Need advice about how to handle your personal finances? Whether the struggle is saving for retirement, organizing your bank files, or talking about money responsibility with your spouse or loved one, Post personal finance columnist Michelle Singletary offers her advice and answers your tough questions.

A transcript follows.

Read Michelle's latest columns, check out her Color of Money Book Club selection archive or sign up for her weekly e-mail newsletter.

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Michelle Singletary: Welcome all. Let's get started.

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Boston, Mass.: Why are you supporting irresponsible people who bought houses they can't afford. If they signed a contract they should stick to it. If they can't they should lose the house. I have no sympathy for them.

Michelle Singletary: I understand your position but what's happening to these borrowers is affecting us all.

Besides so many people were coaxed into believing they could afford these loans. At times like this we need compassionate solutions.

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washingtonpost.com Don't miss today's 1 p.m. chat with Kai Wright, columnist for The Root, on the subprime mortgage meltdown and how it has affected black Americans -- including his own mother.

Also check out the transcript from today's chat with Ben Popken, editor of The Consumerist. He was online to talk about how manufacturers are shrinking the size of grocery products, but keeping the prices the same.

Michelle Singletary: Just wanted to alert you guys to some other upcoming chats you should check out.

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Maryland: Hello Michelle,

I have to say that homeowners being helped out of their CRAZY homeloans is long overdue, maybe now the Congress will stop trying to play the blame game and fix the problem (You Think?).

Michelle Singletary: I definitely think.

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Jessup, Md.: Hi Michelle: I really do enjoy your no nonsense approach to debt. I'm learning a lot for your chat sessions.

I am trying to recover from really bad money decisions from about 2yrs ago. I refinanced my townhouse twice and took some of the equity out to pay bills and I purchased a rental home in South Carolina. (Mistake 1) Needless to say, the adjustable loan on the townhouse was more than I could handle at 9%. I also made bad decision by getting in card debit, some 32k. This all happen about 2yrs ago and I literally started to have "crazy" thoughts about how to get out of debt. (That's another discussion) I thought of bankruptcy, but decided not to (at this moment). Here what I did: I negotiated with one cc for a settlement at 50% of the balance due - it is paid off currently (mistake 2, because credit is shot now), I converted another cc into a signature loan at the same bank and close the cc. I'm making direct payments from my direct deposit. I sold the townhouse with the 9% interested (made little to no profit, about 5k which I paid on the cc). I was unsuccessful with trying to get the last cc to work with me, they actually have a judgment me against me for the cc, which I am making payments. I am slowly digging my way out of this hell and hope to do better. I have taking another full time job that is working around my day job. I am going to come out of debt if it kills me. My Big Momma use to say, "you ain't learn nothing until you had a "bought lesson", I guess I learning now!

Here's my question: (Sorry for all that) will I ever be able to get a house again? And any advice on how I should do things or should I just keep focused and work it out they way I'm doing! I make very good money, but and never had a cc until about 3yrs ago. Just never really been educated about money....Thanks for your advice! Coming out of debt in MD!

Michelle Singletary: First, congrats for taking control of this situation. Glad you came out of your stupid phase and so glad you didn't bail out of responsibilities by filing for bankruptcy.

For now, just focus on getting rid the rest of the debt. You have home. You were gambling when you bought that other house and you lost.

Lesson: Don't gamble in the future.

Once you get clear of the cc debt focus on getting rid of your townhouse debt. Live free.

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Georgia: Many folks are looking for jobs and cannot find. How long do you expect this trend to continue?

Michelle Singletary: Boy, if I had the answer to that I could make some money.

But if I had to guess based on the data and my own work with people in financial trouble I would say we have another two years before this mess is cleaned up.

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Temple Hills, Md.: Mrs. Singletary, I am currently in a horrible financial bind due to a divorce, death of a child, loss of employment and a drug addicted relative all happening in my life within the last 6 years. I have become lazy in my budgeting and I am now over $45K in debt. I am currently in college and working full time and just do not know where to begin. I have pulled my credit and it is poor 525. I want to file Bankruptcy but can not afford that either. What can I do if anything? I am now ready to go for what is rightfully mine and be a better example to my son.

