Personal Finance Buzz

the IRS makes an exception for married couples that want to boost their household retirement savings while providing a stay-at-home spouse the ability to build a nest egg. This arrangement is often referred to as a “spousal IRA.”

Stay at home parents, you need to maintain your credit history, but single income families merge their finances together to make things easier to manage.

Stay at home parents may not qualify for a credit card under new rules that went in to effect on October 1st, 2011. Under a provision of the CARD Act, legislation enacted by Congress to curb practices that have caused Americans to pile up thousands of dollars in credit card debt, card companies can no longer consider a key metric that has allowed stay at home parents without taxable income to apply for a card of their own.

There could be a bad side to being a stay at home parent...

It makes sense thinking that you have to work in order to contribute to an IRA, right? Well, if your spouse works and you don't then you can take advantage of a spousal IRA.

A spousal RRSP is an RRSP that you make contributions to but the plan is registered in your spouse’s name. You get to claim the tax deduction and the income will be withdrawn by your spouse at retirement.

A stay at home parent may lose job skills and feel a lack of creativity. A perfect way to combat this is freelancing while caring for children at home.

Many parents want to help with everything in your life – it’s just part of being a parent. Some parents help with babysitting grandkids, others help with home repair, but many help with money. As a kid, I loved getting money from my parents because I could spend it on whatever I wanted.

The dream of buying your own home, repaying it as soon as possible and living out your retirement is one which is not as applicable as it was to your parents or to their parents, who probably lived through the Great Depression when security in property meant security for your family.