Household Math™: Cell Phone Plans
by Scott Bilker
Brandon is getting his first cell phone and is trying to decide which plan to take. After review all the details the cost comes down to two options: (Plan 1) $59.99 per month for up to 500 minutes and (Plan 2) $89.99 per month for up to 1000 minutes. Both plans cost an additional $0.35 per minute if he goes over the monthly limit. Brandon wants to know, the minimum number minutes he must use, to make it worthwhile to select plan 2 over plan 1?
Household Math™: Biweekly Payments
by Scott Bilker
You borrow $25,000 at 8% for 5 years to remodel your kitchen and bathroom. Your loan requires 60 monthly payments to completely pay off the loan. After you get the loan, one of your friends tells you that you can save money by making payments more frequently...
Household Math™: Mortgage Savings
by Scott Bilker
You have a 30-year, 7% APR, $150,000 mortgage. You know that you're going to pay back far more than $150,000 in that 30-year period and you want to save money. You decide that you want to save 50% of the total money repaid under the 30-year terms. The question is, how much more, by percent, do you have to increase your current monthly payment to save 50% on the overall payments compared to the original mortgage?
Household Math™: Car Insurance Payments vs. Credit Card Offer
by Scott Bilker
Your auto insurance bill arrives; it's $600.00 for 6 months of coverage, ugh. Luckily, to make paying easier, they give you the option of spreading this out over 3 monthly payments. The catch is...
Household Math™: Car Per Hour
by Scott Bilker
Janice has finally received her driver's license! She's a happy camper! Now it's time to get the car and go places with her friends. She's pretty smart about money and know that she's going to need a decent job to support the car. How much per hour must she net just to pay for the car?
Household Math™: Pool House Rock
by Scott Bilker
A swimming club has just opened right around the corner and the cost is $50 per month per person. Considering the known costs, is it less expensive to sign the kids up for the swimming club or use the pool?
Household Math™: Car Purchase vs. Car Repair
by Scott Bilker
After doing some research she finds only one car that she feels will meet the 50,000-mile requirement. The total price for that car is $3,000. Should she buy the used car or repair the transmission?
Household Math™: Auto Loan Rate
by Scott Bilker
Mary Jane borrowed $9,200 to buy a used car. She made equal monthly payments for 3 years and that paid off the loan in full. After that time she added up how much she paid in total to the loan. She was surprised to find that 14.81% of the total amount she paid back over the course of 3 years were interest charges for the loan! What was Mary Jane's APR for this loan?
Household Math™: Early Mortgage Payoff
by Scott Bilker
Assume a person is buying a $150,000 home at a rate of 7% interest on a 30-year loan, with the usual 20% down payment (so the loan would be $120,000). This person also has $20,000 in cash reserves. In which of these two scenarios would this person end up paying less money over the course of the loan?
Household Math™: Average Daily Balance
by Scott Bilker
On day 1 in the month your balance is $5,000. On day 15 your payment of $2,000 is credited to your balance. The number of days in the month is 31. What is your average daily balance?
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