Weighing the Benefits of Prepaid Debit Cards
Many Americans use some sort of prepaid debit card, for a wide variety of reasons. Some prefer them for their versatility and the ability to use them for everything from paying bills to spending money at retailers. They are also popular among the 5.9 million American households that, for whatever reason, do not hold a […]
A Penny Saved is Two Pennies Earned
The famous saying from Poor Richard’s Almanack is frequently misquoted. It was published by founder Benjamin Franklin in 1737: “A penny saved is two pence clear.” Finding ways to manage expenses is one of the cornerstones of a sound financial strategy. Here are some simple and inexpensive energy-saving tips that may help you save money. […]
What to Look for in Personal Finance Apps
Mobile applications have become ubiquitous. While many of these apps are games and social media platforms, an increasing number have been developed to help individuals with their personal finances. Which leads to an interesting question: what should you look for in a personal finance app? Category One of the first things to consider is what […]
Your Emergency Fund: How Much Is Enough?
Have you ever had one of those months? The water heater stops heating, the dishwasher stops washing, and your family ends up on a first-name basis with the nurse at urgent care. Then, as you’re driving to work, you see smoke coming from under your hood. Bad things happen to the best of us, and […]
Pay Yourself First
Each month, you settle down to pay bills. You pay your mortgage lender. You pay the electric company. You pay the trash collector. But do you pay yourself? One of the most basic tenets of sound investing involves the simple habit of “paying yourself first” – in other words, making your first payment of each […]
U.S. Personal Savings Rate
The U.S. personal saving rate stood at 3.4 percent at the end of 2022, down from the 7.5 rate at the end of 2021.The personal saving rate is the federal government’s estimate of what percent of their incomes U.S. households are saving. But market watchers and economists are mixed on what can be learned from […]
The Average American Budget
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average American household earns an average of $82,852 a year before taxes and spends almost 80% of their available income on basic necessities such as housing, food, and clothing. Housing The average American spends roughly 33% of their income on shelter. This can include property rental, mortgage […]
Year-End Charitable Gifting and You
Are you making charitable donations at year’s end? If so, you should know about some of the financial “fine print” involved, as the right moves could potentially bring more of a benefit to both you and your chosen charity. Keep in mind, this article is for informational purposes only and is not a replacement for […]
How to Read Your Credit Report
The Set-Up My name is Gumshoe. John Q. Gumshoe. Maybe you’ve heard of me, maybe not. Chances are you’ll need my help at some point. In 2020 alone, there were 1,387,615 reported cases of identity theft in the United States.1 I’m a private investigator, see. A credit investigator, to be exact. My specialty? Identity theft, […]
The Five Basics of Financial Literacy
Credit and debt Understanding the ways credit and debt work for and against you are some of the first steps toward understanding personal finance. While it’s not useful to be scared of credit and debt and avoid it entirely, there are some things to look out for. Debt Debt is like any tool: when used […]