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Tag Archives: Checking Account

Home / Posts Tagged "Checking Account"

Podcast #11: Financial Planning and Real Estate

January 13, 2021 by Russell Henderson Posted in Mortgage News Tagged 401k, All, ATM, Auto, Banking, big, Budget, Business, Buy, Buying, Buying a house, car, chase, Checking Account, college, Credit, credit card, Credit Cards, Debit Card, Debt, Direct Deposit, down payment, Education, environment, Extra Money, Family, Financial Plan, financial planning, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, front, fun, home, income, Insurance, Interest Rates, Investing, investment, kids, Learn, Life, Life Events, Lifestyle, Luxury, Main, Make, money, More, Mortgage, mortgages, Moving, Opinion, Personal, Planning, property, Rates, Real Estate, refinancing, Retirement, Saving, Saving Money, savings, School, Sell, selling, Spending, Taxes, texas

podcast 11 financial planning and real estate For this podcast about financial planning I sat down with Scott Trent of Skylight Financial.  During the podcast we discussed financial planning in general, qualifications to be a financial planner and how a financial planner can benefit homeowners and real estate investors.  This podcast is helpful for those who may not be certain what a financial planner does and can learn how they can benefit from working with one.
I hope you enjoy the podcast and find it informative.  Please consider sharing with those who also may benefit. Listen via YouTube: You can connect with Scott Trent on LinkedIn.
You can connect with me on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and Instagram.
About the author: The above article “Podcast #11:  Financial Planning and Real Estate” was provided by Luxury Real Estate Specialist Paul Sian. Paul can be reached at [email protected] or by phone at 513-560-8002. If you’re thinking of selling or buying your investment or commercial business property I would love to share my marketing knowledge and expertise to help you.  Contact me today!
I work in the following Greater Cincinnati, OH and Northern KY areas: Alexandria, Amberly, Amelia, Anderson Township, Cincinnati, Batavia, Blue Ash, Covington, Edgewood, Florence, Fort Mitchell, Fort Thomas, Hebron, Hyde Park, Indian Hill, Kenwood, Madeira, Mariemont, Milford, Montgomery, Mt. Washington, Newport, Newtown, Norwood, Taylor Mill, Terrace Park, Union Township, and Villa Hills.
Transcript
Paul Sian:              Hello everybody. This is Paul Sian Realtor with United Real Estate Connections licensed in the state of Ohio and Kentucky. Today I have with me Scott Trent Financial Planner with Skylight Financial. We’re going to talk about financial planning and add a little bit of real estate information on that. Scott, how are you doing today? 
Scott Trent:         Do an excellent, how are you Paul? 
Paul Sian:              Good. Glad to have you on. So let’s get started, tell us a little bit about your background. What do you do and how long have you been doing it? 
Scott Trent:         Sure. Well, it started in 1999. That’s just wrapping up college and started working for a local retail bank back in the day that was bank one, which of course became chase bank. And uh, for about three or four years with the banking industry, had a couple of different roles started off essentially kind of right on the teller line, cashing checks and making deposits. And then within about a year I was tapped for personal banker role and was able to acquire my insurance and investment license and to be able to expand the services I provided my client. And you fast forward to working primarily in that space and the investments in the insurance space. A couple of different companies such as nationwide in western southern and was right about 2007 then I had an opportunity to expand my role into leadership and management and so from about 2007 to 2017 I’ve trained and developed and recruited and was in a leadership position in the financial services industry. And right about 2017 I just decided to lean back towards my personal practice and spend more time with my clients, which really is my first love is just spending the time with those clients, helping them achieve their goals and seeing their eyes light up when you give them hope that they can actually accomplish the things that they set out to accomplish when they first signed on with that first job right out of college.
Paul Sian:              Very nice. You did mention something about licenses and they in your statement there, so like I guess we can go on with that. What kind of licenses are you required to have and what kind of licenses are helpful to have in your line work?
Scott Trent:         That’s an excellent question. So at a minimum you want to work with a financial planner that has an insurance license and at least one securities license. And the reason for that is because any financial plan is going to ideally holistically look at the different moving pieces of someone’s life. We’re going to look at cash flow and protection, risk management, wealth accumulation, tax reduction, retirement and ultimately a state of planning. And it’s with those different areas, there’s going to be some, some expertise needed as it relates to saving money, investing money as well as protecting your income and your assets. And so again, at a minimum bar you’re going to work with someone who has an insurance and investment license. On top of that, there are other designations of the industry provides such a CFP or cou chfc is going to emit apple bet soup out there of different designations that you can achieve. But I tend to tell people you want to work with someone. Again, that is looking at from a big picture, looking at both the protection and the wealth accumulation side. And I would say just as important as licenses or designation. Do you want to work with someone that has a rather quit experience? 
Paul Sian:          Okay, great. What kind of licenses do you have?
Scott Trent:         So I have an insurance license in Ohio where where I reside and also uh, about a dozen other states that I conduct business said on a regular basis as well as uh, a series six license, the series 26 license, a series 63 license. And I’m also approved for financial planning through my broker dealer.
Paul Sian:              Okay. So it looks, sounds like some of the licenses to our state restricted just like real estate or are all of them state restricted or though some of their general that you have licensed you can work anywhere? 
Scott Trent:         That’s a great question. So typically what happens is any insurance side of the house, once you are licensed in the state that you reside, you can fairly easily become what they call non-resident license in other states that you wish to do business and which is essentially filling out a background report, paying a fee and they kind of stamp stamp off and approve it. And so then in that way you’re able to conduct the insurance transactions in those states that you have clients that are, you know, for example, I have clients in the west coast and east coast ever where in between and I, I need to be licensed in the state that they reside as well as my own. On the security side or the investment side, you have one set of licenses that determines what type of business that you can conduct for your clients. And then the series 63 that you might’ve heard me mentioned that says that I can service the clients that reside outside of Ohio or I do, but you also need to be registered and approved and those surrounding states as well. So there’s a bit of administration that needs to take place, but at the end of the day, as long as you have filled out the proper forms and you’re mindful of your continuing education, just like you are as a real estate professional, you should have no problem servicing clients anywhere in the country. 
Paul Sian:              Okay. And we did a, you did kind of talk about, you know, one financial planner does coming, explained it in the light detail and through your intro, can you boil it down to us, boil it down to somebody who’s never met a financial planning before. We never talked to a potential central planner. What, you know, what exactly you do and how can you help somebody?
Scott Trent:          That’s a great question. So you’re, from a bullet point standpoint, I would say it’s really about the why, how, and why and the what speaks to goal clarity. What I find working with our clients, Paul, is that mom and dad or partner’s, they’re getting up every day. They’re going to work and they’re doing their job. Then they’re coming home and will oftentimes doing mom things and bad things and catching their breath and then we get the little ones off the bed and next thing you know, we’re waking back up doing it all over again. And you know, kind of big picture. Intuitively we’re working to provide for our family and we’re working to have a great lifestyle. But you’d be surprised that most often people aren’t actually having a good conversation about what they’re really trying to accomplish and setting benchmarks for things like we want to have x amount of debt paid off in three years, or we want to save up for a great family vacation.
                                    We’ve always wanted to go overseas. But yeah, we ended up just going to Florida every year because we don’t take the time to plan it through. And next thing you know it’s summertime. And so it’s about that clarity that the conversation that needs to happen between the partners in a hole, the spouses often let’s say, hey, where are we really getting up and working for a day to day basis? And so goal clarity, what do we want life to look like? If we wake up 20 years from now looking at a rear view mirror, what things would we have wanted to accomplish, make, make it feel like we’ve made some progress. So that’s a lot of it. The houses, the strategy or the roadmap. So once we identify what a client wants and help provide, help them have that conversation of clarity among all interested parties, then it’s how do we get there? And that’s where our expertise comes in and that’s looks like cash flow design that looks like different vehicles or products sometimes. Sometimes it’s as it’s a matter of saving, saving the right amount and the right kinds of buckets. And so again, that’s that more technical roadmap piece of it and it ultimately the why of it is this, the accountability, it’s, it’s part of my job is to keep the, why are we doing this in front of them? It’s what, what do we want to feel, what do we want to experience? And so if we, we’ve looking to the future and we can see our future selves waking up with the confidence of knowing that, that all of our financial lives are in order, that all the moving pieces are fitting together like a, like a perfect puzzle. There’s total efficiency there. It’s, it’s making sure that we keep that in front of our coins to say, Hey, this is why we’re saving this much. On a monthly basis. This is why we have that insurance in place. This is why we are investing in these types of instruments and vehicles. It’s all about, it’s about the experience that we want to create for ourselves and for the people that we love the most. So I guess that’s a little bit more than bullet points fall, but in a bullet point, it’s the why, how, and why. Otherwise it’s the goal, clarity of strategy and accountability that we provide. 
Paul Sian:          Actually that’s, yeah, that’s very well said. So it’s not just long term planning, it’s not just you know about retirement. It’s also about your short term. If you want to go, like you mentioned the vacation plan or even then you know, my case, I deal with a lot of real estate investors. So somebody who wants to set up a plan for investing in real estate, you can help out with that too. Correct?
Scott Trent:         Oh absolutely. And so, you know, the time frame, it has a lot to do with what their client has going on in their life and this season that we meet them in. So, you know, for example, and we hear a lot about, I’ve really liked to get in to real estate investing. And then we say, well, when do you see yourself doing that? And sometimes they’ll say, well, you know, in the next two to five years. And sometimes they say, well, like right now I can’t. And so we’ll take a step back again, kind of coordinate all the moving pieces of their financial world and letting math and math have a seat at the table and not just intuition and not just kind of what we want and, and you know, let things that, you know, sometimes we see something on the internet or hear a friend talk, we’re like, Ooh, I want that. And so then we just go do it. And so again, that’s a big part of it. But also its let’s, let’s have the emotions have a seat, but also led logic and math and rationale habits. Have a seat, the tables.
Paul Sian:              Well, yeah. And you mentioned long term plan, also short term plans, looking at things. So, I mean just uh, and we can go a little situations or specific, basically you have to look at everybody’s individual situations and how they’re, you know, what they’re doing and what their goals are. Let’s say we have somebody who’s a, you know, there were w two income earner, they make x amount of money per week, per month, what have you, and so they’re interested in, in a real estate investing. What kind of general advice would you give to that person and you know, maybe they don’t have a full down payment saved up yet and they need 20-25% for whatever they’re trying to buy. What kind of suggestions would you have for them.
Scott Trent:         Paul What I would say with someone who’s looking to take their first step into the financial independence or looking at that opportunity to, to start a real estate investment portfolio, it is always looking at it through the filter of what we call our four pillars of financial security or the value system, that value system that we use when it relates to financial planning. And those things are going to be making sure that you’re protected against major financial risks, that you are becoming a world class saver, saving upwards of 15 to 20% of your income on a monthly basis, making sure that you have a life events fund. We have says that I have upwards of a year’s worth of my income in places that I can access outside of my qualified plans such as his Iras so that I’m able to deal with not just rainy days in emergencies, but I’m also able to take advantage of great opportunities like I ain’t a great property for a great price and also taking a look at the debt that I have on my balance sheet that already exist and so we would do with a client is to say, Hey, let’s take a, let’s take a holistic look or three 60 look about how a purchase of a real estate property, what impact these other creek cake, key critical areas of financial planning and your overall wealth strategy.
Paul Sian:              Okay, great answer. You had mentioned a debt in there. Let’s go talk about that a little bit of an most people are buying real estate using that, you know, your mortgages, commercial mortgages, residential mortgages. What are your thoughts on debt? I mean a good, bad avoiding to some that’s good, bad. What do you think? 
Scott Trent:         That’s a great question too. I think that it is difficult especially you’re right up in the Midwest to ever say Ted is good. However, when it comes to that, when I, when I’m, what’s an easier answer to give is the what, what is the fat kind of debt and so bad debt is higher interest rate, unfavorable terms, excessive fees, consumer base that such as credit cards or retail store cards, things that we, that that we acquire just for lifestyle. Because a lot of times what that represents on someone’s balance sheet is that they have let their once supersede their actual needs.
                                    And so what lending institutions are happy to do is to say, hey, if you want an extra money to be able to keep up with the Jones’ is it will give us a call or come see us on credit card.com and so I always caution against that kind of debt because it speaks usually to a bigger problem on the other side of things. Acquiring that for the purpose of acquiring assets like real estate, like vehicles, that can be very wise decision because it helps you leverage your own cash flow and leverage your own opportunity to earn income and your own savings and oftentimes, particularly as it relates to real estate for home purchases for example, there are, there’s some tax favor ability to be found with those kinds of debt. And so what I’ve, what I’ve loved the, the good debt, Paul, the best debt is low interest rate, tax deductible kind of debt.
                                    That’s good debt. But again, this kind of summarize, I would say the bad debt is usually represented by death that we were required to just improve our lifestyle, close trinkets in the house, furniture, things like that. That’s usually about ego, about lifestyle as well as just as much to do with our neighbors and our neighborhoods. What does ourselves or the people that we care about the most. 
Paul Sian:          You had mentioned the taxes in there too. I do. I guess Texas do come into play as a financial planner when working with your clients.
Scott Trent:         Yeah, absolutely. And so one of the things that we’ve helped the client with recently is to help weed through the confusion of the current tax situation because of the tax cuts that will were implemented in 2018 and so as an example, all you brought up about, it’s not just long term planning, it’s not just retirement plane that we help our clients with.
