• Skip to main content

Ask Liz Weston

Get smart with your money

  • About
  • Liz’s Books
  • Speaking
  • Disclosure
  • Contact

Money Questions? Just Ask Liz!

Award winning and nationally recognized personal finance columnist Liz Weston wants to help you get smarter about money. First time visitor? Start Here.

Recent Q&A

Q&A: Approaching retirement? Don’t count on rules of thumb

July 15, 2025

Q&A: What to do if you don’t trust your trustee?

July 15, 2025

Q&A: Why Social Security imposes an earnings test

July 7, 2025

Q&A: Should you keep more than $250,000 in one bank?

July 7, 2025

Q&A: Why living trusts are a good option, most of the time

July 7, 2025

Q&A: Widow may be eligible for home sale tax relief

July 1, 2025

More Q&A Posts

Recent Blog Posts

July 15, 2025 By Liz Weston Leave a Comment

Q&A: Approaching retirement? Don’t count on rules of thumb

Dear Liz: I have a few questions about my income taxes during my upcoming retirement. I would like to know if doing a Roth IRA conversion will be worth it for me since I might be in a higher tax bracket when I retire. Is there a rule of thumb in regards to doing this […]

July 15, 2025 By Liz Weston Leave a Comment

Q&A: What to do if you don’t trust your trustee?

Dear Liz: I own several properties. I have a living trust that names my two minor children as beneficiaries. I’ve told my attorney that I want to transfer the properties to my children using the county form. This will give my children who are under 10 years of age ownership as tenants in common with […]

July 7, 2025 By Liz Weston 1 Comment

Q&A: Why Social Security imposes an earnings test

Dear Liz: I am under full retirement age, collecting Social Security and working part-time. I just received a letter from Social Security telling me I earned over the $22,320 limit and now have to pay back some of my Social Security. I was aware of the limit, so the letter was not unexpected. What I’m […]

July 7, 2025 By Liz Weston Leave a Comment

Q&A: Should you keep more than $250,000 in one bank?

Dear Liz: You recently wrote that it’s easier to have one bank than many, but I worry about FDIC insurance limits because I have more than $250,000 in savings. Answer: You may be able to get more coverage at one bank than you think. FDIC insurance is per depositor, per ownership category, per bank. Ownership […]

July 7, 2025 By Liz Weston 1 Comment

Q&A: Why living trusts are a good option, most of the time

Dear Liz: My goal is to avoid probate and allow simplified access for my heir, who is also my executor. I have no family. I have chosen payable-on-death and transfer-on-death accounts instead of putting all financial assets in my trust, against the wishes of the attorney who drew up the trust for my condo. I […]

July 1, 2025 By Liz Weston 2 Comments

Q&A: Widow may be eligible for home sale tax relief

Dear Liz: My late husband and I bought my present home in 1969. I am now 80. From what I understand, my widowed status does not make any difference in regard to the home sale exemption. His death means that when I want or need to sell the house, I lose out on half the […]

  • Page 1
  • Page 2
  • Page 3
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Page 783
  • Go to Next Page »

Books

Some of the links below are affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission.

  • Your Credit Score: How to Improve the 3-Digit Number that Shapes Your Financial Future (5th edition)

    Improve your credit score, for real, with the #1 best-selling guide you can trust! Today, a good credit score is essential for getting credit, getting a job, even getting car insurance or a cellphone. Now, best selling journalist Liz Pulliam Weston has thoroughly updated her top-selling guide to credit scores, with crucial new information for protecting (or rebuilding) yours.

  • Deal with Your Debt: Free Yourself from What You Owe

    Struggling with debt? Get realistic help that's actually useful.

    In this extensively updated guide, you can discover how to control and manage debt effectively. You'll learn which debts can actually help build wealth over time, and which are simply toxic. You'll find up-to-date, real-world strategies for assessing and paying off debt, money-saving insights on which debts to tackle first, and crucial information about everything from debt consolidation loans to credit scores and credit counseling. Weston offers practical guidelines for assessing how much debt is safe -- and compassionate, realistic guidance if you've gone beyond the safety zone. If you've ever worried about debt, you'll find the new edition of Deal with Your Debt absolutely indispensable.

  • There Are No Dumb Questions About Money: Answers and Advice to Help You Make the Most of Your Finances

    There’s a myth in our society that some people are just naturally “good” with money. So naturally, everybody else must be “bad”--or at least, dumb--if they’re not sure what to do. 

    The reality is, no one is born a money expert. Those who are “good” with money had to learn: by reading, asking questions, and consulting people who know more than they do. No one knows everything, and the only dumb questions are the ones you don’t ask.

    This collection of money questions and answers can help you solve your most pressing concerns about your finances. You can buy this ebook on iTunes or on Amazon.

  • The 10 Commandments of Money: Survive and Thrive in the New Economy

    From the #1 personal finance columnist on the Internet (Nielsen/NetRatings)-a clear prescription for financial health in the 2010s and beyond. 

    For previous generations, living within your means was a simple formula. Now, with the staggering rise in education, health care, and housing costs, millions of people find themselves skating from paycheck to paycheck with no idea how to move forward.

    As the most-read personal finance columnist on the Internet, Liz Weston has heard the questions and has the answers. Her 10 Commandments of Money will help readers avoid critical mistakes, survive the bad times, and thrive in the good ones.

  • Easy Money: How to Simplify Your Finances and Get What You Want Out of Life

    Common sense. Easy solutions. Plain English.

    Best selling author, Liz Weston, takes on the problem everyone has, and nobody talks about: the sheer hassle of managing your money! Weston offers practical guidance and easy checklists for every decision: investments, credit cards, insurance, mortgages, retirement, college savings, and more! Discover how to consolidate, delegate, and automate your finances…save time and money…and live a more rewarding, secure life!

Speaking

"Just wanted you to know how much I enjoyed hearing you speak last night. I have been a big fan of yours for years and couldn't wait to see you live...Thanks for so generously sharing your time and expertise with us last evening. I gained much from your presentation." -- Barbara R. Peter, Michigan

"It has been our pleasure to have Liz speak on various panels over the years at numerous conferences Bankrate has hosted. She’s an entertaining and engaging speaker, besides being an expert on saving money, budgeting and other money topics. She’s a preeminent source of expertise for today’s consumer, as well as a wealth of knowledge for those in the industry." -- Tara Bauries, Marketing Manager at Bankrate, Inc.

"My organization had the opportunity of hosting Liz for two financial presentations. She was extremely knowledgeable, articulate and personable. I would strongly recommend her for any event." -- Trenton M. Smiley, Community Relations Officer, Genesee District Library System

"Liz makes financial presentations easy to understand and relatable to real life experiences. She brings great energy to event programs!" -- Suzanne Patrick-Lawrence, Financial Planning Association, San Gabriel Valley Board Chair and President & CEO of Advisor Business Solutions

Would you like to have Liz speak to your convention, professional group or other large gathering? Liz is an expert on many financial and economic topics, including credit and credit scoring, retirement saving and investing, college savings strategies and student loans, women and money, and how economic trends can affect your investments.

Contact Liz regarding a speaking engagement. Please let us know the details—which group, when and where—along with the expected number of attendees.

Copyright © 2025 · Ask Liz Weston 2.0 On Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in