Personal Finance Advice and Commentary

Black Friday is almost here. Get expert tips on everything from layaway and credit cards to debt and door busters.

I never pay full price for anything, so I collected store coupons and tracked prices and deals for weeks to save money on my holiday shopping.  Here are all the different ways I found savings and what my shopping list looked like. Holiday coupons and deals Item Coupon/savings Source Slippers $10 off $20 purchase Old Navy

In an article from The Boston Globe titled, “Take that back! Returns are big for the holidays,” the reporter found that consumers are returning holiday purchases now, before Christmas, as a function of buyer’s remorse and families needing more money as December wears on. I decided to find out how big a trend that really

It’s no longer a theory.  Now studies have proven that being relaxed or happy in a store makes you spend more, as I found out firsthand when carrying around my glass of champagne in the boot department with a friend at a Nordstrom after-hours shopping party. In fact, a recent study in the Journal of

What part of the holidays do you hate the most? Waiting in long lines or carrying a dozen packages to the car? What about thinking of the perfect gift only to find it sold out in every store? The list could go on, but the common theme is shopping. Not so for American Express Platinum

Parents looking for smart ways to educate their children about holiday shopping can turn to some new tips from Wells Fargo bank. The tips aim to help parents and grandparents prepare their children for the holiday-shopping season and teach them good financial habits before they start shopping themselves. Here’s the list. Make a budget. Review your

Bankrate released the November 2011 Financial Security Index today, and we found some interesting trends for the holiday season. We found that 42 percent of Americans plan to spend less this holiday season (including 49 percent of parents), and only 10 percent plan to spend more. We also found that merely 13 percent of Americans feel better about their job

The holiday shopping season is fast approaching, and credit card issuers are rolling out all kinds of promotions to encourage holiday shoppers to charge their way through holiday shopping lists. “Consumers lose their minds a little bit” around the holiday shopping season, says John Ulzheimer, president of consumer education at SmartCredit.com. If you have trouble staying

The holiday shopping season has kicked off and so have the perks and incentives from credit card companies. They want you to use their credit card as you charge your way through your holiday shopping list. Choose your card wisely because the right one could earn you some nifty savings and rewards. Citibank is offering its