All The Simple Dollar

The money in your investment account isn't just a number. It represents the possibilities of the life ahead of you. 

There are a few tips that can shave several dollars off of every single package you ship, Hamm writes, leaving you with more money in hand and better results in terms of the value of a trade or an item sold.

No one can tell you exactly how much you should be saving for retirement, Hamm writes, but there are a few guidelines to think about when planning for retirement. 

Budgeting for college living can be a challenge, especially the first year. Here are readers' best tips for sending your freshman off to college prepared – without breaking the bank. 

Having a large amount of money stored away in one place (like a retirement account) can be worrying, but losing it to an economic collapse shouldn't be a concern. Here's why.

Financial advisors are going to be managing a big part of your future and giving you advice that could have enormous life impact for you, Hamm writes. You should not be afraid to ask financial advisors anything pertaining to their profession.

The best way to save money is to identify the products that do what they're supposed to do well, and then find those products for the lowest price, Hamm writes.

Everyone fails at goals, Hamm writes. The people who succeed are the ones who pick themselves up, dust themselves off, figure out what went wrong, and give it another try with new knowledge in their mind.

For parents on a budget, back-to-school shopping can feel like a spending free-for-all. Here are Simple Dollar readers' best tips for keeping back-to-school shopping affordable.

Deciding when to spend money and when to save it can be a difficult decision. Hamm recommends looking at those situations from the perspective of other stakeholders and imagining the result of the decision ten years into the future.

It can be difficult to stick to your personal finance goals, but nobody's perfect, Hamm writes. The trick is to think positive and focus on successful personal finance decisions.

Frugality works best as a series of little steps that you can work into your daily routine. Here are 10 things you can do this evening to cut back on spending. 

How do you improve a bad credit score? What do you do if you and your spouse can't agree on budgeting? Hamm answers these questions and more in this week's reader mailbag.

Going grocery shopping doesn't have to be expensive. Hamm offers readers eight tips for trimming down their bills at the grocery store.

A recent article claims that saving for a comfortable retirement with a 401(k) plan is impossible. There are pitfalls, including hidden fees, but just because saving for retirement can be tricky doesn't mean it's a scam. 

Not everyone can take out a mortgage to buy a home, but the American dream is still attainable for the vast majority of Americans, Hamm says. How do you get your finances into good enough shape to buy a house? Hamm walks readers through the road to homeownership.

It depends on a number of factors — your credit history, your insurance, the area you're looking at. Hamm says renting is not a throwaway.

You should live in the city with the lowest cost of living that allows you to pursue the career you want, Hamm advises readers. 

Don't obsess over saving every penny or clipping every coupon. Frugality shouldn't override your every decision, Hamm says.

Many people find they are blinded by expenses that creep up on them, like paying extra for cable or keeping their thermostat at the same setting all year long. Hamm offers 10 'relatively painless' ways to save money now.