                                    It’s also short term goals. And so taxes is a great example of that because what we do know that unless there’s some overall legislation that gets passed, what we can expect is that in December 31st, 2025 the current tax cuts are going to that. So another way to think of that is come January 1st, 2026 everyone’s taxes are going to go up if they’re earning the same income of the art today. And with that creates opportunity. It’s one of the things I’m working with a family right now on is this idea of exploring, does it make sense to take advantage of after tax investing rather than what most people focus on kind of cause they told to just what they see their neighbors and their friends and family doing, which is maximizing their pretax dollars is what could happen without getting too far into the weeds fall is because of the current tax environment.
                                    We might be deferring taxes at 20 or 24% all the way to wake up and later in life and find that we’re now paying taxes on those same dollars at a higher rate, 30% 32% 36% and higher. So we just have to be careful about that. And so taxation is a area of emphasis that is necessary working with any financial planner. And I would just caution folks that if their financial planner is not having a meaningful conversation about long term impact of taxation, then they might want to seek out a higher authority on the matter or maybe it might be time to start interviewing other financial planners. I think the asterisk that I would add there fall is that that’s also why we partner with local professional CPAs so that they can have the kind of final say so in these matters as it relates to wealth building in financial planning in the in the area and Ronald Taxation, we are very familiar with that have very powerful tools that speak to taxes.
                                    However, what we are not as certified public accountants and so as you can imagine, we want to make sure that we always work with someone who, who is that when it comes to crossing those ts and dotting those I’s. Also, I think with the financial planner, bigger picture is working with a successful financial planner also should give you access, favorable preferable access to the financial professionals that they network with. Such as personal make herself a professional real estate agent as well as an attorney as well as a property casualty specialist to CPA, a benefits consultant if it’s a business owner on and on. And so it’s really working with the right team, but ultimately working with someone who is going to be that can symphony conductor or that quarterback of their team, who’s going to take the responsibility to make sure that all the orders are running in the right direction.
Paul Sian:              Great answer. Actually that wasn’t, that answers my, uh, it wasn’t going to answer my next question, which is a financial planner is not a solo person. They work with, uh, with a team as you mentioned, you know, working with the accountants, the attorneys, CPAS, what have you. So that’s a great answer. We had discussed earlier you had discussed about building up an emergency savings fund. Then you mentioned a year, which is great. And that’s the idea was the year, you know, we’ve heard online from anywhere from three months up to six months. I mean, what’s, how do you suggest people go about building that savings funds? I mean, especially for somebody who thinks they’re living paycheck to paycheck, I mean, where do they find that, that room, that gap to start, start that savings fund? 
Scott Trent:         SoI guess it would clarify first the difference in an emergency savings fund in a life event. It’s fun. So for an emergency savings fund that’s best suited typically at the local bank, and that’s going to be in the form of a savings account on or maybe even a and no fee checking account. And that’s going to be where you want to have about three months, maybe six at the most. A lot of it has to do with the comfort level, the individual client. But typically three months is more than fine to have on hand at the local bank. That’s money that I’m an ATM card or a debit card swipe away or uh, a dash over to the local branch away from getting access to my funds. Outside of that, the next six to nine months that we talked about from a life events that doesn’t necessarily have to be in cash at the bank, but it just needs to be somewhere outside of a qualified plan.
                                    Because as you probably know, and your listeners know, Paul, money that’s inside of a qualified plan is largely inaccessible until I’m 59 and a half. And last I want to jump through hoops, pay interest rates to access my money or God forbid pay taxes as well as IRS penalties. And so when we talk about life events, fun big picture, we’re talking about braces for the kids. We’re talking about a $2,000 car repair emergency that jumps out the bushes on us. We’re talking about, um, the vacations that we want to go on. So it’s the experiences that we want to have in life for the people that we care about most, but it’s also the things that life is inevitably going to do, which is getting, throw those curve balls. Dot Us good and bad. So as far as how do we get there, take baby steps, it’s just sometimes it’s as simple as going to your HR coordinator, your payroll director and saying, Hey, can I split my direct deposit between two counts right now?
                                    This is kind of hitting the checking account. And then from there it’s, it’s um, you know, all bets are off and it’s a feeding frenzy. And ultimately, uh, fortunately for the bills and the lifestyle expenses and gas money and everything else, uh, the best way to say fall, no matter how you do it or what vehicles you use is systematically and consistently. So it’s those things that you don’t have to pull ever go online, go to the local branch and things that just happened. That’s why good and bad, most of Americans well is in their qualified plans are the 401k because it comes out before it ever hits our bank account. It’s out of sight, out of mind. It just piles up. You know, the, the, the tough part about that is, again, that’s a qualified account. So there’s some heavy restrictions that keep us from being able to access our funds when we might need them most.
                                    So just like the 401k if for example, I talked to a college student this afternoon and it was as simple as go to the HR director happens, split your direct deposit into two separate accounts and just start taking out $25 a pay check and having that diverted to a secondary account just so that it starts to pile up and the idea that the money’s there but really need it, but it’s just that extra layer that helps reinforce the discipline to say, okay, I’m not supposed to touch that. That’s for future purposes. That’s for rainy days, real emergencies and not frivolous spending. And so start with baby steps. And next thing I would look at is working with an advisor who has tools to help you analyze your spending. Your cash flows ideally will help bring awareness to where those dollars are going. What I find fall is that what most of our clients, there might be 10 to 15% of their monthly income.
                                    That just seems to just disappear. It’s not accounted for it. And so using the tools such as, uh, we use a tool, Claudine money for example, and we’re personal financial view that will really electronically analyze someone’s spending habits so they can say, oh, I wonder how much money we’re spending out spending on a monthly basis eating out. Well, click, click, click. This is exactly how much that is. And we can set short term goals on what we think that should be and we can keep, we can track our progress through these financial tools. The other thing that we look at in a financial planning process is we want to analyze the cost of the services that you’re currently receiving. So for example, when we work with our lending and credit specialist or real estate professionals or CPAS or attorneys or property and casualty specialist, we’re making sure that our clients are getting value, not always looking for cheap.
                             In fact, the chief is not a word that I tend to use or any of the professionals and network with. We’re making sure that we’re getting the best value since we have a finite amount of dollars coming in. We want to make sure that those are being used, maximized and leveraged the most appropriate way. So it is taking the baby to start somewhere. It is working with an advisor to find the awareness of where the money’s actually going as well as taking a look at the cost of service for the services that we’re currently enjoying as well as I. Lastly, I would say looking for ways to minimize the impact of interest rates wherever possible, whether that be through right refinancing or creating a debt payoff strategy so that we are avoiding those excessive interest rates in feet.
Paul Sian:              Yeah, it takes a, an overall, you like you’re, you’re saying you have to look at the budget, get to look at the incoming money, outgoing money as well, and kind of build that plan. So I mean that’s, that seems you to be your specialty. Very much. So. Moving on, let’s go back to the topic of real estate. And I go over one of the controversial statements made by Gary Vee, Gary Vaynerchuk. I mean he had, he had say stated, uh, rather than buying a house, it’s better to go, you know, go rent and I don’t know that upset a lot of real estate agents too. I mean that’s kind of our bread and butter. We’re, we’re buying and selling real estate. I’m of the opinion though. I mean I, I help a lot of buyers and sellers with the investment real estate too. So it’s not that, you know, I have to own a house personally, but I can own an investment property and I’m helping somebody else, you know, live in a place. What are your thoughts on the ownership of a house or renting, renting the place to live.
Scott Trent:         Interesting and not, I read an article last week that talked about the difference in buying and renting or leasing in different pockets of the country. And as I said, it’d be four people. I work with clients all across the country and in some markets it’s really hard to justify a home purchase as it, as it compares to renting a home. You know, for example, a lot of clients on the west coast where housing market is very tight and there’s certainly a premium for home homes costs there in that part of the country. And so what we find is that the monthly cost of leasing a home can oftentimes when you consider the fact that with home ownership, I also am now responsible for property taxes, homeowner’s insurance, as well as the upkeep of the property that that can sometimes more than double the living expenses as it relates to housing. Whereas compared to here in the Midwest where sometimes it can actually be much more cost effective to own a home rather than rent a home from a monthly cash flow outlay. Even when you add in insurance and taxes and the kind of monthly maintenance, if nothing else, it’s oftentimes a break even when you consider all factors. So I think that would go back to as you say, Paul, you know, or Scott does it. Does it make sense to own or rent when you think about Gary V’s advice way I would look at that is again, just like any other decision that our clients would come to us and ask our feedback on. We would take a, at the basics we’d say, okay, before pillars of financial planning or financial security or these value system that we use to build our clients’ financial plans on the perfect protection, the become a world class save or having the life events fund to be debt free or have a, have a plan to get us there.
                                    If a, if home ownership or home purchase would get in the way of us living out those values or achieving those financial objectives then and renting would, then we’re going to say it. We should think about writing for another year or two. However, if, if our clients can own a home and be protected well and be a great saver and be building their life events fun and have a handle on the that that’s already existing on their financial balance sheet, then by all means we’ve been encouraged folks to take, take ownership of a home so that they have acquired an asset. They’re building a liquidity in the form of equity and they’re also able to take advantage of the things we talked about earlier, which is having the tax deductibility from interest payments on the mortgage and so on and so forth. And so the other astronauts that I would have there is the sense that if someone comes to us and says, yeah, you know, my job, we’re an up and coming or a rising star and you know, are two of the five year goals are too.
                                    And we want to, we want to be really nimble because we’re very likely to be transferred across the country, maybe Chicago or San Diego here in the next two to five years. Again, why would attend to encourage those folks is and can be consistent with say, nimble homeownership home purchase, maybe a terrible idea. This is because it’s, it’s easy to, it’s much easier to give a landlord a 60 day notice that you’re moving out than it is to be able to sell a home in 30 to 60 days regardless of the market. Also the fact of course you gotta be careful that we’re not holding an asset that we’re going to look to sell or relinquish in the next 12 to 24 months or even three to five years. Knowing that it’s not often, but every so often the housing market can regress such as 2007 and eight and we have to be careful that we didn’t make a 30 year decision based on 24 to 48 months factors, if that makes sense.
Paul Sian:              Yeah, definitely makes sense. And it’s a a great point. I mean just like real estate, you know, when you brought up earlier the cost differences, you know, living in California versus living in Cincinnati, Ohio, it’s location, location, location is agency. So, I mean when you get over here for you know, $250,000 you know, in California you can easily do the, be able to get 1.2 million depending on the location you’re at. So same, same thing for the individual person. I mean it’s the, it’s the individual that matters. What’s your life goal? What’s their life plans? And you know, somebody who’s going to be here in Cincinnati for two years, it doesn’t make sense. It might not make sense. The, you know, there are high transaction costs, you know, where they’re from, your, your real estate closings, closing costs, your, your mortgage closing costs. So I mean that that kind of adds in and you might not get that pay off in two years. Especially if value state stay flat or decrease.
Scott Trent:         That’s an excellent point perspective. If I could leave your listeners with one nugget of wisdom for what it’s worth, I would say the sooner that you can let go, other people have expectations of you and let go of what other people might think of you and the perception others have of you, the better off you’ll be. We find so often that the pressure to keep up with the Joneses that use that expression again or to to everybody else is doing it just kind of like kids in grade school. That same peer pressure exists with hardworking families, grownups, parents here in adulthood and the idea that we’ve got a finite amount of time and a finite amount of resources and at the end of the day being able to look in the mirror and have satisfaction about the progress you’re making it for yourself with people that you love, making sure that you have a plan that works and offer seen circumstances, good days, bad days, sunshine or rain.
                                    Knowing that you’ve prepared a path for yourself and for your family. That is a general one that reaps benefits for generations and that we’re teaching the generation coming behind us about financial responsibility. I think if we can find joy and peace in those principles and those ideas and the visions of that kind of a future rather than making sure that, you know, we look good when we pull up to the company picnic or the family or a union or making sure that we form to the right neighborhood with the right car and the right toys in our garage. No, I think we’d be much better off as Americans because sadly enough, the statistics say that the average American to saving 5% or less of their income or an overwhelming majority of folks are not even prepared to deal with a thousand dollar emergency if it were topics that out of the bushes.
                                    And so I think that what I’d like to leave your listeners with this idea of we can do better and one of the best ways to start doing better is to think a lot less about the perception and approval of others and really start thinking about the idea that the stakes are high and when, when we consider the magnitude of the impact of our financial decisions, not just for our lives but the lives of the generations that follow, I think we can make the best well informed decisions and whether that includes home purchase or renting or if it includes real estate and investing or for or not. I think that working with myself and my team, we really work very hard to make sure that we keep the main thing, the main things and minimize the distraction of other things I’ve mentioned. 
Paul Sian:          We’ve talked today, plan for now and plan for the future. All very great and solid advice. Thanks Scott. Appreciate you. Haven’t you on the show here and I will chat with you soon. 
Scott Trent:         Thanks Paul.
 

