We’ve been taking time out here at Yielding Wealth to occasionally have Linda Leitz, author of We Need to Talk: Money and Kids After Divorce,  answer some reader questions. We are on our final question:
I’d like to give my kids an allowance to teach them to manage money responsibly, but they get money from my ex whenever they want it. How can I teach them that money won’t always just “appear,” and that they need to learn to manage what they have properly?
Here is Linda’s answer:
This is a difficult issue.  And kids generally know how to work each parent.  …read more

Linda Leitz, author of We Need to Talk: Money and Kids After Divorce, has been answering some personal finance questions from readers lately. Today is a look at the third installment:
Q. I want to make a family budget, but am unsure of how to begin. What should I do to get started?
Linda offers this answer:
First, figure out what you spend now.  Ideally go through at least six months of checking account and credit card records.  If you have one of the computer programs that can track spending, it’ll be easy to download all your accounts, then categorize what each item …read more

We’ve been doing a special Q&A series with personal finance planning expert Linda Lietz. Today she answers a question about personal finance planning and divorce:
Q. I have been working for most of my 12 year marriage. Five years ago I received a raise, and am now responsible for earning about 60% of the family income. My husband contributes the rest. If I divorce my husband, will I have to pay him alimony?
A. That could be a possibility, but doesn’t sound likely.  Alimony, which is also known as spousal maintenance, is blind to gender.  It’s based on two factors in most …read more

Not too long ago, Yielding Wealth ran a contest in which readers submitted questions to Linda Leitz. Leitz is the author of the book We Need to Talk: Money & Kids After Divorce. Throughout the rest of the month, I will be posting her answers to the four best (and most common) questions I received.
Today’s Question: I only have a limited amount of extra money each month. Should I concentrate on paying down debt first, or putting money aside for savings? 
Linda’s answer:
It depends some on how big your debts are.  If you owe a substantial amount – let’s say a …read more

In conjunction with the release of the book We Need to Talk: Money & Kids After Divorce, we’re having a contest at Yielding Wealth this week. Don’t forget to email me your personal finance questions. So far, I’ve been getting some good ones.
There is some good personal finance advice in this book, even for those who are not divorced. Here is an excerpt from the book by Linda Leitz.
Let’s start with a basic assumption: Only I Control Me. That means that when it comes to the final decision on what you do and don’t do, you’re in control. …read more

This week I am running a contest here on Yielding Wealth. In conjunction with the release of We Need to Talk: Money & Kids After Divorce by Linda Leitz, CFP next month, there will be a special Q&A series with your questions answered by a personal finances professional. You can win a copy of the book by emailing me your personal finance questions all this week. Deadline is Feb. 29 at 11:59 pm Eastern Standard Time. Three winners will be randomly chosen to receive a free copy of the book.
I am very excited about this book, since it is aimed …read more