Author Archives: Jay Butchko
Understanding the Earned Income Tax Credit
You know you are rich if taxes are the biggest financial burden you must bear. For the rest of us, income tax refunds are the only financial relief we get. Throughout the year, our paychecks get eaten up by the fees charged by the debit cards onto which our employers load our pay because… Read More »
How to Stop Debt From Ruining Your Marriage
Saying that money is the number one cause of divorce is like saying that money is the root of all evil; too many contradictory and, in some cases, mutually exclusive things are within the category of “money.” Some marriages fall apart because the spouses are dishonest with each other about their finances. In other… Read More »
Retirees and Credit Card Debt
Much of the content about credit card debt focuses on working age people who feel the pressure to engage in consumerism and who charge purchases on their credit cards in the hope, no matter how remote, that their income will increase to the point where they can pay down the debt more quickly than… Read More »
Credit Card Debt Relief for Broke Chumps
You can tell how privileged someone is by the advice they give you. The people who tell you to get up at 5:00 in the morning and go on a walk before taking a shower and getting dressed for work do not work from 8:00 a.m. until midnight like you do. The ones that… Read More »
Home Improvement Contractor Faces Criminal Charges After Ghosting Client
Winter is delightful when you are warm inside your home. Under ideal circumstances, being snowed in for days feels like a cause for celebration. You can get creative modifying recipes so that you can prepare them with the ingredients already in your kitchen; you get to be proud of yourself for your frugality and… Read More »
A View From the Credit Card Debt Treadmill
One of the ugliest aspects of the mass media is its effectiveness at convincing us that other people’s apparently perfect lives are real. As we speak, your children are watching videos where Everyman-coded YouTubers hide Elf on the Shelf around their five-bedroom houses as their purebred dogs scamper in and out of the frame. … Read More »
Are Bots to Blame for Your Medical Debt?
Perhaps you have heeded one of those roadside billboards or cheap TV commercials and called a personal injury lawyer if you were struggling with medical bills after a car accident. When you went to the consultation, the lawyer probably explained that car insurance companies are in the business of protecting their financial interests, not… Read More »
Consumers Receive Settlement From Earned Wage Access App Brigit After Lawsuit
When you are young and have no financial responsibilities, the anticipation of payday is fun, because you get to spend your paycheck on fun stuff. As you work each shift, you imagine the money adding up and look forward to splurging it on junk food and Laser Tag on the weekends. Waiting for payday… Read More »
Does Paying Your Bills on Auto Pay Make Your Financial Situation Better or Worse?
Almost every Pennsylvanian has experienced a multilevel marketing (MLM) sales pitch. An acquaintance that you see regularly or a former classmate or coworker you have not heard from in a long time invites you to a social gathering or one-on-one coffee date. First she tries to convince you to buy overpriced vitamin supplements or… Read More »
Assumable Mortgages Are Overrated
An assumable mortgage is one where the homeowner can transfer responsibility for the mortgage loan, and with it ownership of the house, to another borrower. Especially in today’s housing market, it seems like an irresistibly good option. After all, the main draw of an assumable mortgage is that the new borrower gets to keep… Read More »
