Let’s continue our discussion of the information found in David Bach’s second book, Smart Couples Finish Rich. In a previous post we went through the first three steps of Bach’s nine steps to creating a rich future for you and your partner. The first three covered evaluating your current financial situation, what your top 5 core values are and how these affected your financial goals, and established some basic financial truths.
Step 4: The Couple’s Latte Factor
This next step addresses a fundamental problem affecting every American household, the problem is not the income, it’s what you spend. Here we can “learn how anyone can become wealth on practically any income.” (more…)
I recently finished reading another personal finance book, Smart Couples Finish Rich 9 Steps to Creating a Rich Future for You and Your Partner, by David Bach. I felt this to be a very well-rounded finance book that focused on the relationships in your life and how this influences your views and use of money. I appreciate that he didn’t just tell you generic steps to get rich but addresses core values and motivations. By identifying your goals, you have a power in gaining control of your finances. Typically my book overviews are just that, a cliff notes version of the book. For more of a review and recommendation whether to buy or not see this post at the Simple Dollar. I’ll be breaking now my overview into three parts, addressing 3 of the steps in each post. So let’s get started and dig in. (more…)
Ever feel like you don’t know enough about your finances? Not even enough to know what you’re missing? What questions you should be getting answers to? The following quiz will help you to evaluate your finance standing and knowledge. Couples should each take this quiz separately and then compare their answers to determine how accurate of a picture they have about their current financial situation.
True or False:
- I know our current net worth (i.e. the values of the assets we have minus the liabilities we owe.)
- I have a solid grasp of what our fixed monthly overhead is, including property taxes and all forms of insurance.
- I know how my partner feels about our monthly overhead. We have discussed both the size and nature of our regular expenses and obligations, and are comfortable with them.
- I know how much life insurance my partner and I carry. I know exactly what the death benefits are, how much cash value there is in our policies (if any), and what rate the money is earning (if applicable). (more…)
