Author Archives: Jay Butchko
Credit Utilization Blues
Credit utilization, which is how much of your available credit you have used, is one of the factors in your credit score. It is also known as debt to credit ratio, because credit reporting bureaus do not measure it purely by the face value of your outstanding credit card balances. Instead, they look at… Read More »
Beware of the Annoyance Economy
You are not the only one who feels like life is a carnival funhouse of frustrations. As easy as it would be to blame social media, clickbait, and chatbots that feed your worst moods, online content that brings out the worst in you is just an opportunistic infection, not the underlying disease. The rage… Read More »
How to Avoid Junk Fees in Your Mortgage Payment
If you are complaining about your mortgage payment, first count your blessings. Most people can only dream of being in your position. Qualifying for a home mortgage loan is more elusive than it has been for Americans in decades. The prevalent sentiment these days is that, if your parents do not own a house,… Read More »
Choose Down Payment Assistance, Not Secret Second Mortgages
Your frenemies love to humblebrag about how they pay so much less per month for their mortgage than you do for your rent. They tell you that, if you have any common sense, you will buy instead of renting, as if the thought had never occurred to you. You would jump at the opportunity… Read More »
Simple Interest Mortgages Are Not So Simple
When students sit there like zombies, teachers wonder whether all their efforts are in vain. After graduation, though, they feel more confident about the lessons they imparted that will stay with their students forever. The English teachers who introduced students to the Gilgamesh epic quietly holding their heads high, knowing they have made a… Read More »
Does Bankruptcy Protect You From Lawsuit Judgments?
The financial hardships that lead people to file for bankruptcy protection are many. Some people file for bankruptcy because of a job loss or because the medical bills from a serious injury or illness ruined their finances, even if they were able to return to the workforce after they recovered from the health crisis…. Read More »
Tax Debt and Bankruptcy Protection
Taxes are burdensome for everyone. If you are so poor that you get a tax refund, the refund you get is not enough to make much of a dent in your financial hardship. If you look financially secure on paper, the IRS shatters that illusion every year when you have to pay most of… Read More »
Bankruptcy and Your Retirement Account
When you see the amounts due on your bills, it is easy to panic about your financial situation. Once you start entering numbers in calculators and spreadsheets, your panic becomes even more entrenched. After doing these calculations, you see how long it will take you to pay off your debts with your current income… Read More »
Are Escrow Payments Pushing You Toward Mortgage Foreclosure?
You might think that you lucked out by getting a fixed rate mortgage instead of an adjustable-rate mortgage. Adjustable-rate mortgages are a constant source of stress. Once the adjustment begins, your mortgage payment can increase dramatically from one pay period to the next. It is a race against time to refinance your mortgage, increase… Read More »
Filing for Bankruptcy in a Dismal Job Market
Remember the Great Resignation of 2021? It now seems ridiculous that people would quit their jobs on purpose, with no plan set up for new employment, and expect to survive economically. Today, who would choose to be unemployed? Prices have gotten so high, with little hope of relief. To add insult to injury, even… Read More »