Source: cincinkyrealestate.com

Why Investing for Retirement is So Important for Women (and How To Do It) 

January 13, 2021 by Russell Henderson Posted in Mortgage Tips, Retirement Tagged All, big, Blog, Budget, Business, Checking Account, college, color, down payment, Financial Goals, Financial Plan, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, guest post, home, How To, Invest, Investing, investment, Learn, Life, Luxury, Make, Make Money, money, More, mutual funds, Retirement, Salary, Saving, Saving for Retirement, Saving Money, Spending, spouse, Stocks, virtual

Hey everyone! Michelle speaking for a moment. Today, I’d like to introduce you to my friend Amanda Holden. She runs one of my favorite financial blogs – Dumpster Dog. Below is a guest post from her on why investing for retirement is important for women – and how you can start. Enjoy!

Play along with me for a moment: Imagine a deliciously styled woman in her 70s.

She is having a sip of her morning espresso at a sidewalk café in Paris. She’s perusing a big, beautiful novel alongside her (much younger) Parisian lover, who is bringing her a third croissant for before 10 am (because why not).   

This woman is you.

Or at least, this woman could be you.

Whether or not your retirement dream includes croissants and a Parisian lover, you’re going to need to save and invest to make it happen.

We’re so accustomed to thinking about retirement in terms of an age—age 65—when in reality, retirement is an amount of money saved.

Because young people will not have access to the pension plans of our parents and grandparents, retirement is entirely our responsibility.

After spending six years workin’ in a fancy investment management job, I quit.

Helping the rich get richer just wasn’t going to be “it” for me. So, I created my own business, called Invested Development (Invested Development is great for beginners and for those looking to step up their investing game. My favorite part of this work is that “ah-hah moment” when students realize that investing is absolutely within their capacity.

Part of this work is addressing the specific hurdles that women face and finding solutions to those problems so that my students can live out their Golden Years in style.

Here are four reasons women need to save and invest for retirement—and how to do it.

 

1. Retirement is the single biggest lifetime expense for everyone, not just women.

Can we real-talk for a hot minute? It’s hard as hell to get motivated to save for retirement. Retirement is so frickin’ far away and you’ve likely got more immediate financial goals you’d like to achieve, like a down payment for a home or building a luxury palace for your collection of rescued street cats.

But, here’s the rub: Retirement will likely be the single-biggest expense in your lifetime. That’s right: Bigger than a house (at least, for most of us), and bigger than kid’s college. Take a step back, and simply think about what retirement is: You’re living for 20 or 30 years with no working salary.

Ask yourself: How much money do you need to spend in one, single year? How about for twenty or thirty years?

Without getting too caught up in the numbers, you get the idea: That’s a heckuva lot of money to save. Saving money is going to be the foundation to achieving retirement—but investing is the secret sauce.

 

2. Women live longer than men.

The job of saving and investing for retirement is already big. And for women, it will be even bigger.

In 2019, women have a life expectancy of 81.6, while the average for men is 76.9. That’s nearly five more years to account for. And the tough truth is—these years aren’t usually cheap or easy or healthy.

This means that women need to plan to be alive for longer than men, which means they need more money for retirement. And really, we should all plan to live to be at least 90 or even 100.

The worst thing you can do is make a plan that assumes you’ll live to be 81.6, and then live to be 100 with nothing in the bank. (This is especially important as life expectancies are expected to rise over the next several decades.)

 

3. Women need their own money.

Hey! Would you like to feel very angry right now? Well then allow me to introduce you to: The National Institute on Retirement Security!

Their data shows us year after year that women are significantly more likely to live in poverty than men in retirement, and it’s worse for women of color and single women. Any of us could be single, divorced, or widowed. I’m still single IF YOU CAN BELIEVE IT!

It’s rare that life ends up the way that we expect it to.

Planning for a scenario where no one gets sick and no one gets divorced is more than just dumb, it’s dangerous—especially for those of us living in countries with waning social safety nets.

We all know, in theory, that a partner is not financial plan; the hard part is making a plan into reality and doing the work now, and not waiting until disaster or heartbreak strikes.

(Because really, I can think of no worse time to learn about Modern Portfolio Theory, expense ratios, AND THE DAMN BANK PASSWORD than after a messy divorce or the unexpected death of a spouse.)

 

4. Women Earn Less Than Men

Think of what investing is: Investing is using your money to make even more money.

That’s right, ladies: Let’s make money do some of the heavy lifting around here! Putting our money to work is especially important for women, who are likely to earn less than men over the course of a lifetime. Women will have less money to work with, making it critical that we make the most of the money we do have.

I do not think this is fair.

My absolute first choice would be to close this wage and opportunity gaps and for moms to have support at work. While we are working towards the cultural shift and legislative changes necessary to leveling the playing field for women, women must work within the system we’ve got.

And that means learning about investing and prioritizing her future self, even when it’s so hard.

 

How to Invest for Retirement

Your first step is to understand your options for retirement accounts. Where should your investments go?

Are you already covered by workplace retirement account, like a 401(k) or 403(b)? Or are you self-employed?

If so, that you’ll need to open your own at a brokerage bank of your choosing—think Fidelity or Charles Schwab. Depending on your needs, you could open a Roth IRA, SEP IRA, and/or Solo 401(k).

Next, you’ll have to decide how to invest within your retirement account.

