Spending: When it’s time to dip into that retirement account
Let’s take this fancy vacation. It’s time. We can’t spend that much money! Why not? We have enough. It’s time. A variation on that conversation happens…
Author: Rick Good
Rick Good spent ten years in the newspaper business, including with The News & Observer (Raleigh, NC) and The Greenville News (Greenville, SC). He co-wrote, with Melinda Coleman, Rutledge to Riley: Governors of South Carolina, 1776–Present (Published by The Greenville News), and is the author of Mind Games Trivia #1 (Amazon). He has recently spent 15 years creating original trivia content through Sounds Good Mobile Entertainment and continues that with his new company, SGME Software. He edits The Smart Reader's money, real estate, and business coverage.
Can you build credit with a debit card?
Some new debit cards have the ability to build credit. Debit card activity isn’t typically reported to major credit bureaus, but a new crop of debit cards…
Health insurance prices to jump
The cost of employer-sponsored health plans are expected increase more than 6 percent in 2024, the largest price increase for employer health plans in…
The mouthwatering history of the Big Mac
The Big Mac is one of the most iconic sandwiches in the world and each year, McDonald’s sells more than half a billion of them. It’s got a tasty history…
For cable TV, the end may be near
Is the clock ticking on cable TV? A recent spat between Disney and Charter Communications, the second-largest U.S. cable provider, illustrates just how…
College coaching becomes a big money career
College football coaches have seen their income skyrocket over the years. In 1994-95, coaches in the Big Ten Conference earned an average base salary of…
The beautiful eggplant masquerades as meat or pasta
The eggplant has been known to humans for thousands of years. Until the 12th century, however, its main use was as a table decoration. At that time, it…
Ask the Expert: How does the closing process work on a mortgage?
Closing is that fine day on which the ownership of a house (the title) transfers from seller to buyer. Before that, a number of things have to happen: 1….
Home styles are changing and rooms are on the chopping block
Formal living rooms — those special places from which kids and pets were barred — have been on the decline for years and have largely gone the way of a…
The arguments for children
Everywhere you turn, people are making arguments against having children: too expensive, diapers, climate change, career, freedom, and who needs the…