A Good Marketing Idea Dear Dave, I’m a small-business owner with a lawn care franchise. It’s common in our industry, after the season is over, to send out pre-pay letters for the upcoming season. If we send out these letters offering a five or 10 percent discount for early payment on next year’s services, is…
Run From That Guy Dear Dave, My husband was recently laid off, and he has $229,000 in a 401(k). He has been told that he should roll it into a hybrid annuity. Is this a good idea? —Durnae Dear Durnae, Absolutely not! It sounds to me like he’s been talking to an insurance agent instead…
You’re Using It Wrong Dear Dave, I take classes online at a public university that is several hours from my home. I tried to pay for my classes the other day, and my Visa debit card was not accepted. I got a message saying credit cards and cash were the only payment options. How can…
To Be Unclear Is to Be Unkind Dear Dave, My friend and I are roommates, and we’ve always had an agreement that we split each of the bills fifty-fifty. We both work and have decent jobs, but for the last couple of months she’s been really late in paying her half of the bills. She…
Dissolve the LLC? Dear Dave, My wife and I are debt-free, plus she has a business giving music lessons. We formed an LLC last year when she had several students and was making over $3,000 a month, but that all changed when our first baby arrived. Now, she has only a few students, and they…
His Wife’s Final Gift Dear Dave, My wife and I have been married for 12 years. Last month we found out she has terminal cancer and only six months to live. We’ve been fortunate enough to become fairly wealthy during our lives together, and she wants to buy me a boat. We always went fishing…
Dave’s Take on Layaway Dear Dave, How do you feel about using layaway programs? —Jay Dear Jay, I’m not a huge fan of layaway plans, because they’re not really the solution to a problem. What’s wrong with just saving up and buying stuff when you have the cash? I mean, Christmas comes at the same…
A National Retail Federation poll conducted by Prosper Insights shows that the average consumer plans to spend $935.58 during the Christmas shopping season this year. If any of that spending is done with credit cards, it can complicate the holidays in a hurry. Since using plastic doesn’t hurt as much as spending cash, you’ll probably…
Do Both for Christmas Dear Dave, We have three preschool grandchildren, and they get tons of stuff for Christmas every year. We’re in really good shape financially and would like to do something for their future this year instead of giving a toy that might get thrown in the corner. Do you have any suggestions?…
Funding a New Business Dear Dave, We’re completely debt-free with a fully funded emergency fund, and we have $350,000 sitting in the bank from a land sale a couple of months ago. My wife and I would like to buy a chicken farm with two houses and upgrade it to contract standards. This — plus…