Sincerely, Broke but not broken

Michelle Singletary: You've gone through so much loss the first thing I would say is don't you dare give another thought to that darn credit score.

Really, it's so insignificant. It only means something if you are going to borrow more and clearly you shouldn't be borrowing more.

Not sure why the drug addicted relative is your problem. Wouldn't make it mine because you've got some recovery of your own to deal with.

Go to www.debtadvice.org. Find an credit counseling agency near you and let them help you create a budget and a debt payoff plan.

You might have to take a break from college, especially if you are borrowing to go. You should concentrate on making sure you have enough money in (without loans) to meet your basic needs. Once you do that there will be light at the end of this terrible tunnel.

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Washington D.C.: With this slowing economy is it best to be working for someone or working fore yourself. I want to start up my a youth program, that offers before and after care but I am afraid that small business will be hit hard and fail. Your thoughts?

Michelle Singletary: I wouldn't give up my paid job until I did enough research. Do the math. Make sure even as a start up you have enough business to pay your bills.

Also go to the SBA website to find out how to get this started. Talk to someone already doing it. In fact, I would work part-time with someone already doing it to see how it's done.

Good luck.

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Verona, N.J.: Is this supposed to a Live chat?? I don't see any video link?? Please advise

Michelle Singletary: Um, live as in I'm answering questions right now.

No video. Besides you wouldn't want to see me live. My hair is a hot mess as my daughter Olivia likes to say.

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Cutting Back: Hi Michelle,

In an effort to save money, I have begun a spreadsheet to track all of my costs. At the end of a couple of months, I plan to set up a budget for myself to spend less in certain areas. As of right now though, I am not spending too much money on things outside of my mortgage and my utilities payments. If this winds up being the case, do you have any tips for saving money? As of right now, the only thing I can think to do is get rid of HBO!

Thanks!

Michelle Singletary: Well, you don't have to give up cable completely. You could probably shave $30 or $40 off the bill by just going to basic cable.

Do you have a cell phone? If so could you cut the number of minutes. What about insurance. Do you have a high deductible for example on your car insurance. That will save you. Typically even when people say they've cut there's still padding in their budget.

If not, the only way to find more money to save is to increase your income.

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Los Angeles, Calif.: How does a spend thrift spouse reconcile combining finances with a spend happy spouse? Despite my constant cost-cutting in my own life, most of our money is used to pay off his Master card at the end of the month so that he doesn't carry a balance. While some of these charges are couple related, a lot is not - like Starbucks coffee, Jamba Juice and lunch at restaurants. I have taken his Master card away and suggested he use cash, only to learn at the end of the month that he has charged up his American Express instead (which, according to him, he needed to keep in the event of "emergencies"). Disciplinarian I refuse to be. Teacher and supporter of saving and budgeting I have been - but an addict always finds ways. Can we limit combining finances to cover only mutual expenses and then maintain separate, individual accounts? Know that his paycheck will cover only our mutual expenses (we have two mortgages as one house is still on the market). Also his parents want to visit in the fall and expect him to pay for their trip. I said we can't afford it but he complained my family, who live locally, visit all the time and we assume most of the tab. I retorted that that's my money I saved from eating canned-soup lunches.

Michelle Singletary: Whew. You've got some communication and trust issues not money issues.

Would your husband go to counseling? Because he's overspending for some reason. As many people who are regular readers of my column, eletter, chats, books, etc. know I do not believe in separate accounts. How would that solve your problem? He will still be overspending. And even though you view it as "his" money his bad habits will still be affecting "your" marriage.

Seriously, see if he is willing to sit down with a counselor to sort through why he can't be trusted to live within a budget you both set up.

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Washington, D.C.: Michelle: While the poster from Jessup has certainly realized his/her mistakes and is working to dig out, I think this story should make you better understand why some people, like the first poster from Boston, feel emotions ranging from skepticism to downright bitterness about efforts to have the government help homeowners. The question is, how do we separate the true victims (i.e., people who were hustled by unscrupulous sellers and mortgage brokers) from the people who simply made ridiculous financial moves in the hope of cashing in on equity that was supposed to keep rising forever? Thanks.

