Get a Financial Life: Personal Finance in Your Twenties and Thirties

Beth Kobliner addresses EVERYTHING finances plus more. She provided great insight into the world of insurance, investing, savings, budgeting, buying and selling, and best of all taxes. This book has led me to have better discussions with others about the world of finances and knowing what to expect yearly and in the future. I wish I read it sooner!! Although I did not need to know everything in this book right now, I know having this new knowledge will only help me as I get older.

Such a handy book. It breaks down everything you need to know at minimum with regards to personal finance. Topics such as taxes, insurance, stocks, and buying a home. So easy to read and it’s a book that I can use in my daily life as a post-college student that’s trying to “adult”

Beth Kobliner's book is a great introduction to the most important financial topics that young people need to be considering as they move toward independence. For many young people, the importance of saving for retirement, or buying a house, or buying insurance is not immediately obvious, and Kobliner does a good job at introducing each of these topics without assuming any existing knowledge on the part of the reader. She also is very practical in her advice. The first chapter is basically the cliff notes version of the entire book for the "tl;dr" crowd, and she is not above recommending certain companies over others in (for example) the mutual funds chapter. The edition I read was about a decade old, so much of the contact info was probably incorrect (phone numbers and mailing addresses... those were the days), but this has likely been updated in the latest edition. Most of the advice is very relevant, as though the contact info has changed, the American financial world is largely the same. Several people over the years have recommended this book to me as a primer for basic financial literacy, and now that I've read it, I will likely in turn recommend it to my own friends who may be just moving out into the world in search of a Financial Life.

This book is a great starting point if you know very little to nothing about personal finance. Despite the dry topic, I found Kobliner to be an engaging writer. Personally, I was never bored. I learned a lot, but it is definitely surface level because it covers many topics. It is an informative introduction that all those who don't know much about finance should read.

All of the topics I was interested in were covered and then some- I only wish I was reading a newer edition and not this one from 1996.
Lick Review
Front Cover 5/10
Random Page 6/10

Quick review for a quick read. I think this is another very helpful resource for literature centering on personal finances and money management. This fourth edition of "Get A Financial Life: Personal Finance in Your Twenties and Thirties" cover a lot of ground - from navigating credit scores, credit card and various types of loans to investing in stocks and bonds, finding a bank institution that works for you, and addressing claims during tax filing. I found the work to be well organized, easy to flip through to get to the information I needed (so you could skip through the different sections if you needed to find what you wanted - in my case, I went from looking at credit to looking at savings, building an IRA, and options for buying a home since those are things I'm researching specifically.)

I originally checked this out as a library read, but I'm definitely making this book a part of my personal library. The terminology is well-defined, and the narrative gives very helpful tips and scenarios/examples pertinent to each topic. I was able to draw quite a bit of information in this read and would recommend it.

Overall score: 4/5 stars.

I think received from my parents as a grad gift in 2020?

Oof. Very detailed and very helpful book, but best as a resource to use when you have a specific question about investing, taxes, etc etc. Don’t really recommend reading it start to finish.

Also, felt like a lot more time should have been spent on budgeting, which felt like it got steamrolled over. If expenses < income, most everything else here naturally follows

This book was very informative and contained a lot of useful information. I definitely learned a lot. For example, it is better for someone my age (mid-twenties) to have disability insurance than life insurance. I had previously been thinking about purchasing a life insurance policy but after reading this book, I will instead look into disability insurance. Also, when the time comes, it will be better to have a life insurance policy for either my husband or I (whoever has the higher salary), rather than both of us. Previously, I believed we should look into life insurance for both of us, but it really isn't necessary at this stage in our lives and careers.

I also learned more about the hidden costs of purchasing a home and what a huge undertaking it is. I currently rent, and after reading this book, I anticipate continuing to rent for a long time. I have often heard people say, and believed it myself, that renting is simply throwing money away but now I no longer believe that to be the case. Owning a home is a very serious commitment and undertaking. After you pay all of the fees to close on the sale of a house, you have to pay to maintain it and pay property taxes, which can be quite costly. As of right now, if there is an issue with my apartment, I call my landlord and let them handle it. If someday my husband and I decide we would like more space, we will look into renting a house. After reading the chapter on mortgages, I am extremely cautious about buying a house. I am surprised at how lightly some people seem to take home-buying and the stigma that surrounds those who choose to rent.

The only thing I did not like about this book was that the information was a bit dated. Though I picked up the revised and updated version, I believe this book was originally published in 1996, when the economy was still booming. Some of the author's advice seems more appropriate for individuals coming of age in the pre-recession economy. Since the Great Recession, I believe that there has been a huge shift in how Millennials live and view the world. I feel that Millienials are shifting away from the more luxurious lifestyles our older counterparts aspire to and are happier with less. This book didn't discuss frugality or frugal living at all, which I think is going to become an essential way of life as the world continues to change. It mostly emphasized investments, which I think is great information, but perhaps information better suited to an older crowd. Though I personally invest in a SIMPLE IRA through my employer, I do not need to know a whole lot about investing right now. The author also doesn't give a lot of advice. She seems to be saying, "Here are the facts and the information you need to make a decision" but doesn't get much into advice.

Overall, I believe this is an essential read for young people. It gives young people a bigger picture, and provides a ton of information on topics that can seem boring or intimidating. I think the information laid out in this book is crucial for Millenials to understand, and I honestly wonder how many of us actually put in the time to truly know and understand our finances and how we should be planning for the future.