A 401(k) is not an investment—a 401(k) holds investments. Just like your checking account holds cash, but a 401(k) holds cash, stocks, mutual funds, and so on. You can think of your 401(k) or Roth IRA as a glorified adult Caboodles (with special tax treatment)—it just holds your investments.

The treasures held inside are the investments.

Many people will opt for a mix of stocks and bonds appropriate to their goals and risk tolerance. You may find it easiest to invest in stocks and bonds using mutual funds. A mutual fund bundles together some other investment type—you can think of them as big ol’ suitcases. And just like a suitcase, what is packed inside is the most important part, and will say a lot about the type of trip you’re about to take.

Many money experts prefer index mutual funds or index ETFs which are funds that aim to return the average of whatever market they “mimic,” with very low fees. Basically, you’re just along for the ride.

No matter which strategy you choose, you’ll need to minimize what you pay in fees. Any fees you pay to an advisor, plan administrator, or broker, are fees that will come directly from your potential investment returns—so you’d better be damn certain of the value you get out of that service. Remember, the goal here is to make you rich, not to fund some overpaid mutual fund manager’s Viagra-blue sportscar.

 

Finally, Become Confident in Your Saving and Investing Plan

Are you ready to learn how to invest, make the most of your money, and make your badass granny dreams a reality?

Take Invested Development, which is a live, virtual, four-part Investing 101 course taught by me. (That’s right, you can take the class from the comfort of your home—popcorn, sweatpants, greasy topknot and all!) I’m committed to helping my students learn by making them laugh and providing a judgment-free place to ask questions. You will walk away with a plan of action you’re confident in.

Feeling in charge of your money and investments: It’s a powerful place for a woman to be. 

And often, learning requires the right teacher: I’m a writer and educator specializing in teaching women how to invest. Through my business, Invested Development, I’ve taught thousands of women to invest, revolutionizing what they think is possible for themselves and their financial futures. I take women who are unsure of their knowledge and turn them into confident, wealth-building badasses. 

I also write a blog called The Dumpster Dog Blog, which has been nominated for Money Blog of the Year and Women’s Money Blog of the Year for two years running.

Invested Development has upcoming classes in January and February. Because it is live, virtual, and classroom style, spaces in the class are limited. Invested Development will show you that investing is something that is absolutely within your capacity: don’t put it off for one day longer. Your future granny depends on it.

Are you saving for retirement? Why or why not?

The post Why Investing for Retirement is So Important for Women (and How To Do It)  appeared first on Making Sense Of Cents.

Source: makingsenseofcents.com

Capital One 360 savings account review

January 13, 2021 by Russell Henderson Posted in Banking, Moving Guide Tagged All, App, ATM, Bank Accounts, Banking, Business, Checking Account, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, Interest Rates, investment, Make, money, More, Personal, Rates, Saving, savings, Savings Accounts

The Capital One 360 Performance Savings account, commonly called Capital One 360 Savings, is a high-yield savings account with no monthly fees and no minimum balance required. Capital One makes it easy to get started, allowing you to open a new account online in about five minutes. And with the well-reviewed Capital One mobile app, you can easily manage your account on the go.

In this post, we’ll cover the details of having a Capital One 360 Savings account, including the pros and cons — and how it compares to similar accounts. Plus, we’ll help you decide if this is the right account for you.

Capital One 360 Savings Account Fast Facts

  • Annual fee: none
  • Minimum balance: none
  • Current APY: 1.50% (as of 30 April 2020)
  • Pros
    • Comparatively high yields
    • No monthly fee
    • No minimums
    • Easy to get started
    • Mobile app access
  • Cons
    • No ATM cards
    • Comparatively few local branches

Capital One Savings Account Benefits

There are lots of benefits to having a Capital One savings account. Here are some of the highlights:

High Yields

A 1.50% APY is a respectable interest rate for a savings account. This interest rate is even more enticing when you generally carry a fairly low balance. Unlike many accounts that offer tiered rates depending on how much money you keep in your account, Capital One offers the same 1.750% APY on all balances. So even if you only have $90 in your account, you’ll still earn that 1.50% APY rate.

No Minimum Balance Requirements or Monthly Fees

With the Capital One 360 Savings account, you don’t have to worry about carrying a minimum balance. And you won’t be charged a monthly maintenance fee to keep your account open. This no-minimum, no-fee structure has become fairly standard in the competitive world of online banking, but it is still an improvement over traditional bank accounts, many of which still charge monthly fees and/or require you to maintain a minimum balance.

Easy to Get Started

Capital One makes it easy to start saving. You can open your new account online in about five minutes. If you happen to live in one of the eight states with full-service branches, you can also visit one of these branches in person to open your account.

Mobile App

The highly-rated Capital One mobile app makes it easy to automate your savings plan, transfer money between accounts, make mobile deposits, and track your savings progress.

Capital One Savings Account Downsides

Of course, no savings account is perfect. Here are a couple of potential downside for the Capital One 360 savings account.

No ATM cards

While some online savings accounts offer ATM cards so you can easily access your money from any ATM, Capital One does not. To access your money, you need to transfer your money to another account. If you have a Capital One checking account, your transferred funds will be available immediately. But if you’re transferring funds to a checking account with another bank, it can take a couple business days.

While this semi-restricted access can be a negative, it could also be a positive. After all, this is a savings account, not a checking account. And the harder it is to access your savings, the less likely you are to spend that money!

Comparatively few local branches

While I love the innovative Capital One Cafes (with their free Wifi, full coffee and snack bars, and personal assistance), there just aren’t enough of them. Capital One currently has local branches in only eight states, most of which are on the East Coast.

Having said that, how often would you go to the local bank branch when Capital One makes it so easy to bank online?

How Does Capital One 360 Compare to Other Savings Accounts?

You have several good options when choosing a high-yield savings account. Many accounts make the same no-fee, no-minimum offer as the Capital One 360 Savings account. Here’s a quick look at some of the most comparable online savings accounts (as of 30 April 2020):

  APY Monthly Fee Minimum Required
Capital One 360 Savings 1.50% $0 $0
Discover Online Savings 1.40% $0 $0
Ally Online Savings 1.50% $0 $0
CIT Bank 1.09%-1.55% introductory, 1.09% afterward $0 $100 minimum to open account

How Does the Capital One 360 savings rate compare to other savings accounts?

In terms of interest earned, the Capital One savings interest rate compares favorably to other similar savings accounts.

Other online savings accounts, like Ally and Discover, are currently offering rates between 1.40% and 1.55%. These are close to the Capital One 360 Savings rate of 1.50%.

While CIT Bank proudly offers up to 1.55% APY, you have to clear a hurdle to earn this rate. You must either maintain a balance of $25,000+ or make at least one monthly deposit of $100 or more. If you fail to meet one of these requirements, your savings rate will fall to 1.09%.

Of course, when you compare the Capital One saving interest rate to traditional bank accounts, Capital One comes out well ahead. Wells Fargo currently offers a maximum of 0.08%, and Bank of America rates max out at 0.06% (using Los Angeles local rates for comparison).

Is the Capital One 360 Savings account right for you?

The Capital One 360 Savings account is a solid option for the average person. It’s easy to open and use, offers uncomplicated terms, and comes with one of the best interest rates available for a savings account with no monthly fees or minimum required balances.

If you’re a sophisticated investor, it might make more sense for you to keep your savings account with the bank that handles your investments (Ally Invest, for example) so you can easily move money between your investment accounts. But for most of us, the Capital One 360 Savings account is a perfectly suitable high-yield savings account.

Source: getrichslowly.org

How to make money fast: Quick ways to earn money in 2020

January 13, 2021 by Russell Henderson Posted in Liefstyle, Making Money Tagged 401k, All, Banking, bedroom, big, Business, Buy, car, Cash Back, Checking Account, Credit, credit card, Credit Cards, earning money, Emergency Fund, Extra Money, Family, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, fun, Grow, home, How To, income, Inspiration, Insurance, investment, kids, Life, Make Money, making money, money, Mortgage, Planning, Rewards, Saving, savings, School, second, Side Hustle, Side Hustles, Spending, Summer

Let’s face it. Most of us, at one point or another, have been faced with a financial emergency, or a plain, old-fashioned cash crunch. It’s definitely not a fun spot to be in. While there are steps we can take to avoid such situations (more on that later), that’s often the last thing on our minds when we need to come up with money — quick.

To assist, I’ve compiled the following list of money-making ideas. While some of the items included are more lucrative than others (you’ll never get rich taking surveys, for example), they all share a common theme: making money fast. Ready? Let’s dive in.

And before anyone mentions it, yes we’re aware of the irony of publishing an article about making money fast at a website called Get Rich Slowly.

Sell Your Old Stuff

I’ll kick off the list with an obvious one: selling your old stuff. After all, is there a faster way to make money? If you walked a few steps to your basement right now, or stepped outside to the garage, I’m willing to bet that you’d find some junk lying around that someone else could use:

  • Old computers and video games.
  • Sports equipment your kids have grown out of.
  • That extra bike that’s never ridden.
  • Your old collectibles. (J.D. sold his comic books. You could sell your baseball cards.)

Once you’ve come to grips with parting with your junk, selling it is as easy as taking a few pictures, and posting an ad on Craigslist, or your local Facebook Buy and Sell. If you need some inspiration, here’s a list of 12 surprisingly valuable things that are lying around your house.

Survey Junkie

Taking online surveys isn’t going to make you rich, but that’s not your goal here. You need to make money fast, and paid survey sites like Survey Junkie will help you do just that. In fact, you can start earning within a few minutes of signing up, and get paid as soon as you accumulate $10 in rewards.

Survey Junkie will pay you for each survey you complete, in the form of Paypal credits or gift cards to your favorite retail stores. The more surveys you take, the more you’ll make. The best part is that you can take surveys while doing other things, like watching TV, or listening to music, making it an easy way to earn some quick cash.

Swagbucks

Swagbucks is similar to Survey Junkie, but they take things a step further, by giving you more ways to earn cash and rewards. In addition to completing surveys, Swagbucks will pay you to browse the internet, play games, and shop online. They’ll even send you a daily survey, and a daily poll, as a way to earn rewards faster.

With Swagbucks, you won’t have to wait before redeeming your rewards. While you’ll need $25 worth of Swagbucks to move cash to your Paypal account, you can redeem points for gift cards worth as little as $1. In fact, when I checked out the Swagbucks rewards page, I noticed $3 Amazon gift cards advertised.

Acorns

Remember your goal – to make money fast. When you sign up for Acorns using my exclusive link, you’ll receive a $5 credit to kick off your account. Now, I wouldn’t suggest that you go to all that trouble for $5, but with Acorns, you’re getting so much more. Acorns is an investment app that makes saving money easy. You can open an account on your mobile phone in a couple of minutes, collect your $5, and be on your way to building that emergency fund, or saving for your next special purchase.