Michelle Singletary: You're asking how do you help the victim without helping the fool?

In some cases we might not be able to. I will say this none of the programs I've seen aid people who are not occupying the home. So no speculators or investors are being bailed out.

Here's the thing. I'm so, so, so big on personal responsibility. It's what I preach. It's how I was raised.

I like the tough love approach.

BUT this problem is just a case of a bunch of people trying to buy a mansion and on a Chevy budget. Many people just wanted a piece of the American dream. They overreached backed by the sometime corrupt or lazy or greedy lenders.

So now we have people who made bad decisions hurting us all. I vote to help them so the rest of us who did the right thing don't get completely taken down too.

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Wilmington, Del.: Hi Michelle - I enjoy your columns and radio shows. Do you think people should base their financial plans based on their job security level? The Wall Street Journal career website has a job security score which predicts job security levels using some math models. Do you have any advice on how I can use it in my planning? Thanks for sharing your wisdom with us.

Michelle Singletary: I think there is no job security. I'm doing fine here at the Post. My editors like my work. I like our publisher who likes my work but make no mistake about it, I plan to be fired every day.

With that in mind I keep a reserve in case it happens. I try to shun debt like it's a bad bunion (those things hurt like the dickens).

So while some people can reasonably say they won't get fired unless they do something wrong, you should spend and save like you could be fired every day.

I'm not talking about living in fear. Just live with caution and know there are only two things for sure -- taxes and death.

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Northern Va.: Hi Michelle. Through a combination of expensive car repairs, medical bills, and miscellaneous spending, our credit card bill has made its way to the milestone $5k mark for the first time ever. I moved the balance to a new no-transfer fee, no fee 7.9% APR card, but now I wonder the next best move. I'd like to think we can pay it off in 6-7 months using our regular cash flow. Should we move it to our $25K home equity line instead ($24K of which is open) for the tax deductible interest? Cash in our 'rainy day' CD to pay it off all at once, or use my prized $2K 'vacation fund' savings account to speed things up? Or just pay it off slowly - about $800 a month? Pretty much all our other money is tied up in retirement and 529 accounts.

Michelle Singletary: I vote to use the vacation money and pay the rest off aggressively.

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Washington, D.C.: Hi Michelle, love your columns and chats! My husband has been at home with our child for the past year and is getting ready to go back to work. Because we were living on one income, we were withdrawing from savings we had and now need to build it back up. Once my husband returns to work, our annual income will be about $125K for the remainder of the year. We want to increase our retirement contributions, start contributing again to our child's college savings account, and pay more toward my student debt ($60K), but at the same time, also build up our savings again. But how do we do that with increasing food and gas prices, along with day care expenses, which we did not have this past year? Even with two incomes, it doesn't seem the money will go very far at all.

Michelle Singletary: One word: budget.

You've got to work the numbers. I would hold off doing the college fund until you've built back up your emergency fund. I might even dial back retirement savings to get rid of that darn $60,000 in student loan debt.

When your husband goes back to work, you guys should still live as if you were getting one paycheck. I know some things have to change, such as paying for child care but everything else should stay the same as much as you can to get some ground again. Look on the Wash biz site (in my section) and you will find a budget template.

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Bethesda, Md.: My husband and I are 40K$ in credit card debt from living beyond our means. How can we get out? It is already in 0 to 7%interest cards through November. What else?

Michelle Singletary: Cut your expenses big time. Attack this debt like it was a terrorist. If you have to get second jobs.

If you've gotten the lowest interest rate you can find then don't worry about moving this debt around. Concentrate on getting rid of it.

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BUT this problem is just a case of a bunch of people trying to buy a mansion and on a Chevy budget. : But, where the bitterness comes in, is the (mis?)understanding that those people who did that will get to keep that mansion, whereas those of us who have a Chevy budget and bought Chevy are still using Chevy!

