Catey Hill - Shoo, Jimmy Choo!: The Modern Girls Guide to Spending Less and Saving More

Shoo, Jimmy Choo!

The Modern Girls Guide to Spending Less and Saving More

The Modern Girls Guide to Spending Less and Saving More

by Catey Hill

Money Editor of nydailynews.com and Recovering Shoe Addict

Foreword by Wes Moss CFP, of Money Matters

To Jay: Thank you for your constant love and support (and patience!). I could not ask for a better partner in life.

And to Lindsay: The grace and steadfastness with which you handle your career, finances, and personal life are an inspiration to me each day.

STERLING and the distinctive Sterling logo are registered trademarks of Sterling Publishing Co., Inc.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Hill, Catey.

Shoo, Jimmy Choo! : the modern girls guide to spending less and saving more / by Catey Hill.

p. cm.

ISBN 978-1-4027-6669-5

1. Women--Finance, Personal. I. Title.

HG179.H469 2010

332.0240082--dc22

2009019523

2 4 6 8 10 9 7 5 3

Published by Sterling Publishing Co., Inc.
387 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10016
Text 2010 by Catey Hill
Illustrations 2010 Mary Lynn Blasutta
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Manufactured in the United States of America
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Sterling ISBN 978-1-4027-6669-5

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Part I: Style, Diet, and Fitness... for Your Finances
An Introduction to Savvy Money Management (And Why You Need to Start, Like, Now)

Chapter 1: The Money Makeover
How to Determine if Your Finances Need a Little (or Not So Little) Touch-Up

Chapter 2: Dress for (Financial) Success
How to Get What You Want out of Life... at Least Financially

Part II: (Spending) Style
An Introduction to Your Spending Style (And Why It Might Be So Last Season)

Chapter 3: Take on the Trends
How to Track Down the Demons That Drive You to Designer Shoes

Chapter 4: Blow Out Your Budget
How to Build and Stick to a Spending Plan (No Matter How Much You Love Shoes!)

Part III: (Debt) Diet
An Introduction to the Debt Diet (And How It Will Trim Down Your DebtFor Good)

Chapter 5: The Plastic Purge
How to Cure the Plastic Plague (aka Credit Card Debt)

Chapter 6: The Skinny on Student Loans
How to Pay Off Your Alma Mater for Good

Chapter 7: Car(b) Control
How to Pick and Pay for Your Ride

Part IV: (Financial) Fitness
An Introduction to Financial Fitness (And How It Will Beef Up Your Bottom Line Once and for All)

Chapter 8: Climb the Career Ladder
How to Navigate Your Way to Your Dream Job and a Pretty Paycheck

Chapter 9: Race Toward Retirement
How to Retire Well Before Youre Ancient

Chapter 10: Work Out Your Worth
How to Invest Your Retirement Savings

Chapter 11: Sweat Your Savings
How to Buffer Yourself from Lifes Little Challenges

Chapter 12: Step Toward Security
How to Get the Best Insurance to Protect You and Your Assets

Chapter 13: Push for a Pad
How to Buy a Home (or at Least Become a Savvy Renter)

Chapter 14: Tackle Your Taxes
How to Finesse Uncle Sam into Padding Your Pocketbook

Chapter 15: Lift Up Your Love
How to Make Your Relationship Work (Well, the Money Part Anyway)

By Wes Moss, CFP

What does it take to be happy? After years of meeting and advising hundreds of wildly different peopleDemocrats, Republicans, doctors, teachers, lawyers, utility workers, engineers, writers, the list goes onIve seen that a significant part of being happy is having financial security. And almost all of these happy people have one thing in common: They took an active role in smartly managing their money, career, and financial futureand they started doing it at a young age.

Shoo, Jimmy Choo! shows you how to do just this. In my years as a CFP, Ive seen that happy people generally know how much money is coming in and how much is going out every month, and how to fill the gap in between. They have an informed, solid plan for retirement. They buy homes they can afford, using traditional mortgages and paying down the principal every month, and end up owning their home outright by the time they retire. They pay off credit card debt and loans in a timely manner. These are key principles necessary for a secure financial future, and these are just the principles that Catey Hill highlights for young women in Shoo, Jimmy Choo!. Not only can Cateys fundamental principles literally be worth hundreds of thousands of dollars in your pocket, they can help make you one of those happy people...

Shoo, Jimmy Choo! is a timely book, but even timelier is that Catey had the foresight to sit down and begin writing this book long before it was cool to not keep up with the Jones. This keeping up with the Joneses mentality led Americans into massive debt. In fact, the average American was spending nearly every penny they were making. Many Americans bought homes, cars, clothes, gadgets and many other things they simply could not afford. Many Americans saved almost no money. And look where it got us... In a day and age where this massive consumer debt, combined with things like Wall Streets complex financial instruments, has driven our country into the worst recession since the 1930s, it is clearly time to get back to basics. And thats why I recommend Shoo, Jimmy Choo! to young women: It takes you back to basics with practical, easy-to-follow financial advice that will set you up for a financially secureand happierfuture.

AN INTRODUCTION TO SAVVY MONEY MANAGEMENT (AND WHY YOU NEED TO START, LIKE, NOW)

You dont have the pocketbook of Ivanka Trump. Not even the pocketbook of good ol K-Fed. In fact, youre not even close. Thats right, youre nearly B-R-O-K-E. Scraping the bottom of your purse for quarters, eating Ramen noodles right before payday B-R-O-K-E. Or, more likely, youre buying hot new patent-leather flats, getting fabulous biscotti highlights, all on an overextended credit card (and no savings to speak of) B-R-O-K-E. And it makes you wonder... How did a cute, employed girl like yourself end up having to hock her skinny jeans on eBay just to pay the rent?

Or maybe youre not quite B-R-O-K-E, but you dont have much in your retirement fund, you dont really understand investing, or you dont have a solid plan for your financial future. (And ladies, a solid plan does not include waiting to save money until you make more money, marrying Barron Trump, or winning the Mega Millions.)