This page consists of blog posts that discuss the topics of saving money, budgeting, earning more interest, and paying less interest. You will find information on banking, borrowing, budgeting, and creative ideas on saving.
In 2008, KaChing! was founded. Why am I talking about KaChing!? Because KaChing! changed their name to Wealthfront in 2012 and revamped their services and platform to compete with Betterment. At the time, Betterment was well known as being the best robo-advisor platform. They revolutionized and ignited the robo-advising financial services industry. Up until recently, Wealthfront's growth was slow. Within the past 2 years, they have redone their marketing and website design to target and attract Millennials and Generation Z…
So you just turned 18. Now what? As an 18 year old, you are now officially an adult by law. You can rent a car, open a new bank account, invest, and so much more. You will also need to memorize your social security number as you will need it for almost every financial-related application. Unfortunately high school curriculums don't prepare students on the topics of personal finance and paying taxes. My aim with this post is to help introduce…
Brick and mortar banks offer very low yield savings accounts. To name a few, these well known banks offer only 0.01-0.02% APY - WellsFargo, PNC, and TD Bank. If you want a high yield savings account offering 0.3% to 0.6% APY, you will have to go with an online savings account like Ally Bank, Discover, Citi Bank, Capital One, AMEX, or little known small online banks like Vio and One. As with most savings accounts, you are limited by fees…
Dave Ramsey created the 7 Baby Steps back in the early 1990's. If you are unfamiliar with Dave Ramsey or his 7 Baby Steps, read about them here. He touted how his process was the best way to become debt free and achieve financial peace. This was almost 30 years ago, and in that time, he continued to research and study millionairres. Today, he still promotes his baby steps. While his baby steps are very effective and successful, I am…
M1 Finance is a U.S. based online financial services company offering brokerage and custodial accounts, lines of credit, checking accounts, and IRA's. They are an SEC registered broker dealer and a member of FINRA and SPIC. Like Betterment and Wealthfront, M1 Finance is a robo-advisor, offering financial advice and pre-built expert portfolio's for everyone. Want a Green energy portfolio? They have it. Want a retirement based portfolio? They have it. Want a growth based portfolio or a dividend investment portfolio?…
Betterment, a smart money manager and robo-advisor, is a brokerage that offers retirement, investment, and cash accounts. Like Mint, NerdWallet, Wealthfront, and Personal Capital, Betterment allows you to link your external accounts (Banking, Mortgage, Loans, Credit, Home Value, Other Retirement Accounts and Brokerages) so that it can offer better advice and help you track your net worth and goals. If you are interested in growing your wealth with Betterment after reading this post, join through my referral link https://financethrottle.com/go/Betterment and…
Whether you are looking for the most points, most cash back, best balance transfer options, or lowest interest rates, here is a list of the best credit cards available in 2021. Best for 0% Intro, Balance Transfers & Velocity Banking Citi Bank Diamond Preferred Intro APR:0% for 18 months on Balance Transfers0% for 18 months on PurchasesRegular APR: 14.74% - 24.74% (Variable)Annual Fee: $0Brand: MasterCardBalance Transfer Fee = $5 or 3%, whichever is greater.Features:Free access to FICO® Score online.Citi Entertainment®…
Frugal February has been around for years in the finance blog community. The idea is that you use the short month of February to recover from your holiday expenses, hence the name Frugal February. I challenge you to reduce your overall monthly expenses by 50% this month. Here are 6 ways you can meet this challenge. Track your spending - This is easy to do with one of the dozens of expense tracking and budgeting apps or websites available. Try…
Dave Ramsey is a successful Businessman, Radio and YouTube Show Host, and Author. His large empire includes the "The Dave Ramsey Show", several published books including "The Total Money Makeover" and "Financial Peace", Ramsey+ Membership Services including the "Every Dollar" budgeting app, and Financial Peace University courses. What Dave is perhaps most well known for is his 7 Baby Steps. Dave created the 7 Baby Steps to help people achieve Financial Peace. BABY STEP #1 Save $1000 for an Emergency…
Understanding the mindset and strategies that make you successful in the long term are important in helping you save for a large expense like a house, education, or retirement. Here are some ways to grow your savings over time. 1. Set a Goal What are you saving for? How much money do you need? How do you want to spend your savings? Make a plan and set a goal. 2. Create a Budget After you set a savings goal, split…