Michelle Singletary: So it's about jealousy really. They got something you didn't get.

Trust me just because they are keeping the homes doesn't mean they are living a peachy life. These folks still have a lot of debt. They are "barely" keeping these homes. They are stressed. Their marriages are rocky.

You are so much better off. Being bitter is such an ugly thing.

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Thanks, Michelle!: Don't really have a question, just want to let you know that I've paid off yet another credit card with 2 more to go. Couldn't have done it without you and Big Mama.

Michelle Singletary: If you were here I would give you a big hug.

Wonderful, wonderful thing and feeling!

Keep going like you're the energizer bunny!

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Laurel, Md.:: Ms. Singletary - enjoy your column. I have tried to refinance my mortgages from 8-1/4% adjustable and 13-1/4% fixed to something more in line to what's available now (6-7%). My problem is the value of the house has decreased so that I can't get anyone to help. The folks on TV say deal with your lender before you risk foreclosure, but the lenders won't help. Any advice to give before the 8-1/4 jumps $350 in October, 2009?

Michelle Singletary: Read this column and go to this event!

A Helping Hand for Harried Homeowners.

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Md.: Michelle I am interested in saving regularly but my income is limited can you give men an idea of how i can begin to save a nest egg? Should I try one hours worth of pay a week or what do you suggest? I would not feel the pinch if I did an hour of salary weekly.

Michelle Singletary: Starting small is a great idea. The point is to start.

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New York: Wow I feel like I've entered the twilight zone and Michele Singletary has been transformed into a supporter of debt and reckless spending. Why should these people be bailed out? They signed a contract and it should be honored if they can't make payments tough! They contributed to the insane runup in real estate prices to a point that housing became unaffordable. They weren't complaining when they were refinancing and buying all their trinkets, now that the bill has come due they cry poverty. Disgusting?

So those of us he sat on the sidelines waiting for prices to crash which they were on the way doing are getting screwed.

Michelle Singletary: What you see is someone with compassion. Where in any of my posting have you read encourage debt and reckless spending. People can do wrong. They can make stupid, stupid mistakes. But that doesn't mean they don't deserve help.

What I get from you and others is played out in this scene:

Portly Gentleman: At this festive time of year, Mr. Scrooge, it is more than usually desirable that we should make some slight provision for the poor and destitute, who suffer greatly at the present time.

Ebenezer: Why? Are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses?

Portly Gentleman: Many can't go there; and many would rather die.

Ebenezer: If they would rather die, they had better do it, and decrease the surplus population.

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Washington, D.C.: How are the Feds "bailing out" home buyers, as some chatters have suggested? Bailouts are going strictly to financial institutions. Buyers must keep making their payments, come up with an alternative to the original agreement and continue to pay, or they lose their home. It's the financiers who are being enabled. Responsibility is still firmly in the hand of those individuals who bit off more than they could chew, regardless of what becomes of their bank.

Michelle Singletary: Oh, so loving you.

Amen. Amen. And actually the investors are suffering hence the crisis on Wall Street.

Now for them and some lenders I do say, "Are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses?"

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Gaithersburg, Md. My wife and I always go back and forth on this one. When we have some extra cash left over, would you recommend putting it into our IRA or 529. We both have 401Ks and contribute about 10% to each. But we have two kids with another one the way. Thoughts? Thanks!

Michelle Singletary: If you feel you are contributing at a good pace to your retirement --and it appears that you are-- I vote for the 529 plans.

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Maryland: Enjoy your columns. I have about 15 years until retirement. I have extra income to boost my retirement savings. I contribute to get the match from the company 401k. Should I increase my contribution or look for other investments.

Michelle Singletary: Sure. Work the numbers to see if you are saving enough.

go to www.choosetosave.org and use the ballpark calculator. You might be saving enough already.

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Rockville, Md.: Michelle, No question today, but I just have to tell you I LOVE your column and you just gave the reason why; Your insightful "Tough love" approach and your sensitive, compassionate heart. Thank you!

Michelle Singletary: You are so very welcome.

