.40 Money Habits That Can Leave You Broke

By Alaina Tweddale November 19, 2020

Don't fall victim to these bad financial habits.

Big or small, some financial habits can zap a solid financial plan and leave smart savers with empty wallets. To avoid buyer’s remorse and similar guilt about neglecting your finances, you need to know what habits might be costing you extra. Check out these bad spending habits and identify how you can cut back on them.

1. Your App Addiction

In the list of things to waste money on, smartphone apps are a big one. Those $1.99 purchases seem inexpensive enough, but they can snowball — especially if you have kids who are adding to the overall purchase price or frequency.

Consider free app downloads exclusively or cap yourself and your family with a monthly app budget.

.50 Ways You’re Throwing Money Away

By Sabah Karimi November 3, 2020

Tweak your habits to keep more money in your pocket.

You probably don’t realize all the ways you’re wasting money and leaving free money on the table — and these little missteps can add up to big dollar losses. Fortunately, once you’re aware of these bad money behaviors, you can take steps to change them. Making small tweaks to your lifestyle and spending habits could pay off in a big way.

Keep reading to find out the costly money mistakes you’re making — and how to stop making them so you can keep more money in your wallet.

Throwing Money Away on Layaway

While layaway might seem like a sensible way to hold onto something you want to buy, it’s not always a smart way to net savings. That’s because layaway locks you into a certain price and — if ultimately financed by a credit card — additional interest charges.

.60 Money Moves That Could Set You Up for Life

By Gabrielle Olya November 20, 2020

Try these tips to ensure your financial security.

You may be doing all the right things when it comes to your savings — putting money aside from every paycheck, contributing to your employer’s retirement plan and diversifying your investments. But if you are concerned that these things might not be enough or your goals are bigger than that, here are some money moves you may not have thought of that could turbocharge your finances and set you up with financial security for life.

There are two ways to increase your nest egg: Save more and make those savings work harder for you. These ideas will help you do both because it’s important to know how to save and how to invest what you’ve saved. Is your checking account doing the most for you? By picking the right account, you can save more money and even make some. See what Investors Bank’s checking account has to offer for your needs.

.By Gabrielle Olya November 12, 2020

Get the secrets money experts want you to know.

Everyone makes money missteps at some point in their lives, whether it’s splurging on unnecessary items or neglecting to contribute to retirement funds as soon as possible. Even financial pros are not immune to making mistakes. To help you avoid unnecessary pitfalls, check out these tips and tricks that can help you live your best money life — no matter your age.

Start With Saving

More than half of Americans have less than $1,000 in savings, a 2019 GOBankingRates survey found. Although it’s tempting to spend rather than save when you get a paycheck, it’s important to prioritize putting money away into your checking or savings account. On top of that, you should also use the right checking or savings accounts to grow your money.

.10 Lessons to Take From Millionaires Who Are Really Good With Money

By The Penny Hoarder Staff

Life would be a whole lot easier if someone would just Venmo us $1 million, but unfortunately the chance of that happening is, well, probably zero. (Venmo doesn’t allow transactions that large anyway.)

But even though our chances of becoming a millionaire are slim, we can still manage our money like one. No, we’re not going to tell you how to buy hundreds of shares of Apple stock. Or how to pick out the perfect yacht.

These are simple money moves any normal, non-millionaire person can make today. Each tip can get you closer to achieving your big goals.

.100 Ways To Make Your Money Last Until You’re 100

By Jaime Catmull November 10, 2020

Will your money last you through 3 decades of retirement?

The average American is expected to live to 79, which means that many people are living even longer. And when it comes to planning for retirement, it’s always better to be safe than sorry — which means it’s best to start making small (and large) changes now to make sure your money can last three decades or more in retirement, especially given that the future of Social Security is unclear and some believe that Social Security running out is a real possibility in our lifetimes. Want advice on how to make your money work for you, save more, spend less and get financially ready for retirement? Here are 100 tips for how to make your money last.

Know How Much You Need To Save

.30 Ways To Dig Yourself Out of Debt

By Jodi Thornton-O'Connell November 6, 2020

Get out of debt fast by using a combination of these strategies.

Many people fall into debt, ranging from auto loans to credit card debt. These days, it’s especially hard to stay out of debt as people have either lost jobs or faced pay cuts.

Even if you stick faithfully to your budget, it can be hard to stay out of debt. Unforeseen life circumstances can force you to suffer financially as you try to pay for utilities and other necessities. And then there are the unexpected expenses that pop up in everyone’s lives: car repairs, healthcare costs or a new water heater.

If you’re in debt — especially if you’re getting calls from creditors — take action and find out how you can get yourself out of debt.

Put Down the Shovel

.9 Bills You Should Never Put on Autopay

Valencia Higuera November 25, 2020,

We all can use a simpler, more efficient way to manage expenses and save money. Putting your bills on autopay can ensure never forgetting a due date, which minimizes the risk of late fees and dings on your credit report. But although automatic payments can save time and streamline your personal finances, it isn’t the right choice for every expense.

Autopay is ideal for payments that don’t fluctuate every month, such as your mortgage and car payments. You know what to expect from these bills every month, so it’s easier to plan and budget for automatic drafts. This isn’t the case with monthly expenses that fluctuate.

Before you get excited and put your entire financial life on autopilot, here are some bills you should never put on autopay.

.'Why Do I Keep Buying Stuff I Don't Need With Money I Don't Have?'

By Gyan Yankovich October 20, 2020, 9:30am

Despite the best financial intentions, there are always things we want to spend money on that feel very important, like fall candles and sweatpants.

Why Am I Like This?

How to actually stop doing the things you know aren't exactly good for you.

From our teen years onwards, we’re constantly being told that saving money is good, and spending money on shit you don’t really need (when you could be saving it) is generally… not great. But it’s not quite as simple as that. Somewhere between knowing how much money you have coming in each month and your list of recurring can’t-skip expenses—like rent, health insurance, and bills—is a muddy middle section where a lot of us lose track of our cash.

.Live It Up

Dennis Friedman | November 27, 2020

THE HOLIDAY SEASON is here—and retailers will be looking to make up for the sales they lost during the pandemic. Let me offer some advice you won’t hear elsewhere: Go ahead and splurge.

What do I want for Christmas? To be honest, not much. But then again, my wife and I have been spending money in 2020 as if Christmas were a year-long event. We remodeled the house, filled it with new furniture and bought a new car.

What I probably need is not more material things, but something that could make me a better person. A behavior transplant would do the trick. Something like persistence. Indeed, a little more persistence would be a good attribute to have going into the new year. It might help me to eat better, exercise more and generally live a more fulfilling lifestyle.

As I grow older, I tend to make excuses for indulging and for not having the willpower to do the right thing on a consistent basis. I’ll say to myself, “I’m not getting any younger. Why toe the line? Live it up and enjoy yourself.”

.The 3 Most Important Words in Finance

Posted November 22, 2020 by Ben Carlson

There are generally 3 stages of growth for a successful investor:

Stage 1. I know everything (when you’re first starting out)

Stage 2. I know nothing (after you learn a bit about markets)

Stage 3. I know what I don’t know (after you realize how hard markets are)

That last stage is difficult for many people in the world of finance to figure out. Or even if they admit it to themselves it’s difficult to let clients in on the fact that even the masters of the universe don’t know what’s going to happen next when it comes to the markets.

A number of years ago Jason Zweig interviewed the late Peter Bernstein and asked him some of the most important things he had to unlearn over the course of his career: