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Smart and Simple Financial Strategies for Busy People (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "I think I can change your financial life, from muddle-along to easy, permanent success..." (more)
Key Phrases: target retirement funds, lifecycle funds, bond index fund, Rowe Price, Cushion Fund, Social Security (more...)

4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (35 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Quinn's latest guide to personal finance covers the usual terrain: budgeting, consumer debt, mortgages, college funds and investments. However, not every financial writer is blessed with Quinn's charm-a blend of Pollyanna and Mary Poppins with a snappy wit thrown in-and her sensible approach to streamlining one's financial life make this a stellar entry in the genre. Quinn's most useful observation is that people seldom spend money they can't lay their hands on. Hence, she advocates the use of automated account debits to "disappear" paycheck earnings into savings. Credit card debt is dispatched with admirable simplicity: request lower rates from lenders, switch to a cheaper card, or convert credit card to mortgage loan debt. While such solutions aren't foolproof, Quinn explains the caveats of such methods. Some of the more confusing, recent mutations in home mortgages-Option and FlexPay Adjustable Rate Mortgages (ARMs)-are explained and wisely cautioned against, though Quinn could easily be more emphatic in her warnings. She also addresses the topic of college tuition with a sensible bargain-hunter approach: despite the prestige of the Ivy League, many state or small private colleges offer equivalent or superior educations for considerably less money. Quinn's anecdotes about her own monetary struggles add credibility to her advice and uphold her well-deserved reputation as a source of sound financial guidance.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

No newcomer to the personal financial world, Quinn is best at conveying the simple rules of success--under many different guises, like Jordan E. Goodman's Everyone's Money Book (1993). Here, the emphasis is on streamlining financial plans and actions in today's no-time-for--anything environment. The answers? One: use automatic payments for money obligations, such as the employer retirement plan, college funds, and mortgages. Two: investigate all the insurances, and understand necessities versus nice-to-haves. Three: rely on diversified mutual funds (and continue rebalancing your portfolio) for retirement savings. Four: ensure you've compiled checklists for your critical information and know where to find your files. Her best yet? "You can't see the future. If you're saving steadily, that doesn't matter. Only a few things work, and you've found them here." Barbara Jacobs
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

Hardcover: 256 pages
Publisher: Simon & Schuster; 1 edition (January 3, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0743269942
ISBN-13: 978-0743269940
Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (35 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #86,851 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in this category: (What's this?)
#70 in Books > Business & Investing > Personal Finance > Financial Planning

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Inside This Book (learn more)

First Sentence:
I think I can change your financial life, from muddle-along to easy, permanent success. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
target retirement funds, lifecycle funds, bond index fund, college aid, index funds, other mutual funds, prepaid plan

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Rowe Price, Cushion Fund, Social Security, Individual Retirement Account, Wall Street, Master List, New York, Total Bond, New Jersey, Debt Freedom Day, Fair Isaac, The Long-Term Growth Portfolio, Yellow Pages

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Citations (learn more)

This book cites 4 books:

Making the Most of Your Money by Jane Bryant Quinn in Front Matter (1), Front Matter (2), and Back Matter
A History of Interest Rates, Fourth Edition (Wiley Finance) by Sidney Homer on page 3
Unconventional Success: A Fundamental Approach to Personal Investment by David F. Swensen on page 171
How to Manage Residential Property for Maximum Cash Flow and Resale Value by John T. Reed on page 126

1 book cites this book:

Success Built to Last: Creating a Life that Matters by Jerry Porras on page 28

Books on Related Topics (learn more)

The New Rules of Retirement by Robert C. Carlson

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	2% buy Making the Most of Your Money 2.7 out of 5 stars (179) $21.90
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Customer Reviews

35 Reviews

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Average Customer Review

4.6 out of 5 stars (35 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

62 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Ideas!!! A++++, January 12, 2006

By	Learning All The Time "It's Never Too Late to... (USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

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This outstanding book motivated me to overcome nine years of inertia regarding financial planning. My husband and I have been vaguely worried about not saving enough for retirement or college, but we kept procrastinating research into the myriad of competing plans and investments and strategies.

Fortunately, Jane Bryant Quinn has done the research and makes clear, solid recommendations about how to manage family finances. She covers all of the financial bases (including insurance and wills), so that you can be confident you haven't left anything out.

She helps you establish clear financial goals, and explains which type of investments work best for various goals. Once you create your financial plan and set up automatic deposits into your investment/retirement accounts, she recommends you leave them alone and make adjustments as needed once a year! No time and energy wasted on buy/sell decisions after each stock market wiggle.

Now granted, this investing program is unlikely to provide the spectacular returns that some lucky people have made in real estate or by timing the market. But Quinn argues that people who earn huge returns on their investments are really few and far between. Furthermore, she points out that those investors take on a lot of risk in order to get those kinds of returns.