And thank you. I get hit a lot so nice to get a virtual hug too.

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Chantilly, Va.: I just surrendered a life insurance policy worth $9.5k. I've got the kids tuition due in December ($4k). I put the money in our money market account so I could access it come December, but am wondering if there's somewhere else I should put it. We're currently getting 2-3% in our MM account. CDs for that time are less than 2% at our bank.

I'd rather keep it as part of our rainy day fund (easily accessible w/i a week or two) vs. putting it toward retirement.

What would you suggest we do w/the remaining $5k?

Michelle Singletary: If you need the money soon, you have it in a good place. You shouldn't invest it because you risk losing it.

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Rockville, Md.: Calbew bills? I called Comcast some time ago in a move to "just basics" and was surprised at what they were willing to do. Just call and say "I want a lower bill."

Michelle Singletary: Just call.

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Washington, D.C.: Hi Michele, Lost my home in 1/03 and filed for bankruptcy, chapter 13 in 5/02. Now these things are about to drop off my credit report. Beside these items the only thing I will have on my report is a car loan that is good standing from 2006. How can I rebuild my credit. My credit score is about 630. I just got married and my husband would to buy a home next year.

Michelle Singletary: The best way to rebuild your credit is pay your bills on time.

If you are doing that your scores should rise.

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Georgia: Thank you for your answer on job market trends. It is helpful for people so they can at least plan some type of strategy. It used to be said that in a job search you can estimate 1 month of job search time for every 10K. Do you think that is still the case, Michelle?

Michelle Singletary: These are different and harder times so old rules may not apply.

I stick with three to six months of living expenses as a baseline. If you are a highly compensated person I would say aim for one year.

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Jessup Md.: I had to respond to Washington, DC comments about my situation. I admit I made some bad financial decisions and I didn't hurt anyone but myself and now I'm paying the price. But let me be very clear, I knew nothing about refinancing and cashing out on equity until I purchased my first house. It was a mortgage lender that approached me with the gamble of capitalizing of the equity. The way it was presented to me by the lender was very believable and doable. I consider myself the victim also, because I never considered doing any of this until after I was approached by the lender. Be careful to judge when you do not know the complete story!

Michelle Singletary: And this is a common story.

Yes, you should have know better. yes, you shouldn't have trusted that lender but so many people had bought into the lie of leveraging debt.

Even today, I get hate mail..hate mail, when I suggest people pay off their mortgage early or stop borrowing to go to college.

So thanks for your perspective.

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Homeowner Help: People are so angry about helping homeowners who are losing their houses. Where is that coming from? I imagine that some of them probably don't deserve it, but many were snookered (after all, they weren't loan experts and relied on those who were supposed to be) and deserve a chance to turn it around. But I guess America is full of perfect people who've never made a mistake or never had to ask for help and didn't take any money from anyone, including Mom and Dad, after turning 18.

Michelle Singletary: Thanks for helping me make my point.

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Central Mass.: Hi, Michelle - thanks for your no-nonsense advice. I am wondering how to plan for heating oil costs this winter. Normally, I prepay for 400-500 gallons of heating oil. Sometimes I make out on the price, sometimes not, but at least I know how much it will cost. This year, I don't know if companies will even offer this option. If they do, can't wait to see the price! What's a good strategy to plan for heating costs in the current environment?

Michelle Singletary: I wish I had some magic formula to share but all I can tell you is cut back and save more just in case the prices are again crazy.

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Takoma Park, Md.: It's funny, but I support helping out those who got into trouble in the mortgage mess not because I'm compassionate, but because I'm selfish! The more quickly and easily we can get people back on their feet, the better the overall economy will be. It's a win-win. Actually, it's a win-win-win, because I also don't have to waste any time feeling bitter.

Michelle Singletary: Amen!

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Texas: Hi Michelle, I enjoy the chats. I'm in my 40s, single, no debt, and work for myself. My income is pretty low (about $40K, although I don't live in an expensive area). I am able to take some time off and do things like travel, which is important to me. Even with the modest income, I've been able to save about 15% of my income over the last several years. Rainy day fund okay. Net worth pretty low, though.

