Personal Finance

This subject guide will lead you to books and web sites which will help you in handling your personal financial situation. It includes debt management, financial education and planning.

Databases

• Business Plans Handbook

  Good ideas about creating a business plan and getting everything in order so your new business doesn't damage your personal finances.

Catalog Links

• The 1-2-3 Money Plan : The Three Most Important Steps to Saving and Spending Smart
  When it comes to personal finance, many books are just too complicated and too hard to act on. Finally, there's a book that truly keeps it simple, offering advice that anyone can use and anyone can profit from. "The 1-2-3 Money Book" organizes every essential money task into three specific steps, telling readers exactly what to do, and how to do it.
  
  
• The Cure for Money Madness : Break Your bad Money Habits, Live Without Financial Stress, and Make More Money!
  Sherman presents the tools that have helped thousands of people find greater peace of mind--and make more money.
  
  
• A Dictionary of Finance and Banking
  

  This is a reference book and must be used in the library. With over 5,100 entries on all aspects of finance and banking, this fully updated reference is definitely a worthwhile investment. Over 200 new entries have been added to this edition and it has been fully updated to reflect recent developments such as structured finance and the subprime lending crisis. The dictionary defines te read more >>
  
  

  This is a reference book and must be used in the library. With over 5,100 entries on all aspects of finance and banking, this fully updated reference is definitely a worthwhile investment. Over 200 new entries have been added to this edition and it has been fully updated to reflect recent developments such as structured finance and the subprime lending crisis. The dictionary defines terms from personal and international finance--including money markets, private investments and borrowing, foreign exchanges, and public and government finance--and now offers expanded coverage of central banking, monetary policy, and financial institutions. Feature entries have been included in this edition for the fuller explanation of topical and complex areas, e.g. Financial Times Share Indexes, and bankruptcy law. Recommended up-to-date web links for many entries, accessed via the Dictionary of Finance and Banking companion website, provide valuable extra information that will be regularly updated. With clear and accessible definitions, this jargon-free dictionary is a perfect companion volume to the other financial titles in this best-selling series--A Dictionary of Business and Management, A Dictionary of Accounting, and A Dictionary of Economics--and provides accurate and valuable information for students, practitioners, private investors, and readers of the financial pages alike.

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• The New Coffeehouse Investor : How to Build Wealth, Ignore Wall Street...
  An inspirational, low-stress way to achieve financial security, this updated guide explains why people should stop trying to predict the economy and remember three simple principles: Don't put all your eggs in one basket, there's no such thing as a free lunch, and save for a rainy day.
  
  
• The New Frugality : How to Consume Less, Save More, and Live Better
  
  From the personal finance correspondent for public radio's Marketplace Money, a new plan for a new economic reality--the philosophy and practice of living frugally. As a once-in-a-lifetime downturn deepens, our go-go economy has become an uh-oh economy. But as trusted finance reporter Chris Farrell explains, there's a silver lining to this cloud: It is accelerating a trend already under way in Ame read more >>
  
  
  From the personal finance correspondent for public radio's Marketplace Money, a new plan for a new economic reality--the philosophy and practice of living frugally. As a once-in-a-lifetime downturn deepens, our go-go economy has become an uh-oh economy. But as trusted finance reporter Chris Farrell explains, there's a silver lining to this cloud: It is accelerating a trend already under way in America toward what he calls the New Frugality--a fresh way of thinking about how, what, and why we consume. In today's economy, a "sustainable" lifestyle isn't just one that's good for the planet--it's one that is based around core values and one that sustains your bank balance as well. In this friendly, approachable book, Farrell explains both the theory and the practice of living frugally. Frugality, he reminds us, does not mean old-fashioned penny-pinching. It means spending your money on quality rather than quantity--buying the best you can afford but the least you need. Drawing on his expertise as a financial reporter and his years of conversations with his public radio listeners, he provides down-to-earth, practical advice for every aspect of your financial life, including: * how to always maintain a "margin of safety" in your spending * the frugal home: renting vs. owning * the two best ways to save for college * wise debt vs. foolish debt * why giving your money away can be "newly frugal". The New Frugality amounts to a paradigm shift in the way we spend and save. The good news is a frugal lifestyle is one of less waste, lower environmental impact, greater peace of mind, and, over the long run, deeper satisfaction.  (show less )
  
  
• The Total Money Makeover: A Proven Plan for Financial Fitness
  

  Okay, folks, do you want to turn those fat and flabby expenses into a well-toned budget? Do you want to transform your sad and skinny little bank account into a bulked-up cash machine? Then get with the program, people. There's one sure way to whip your finances into shape, and that's with The Total Money Makeover!

  By now, you've heard all the nutty get-rich-quick schemes, the fiscal diet read more >>
  
  

  Okay, folks, do you want to turn those fat and flabby expenses into a well-toned budget? Do you want to transform your sad and skinny little bank account into a bulked-up cash machine? Then get with the program, people. There's one sure way to whip your finances into shape, and that's with The Total Money Makeover!

  By now, you've heard all the nutty get-rich-quick schemes, the fiscal diet fads that leave you with a lot of kooky ideas but not a penny in your pocket. Hey, if you're tired of the lies and sick of the false promises, then take a look at this-it's the simplest, most straight-forward game plan for completely making over your money habits. And it's based on results, not pie-in-the-sky fantasies. With The Total Money Makeover, you'll be able to: Design a sure-fire plan for paying off all debt-meaning cars, houses, everything Recognize the 10 most dangerous money myths (these will kill you) Secure a big, fat nest egg for emergencies and retirement!

  Where Financial Peace gave you the solid saving and investing principles, this book puts those principles into practice. You'll be exercising your financial strength every day and quickly freeing yourself of worry, stress, and debt-and that's a beautiful feeling. Book jacket.

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• Women & Money: Owning the Power to Control Your Destiny
  

  This groundbreaking book from the author of "5 Steps to Financial Freedom" investigates the complicated and perilous relationship women have with money.

  
  
  

Web Links

• Clark Howard

  A good site for making smart purchases and getting your money's worth.

• Consumer Credit Counseling

  This is the well-known non-profit that can assist you if you need help with creditors

• Smart Money Magazine

  The online version of Smart Money Magazine has good information and advice about what to do to avoid debt or get out of it.