Her book is more than "common sense" however, - in fact, some of her ideas fly in the face of popular belief. For example, I was convinced any financial plan would have to begin with a strict budget that would ruthlessly prune lattes etc... out of our lives. Quite the contrary - Quinn says that the "latte factor" is not a significant factor in a family's financial health - it's the big ticket items that show up on credit card statements.

Rather than attempt to budget and plan in ADVANCE where non-essential money goes, Quinn recommends you automate deposits to your savings/retirement accounts because you, in turn, will automatically, subconsciously, and painlessly start reining in your expenses to match the size of your checking account. It's an interesting theory, and one I want to start ASAP, as my efforts to budget every expenditure and invest anything left at the end of the month have not been very successful. She does say, however, that if you are habitually living beyond your means, racking up major credit card bills, etc..., you'll need to get that under control before you can really implement/benefit from most of the strategies in this book.

All in all, an excellent book full of sound, straight forward ideas that anyone can implement - no matter how busy.

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45 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Financial Book, January 9, 2006

By	Emerson M. (Bethesda, MD United States) - See all my reviews

I've been searching for a personal finance book like this for years! I bought this book because it's Washington Post columnist Michelle Singletary's Book Club selection for January. I was skeptical at first because I've read so many personal finance books that just confuse and bewilder me. This one, however, is perfect. You don't need to work in a brokerage firm to figure out how to invest your money. The strategies and advice are simple just like the author promises.

I now feel like I can form a solid financial plan and stick with it. I've already made changes to my work's 401(k) plan based on her recommendations. I opened an online banking account, checked my credit report, and am opening up an account with Vanguard to start a "Cushion Fund" through a Roth IRA or money market fund.

If you're like me and you've been procrastinating on how to start a retirement plan because the array of choices is too overwhelming, this book is ideal. It's a quick read but every chapter has worthwhile information. And I cannot stress enough how simple and straighfoward the advice is. The author includes websites, phone numbers, specific funds etc. She's done all the work.

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20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best personal finance guide for the average person!, November 11, 2006

By	Jason E. Smith "Impatient Reader" (Maryland) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Over the past five years I've read at least three dozen books on personal finance--everything from Marshall Loeb's classic tome to Ben Stein's contrarian books--and Quinn's latest is easily the best read I've encountered for the *average* person.

Quinn effectively covers budgeting, insurance, wills, investing/retirement, and buying a home. She writes clearly, concisely, and avoids financial jargon. All of the financial advice is sound, there is nothing unorthodox here.

Her defining trademark however, is her emphasis on 'Set it and Forget it' solutions that insure your well laid plans are automatically executed without too much intervention on your part. Quinn is one of the few financial experts that actually understands that most people can't spend hundreds of hours managing their money. If you ask folks to do that then it is just a matter of time until life, family, or work interfere and cause damaging mismanagement.

Most people are either misinformed about financial management or simply too lazy to do the things which they ought. Quinn's book nicely tackles both sorts with straightforward information and low-effort solutions.

HIGHLY Recommended without reservation.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Only good for US citizens
It may sound weird to say this book is only good for US people. Who said it would be good for international audience? Well... Read more

Published 8 months ago by Gustavo Bonato

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Place for Financial Organizing
I originally checked this book out from our local library, liked it so much, ordered one for myself, and a second copy for a friend. Read more

Published 16 months ago by R. Kingman

1.0 out of 5 stars Too simplistic and no substance
I have bought this book based on the excellent ratings on Amazon. When I read this book I was very disappointed because the book doesn't deliver what the title says... Read more

Published 17 months ago by J. Lee

5.0 out of 5 stars Oustanding
If you are going to read one book on the whole personal finance. This is it. It covers insurance, college expenses, retirement, it covers most financial topics and it provides... Read more

Published 18 months ago by Maryland Gentleman

4.0 out of 5 stars Finally...
...a personal finance book that gets to the point and for God's sake TELLS you what to DO and which funds to do it and in what mix! Read more

Published 19 months ago by E. Mathews

5.0 out of 5 stars Simple, to the point, no-nonsense adivce
This book is a compendium of Quinn's previous more comprehensive "Making the Most of Your Money," which is my all-time favorite financial book (last published in 1997). Read more

Published 20 months ago by Benjamin G. Williams

5.0 out of 5 stars A financial advisor who's just like the rest of us
This review is for the audiobook version and I can't stop raving about it to everyone I know! Jane Bryant Quinn offers the kind of sound and sensible financial advice you might... Read more

Published 24 months ago by Constant Reader

5.0 out of 5 stars Financial decisions made easier
This book helped me to decide how to invest my retirement funds, and it is written simply and with definite recommendations. Read more

Published on July 12, 2007 by Diane DeArmond

5.0 out of 5 stars Finance
Great overview - wish I had read this when I was younger! Now I am going to
give it to both my children.

Published on May 24, 2007 by Janice Lynne Widmann

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book...arrived in excellent condition
I originally borrowed this book from the library but after reading through it, I knew it was a title I wanted to own. Read more

Published on May 14, 2007 by David Pattelena

› See all 35 customer reviews...

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