Open Your Acorns Account and Earn $5

To help you get there, Acorns uses an innovative feature, called round up savings. Acorns syncs to your debit or credit card and then rounds up the “spare change” whenever you spend. For example, let’s say you buy a pack of gum for $1.25. Acorns will round to the nearest dollar, and set aside .75 into your Acorns investment account. Because the amounts are so small, you’ll hardly notice the money leaving your account, but you’ll be surprised how quickly the savings adds up.

Acorns works so well, in fact, that it’s my top choice for investment app for 2020.

Drive with Uber

If you have a clean driving record, a reliable vehicle, and enjoy being around people, driving for a rideshare service like Uber is a great way to make some extra money, and fast. One perk to this job is the flexibility it offers. You decide when, and how much you want to work.

Once you’ve signed up with Uber, most drivers report that it only takes about 3-5 days to be approved.

Here’s more about the pros and cons of becoming a rideshare driver.

Deliver Food with UberEats

If driving for Uber sounds enticing, but you’d rather not spend your time making small talk with strangers, you could decide to deliver food with UberEats. You use the app to select deliveries that are in your area. The best part is that you decide when you want to work, and how much. Keep in mind, you will make more money during peak periods.

Rent Out Your Ride on Turo

Take advantage of your car’s downtime by renting it out to someone who needs a ride. Turo is a peer-to-peer car-sharing app that makes it easy to rent out your car. I’ve used Turo as a renter multiple times and believe it will continue to catch on, so they’ll need an increased supply of vehicles for rent. Once you’re set up through Turo, list your car on the app, wait for a request, and be ready to accept or decline. Keep in mind, your car will need to meet Turo’s vehicle requirements, and the nicer it is, the more money you can charge.

Rent Out a Room With Airbnb

If you have a spare bedroom in your home, you can rent it out to a short term guest, on Airbnb. Some people will even rent out their entire home, if they have another place where they can stay.

Not only is this a great way to make money quick, but if it’s something you enjoy, you could turn it into a regular income stream. A great perk with Airbnb is having the flexibility to decide when your space will be available, and how much you’ll charge.

Employee Referral Programs

Any recruiter will tell you, it’s tough for companies to find good people these days. As a result, many organizations will pay their own employees a bonus for successfully referring new talent.

Depending on the role, and the demand for the position, you could be eligible to receive hundreds, even thousands of dollars by bringing in a new employee. Not only is this a quick way to make money, but it requires almost no effort on your part. You’re simply connecting to parties.

Babysitting or At-Home Daycare

In today’s society, most families are dual income, with both parents working outside the home. Because of this, there is a constant demand for reliable childcare. If you’re a natural caregiver, and enjoy being around kids, you can make good money by offering to provide childcare within your local community. Whether it’s babysitting or an at-home daycare, it won’t take long to find your first client. Use your friends and family to get the word out, or notify your Facebook community, and you’ll be making money in no time.

Teach English with VIP Kid

If you enjoy teaching, consider putting your English skills to good use by becoming an online tutor. Websites like VIP Kid source clients for you, and the pay is pretty good too. It’s not uncommon to make $20-30/hour teaching online.

Tutoring is something that can be done in person as well. In fact, during the school year, there’s no shortage of students in your community in need of help with their studies. Check with your local high school, or get the word out on your community Facebook page.

J.D.’s note: For eighteen months, I met with a Spanish tutor three times each week. Aly had moved to the U.S. from Peru, and she found that tutoring was a fantastic way for her to make money.

Rent Out Your RV With Outdoorsy

If you own an RV, Outdoorsy will match you with people who are looking to rent a trailer or motorhome, for their next summer adventure. At rates as high as $150/day, or more, this is a great way to make money fast. Head to Outdoorsy, and find out how you can get your RV making money for you.

Collect Rewards With Drop App

Money doesn’t always have to arrive in the form of cash. Drop allows you to earn points when you shop at your favorite retailers, then redeem your rewards for gift cards at places like Starbucks, or Amazon. Drop works by syncing to your debit and/or credit card, and keeping track of your purchases. You don’t need to worry about clipping coupons, or scan receipts to receive discounts, Drop does all the work for you.

Download the free app to start earning with Drop!

Earn $50 per Year With the Nielsen Ratings App

For decades, Nielsen has been tracking TV ratings. But did you know that they will pay you to download their app to your computer or smartphone? Doing so allows them to compile data by tracking your internet usage. No need to worry however, your anonymity is guaranteed, and according to Neilson, the app won’t slow your device’s performance in the least.

Sounds pretty great, doesn’t it? There is a BIG caveat, however. You must be selected by Nielsen. That’s because Nielsen families are chosen using a scientific process. That said, it’s good to know about this easy money-making opportunity, in case you are ever approached by Nielsen.

Take Advantage of Bank Signup Bonuses

This is a great way to make some quick money. Banks everywhere are in a constant battle for new customers. The financial services industry is highly competitive, and companies know that if they can secure your day to day banking business, they’ll have a shot at your mortgage and your investments as well.

While these promotions come and go, it’s not uncommon to be offered a few hundred dollars when you open a new checking account with a bank, providing that you meet the qualifying criteria. This usually includes hooking up your automatic payroll deposit and completing a couple of online bill payments, that kind of thing.

Earn Credit Card Rewards

I’m a big fan of credit card rewards, but I’ll be the first to admit that using credit cards as a way of making money can be dangerous, and definitely isn’t for everyone. If you’re not paying off your credit card balance in full each month, or if using a credit card creates a temptation to overspend, then having a rewards credit card will cost you more money than you will ever make.

That said, a cashback, or travel rewards credit card can be a great way to make extra money. Many premium cards come with a welcome bonus, such as a couple hundred dollars cashback upfront, or enough travel points to get you a free flight somewhere. Have an upcoming trip planned? This could be a great way to subsidize the cost. Head here for more information on the best credit card rewards.

Make Money as a Freelance Writer

If you have interest, or experience in a specific area and love to write, there’s a good chance you can make money online as a freelance writer. What I love about this side hustle, is that it’s something you can do on your own schedule from the comfort of your living room. Not only that, but you can make good money. The website Problogger has an active job board, where you can browse, and apply for, freelance writing gigs across a wide range of niches.

Note: Many former Get Rich Slowly staff writers have gone on to become professional freelance writers with lucrative careers.

Advertise Your Freelance Services on Fiverr

In addition to writing, there are no shortage of services you can offer as a freelancer. Graphic design, bookkeeping, social media management – these are all services that small businesses will pay you to provide. One of the best ways to find clients and start making money is by joining a freelance marketplace like Upwork, or Fiverr.

Teach Music Lessons

Who said that a musician needs to live like a starving artist? If you are skilled on any number of musical instruments, you can make good money teaching private lessons. Ask your local music store if you can post an ad on their bulletin board, or advertise through Craigslist or Facebook. Early September is a great time of year to get started, as students are back to school and looking to start up music lessons after the summer break.

Earn Cash Back With Rakuten (Formerly Ebates)

Rakuten, formerly known as Ebates, makes it easy to earn cashback when you shop online at top retailers, such as Amazon, Kohl’s, and Microsoft. Sign up with Rakuten, and gain access to hundreds of partner retail stores via links directly on their site. Rakuten will keep track of your cash rebates, which can be as high as 40%, when you factor in limited time offers. The best part? Receive an automatic $10 bonus when you sign up for Rakuten, and earn an additional $25 when you refer friends or family.

Deliver Food With DoorDash

DoorDash is one of a number of app-powered food delivery services that have popped up in recent years. If you need to make money quick, becoming a delivery driver for Doordash may be the perfect solution. In fact, the signup box on their website reads, “Get Your First Check This Week”.

Ask for a Raise

Perhaps the fastest way to make extra money is by leveraging the job you already have. Unfortunately, many people don’t think about this, and instead feel like they need to take on something extra. I’ll finish with a few ways to increase your 9-5 income.

You’ve probably heard it said, “If you don’t ask, the answer will always be, no”. To most companies, a valuable employee is worth their weight in gold. Part of this is due to how much time and money it takes to hire and train someone new. Chances are, your employer is willing to pay you more, but you need to ask. If you’re able to effectively communicate your value to your boss, you may be pleasantly surprised at the outcome.

Since the early says of Get Rich Slowly, we’ve advocated learning how to negotiate your salary. It’s one of the best ways to boost your income — now and in the future.

Apply for a Promotion

When was the last time you considered applying for a promotion? Not only is a new job a great way to make more money, challenging yourself to step out of your comfort zone will further develop your skills, and help you grow as a person. If you’re having trouble getting promoted at your current company, you may decide to go to take your skills somewhere else. Here’s an article that gives 10 reasons successful people change jobs more often.

Take Advantage of Any Unused Benefits

If you’re not taking advantage of all of the benefits your employer is offering, you may be leaving cold hard cash on the table. Far too many employees don’t take the time to understand what’s available, and as they say, if you don’t use it, you’ll lose it. Read through your employee benefits package, or speak to an HR representative if you have questions. There’s money to be made, from health spending balances and 401K matches, to affordable insurance coverage and employee discounts.

Ask to Work Overtime

Not every job offers this opportunity, but if yours does, consider volunteering to work overtime, if you’re needing to make more money fast. Overtime work saves you from having to start something extra in your spare time, such as a second job, or a time-consuming side hustle. Remember, the goal is to make money fast. Either way, always strive for a healthy balance between time at work, and time away. The last thing you want is to feel burned out.

Final Thoughts on Making Money Fast

At the outset of this article, I mentioned that there are ways to avoid finding yourself with a shortfall of cash. While we can never be prepared for absolutely every emergency (nor should we try to be), we can make life a little easier with some advanced planning.

My best advice is to build an emergency fund. This can be as little as $500, or enough to cover several months worth of expenses, it’s up to you. Having an emergency fund will not only reduce your stress level, but it will also decrease your odds of having to use a credit card to cover a financial emergency, and that is a good thing.

In the meantime, my hope is that you feel more confident about making money fast, should the need arise.

Source: getrichslowly.org

5 Best Short Term Investments to Grow Your Money

January 13, 2021 by Russell Henderson Posted in Home Design, Investing, Personal Finance Tagged $1000, All, big, Buy, Buying, Buying a house, CD, Checking Account, color, Debt, down payment, FDIC, Financial Advisor, Financial Goals, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, Grow, home, Invest, Investing, investment, money, Money Market, mutual funds, Personal Finance, Planning, Popular, principal, Retirement, Saving, Saving for Retirement, savings, short term investing, short-term investment, Stocks, Uncategorized

Short term investments are those investments that can yield their returns within a short period of time — usually within 1 to 3 years. (contrary to a long term investment such as saving for retirement).

