Money Talk: Options for Building Credit Score
Question: I am selling my car to an old friend with no credit history. (The used car salesman wanted to charge her 6.5 percent interest.) Is there a way that I can report her timely payments to the credit reporting services to help her build her credit? Answer: It’s not really practical for individuals to report payments, since subscribing to credit bureaus is expensive. The rate your friend was quoted actually isn’t bad given her...
Money Talk: Gift to Son Not a Charitable Donation
Question: Our son bought a house and lost his job two months after the purchase. We have helped him stay afloat. Thankfully he has a new job. We don’t expect to get the money back — he is still trying to get out from under — but we have given him close to $10,000. Can we claim this as a “gift” to him on our income taxes? Answer: The IRS doesn’t view money given to family members as a charitable donation. In other words, there’s no tax...
Ways to Save Money On Groceries This Year
Grocery shopping can take a big bite out of your household budget. In fact, a family of four spends up to an average of $1,300 a month on food at home, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. That means families can shell out more than $15,000 a year on groceries. With the right strategies you can cut your grocery spending in half or more. Just ask Kyle Taylor, founder of personal finance blog ThePennyHoarder.com. When he was...
Money Talk: Roth Gift Could Fund Down Payment
Question: My 29-year-old son recently married, and as a gift I pledged $20,000 as a down payment on a house. My daughter-in-law is beginning a career as a registered nurse and I know they will not be buying for a few years. Is there any type of account that will grow tax-free or tax-deferred for a first-time buyer? Maybe I could gift this money to them into a retirement account for the time being? Answer: You may be able to give them...
Women and Business: Gift Shop at DHMC Has a New Name, but Same Mission
Changes are coming to Dartmouth–Hitchcock Medical Center’s “Pink Smock” gift shop, which was started in the old hospital in Hanover in 1971, expanded at the Lebanon location and soon will include a website for easy ordering and delivery. The nonprofit shop, a program of the medical center’s volunteer services department, is staffed by more than 60 volunteer cashiers and buyers, many of them women, who are involved in “shared...