So overall, I feel pretty lucky. But here's my question. I don't own a house. I don't want to own a house. Don't want the associated expenses. Don't want the responsibility. But I'm worried that this means I'm going to spend my old age living in a cardboard box.

Are my fears justified? Any words of advice?

Michelle Singletary: This such a good question. First you are not a financial failure if you rent. You are getting something for that money, a roof over your head.

Although I'm a big believer in homeownership -- have been one since my early 20s -- I know some people won't ever own a home for whatever reason.

Your challenge is save even more to make up for the equity you might have used if and when you bought and sold a home. That's really what we are talking about.

Homeownership also allows you to stabilize your housing costs. Something to consider.

So the answer is you have to save more to make sure you have enough in retirement to make up for the equity you wouldn't have in a home.

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NACA Event: Hi Michelle, I received a card in the mail about the NACA event. I threw it away because I thought it was another scam mailing. Anyway, I'm not ready to re-finance and am not in trouble. Why are they targeting me?

Michelle Singletary: Just a mass mailing, trying to reach everyone who might be helped.

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Orinda, Ca.: Do we really think Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae will fail? Isn't it just simply crazy that the markets are "losing confidence" when the facts are that their loss ratios are much lower than those banks that did all the risky loans? Of course, both agencies recently took on a lot of "new" debt when the gov't asked them to in order to prop up the market, which of course, it didn't do.

Michelle Singletary: I do not think they will fail. But changes have to be made.

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Paying off my debt in Arlington, Va.: Hi Michelle, Love and appreciate your down to earth money advice. I have two credit cards that I'm trying to pay down by the end of the year. One of the cards is offering a balance transfer of 2.9% until June next year (after June, it defaults to my purchase APR). I'm tempted by this offer, but I'm wary of transferring any balance because it would not eliminate the other card payment as I don't have enough available credit to transfer the full balance.

It would, however, drop the minimum balance to an amount I could quickly pay off (in 3 months) and then I could focus all of my extra money on the other card. One more catch, transferring a balance to the card in question will essentially max out my limit.

And, is it possible to post a link today to any articles you've written that gives a crash course in IRAs, Roth IRAs, 401ks, etc...?

Very excited for today's chat -- I haven't been able to catch a live one in a while. Thanks!

Michelle Singletary: I don't have a problem with folks transferring balances to take advantage of the lower interest rate. And in your case even if it means leaving a little on the other card.

Just get fired up about getting rid of this debt. Most importantly pay that new card on time otherwise that rate could jump significantly.

For a crash course check out the personal finance section of the Post biz section. Lots of good basic info there.

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Denver, Colo.: Michelle: I agree that homeowners in trouble (I am not one of them) need our compassion. One thing I think needs reform is the mortgage broker business. Realtors have a fiduciary relationship with the seller to act in the home seller's best interest. Attorneys and CPAs have ethical requirements to their clients as well. Mortgage brokers should have a fiduciary duty to recommend loans to the borrower that are in the borrower's best interest (not the mortgage broker's).

Michelle Singletary: I've written about this a lot and did a series on a fellow, Fred Lee, who was not acting for the benefit of borrowers.

So I agree.

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Baltimore, Md: The only people who can count on not being fired are the ones with their name on the door. And even those can be forced out of business.

Thanks for your chats and advice, Michelle! You're the greatest!

Michelle Singletary: You are welcome.

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Washington, D.C.: Hello Michele, I only have a car loan on my credit report. Should I try and get a credit card of some type to increase my score.

Michelle Singletary: No. Just pay off the car loan.

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washingtonpost.com: Don't miss today's 1 p.m. chat with Kai Wright, columnist for The Root, on the subprime mortgage meltdown and how it has affected black Americans -- including his own mother.

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Michelle Singletary: Well folks, I've got to run. Great, great discussion. So sorry if I didn't get to your question. But I now have a regular feature in my weekly eletter to answer some leftover questions. So check there. And also in my print column for possible answers to your questions.

Take care and please come back.

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