In other words, short term investing are typically used to meet short-term financial goals (such as buying a house or go on a vacation).

A bank checking account is one of the best known and popular ways to save for such a goal.

But your traditional checking account only pays a meager return, if at all.

If you can’t find an alternative to a checking account, no need to fret.

There are plenty of short term investments that will help keep your money safe and earn a good return at the same time.

Below, we’ve curated the best short term investments to help reach your investment goals.

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Things to consider:

First thing first, before you make any short term investments, you should know about the risk, return and investing time frame of short term investments.

  • Average return to expect: 1 to 4% per year;
  • Risk: very low to low risk of losing money;
  • Time frame: 0 to 3 years

Best short term investments:

If you’re saving and investing money for the short term, i.e., to use it as a down payment on a house, you will not invest that money in stocks or mutual funds, right?

That’s because, stocks are high risk investments. And if you need the money for a certain time, it might not be available due stock market volatility.

Instead, a smart choice is to save that money in a low-risk investment where you can protect the capital invested and earn interest/income at the same time.

If you have a different investing goal, such as saving for retirement, it’s best to look at stocks or mutual funds. Investing in stocks or mutual funds is considered a long term investment as opposed to short term investing.

If you’re interested in investing for the long term, here’s how the stock market works.

So, what are your options? Here are some of the best short term investments to consider to earn some interest on your money. 

1. Savings account.

A savings account at a bank is an excellent choice. And they usually pay more interest than a regular checking.

They are quite safe. Savings account are insured by the FDIC, but only for up to $250,000.

That means if a bank goes bankrupt, the government will step up and give you your money back.

In addition, they are very liquid. You have access to your money fairly easy.

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2. Certificate of deposit (CDs).

If you want a good rate of return on money that you don’t plan on using within the next couple of years, CDs is a safe place to do invest it.

Banks sell certificate of deposit for a specific dollar amount and length of time. As an investor, you agree to leave a certain amount of money with the bank for a specific time.

When the time is up, the CD matures. Then, you get your money back, plus interest.

CDs are also FDIC insured for up to $250,000. They provide a safe and competitive yield. That makes them some of the best short term investments to consider.

The minimum deposit requires to open a CD depends on the bank. But it usually ranges from a few hundred dollars to thousands.

The CIT Bank is paying 1.30% for an 11-month CD. There is an opening minimum of $1,000. With most CDs, if you tap into your money before maturation, you will get hit with an early withdrawal penalty.

However, with this CIT Bank CD, there is no penalty if you withdraw early.

CIT Bank has various types of CDs. If you prefer longer terms CDs, check them out now at the CIT Bank website.

3. Money market fund

While you can keep your cash at a bank in a savings account because they’re safe there, you don’t have to.

You can try a money market fund. They are safe as well.

A money market fund is a type of mutual fund (but thy don’t focus on stocks or bonds).

Mutual funds companies such as Vanguard offer money market funds.

Money market fund is not insured by the government, so there is a possibility you can lose money. However, they are quite safe.

They’re safe, because they have a dollar invested in securities for every dollar you deposit in your fund.

The principal money you invested does not change in value. When you invest in a money market fund, you earn dividends. That’s a good advantage.

Another advantage of a money market fund as a short term investment is that it provides higher yield than bank savings account.

It also allows you to write checks without incurring any charges.

So, if you’re saving money for a home that you’re going to buy soon, a money market fund is a safe place to grow your money.

4. Short-term corporate bond funds.

Bonds, in general, are similar to CDs. An exception is that they, just as stocks, are securities that trade in the market.

So, they may fluctuate in value, but not as much as stocks.

Bond funds are a collection of bonds from companies (large, medium, or small) from different industries. Hence, the name “corporate bond funds.”

Investing in bond funds can be used as a short-term investment. Sometimes, investors consider corporate bond funds to diversify their investment portfolio.

Just like a money market fund, corporate bond funds are not FDIC insured. But they are just as safe as a money market fund.

Plus, you don’t just invest in one bond or two bonds. If one bond in your investment fund takes a hit, it only affects a small amount of your money.

So while they are riskier than money market funds saving accounts, CDs, short term corporate bonds pay you more. That makes them one of the best short-term investments out there.

5. Treasury bonds.

One of the best ways to invest money in the short term is to buy treasury bonds. Treasury bonds are issued by the U.S. government.

There are three types: treasury bills, treasury notes, and treasury bonds. They are like CDs. Once the bond matures, you get the full money invested, plus interest.

Treasury bonds may provide the same or a better interest rate than CDs. But a big advantage is that, while they’re not FDIC insured, they are backed by the U.S. government.

In other words, the government promises to repay your money, which is considered to be very safe.

So if you have more than $250,000, you should consider a treasury bond.

Another advantage is that while interest on a CD is fully taxable, Treasury’s interest is state-tax-free.

In conclusion, short term investments are those in which you make for a certain and short period of time for a specific goal.

Short term investments aren’t the best if you’re seeking high returns.

But if you’re a beginner investor you should consider placing some of your money into these best short term investments.

Remember: don’t invest your money in stocks when you plan to use it within the next five years, because a stock market drop can dry out your investment portfolio.

Read more:

  • The Best Ways to Invest $1000 For Good Return
  • How to Invest With Little Money (Even With $5)
  • How to Invest 100k to Build Real Wealth

Speak with the Right Financial Advisor

If you have questions beyond short-term investments, you can talk to a financial advisor who can review your finances and help you reach your goals (whether it is making more money, paying off debt, investing, buying a house, planning for retirement, saving, etc). Find one who meets your needs with SmartAsset’s free financial advisor matching service. You answer a few questions and they match you with up to three financial advisors in your area. So, if you want help developing a plan to reach your financial goals, get started now.

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The post 5 Best Short Term Investments to Grow Your Money appeared first on GrowthRapidly.

Source: growthrapidly.com

14 Ways to Prevent Fraud on Your Debit & Credit Cards

January 13, 2021 by Russell Henderson Posted in Home Decor, Identity Theft Tagged All, ATM, Banking, big, Buy, Checking Account, color, Credit, credit card, Credit Cards, credit report, Credit Scores, Debit Card, Finance, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, How To, identity theft, Identity Theft and Scams, Life, Main, money, Personal, Personal Finance, Popular, Spending, texas, top-five-post

There's no way to make yourself 100% safe from credit card or debit card fraud, but you can build some pretty tall walls. Here's how.

Every time there’s a large credit card breach, you’ll hear some expert say risks for consumers are low, because it’s easy to cancel a credit or debit card and get a new one. Not so fast. If fraud appears on your bill, but you don’t notice it, you’ll pay for it. More important, changing account numbers is a hassle. You’ll have to update all your automatic payment accounts, for example. Screw up one of those, and you could get hit with late fees from a merchant when your payment is denied.

Despite the liability limits, you’re better off avoiding all this in the first place. Below are suggestions on how to do that. Most involve limiting the number of times you have to share your plastic with someone, decreasing your “attack surface.” Some might be familiar. Others might seem extreme. Either way, there’s no way to make yourself 100% fraud proof. That’s why we’ve also provided tips on the earliest possible detection and reporting of fraud, which is the main way to protect yourself. For example, regularly checking your credit scores can help you spot fraudulent activities on your credit cards. (You can check two of your scores free on Credit.com.) Here’s how to keep yourself as safe as possible.

1. Avoid Using Debit Cards to Buy Things

When I asked Gartner fraud analyst Avivah Litan about her fraud-fighting tips, this is the first thing she said:

“Never use PIN debit, except for bank ATM machines attached to bank branches.”

PIN debit is the technical term for using a debit card as “credit” at a merchant. From a fraud perspective, the “debit or credit” question is meaningless. Either way, you are putting your debit card account information into databases criminals can hack. And recovering from a debit card fraud is much more of a hassle than recovering from a credit card fraud. With credit card fraud, consumers call their bank, dispute a fraudulent charge and don’t pay for that part of their bill. With debit card fraud, money is taken from the victim’s checking account, and the consumer has to argue with the bank to get it back. That usually happens quickly, but in the meantime, the consumer’s balance can dip below zero, leading to overdrafts and other potential problems, like bounced rent checks.

It’s a bad idea to buy things with a debit card. Use a debit card to withdraw cash at a bank ATM. Otherwise, use credit.

Some people use debit card purchasing as a personal finance tool to limit spending. That’s a rational reason to do so. If you must, don’t use PIN debit, so at least a criminal can’t gain access to your PIN at that merchant.

2. Be Careful With Stored-Value Apps

The latest trend in money is “digitized stored value.” You probably familiar with it if you buy coffee with your Starbucks app. Many merchants are now imitating Starbucks with their own digitized stored value apps. But app makers and merchants are not banks. They have less experience keeping money safe. The consequences have been obvious: Starbucks consumers have complained for nearly two years about criminals raiding their app-linked credit cards. Worst of all, consumers with auto-fill have seen criminals conduct rapid-fire conduct transactions through the apps. Starbucks says this impacts a tiny fraction of consumers, and they are quickly refunded. If you are using “digitized stored value,” manually reloading value is safer than loading your credit card and especially your debit card.

Call: 1.844.346.3296or learn more

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3. Have a Separate Card for Digital Transactions

Splitting your transactions among cards can limit the “spillover” if fraud occurs. This tip isn’t for everyone. Some consumers like racking up points on one card. Others are afraid they’ll miss a payment if they have more than one credit card bill each month. But separating out transactions can have fraud-fighting benefits. If you are the type to buy items from less popular websites that might not have the security protections of a larger site, consider having a card you use just for those higher-risk purchases. That way, if the small site is compromised, the impact on your life will be contained.

4. Google Second-Tier Sites

Speaking of second-tier sites, you should always Google them before making a purchase. Search “BobsWidgetSite.com and complaints,” then “BobsWidgetSite and fraud,” before making a purchase the first time. Scroll through a page or two of results, in case the site has done search engine optimization work to beat back complaints. I talk often to victims who do that search only after they are victims of fraud, and then kick themselves.

5. Place a Sticker Over Your Security Code

Here’s a novel idea from computer security expert Harri Hursti. Most credit and debit card credentials are useless without the security code numbers on the back of the card. To limit the risk of physical theft, place a sticker over the numbers and memorize them. They are usually only three or four digits. That way someone else who holds your card for a few moments can’t get enough information to steal from your account. Such physical theft is less common than it once was, but the sticker idea is a simple fraud-fighting tool.

