Summer is here, and it’s time to get out and enjoy the weather. If you’ll be vacationing in the next few months, you can bet that there’ll be millions of other people traveling as well. It can be a hectic time, but there’s one surprising thing you might already be holding in your wallet that can make your travels way easier — your credit card. It can pay off (literally)…
Have you ever given thought to how much money you spend just placing your car on a spot of land? When you think about it, paying to park is an enormous waste of money. Yet we do it anyway, and we often make matters much worse by being careless about how we park. Parking fees and tickets can be a killer to your budget. But you can avoid parking costs…
Getting a student credit card while you’re in college is a smart move. It can be a great tool to learn how to handle credit cards correctly without accidentally drowning yourself in tens of thousands of dollars’ worth of debt. Moreover, credit cards allow you to get ahead of the curve by building your credit history before you even graduate. This single factor alone makes up about 15% of your…
Here’s some good news for anyone behind on retirement savings: Being a smart saver isn’t difficult. There’s no magic secret to getting it right. Once you understand the rules of the game, you’ll know exactly what you need to do to manage your money wisely as you navigate through life. Here are some standard practices that every retirement-savvy saver lives by. Let them inspire and guide you during your own…
If you’ve been chasing credit card rewards for a few years now and feel like all the best credit card rewards opportunities are drying up, you’re not alone — and you’re definitely not crazy. Whether we like it or not, credit card issuers have been tightening up criteria for new card approvals over the last few years. Many limit how often you can get a signup bonus on a particular…
When it comes to winning in the world of money, I’m a firm believer in the power of the liberal arts. Sometimes, a broad base of knowledge can serve you better than a narrow set of skills in mathematics, business, or investing. So buck up, theater majors and graduates of the School of Hard Knocks; here are eight non-finance skills that will make you a money master. 1. Self-awareness Socrates…
Alamy Millions of people consider smartphones almost an extension of themselves. They help fill the gaps in our knowledge, help us maintain indispensable social connections and offer us a way to unwind on the trip home from work. Losing a smartphone is like losing an appendage. I know from experience. Last week, my phone was stolen while I was visiting the beach. I made a few mistakes, not least of…
AOL The other day, I bought a parka from the online retailer Sierra Trading Post. The site showed a list price of $179, but had it marked down to $95. As an added bonus, there was a 20 percent off coupon code that knocked the price down to $76. With $10 for shipping, my total came to $86. I felt like I’d gotten a pretty good deal. Until the next…
Getty ImagesBy Geoff Williams For several years now, car insurance companies have bombarded the nation with television commercials, beseeching consumers to sign up for what is commonly called pay-as-you-drive insurance, although some in the industry prefer the term “usage-based insurance.” You’ll also hear this type of insurance referred to as telematics, which describes the combined use of technology and information. The idea behind pay-as-you-drive insurance is that if you are…
Getty Images When you hire a financial professional, it’s natural that you’d want to know that the person you’re entrusting with your hard-earned money is solid and reputable. But how much do you really need to know about them? Two groups are fighting over whether customers are getting as much background information about their financial advisers as they should have. Last week, the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association made serious…