Blogs

A College Education Isn’t PricelessCollege-bound high school seniors of America: You are about to embark on one of the most formative periods of your life, full of new friendships, personal growth and overcaffeinated conversations on the nature of humanity.Keep “ruinous student debt” off the list.At this point, while you’re working on applications and deciding which schools most excite you, you may be hearing that college debt is “good debt.” That an education is priceless, and if you’re going to borrow…

How to Resist Online Ads and Keep Your MoneyOnline ads are like salespeople. Sometimes they’re helpful — and sometimes they trail you while you shop, make suggestions, “check in” on you, and all but shove you to the checkout.Those online ads “chase you around the internet,” says Neeru Paharia, associate professor of marketing at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business. They get in your face to convince you to spend.And while online advertising isn’t all bad — it can expose…

Your House Isn’t a Piggy Bank Your home equity could keep you afloat in retirement or bail you out in an emergency — but not if you spend it first. U.S. homeowners are sitting on nearly $6 trillion of home value they could tap as of May 2018, according to data provider Black Knight. Lenders are eager to help many do just that through home equity loans, home equity lines of credit and cash-out refinancing. The rates are often lower…

Two Hearts, One Bank Account: Are You Ready?Valentine’s Day is a time when many couples take their relationship to the next level. For some, that means giving that special someone a key to your apartment. For others, it means sharing finances by creating a joint bank account.Whether you’re in a new relationship or newly married, you might want to think twice about combining love and money. Among spouses and partners, 31% reported money as a major source of conflict or…

Your Easiest New Year’s Resolution: Make Your Savings Grow Faster Sticking to your new year’s resolution is often a time-consuming proposition. Want to get fit? Be ready to spend hours at the gym. Considering a side hustle? Goodbye, weekends. But if your resolution is to save more, there’s one quick way to start: Open a high-yield online savings account. You can do this at many banks in less than 15 minutes, and you’ll earn at least 20 times more interest…

How to Budget for December Holidays in October You might have pumpkins on your porch, but it’s already time to make room for the year-end holidays in your budget. “I was at Costco the other day, and I already saw Christmas trees, [so] we need to be thinking about it right now,” says Nick Givogri, a California-based regional executive for investment service Merrill Edge. Here’s how to get started. Work backward Your past holiday spending is the best indicator of…

How to Safeguard Your Cash and Personal Info at ATMs An ATM can be a lifesaver when you’re on the go and need some fast cash. But as helpful as these machines can be, they’re also magnets for fraudsters who are out to make a quick buck. In fact, criminals stole data from magnetic-strip debit cards at ATMs at the highest rate in over 20 years during the first several months of 2015, according to a report in The Wall…

How to Manage Your Finances After Graduating CollegeYou’re done with college, and now you’re ready to be on your own. But for newly minted grads who didn’t major in money management, here’s one last assignment: Summer reading to help with your financial future.That degree you earned might open the door to a higher salary — and carry a student loan burden — so it’s important to know how to balance it all as you set the stage for the rest…

How to Budget When You Have Seasonal Income Rewarding careers don’t always come with a steady paycheck. For people who work in agriculture, construction, tax preparation, entertainment, landscaping or other types of freelance and seasonal businesses, income may vary wildly depending on the time of year. This uneven cash flow makes budgeting especially challenging, but it’s by no means impossible. Here’s how to budget for long-term financial stability when your income changes with the seasons. Determine your average monthly income…

5 Tips to Get Back on Budget After the Holidays Between the expensive gifts, festive light-up sweaters and fancy dinner parties, it’s likely you went a little over budget during the holidays. But that doesn’t mean it’s time to panic. “Don’t get discouraged,” says Howard R. Pressman, a certified financial planner and partner of Egan, Berger & Weiner LLC in Virginia. “Everybody, it seems, has kind of fallen off the wagon from time to time, and staying positive and keeping…

What to Know About Home Equity Loans If you’re a homeowner, you have a powerful tool in your financial arsenal: the home equity loan. Home equity loans allow some consumers to borrow a large amount of money relatively easily and cheaply. But they aren’t right for all situations. Here’s a bit more about how they work and when they’re a good option. How home equity loans work A home equity loan is a loan secured by the value of the…