6. Say No to ‘Free’ Trial Offers & Avoid ‘Gray Charges’

About five years ago, a credit card fraud fighting firm named BillGuard.com coined the term “gray charges.” These aren’t traditional fraud, but they aren’t transactions you approved, either. It might be a magazine you didn’t realize you purchased as a bundle at a checkout. It might be a subscription travel service that “accidentally” ended up in your shopping cart when you booked a trip. Or it might be a free trial you forgot about that has now converted to a $20-a-month charge. Either way, gray charges are a hassle, and the easiest way to avoid them is to never sign up for a “free” anything that requires your credit card. Check your shopping carts diligently, and uncheck all the “sign me up for XX” boxes along the way.

7. Don’t Fall for Phishing

Phishing emails have been around for a while – so long you might forget the risk they pose. Big mistake. A study by the University of Texas last year found that phishers “thrive” on consumers’ overconfidence. There was a 500% increase in personalized, social-media-based phishes in 2016. A common, credit-card stealing email might be an alert claiming your credit card on file with iTunes has been rejected, and asking for an immediate update. If you think you can’t be phished, you’re wrong. Never enter your credit card number into a website unless you have manually visited the site by typing the address into your web browser’s address bar. Never click on a link in an email – even one you are certain is real – and enter payment credentials.

8. Don’t Give Your Credit Card Number Over the Phone

This tip is similar: Never give your credit or debit card number to anyone who calls your house. Even if you are certain the call is legit. Always hang up and manually dial the company’s phone number, then give your payment details. That might sound like a hassle, but any reputable company will appreciate your efforts at security. If the person on the other end of the phone gets annoyed, that’s a good indication you are being hustled.

9. Get a Post Office Box

Mail theft is still a cause of identity theft. The simplest way to avoid it is to stop mail from coming to your house. Small P.O. boxes can cost around $100 per year and can offer peace of mind.

10. Use ATMs Carefully & Watch for Skimmers.

You know to make sure no one is watching while you enter your PIN code at an ATM. But how? It’s getting harder and harder to be sure, as hackers are inventing smarter skimmer devices that let them “watch” you remotely. The latest devices are designed to fit snugly over the slot where cards are inserted or even to be snuck inside that slot, invisible to the untrained eye. That’s one reason Litan only uses ATMs attached to a bank branch. ATMs outside grocery stores or gas stations can be easier to attack and often have higher fees. The risk isn’t only at ATMs. So-called “overlays” that fit on top of a merchant point of sale terminal have been spotted at major retailers across the country. Whenever inserting your credit or debit card into any machine, it’s a good idea to look for signs of tampering. You can take a moment to rub your fingers around the edges of a machine to see if an overlay of skimmer has been snapped on top.

11. Keep Track of Your Cards

It’s easy to forget your card at a restaurant after a meal. Develop a personal checklist so you avoid that. Each time you get up to leave a store, or before you go to bed at night, do a card count. If you can’t find your card but you are hopeful it will turn up, you might have better options than you realize. Many times, people are loathe to call and report lost cards because of the ensuing hassle. Some banks let you temporarily “freeze” your card while you look for it, then turn the card back on if it’s found safe. Discover has a feature called Freeze It. Visa and MasterCard also gives their banks similar options. Don’t be afraid to protect yourself while you are looking.

12. Sign up for Mobile Banking

Mobile banking is a great fraud fighting tool. If you aren’t using your bank’s app, you’re missing out. More people used mobile than used a bank branch for the first time in 2015, according to Javelin Strategy & Research.

Mobile banking lets you check your account every day for unusual activity. Use of mobile banking can reduce your attack surface, too, since mobile check deposits mean fewer trips to the ATM.

13. Set Text Alerts for Your Credit Card

Banking apps make it easier to use another trick that helps with fraud detection: text alerts. Most banks allow you to set up texts about transactions. Options include: A text with every purchase, a text for every purchase more than $100 or a daily text with the account balance. I prefer the last choice. Anything more frequent and the messages start to feel like spam, and can be ignored. The tool also helps with spending habits, as you’ll have a daily reminder of how much you’ve spent. Most banks can send the alerts via email, too.

14. Report Fraud Immediately

If you are hit by fraud, time isn’t on your side. You will likely be hit repeatedly until the card is canceled. Most importantly, if you don’t report the fraud in a timely manner, you can be held liable for some or all of it. Most of the time, financial institutions are responsive to fraud, and make reporting concerns and getting replacement cards easy, but early detection is critical.

Image: seb_ra

The post 14 Ways to Prevent Fraud on Your Debit & Credit Cards appeared first on Credit.com.

Source: credit.com

Best Checking Accounts 2020

January 13, 2021 by Russell Henderson Posted in Financial Planning, Find An Apartment Tagged All, ATM, Banking, Cash Back, chase, Checking Account, Debit Card, Direct Deposit, down payment, Financial IQ, financial planning, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, Interest Rates, investment, money, Retirement, Rewards, savings

Sound money management is an important part of a solid financial strategy. You’ll want to have some of your money set for retirement in a traditional or Roth IRA. Still, other money might be saved for your kids’ college, a down payment on a house or other longer-term goals. And then you might have an emergency fund as well as a checking account that you use to pay your monthly bills and expenses. Each of these buckets of money can be in a different kind of account. In this article, we’ll look at some of the best checking accounts.

What makes a good checking account

Before we look at some of the best checking accounts, it’s a good idea to talk about what makes for a good checking account. A checking account is an account that you would typically use to pay your ongoing monthly expenses. It is more and more rare to actually write paper checks, and instead, you would typically use a debit card or cashless payment account linked to your checking account. 

With a checking account, some features to look for include no monthly or maintenance fees, a low minimum amount to open an account, the rate at which they pay interest, and any account opening bonus they might offer. The interest rate that checking and savings accounts pay is tied to the federal funds rate and usually varies over time. As of 2020, the interest rates are quite low, and many checking and savings accounts do not pay any interest at all. Also keep in mind that even if your account pays you 1% interest, you’re still losing money to inflation. So you wouldn’t want to keep any long-term investment money in a checking or savings account.

With all that being said, let’s take a look at some of the top checking accounts available.

Discover Cashback Debit

Discover’s checking account offers 1% cash back on up to $3,000 in debit card purchases each month, which is one of the few debit cards that offer a reward on ongoing purchases. The Discover Cashback Debit account also comes with no monthly maintenance or other fees, no fees to withdraw at over 60,000 ATMs worldwide and no fees for insufficient funds.

CapitalOne 360 Checking

The CapitalOne 360 Checking account has no account minimums or fees. It currently offers a 0.10% APY on balances, though you can also open a no-fee CapitalOne 360 Performance Savings account which offers 0.65% APY as of the time of this writing. CapitalOne also has thousands of branch offices nationwide, so you can do your banking online or in-person. The CapitalOne 360 Checking account offers three different options if you happen to overdraft your account – Auto-Decline, Next Day Grace and Free Savings Transfer.

Fidelity Cash Management Account

Fidelity’s Cash Management Account also offers no account fees or minimum balances. It also reimburses ATM fees nationwide, though only offers 0.01% APY on account balances. Fidelity makes it easy to transfer money between your checking account, savings accounts and any retirement accounts you have with Fidelity. Plus, the Fidelity Rewards Visa offers 2% cash back on all purchases, which you can redeem into your Fidelity Cash Management Account or any other Fidelity account.

Wealthfront Cash Account

Wealthfront’s Cash Account offers a high-interest checking account (0.35% APY as of this writing) with no fees. And Wealthfront’s convenient account dashboard lets you easily move money between your checking account and any investment or retirement accounts that you have with them. They also offer a service where you can get access to your paycheck up to two days early if you direct deposit into your Wealthfront Cash Account

HSBC Premier Checking

HSBC’s Premier Checking account also offers no fee on ATMs nationwide or for everyday banking transactions, but does charge a monthly maintenance fee if you don’t have at least $75,000 in combined accounts or direct deposits of at least $5,000 monthly. They are currently offering a promotion where you can earn 3% as a welcome bonus, up to $600. You’ll get 3% on qualifying direct deposits, up to $100 per month, for the first six months of having your account.

Chase Total Checking

Chase Total Checking is currently offering a welcome bonus of $200 when you open a new account and have a direct deposit made to your account in the first 90 days. Also, there is a $12 monthly maintenance fee which can be avoided if you either:

  • Have direct deposits totaling $500 or more
  • Have a balance at the beginning of each day of $1,500 or more
  • Have an average beginning day balance of $5,000 or more in any combination of all of your Chase accounts

The post Best Checking Accounts 2020 appeared first on MintLife Blog.

Source: mint.intuit.com

Using Debit Card as Credit

January 13, 2021 by Russell Henderson Posted in Credit Cards Tagged All, Checking Account, Convenience, Credit, credit card, Credit Card Alternatives, Credit Cards, credit score, Debit Card, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, money, promote-post, savings, top-five-post

While you can use a debit card to pay for almost all the things you would use a credit card for, these cards aren’t the same type of thing. A debit card is tied to existing money, either prepaid on the card itself or in your savings or checking account. A credit card lets you make purchases on credit, and you won’t be able to do this with a debit card.

Can You Use Your Debit Card as Credit?

When you pay at the register, you’re often asked whether you’re making a debit or credit payment. This isn’t a question about whether you’re paying with existing checking account funds or if you’ll be borrowing the money from a credit card lender. It’s a question about how you want the payment processed. And most of the time, yes, you can use your debit card as credit at check out.

What Happens When You Use a Debit Card as Credit?

When make a purchase and select to process your payment as credit, it’s an offline transaction. “The funds for offline transactions are deducted after the merchant settles the purchase with the credit card processor and typically take 2-3 days to be reflected in your account balance,” MasterCard says.

According to MasterCard, when you use a debit card and your PIN (personal identification number), the transaction is completed in real time. That’s also known as an online transaction— you authorize the purchase with your PIN, and the money is immediately transferred from your bank account to the merchant. These are debit card transactions.

But in reality, the difference between debit and credit transactions have little real impact on your bottom line. There may be some differences in fees paid by the retailer or processor, but those fees are rarely passed on to the consumer directly.

Some individuals choose to use their debit cards as credit at the register to avoid having to enter their PIN. It’s commonly believed that this creates some additional security against someone learning that number and having one more piece of information to support credit card fraud.

While you certainly want to protect your PIN, simply being aware of who is around you and keeping the keypad covered during debit transactions can help keep you secure if you do decide to pay this way. It may seem like an unnecessary precaution, but you can never be too careful when it comes to debit card fraud.

Can I Use My Debit Card if I Have No Money?

