaller vendors around the gift-giving season. So what can you do to protect yourself? The first thing I would...
Winterizing Your Second Home

Winterizing Your Second Home

August is a magical month. Lawyers take time off like it’s a status symbol, the Pacific Northwest becomes a desert — and you start thinking about what you want to do next year.  If your plans revolve around a second home, they probably include some hurried trips to...
Money Apps for Teens

Money Apps for Teens

I hate to sound like a luddite, but I’m wondering if all of these easy-to-use financial apps are actually helpful in teaching our kids about money. How can a teen learn about the value of a dollar when it’s made of zeroes and ones? To be sure, this is not a new thing....
Is Temu for You?

Is Temu for You?

You may have heard about a new app topping the charts in the App Store. Temu, based out of China, is a combination fast fashion/plastic junk online retailer. The gimmick is free shipping and incredibly low prices — and the downside is vast and multifaceted. According...