Personal Finance for Dummies

by Eric Tyson

Book Overview

Many Americans don't understand personal finance. If you're among them, it's probably not your fault. Personal Finance 101 is not offered in our schools - not in high school, not even in the best colleges and graduate schools. It should be. There are common financial problems and mistakes and different people keep making those same mistakes over and over again. Personal Finance For Dummies, 3rd Edition, like a good friend, can stop you from falling...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0764552317
• ISBN13: 9780764552311
• Release Date: February 2000
• Publisher: For Dummies
• Length: 504 Pages
• Weight: 1.97 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 7.4" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

If you make money, you need this book

They don't teach personal finance in schools. In this book, author Tyson teaches what every high school in the nation should teach anyone who plans to earn money. This book provides excellent advice on how to save your money and how to set your savings and spending priorities. In particular, Tyson takes into account the tax advantages and disadvantages of various approaches, and he gives an easy to implement way to maximize the tax benefits that the government provides to encourage wise financial decisions. It is true that the author likes Vanguard's mutual funds and his book clearly recommends them (along with some others). He's in good company: Consumer Reports also recommends some of Vanguard's mutual funds, and Vanguard consistently has the lowest costs in the mutual fund industry. Finally, a word of advice: Avoid, avoid, avoid any book that recommends dubious tax evasion schemes like starting your own fictitious business for the purpose of taking tax deductions on personal expenses. Instead, buy this book and follow Tyson's recommendations on taking advantage of legitimate tax benefits associated with wise saving and spending.

The most informative book on the subject I have ever read!

I work as a financial professional, counseling individuals regarding the options in their employer-sponsored retirement plans. Although the counsel I can give is limited to their retirement plan, several have asked me for advice in other areas of their financial lives. I do not hesitate to recommend this book. Whether you are starting from square one in getting your financial house in order, or your checkbook is balanced to the penny every week, there is information in this book that will benefit you. The "For Dummies" format is perfect for this subject, and Eric Tyson does an excellent job of breaking into layman's terms the most complex of finance and investing concepts. Also, an excellent section on selecting a financial planner is provided. I have often seen the devastating effects that the wrong financial advice has wrought in people's lives. The list of criteria to apply when seeking a financial advisor is one of the most valuable tools I have seen on the subject. This book is one of the most valuable resources I have ever seen in helping the average person get control of their financial lives. Applying its principles will pay immediate as well as long-lasting rewards.

A solid overview of the basics

This book is the financial equivalent of a weight loss book that rejects fad diets and instead advises you to stick to the fundamentals, such as getting regular exercise and eating more lean foods like fruits and vegetables. In this book, Tyson lays out the basics of personal finance, namely, eliminate "bad" debt, reduce frivolous spending, invest wisely, and start saving for future expenses such as retirement, home ownership, and children's education. He has no agenda to push, so he is free to warn his readers of the risks of taking investment advice from those who do. And it is written in a clear style that is easily understood by even the least financially savvy reader. Of course, some of his advice will meet with resistance in consumer happy America. For instance, he recommends never buying consumer items such as cars on credit, because the car itself (unlike a house) has no investment potential, and the interest you are paying on the loan is not going to further your own long term financial health. In theory, this makes perfect sense, but in practice, most people simply cannot afford to buy their first car with cash (not if they want a new one) and a used car can be a maintenance nightmare if the previous owner didn't take care of it properly. Other advice is questionable, such as buying your groceries only at "club" stores like Sam's Club. Well, that's nice if you're feeding an army, but most young, single people don't want to buy their peanut butter by the barrel and lug these huge packages up several flights of stairs to their apartments, and will gladly pay a bit more for the convenience of getting goods in quantities they can actually use. But these minor nitpicks aside, this is a fine introductory work. There are so many books out there on investing and personal finance, and it is a relief to find one that sticks to basic, common sense fundamentals instead of trying to entice you into the latest investment fad. In short, this is a terrific place to start for a person who wants to get started on the path to smart long term money management.

Required Reading

When I bought the first edition of this book, I was a poor post-graduate loaded with bad debt. At the time, I knew nothing about CD's, funds, stocks, bonds, insurance, 401(k)'s, home-buying, budgeting, saving, debt-reduction, taxes, or any other basic issues of personal finance. All I knew is that I never could seem to "get ahead" financially. Tyson's book led me from this sorry state through four years of self-education and growing self-confidence about controlling my own financial future. Even now, debt-free and market-positioned, I still reference this book when I encounter a new facet of my financial life. No "get-rich-quick" scheme, Tyson lays out a solid framework for anyone interested in getting and maintaining control of their own financial situation throughout a lifetime. The ideas he lays out help a person not only educate him/herself concerning money, but also instill confidence that a financial situation can be corrected or controlled personally.Although this book would serve as a valuable reference to ANYONE interested in their own financial future, it would especially be useful to a young person just "starting out" or to any person who feels overwhelmed by their own financial situation.