A couple in their 70s sat down with family for the first time in about 50 years to look at their finances. What they found was close to $100,000 in debt, a monthly budget that doesn’t balance, and a sudden health crisis that’s about to make everything more expensive. Their child’s spouse helped lead the…
An employee finally decided to leave a job they describe as toxic, and they planned their exit carefully. When their boss tried to show them the door early, the plan held up better than the company’s did. They’d seen how the company treated people who resigned, so they went in expecting the worst. That preparation…
A husband warned his wife not to buy a house at the peak of the market, and he told her flatly that he wouldn’t pay a dime toward it if she went ahead. Two years later, she’s struggling to keep up with the mortgage, and he’s finding it hard to offer much sympathy. When they…
A 20-year-old agreed to cosign their mom’s apartment lease last year, hoping to help her get back on her feet. Now the rent is falling further behind every month, and the young cosigner is facing the possibility of an eviction that could follow them for years. Their mom has already been through one eviction. This…
A freshman heading off to college 800 miles from home, generally described as a bit spoiled in that fairly typical middle-class suburban way, but so far handling the basics of independent life reasonably well. Weekly calls, occasional texts, and a deliberate effort to extend the benefit of the doubt unless he actually demonstrates otherwise. That’s…
Offering to take a sister out to dinner for her 30th birthday started simply enough, meant as a one-on-one gesture for the two of them. A few days later, the reservation came through with 11 names attached instead of two. Asked what happened, the explanation was that friends and cousins had been invited because “you…