One thing that’s important to note is that you can’t usually use your debit card for credit. If you are short on cash, your credit card still works if you have available credit on it. If there’s no money in your bank account, your debit card may get declined when you attempt to pay. So make sure there’s cash in your bank account anytime you use your debit card.

There’s one exception to this rule. Some banks offer overdraft protection. If you qualify for this protection, the bank covers your charges up to a certain amount and you simply rectify the situation later. That way, you avoid potentially embarrassing declines — for a cost in overdraft fees, which can be $15 to $30 per overdraft.

Can I Use My Debit Card as Credit at Walmart?

Whether or not you can choose to pay as credit with a debit card depends on each retailer and payment system setup. Many Walmart payment systems are set up to allow this, but they default to debit. When this happens, tell the cashier you want to pay as credit or select the option for changing payment method and choose to pay as credit and sign for your purchases instead of entering your PIN.

Does Using My Debit Card Build Credit?

Paying with your debit card doesn’t really impact your credit score, regardless of the payment type you select. That’s because your debit card is simply a stand-in for money you actually have on hand (or in the bank). It’s not credit and doesn’t provide any type of illustration of your likelihood of making payments in a timely manner or using credit responsibly. Therefore, it won’t impact your credit history.

If you use your debit card to overdraw your bank account on a regular basis or do so and leave the negative balance long-term, it could negatively impact your credit score. Banks do report checking and savings details like this to the credit bureaus.

The Bottom Line on Debit Cards as Credit Cards

Whether you use your debit card as credit or debit, the funds will still be withdrawn from your checking account. You can use your debit card to make a payment processed as credit, but you can’t use your debit card for credit in most cases. And even when you can, it’s via the limited fail-safe of overdraft protection, which is not meant for regular use and can be quite expensive.

Debit cards are wonderful money-management tools that provide a lot of modern convenience. But for many people, it’s a good idea to have at least one credit card in your wallet too for those times when debit just doesn’t quite cut it. Just make sure to check your credit score, understand how credit cards work and apply for the card that provides you the best perks at the lowest cost.

The post Using Debit Card as Credit appeared first on Credit.com.

Source: credit.com

Most In-Demand Jobs for Bachelor’s Degree Holders – 2021 Edition

January 13, 2021 by Russell Henderson Posted in Apartment Communities, Checking Account Tagged All, artists, best jobs for bachelors degree holders, best jobs for BAs, Checking Account, employment, fastest growing jobs, Financial Goals, Financial Wize, FinancialWize, Insurance, Investing, investment, money, most in demand jobs for bachelors degree holders, most popular jobs, popular jobs for recent grads, Salary, savings

Image shows a person wearing business casual clothing and standing against an office wall with her arms crossed. In this study, SmartAsset analyzed data to identify the most in-demand jobs for bachelor's degree holders.

Jobs requiring a bachelor’s degree or higher level of education for entry are often more insulated from unemployment than others. During the COVID-19 pandemic, total unemployment for individuals 25 years and older spiked to 13.1% in April 2020. However, the highest unemployment rate over the past year for bachelor’s degree holders 25 and older was 8.4% in April 2020. As of November 2020, the national unemployment rate was 6.7% – 2.5 percentage points higher than the unemployment rate for bachelor’s degree holders.

Some jobs for bachelor’s degree holders may be even more insulated from economic changes as demand is high. In this study, we investigated the most in-demand jobs for bachelor’s degree holders. We compared a total of 131 occupations across four metrics: percentage change in average earnings from 2018 to 2019, percentage change in employment from 2018 to 2019, projected employment change from 2019 to 2029 and projected percentage change in employment from 2019 to 2029. For details on our data sources or how we put all the information together to create our final rankings, check out the Data and Methodology section below.

This is SmartAsset’s third annual study on the most in-demand jobs for bachelor’s degree holders. Check out the 2020 rankings here.

Key Findings

  • A list similar to last year. Almost half of the 10 most in-demand jobs for bachelor’s degree holders in 2021 were in our top 10 last year. They are computer and information systems managers, information security analysts, interpreters & translators and medical & health service managers. Of those four occupations, interpreters & translators saw the biggest jump between the two years, moving down five spots from first to sixth.
  • More than 30% growth expected in two occupations. On average across the 131 occupations in our study, employment is expected to grow by 5.0% between 2019 and 2029. But the expected growth is more than six times higher for two occupations – information security analysts and medical & health service managers. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) predicts employment increases of 31.2% and 31.5% for those two occupations, respectively, between 2019 and 2029.

1. Producers and Directors

The producer and director occupation ranks in the top quartile of our study for all four metrics we considered. Between 2018 and 2019, employment of producers and directors grew by almost 9%, while average earnings rose by about 5%. Moreover, the BLS projects the occupation will continue to grow. According to their estimates, the number of producers and directors will increase by 16,000, or 10.0%, from 2019 to 2029.

2. Computer and Information Systems Managers (tie)

The computer and information systems manager occupation ranks in the top 15% of occupations for three of the four metrics in our study. The occupation saw the ninth-largest percentage increase in employment from 2018 to 2019, growing by 10.87%. Between 2019 and 2029, the BLS expects it will grow by another 10.4%, adding 48,100 workers. Across all 131 occupations, that is the 19th-highest percentage increase and ninth-largest gross increase in workers.

2. Agents and Business Managers of Artists, Performers and Athletes (tie)

The occupation of agent and business manager for artists, performers and athletes ties with computer and information systems manager as the No. 2 in-demand job for bachelor’s degree holders. Between 2018 and 2019, average pay for agents and business managers for artists, performers and athletes grew by almost 7%, the seventh-highest rate across all 131 occupations. Over the same time period, employment grew by 15%, second-highest in our study for this metric.

4. Information Security Analysts

Information security analyst is the fourth most in-demand job for bachelor’s degree holders, moving up from fifth place last year. Though average earnings grew at a comparable pace year-over-year, employment increased sharply in this profession. BLS estimates show that information security analyst employment increased by 16.20%. There were about 108,100 information security analysts in 2018 and almost 125,600 in 2019.

5. Actuaries

Most actuaries work for insurance companies, assessing the financial costs of risk and uncertainty. Between 2018 and 2019, average earnings for actuaries grew by 4.06% – the 15th-highest one-year earnings increase in our study. Additionally, between 2019 and 2029, employment for this occupation is expected to grow by another 17.6%, the seventh-largest percentage change in employment in the study.

6. Interpreters and Translators

According to BLS employment projections, the number of interpreters and translators in the U.S. is expected to increase by 20.0% between 2019 and 2029, a top-five rate in our study. With that projected percentage change, employment will grow by roughly 15,500 workers, a top-30 rate. Most recently, from 2018 to 2019, average earnings for interpreters and translators grew by 3.20%, the 25th-highest rate for this metric in the study.

7. Fundraisers

The occupation of fundraiser ranks in the top third of all 131 occupations for three of the four metrics we considered. Between 2018 and 2019, employment grew by 7.87%, the 19th-highest rate. Looking forward, total employment of fundraisers is expected to grow by 14,400, or 14.3%, over the next 10 years – the 30th-largest gross increase and 11th-highest percentage increase.

8. Medical and Health Service Managers

Medical and health service managers plan and coordinate the business activities of healthcare providers. Average earnings for medical and health service managers are high and growing. In 2018 and 2019, average earnings for workers in the occupation stood at $113,730 and $115,160, respectively. Additionally, across the 131 occupations in our study, BLS expects the profession to have the third-largest gross employment increase (133,200 workers) and highest percentage employment increase (31.5%) over approximately the next decade.

9. Athletic Trainers

Between 2019 and 2029, the occupation of athletic trainer is expected to grow by 16.2%, the ninth-highest rate for this metric in our study. Athletic trainers may also see their earnings continue to grow over time. Between 2018 and 2019, average earnings for athletic trainers increased by 2.56% from about $49,300 to more than $50,500.

10. Compensation, Benefits and Job Analysis Specialists

Compensation, benefits and job analysis specialist rounds out our list of the top 10 most in-demand jobs for bachelor’s degree holders. Average earnings for compensation, benefits and job analysis specialists grew by 2.84% between 2018 and 2019, 33rd-highest in our study. The occupation ranks within the top third of the study for the other three metrics as well. It had the 26th-highest percentage change in employment from 2018 to 2019 (6.88%), the 43rd-greatest projected gross employment change from 2019 to 2029 (7,500) and the 28th-highest projected percentage employment change from 2019 to 2029 (7.9%).

Data and Methodology

To find the most in-demand jobs for bachelor’s degree holders, we looked at data for 131 occupations that the BLS classifies as typically requiring a bachelor’s degree for entry. We compared the 131 occupations across four metrics:

  • Percentage change in average earnings from 2018 to 2019. Data comes from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics and is for May 2018 and May 2019.
  • Percentage change in employment from 2018 to 2019. Data comes from BLS Occupational Employment Statistics and is for May 2018 and May 2019.
  • Projected employment change from 2019 to 2029 (gross figure). This is the projected change in the total number of people employed in an occupation from 2019 to 2029. Data comes from the BLS 2019 Employment Projections.
  • Projected employment change from 2019 to 2029 (percentage change). This is the projected percentage change in the number of people employed in an occupation from 2019 to 2029. Data comes from the BLS 2019 Employment Projections.

We ranked each occupation in every metric, giving a full weighting to all metrics. We then found each occupation’s average ranking and used that to determine a final score. The occupation with the best average ranking received a score of 100 while the occupation with the worst average ranking received a score of 0.

Tips for Making Educated Choices With Your Earnings

  • Invest early. With relatively high income and earnings, many bachelor’s degree workers may be able to have an early retirement. To do this, it is important to take advantage of compound interest by investing early. Take a look at our investment calculator to see how your investment in a savings account can grow over time.
  • Contribute to a 401(k). A 401(k) is an employer-sponsored defined contribution plan in which you divert pre-tax portions of your monthly paycheck into a retirement account. Some employers will also match your 401(k) contributions up to a certain percentage of your salary, meaning that if you chose not to contribute, you are essentially leaving money on the table. Our 401(k) calculator can help you determine what you saved for retirement so far and how much more you may need.
  • Consider professional help. A financial advisor can help you make smarter financial decisions to be in better control of your money. Finding the right financial advisor that doesn’t have to be hard. SmartAsset’s free tool matches you with financial advisors in your area in five minutes. If you’re ready to be matched with local advisors that will help you achieve your financial goals, get started now.

Questions about our study? Contact us at [email protected].

Photo credit: Â©iStock.com/martin-dm

The post Most In-Demand Jobs for Bachelor’s Degree Holders – 2021 Edition appeared first on SmartAsset Blog.

Source: smartasset.com

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