Resources

These are some of my favorite websites and book recommendations. Check back often for updates!!

I only recommend books and sites that I've read, reviewed, and use with clients. If links become affiliate links in the future, that will not change my approach to how I recommend resources.

Book Recommendations

Eight Dates

Title: Eight Dates: Essential Conversations for a Lifetime of Love

Author: John & Julie Gottman

Where to buy it: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book People, Austin

Overview: Structured but fun approach to eight conversations that are important in a healthy relationship. Written by a married couple, who are practicing psychologists and backed by years of research from their 'Love Lab'. The eight dates are: trust, conflict, sex, money, family, adventure, spirituality, and dreams

What I like about it: I honestly give this book for every engagement or wedding announcement because I feel it's that important. The money chapter specifically talks about work (paid and unpaid) along with money. Other books can tell you how to manage your money. This book helps you deal with the emotions around money AND gives you conversation starters, prompt questions, and even suggestions for a structured date for each conversation.

Broke Milennial

Title: Broke Millennial: Stop Scraping By and Get Your Financial Life Together

Author: Erin Lowry

Where to buy it: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Book People, Austin

Overview: Basic money management introduction geared specifically toward young people learning to take control of their finances. The author touches on personal financial beliefs, which not all financial texts do.

What I like about it: It introduces important financial ratios, and ingrained personal beliefs before moving on to recommendations for behavior change. It asks a few simple questions to have readers identify what they believe and assess their financial situation and recommends starting with different chapters based on the results.

How to Retire

Title: How To Retire

Author: Christine Benz

Where to buy it: Amazon, Walmart, Barnes & Nobel

Overview: The author writes for Morningstar, but this book is a series of nearly 20 interviews from different financial experts. It’s like having the ultimate network of financial planners, coaches and investment advisors.The author starts by stressing the importance of the emotional aspects of retirement, then covers the subjects you’d expect like asset allocation, how expenses change during retirement, healthcare, taxes, estate planning and more. She includes an interview with the founder of hermoney.com specifically about how women need to plan for retirement differently than men.

What I like about it: This book isn’t just about the mechanics or numbers of retirement and it’s not just a single person’s point of view. Retirement is a major life transition and it requires emotional preparation as well as financial preparation. This book will help you consider both. Before jumping in to numbers and recommendations, Benz covers the importance of friendships, relationships, and understanding what you want your lifestyle to be during retirement.

Website Recommendations

There are so many websites, influencers, and financial gurus out there trying to sell you the version of the truth that is most profitable for them. How do you know who to trust? Which site is right for your specific financial situation? Start with this list of sites I've curated on various topics.

Title: Annual Credit Report

URL: http://www.annualcreditreport.com
Organization: Central Source, LLC a joint venture between Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion.
Overview: Created as a result of the Fair Credit Reporting Act and to ensure compliance with the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act.
What to know: The only place to get a free credit report from all three credit bureaus. It does not provide a credit (FICO) score but provides all the details to go into that score. Permitted one free report from each bureau per year. Note: In response to the COVID-19 pandemic there is a temporary option to pull free reports weekly through December 2026.
How to use it: You will need to fill out a separate form for each of the three sites. The form requires you to enter PII, like your social security number. Make sure you’re on the correct site and that the connection is secure.

Title: Social Security

URL: https://www.ssa.gov/
Organization: Federal Government
Overview: It’s important to access the SSA site before you retire and not only to assist with retirement planning. It can also help you detect identity theft, replace a lost SS card, understand your FICA taxes if you’re planning to become self-employed, or learn about disability and survivorship eligibility.
What to know: You will need to create an account and verify your identity with one of two robust authentication methods. Federal Website. Remember that SS benefits are not just for retirees but also the disabled and survivors. The site experience is different once you’re logged in and authenticated (securea.ssa.gov) compared to the main site (ssa.gov).
How to use it: Beyond retirement planning, it’s a great resource to see how your income has changed over time. Use the main site to do research and learn about benefits before logging in. Use the authenticated site to view your personal financial details.

Title: America Saves

URL: https://americasaves.org/
Organization: Consumer Federation of America (CFA)
Overview: America Saves is a campaign to help low and moderate-income households save money through research-backed activities. The site has 78 distinct URLs as of the review date, organized into sections like resources, and sections for organizations and individual savers. They have a sponsored campaign each Spring, but organizations can start their own campaigns for their employees, members, or communities. Individuals can use the site for research, motivation and social accountability. It combines financial education with behavior science to encourage healthy changes in financial habits.
What to know: Partnered with Capital One, JP Morgan Chase & Co., and Bank of America
How to use it: Start or join a campaign, commit to a savings or debt reduction goal, make a plan to reach the goal and opt-in to receive motivational materials, reminders, and links to articles related to your specific goal.

Title: Calculator.net

URL: https://www.calculator.net/
Organization: Maple Tech International
Overview: This site has over 70 different financial calculators in addition to calculators for general math, health and fitness, and a mix of others. I love that it was started by a group of IT professionals who just wanted to deliver a free online resource for common calculations needed for everyday life. I created several of my own before finding this site. I like the options to use either the simplified or in-depth version of most calculators, because you’ll need different versions at different times.
What to know: They make money through onsite ads, but it’s clear that revenue generation is not their main focus. Currently I see zero ads on their homepage and a single ad on some calculator pages. On my mobile device I can’t trigger any ads at all. How refreshing. They cite IRS.gov and the Truth in Lending Act, among others as their resources and tell you how recently some of the assumptions were updated.
How to use it: Use the default options in calculators for quick calcs of key financial ratios, how much house you can (really) afford, or for general financial health questions. When you’re ready to commit to a new loan, use the detailed options in calculators for an accurate picture of what your payment will be, how that breaks down, and what will change over time. Don’t miss the definitions and actions in your calculation results.
Key Site Sections: Financial, Fitness & Health, Math, others.
A sample DTI calculation result using default values is below. Customize inputs and change assumptions if you know information like property tax rates, etc.