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Here's Exactly How Much You Should Keep in Your Savings Account

Some of the links in this post are from our sponsors. We provide you with accurate, reliable information. Learn more about how we make money and select our advertising partners . Money is still a bit of a taboo topic among families and friends, which is why many of us don’t know what a normal amount is to have (or aim for). But thankfully, there’s an easy calculation to know the exact dollar amount you need to have on-hand in your checking account: It’s one or two months of your living expenses. That’s it! So if between rent, utilities, groceries, budgeted fun stuff for your kids and debt payments, you spend $5,000 each month, then you should have $5,000 to $10,000 in your checking account. Here’s some advice: It might not be smart to keep more than two months’ worth of expenses in your checking account. If you can keep it closer to one month, that’s even better. Why? Because it’s likely earning you next to zero in interest, when you could be making way more with your money elsewh

10 Things You Should Rent Instead of Buy

People have been renting cars, wedding tents and folding chairs for decades. Renting dresses is now high fashion. But online companies as well as independent entrepreneurs are steadily increasing the array of things consumers can rent instead of buy. Most often the rental period is flexible and renting will usually save money. There are a variety of reasons to rent a tool, instrument or fabulous dress instead of paying the purchase price. It may be you only need to use it once. Or perhaps you don’t want to be limited to just one type of circular saw or strapless maxi dress. And, often it makes sense to rent something once or twice, even if you do end up buying so you end up with something you love. Then there’s also the lure of reducing the clutter in your home and the trash in landfills. The more products are rented and reused, the less they are bought and discarded. “Reduce new” is a growing catchphrase and renting is a way to achieve it. 10 Things You Can Rent Instead of Buy 1.

Project IRR vs Equity IRR

IRR or the Internal Rate of Return is one of the most popular and effective ways to evaluate the viability of long term projects.… Read Article The post Project IRR vs Equity IRR appeared first on eFinanceManagement . from eFinanceManagement https://ift.tt/3jrkktX

We'll Pay You $5,000 to Save Money for 30 Days

Big dreams often require big savings, and one way to build up your bank is to kick your costly habits. Starbucks and DoorDash might seem like quick and convenient ways to treat yourself, but we’re big believers in swapping the spendy stuff in favor of finding financial freedom. Life’s expenses can be surprising, but cutting back on at least one thing adds up in the long run. At The Penny Hoarder, we’re all about empowering people to make smart choices with their money. To help someone jumpstart their savings account, we’re going to pay one person $5,000 to kick one of their most persistent spending habits and save money for 30 days — that’s long enough to find a new, happier way to hoard your pennies. If you’re looking for a fun challenge to change up your spending habits, apply now ! What’s the Job? We’re hiring a Penny Hoarding Specialist to curb one area of their spending while they kick start their savings account. If selected, you’ll track your spending and saving during th

Good Paying Jobs for Teens Amid Pandemic

There may be no better time than now to be a teenager looking for a job. Many businesses are scrambling to find workers to fill spots that were held by adults, pre-pandemic. Those adults haven’t returned to the workforce yet, or at least they aren’t going back to their old jobs. It’s retail and hospitality industries that are hurting the most and teens are coming to the rescue. To lure prospective employees, some businesses are paying higher hourly wages and offering signing bonuses. Where once high schools students were aced out of some retail and fast food jobs by college kids and even older adults, they are now coming to the rescue of businesses desperate to fill openings. We’ve got some ideas about how teens can save those bigger paychecks for college and cars or even a gap year. Statistics show they are responding to the calls of industry. The unemployment rate for teens ages 16 to 19 has been below 10% for May through July, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In f

How to Start Freelance Writing With No Experience

Freelance writing can be a tough nut to crack, but once you do, it can be fruitful, and something you might love. Have you ever had that awkward feeling of not belonging somewhere and all you want to do is leave? Maybe it was the first time you went to hang out with your significant other’s friends and felt out of place, or maybe it was that extra 30 seconds spent in silence with a stranger in the elevator. This is how I started to feel about my full-time job last year. Though I’m grateful to have a stable job and to earn enough to meet my needs, I still feel like I don’t belong, and I lack passion for what I do. For a while now, I’ve been having a love affair with freelance writing, and it’s fueling my desire to work again. I initially started picking up clients to earn some extra side-hustle money to put toward my debt. As my side gigs grew, I started to think: “Hey, maybe I could do this full time to support myself.” Who would have thought that writing would become a necess

Student Loan Disability Discharge Is Automatic for 323K Borrowers

Getting rid of federal student loan debt has just become easier — in many cases automatic — for borrowers with qualifying disabilities.  The U.S. Department of Education announced that it will automatically forgive federal student loans for at least 323,000 borrowers who have total and permanent disabilities. An estimated $5.8 billion in federal student loan debt will be wiped out through this initiative. “We are excited to see the Department of Education finally provide automatic discharges to the hundreds of thousands of disabled borrowers who have been entitled to this relief for years,” Persis Yu, director of the National Consumer Law Center’s Student Loan Borrower Assistance Project, said in a statement. The Department stated it plans to identify all eligible borrowers in September, notify them shortly afterward and then discharge the loans “by the end of the year.” While this initiative will be a big relief to the borrowers who qualify, there are many more who will continue

GameStop Trade-In: Get Top Value for Your Trade

I grew up using computers. When I was 6 years old, I was introduced to “Prince of Persia” on the iMac, which sparked a lifelong video game hobby. I never looked back. Over the years, I’ve accrued tons of outdated video games and consoles, which I let go to waste at first. They sat there collecting dust until I got a nostalgic second wind and turned them on. That reminiscent spurt would last about 20 minutes before I would get bored and place the games neatly back into the rectangular, dustless outline on the shelf where they would hibernate until I got nostalgic again. But that was before I discovered a few strategies to maximize my payout when I sell video games for cash (or gas and groceries). Using these trade-in tricks at GameStop can get you up to 48% extra cash for your video games. So if you need to fill up your gas tank by the end of the week or you need a boost to help you make rent, selling your video games (after you’ve finished them, of course) can be a great way to m

How to watch NFL without cable

Attending a major sporting event is at the same time thrilling and painful. The roar of the crowd is exhilarating as is watching your favorite players but that can be offset with finding a place to park, paying a fortune for a beer and hot dog, and scooting past a dozen people to get to your middle-of-the-aisle seat. Plus don’t forget how exhausted you are at work after driving home from a Monday night football game. None of those evils exist when you watch an NFL game from home. And if you know how to watch NFL games without cable, you even save money as you settle in for Sunday Night Football, Monday Night Football or even Thursday Night Football. Live Football After Cable Without cable — which you ditched because of the cost — you need to decide how you are going to stream NFL games. First, figure out what’s more important to you, seeing all the live NFL games, making sure you can see every game of your favorite NFL team or just watching the highlights. Let’s look at the option