TessMore Finance Blog

You’ve probably heard of health savings accounts, or HSAs.  You can use these accounts to pay medical expenses if you have a specific type of health plan with high out-of-pocket costs.  But with sweet tax advantages, HSAs can also be a smart way to save for future medical expenses in retirement. Think of it like a 401(k) for health care costs.  We’ll dive into four specific ways you can use an HSA to achieve your retirement planning goals. But first, here’s a quick rundown of how HSAs work, including tax benefits and other key advantages.  What is a Health Savings Account? A health savings account (HSA) is a tax-advantaged account you can use to pay for medical expenses.  You — not your employer or insurance company — own and control the funds in your HSA. There were about 30 million active HSAs as of June 2021 — about five times more than in 2011, according to Devenir, an HSA provider. The company estimates that almost 1 in 5 Americans in their 30s has a...

Despite how much has been written about credit scores, there are always posts about little hacks or tips or tricks you can do to give yourself a little boost. I know because I’ve read them all and most of them are junk. When it comes to your score, the key idea is that you have to show responsible use over a long period of time. There’s no trick – just make regular on-time payments and you’re good. Ok but are there any hacks that can help? Sure, kind of – have you heard of the 15/3 Credit Card Payment “Hack?” It sounds silly at first but once I explain why it works, it’ll make sense. Table of Contents What is the 15/3 Credit Card Payment Hack? What does this accomplish? How this works in practice Should you be doing this? What is the 15/3 Credit Card Payment Hack? It’s just a fancy name for making three payments to your credit card each month. The first is made 15 days before the date your statement closes. The second is made 3 days before the date your statement close...

It’s that time of year again — tax season. Wondering where to start? Overwhelmed by advertising promises for tax prep help? Don’t dive in — or pay up — until you check out these options for filing your taxes for free. If you live in a state that collects income tax, you may have to pay a nominal fee to file through the services below. If you don’t have to file a state tax return, chances are good you can spend precisely zero dollars to e-file. After two years of extended filing deadlines because of the global pandemic, we are back to our more traditional April date. This year, Tax Day is April 18. 8 Ways to File Your Taxes for Free Tax time has gotten a bit of a bad rap, but it doesn’t have to be so scary. There are plenty of options to file taxes for free, and in many cases you can even get assistance throughout the process at no charge. Here are eight of our favorite free tax preparation services. 1. The IRS The IRS offers two versions of its Free File program. If your Adj...

Quicken is an extremely popular software package for helping people get a better handle on their finances. For years, they were one of the most popular packages out there. Then came the rise of cloud-based personal finance applications and Quicken soon found themselves behind on the times. It’s hard for a software application, paid for once and installed on your computer, to compete with apps that can be updated constantly. Then, Intuit, Quicken’s parent company, acquired Mint , one of the most popular of the Quicken alternatives , and everyone thought Quicken was going to be retired. But it wasn’t. In 2016, Intuit sold Quicken to an affiliate of H.I.G. Capital, a private equity firm, and the fears of Quicken’s death were, for a time, put to rest. Quicken is now a subscription based product that has experienced success in recent years (in fact, in 2021, Aquiline Capital Partners acquired a majority stake in the company) but you might be wondering – will Quicken be discontinued a...

If you live near a Costco, you probably already know how valuable your membership to this warehouse club can be. Your shopping trips can be even more rewarding when you pay with a rewards credit card. However, Costco doesn’t accept all credit cards for in-store purchases. Find out which ones they accept, and whether your current card is one of the best credit cards to use at Costco. Table of Contents What Credit Cards Does Costco Accept? Best Credit Cards to Use at Costco Costco Anywhere Visa Card by Citi Chase Freedom Unlimited U.S. Bank Altitude Connect Visa Signature Card Chase Sapphire Preferred Chase Sapphire Reserve Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature Capital One Venture Rewards Chime Credit Builder Secured Visa Credit Card PenFed Power Cash Rewards Best Business Credit Cards for Costco Costco Anywhere Visa Business Card by Citi Chase Ink Business Preferred Chase Ink Business Cash FAQs Final Thoughts What Credit Cards Does Costco Accept? Which credit car...

L ending Club isn’t doing peer-to-peer lending anymore, but they are still doing banking. They purchased Radius Bank and have rebranded all of their products. Today we will review their business checking account, the Tailored Checking account from Lending Club. Lending Club Bank’s Tailored Checking Account for small business earns just 0.1% interest plus 1% cash back on purchases made on the debit card. To qualify for both of these perks you must maintain an average balance of at least $5,000. Find better options at our list of free business checking accounts . However, there are also no ATM fees, no monthly fees (as long as you maintain that $5k balance), and you can open an account for as little as $100. A Review of Lending Club’s Tailored Checking Account From Lending Club Bank comes the Tailored Checking Account (they acquired this product from Radius Bank, for those interested). It’s a free, high-yield online business checking account that also earns cash back perks on deb...

Are you earning enough money? If you’re like most Americans, you probably feel like you’re not. You may also feel like you don’t have enough in the bank, that your cost of living is rising, and that it’s harder to make ends meet lately. Now more than ever, amid economic uncertainty and rising inflation , it’s hard not to worry about financial sufficiency. So, what exactly is ‘enough,’ and how many people feel like they don’t have it? We surveyed over 1,000 Americans to find out. Key Findings 70% of Americans feel like they don’t earn enough money, and 72% feel like they don’t have enough saved or invested. 82% of Americans feel they don’t have enough money for at least one essential spending category. 66% of Americans feel they don’t have enough money for health-related expenses, 55% for housing expenses, and 37% for food. What Does it Mean to Have ‘Enough’ Money? Everyone’s needs may be different, but most folks share the same struggles to meet them. With a majority of Ame...

Filing taxes in the United States could be free and simple for everyone — if only tax prep companies weren’t lobbying to keep it so complicated. The Internal Revenue Service and your state tax collectors already have access to most of the information you painstakingly report in a tax return, because your employers and banks are required to provide it. We could, in theory, have a return-free system, where the IRS sends you that information and how much it believes you owe, and you don’t have to file anything unless you disagree with it. But we like a challenge, don’t we? Instead of this straightforward public service, we have the next best thing: A private system that helps the majority of Americans file a federal tax return for free. Except most of us don’t use it … because we don’t know it exists. The Free File Alliance MUST Let You File Taxes for Free The Free File Alliance is a public-private partnership between a group of tax software companies and the IRS. Eight companies...

Minters – you asked, we’ve delivered. Drum roll please… Our most requested connection is now in Mint! We’re bringing more ways for you to get a seamless, comprehensive look into your transactions and are excited to announce that users can now securely and directly connect to Apple Card.  Track Your Apple Card in the Mint App Today, Mint is becoming the first personal finance app to directly connect to the highly requested Apple Card. As the go-to app to have all your finances in one place — connecting your accounts, investments, bills, and more — we’re rolling out the long-awaited support for Apple Card.  All you have to do is link your Apple Card account to see all of your transactions in Mint. Here’s how: How to Connect Apple Card to Mint: 1) Open the Mint app . 2) Hit the “+” sign in the top right corner, then click “account.”  3) Search for “Apple Card,” hit continue, then follow the steps to get your Apple Card securely added. That’s it! See and track your ...