TessMore Finance Blog

Last Friday, I drove from Corvallis to Portland to help my cousin, Duane. Duane has been living with throat cancer for several years now , but in recent months things have grown worse. It feels like he's preparing for the end. And that means he's packing up his apartment (where he's lived for 21 years!) to move someplace smaller. We spent all of Friday afternoon sorting through his office. This was a challenge because (like most Roths) Duane is messy (and a self-proclaimed hoarder). Duane and I packed boxes and boxes of collectible card games, ancient coins, books on Greek and Roman history, and outdated computer games. While we packed, we talked. Duane is my cousin, yes, but he's also my best friend. Because we're family and friends, I feel like we share a deep connection. We can call out each other's bullshit without hurting feelings. We can sing each other's praises without becoming obsequious. Most of all, we can talk about nerdy stuff like Magic: The

Don’t want to go through the effort of changing cell phone companies ? Still want to save a few bucks? You may want to consider using a bill negotiation service. They’ll negotiate your bill for you, saving you hassle and money. Below, we compare a few of the most popular bill negotiation services available today. 1. BillFixers Most bill negotiation services use the same basic business model. For this reason, BillFixers is similar to BillBargain in many regards. They provide their services for free unless they lower your bill. But BillFixers is pretty confident that they will be able to get you a lower monthly payment on your bills. They say they lower 95% of the bills that they get. That’s pretty impressive. How Does BillFixers Work? Once again, this section is going to look familiar. With BillFixers, you simply upload a PDF of your bill and they immediately get to work trying to negotiate it down. One of the areas that BillFixers does separate from the crowd, though, is thei

Vending machines allow us to get what we need when we need it without having to interact with people. They also can be money makers for the machine’s owner. While the pandemic has changed the industry, owning and operating vending machines is big business, often providing passive income without any specialized skills. It’s also called automatic merchandising. Basically, all you need to get started is some startup money to buy a machine, a good location and the right products. This post will lead you through the process. The Vending Machine Business During COVID-19 Like many other things, the pandemic hurt the vending business. That makes sense since so many people transitioned to working from home. Machines at professional sites, office venues, public venues, and schools saw sales declines. But on the flip side, locations where essential workers were onsite had the best sales and some even showed an increase in revenue from 2019. Revenue for the vending machine industry was $13.

For most college students, spring break can never come fast enough. Where winter break comes with family obligations and summer break often involves a full or part-time job, spring break is the one time of year to explore and let loose. But for many students, expensive resort packages and crowded tourist destinations are less than appealing. Whether you’re trying to save money or just to get off the beaten path, here are some alternatives to a traditional spring break. Enjoy the Great Outdoors If you’re trying to save money and want a different spring break experience, go camping. Camping is generally less inexpensive – as long as you prepare accordingly. First, decide what kind of camping experience you want. Do you want to visit a state park near you or travel somewhere like the Grand Tetons or Yosemite? Your location will also determine what kind of gear you need. If you don’t have any camping equipment, choose a place that won’t require special gear. Instead of buying campin

The American Express Serve Card is a prepaid debit card that makes it easy to avoid hidden bank fees when you buy something, make deposits, or initiate an ATM withdrawal. You can also get multiple cards for various purposes. And if someone steals your payment details, they provide additional security as the thief can’t withdraw cash from your checking account. But choosing the correct Serve Card can be difficult as there are four different options. In this American Express Serve Card review, I’ll cover all of the key features and help you pick the best card. Table of Contents What is the American Express Serve Card? Who Can Get a Serve Card? American Express Serve Card Fees The 4 Serve Card Types Serve Direct Deposit Serve Cash Back Serve Free Reloads Serve Pay As You Go Best American Express Serve Features No Credit Check Free ATM Withdrawals Purchase Protection Serve Mobile App Low Balance Alerts Multiple Reload Options Free Subaccounts Amex Offers FDIC I

B efore my current businesses took off, I looked everywhere and at anything for the possibility to make extra money on the side. I wanted to be able to pay my debts off faster and save extra money. After I had my kids, I wanted the extra money to set it aside for birthdays, Christmas, and to pay for them to be in lessons and sports. Bottom line: I always had a reason to have a side hustle. I’ve never owned a truck, but I’ve always thought it would make the perfect tool to set up a bunch of different side hustles. If you own your own truck (or SUV or van for that matter), congratulations! You have an in-demand piece of equipment you can easily use in tons of different ways to make extra money. Chances are you invested in that truck, and now you can make it work for you. So… what are your options? You can do anything from local deliveries to landscaping, to advertising, and quite a few things in between. Here are eleven ways to make extra money with your truck. 1. Rent Out Your Tru

The COVID-19 pandemic has likely had an impact on everything from your relationships to your eating habits. Your finances? Big time. Getting behind on a bill or two can have a lasting effect on your credit score. In response, the three major credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — are offering free weekly credit reports through the end of April 2022. As a rule, everyone can get a free credit report once per year, but during these uncertain times, it may be prudent to check your credit at least a few times this year. To obtain your free reports, start at annualcreditreport.com. Once you get there, you’ll notice a banner, front and center, telling you about the policy with a “request your free credit reports” button on it. Hit the button and follow three more steps, fill out the form with your information, request which report(s) you want and then get and review your reports. You will have to enter a fair amount of personal information, and you’ll have to answer some qu

We’ve been seeing our homes in a new light since the pandemic started. We may not always be cooped up inside our four walls, but we continue to find projects to work on around the house. They can range from minor redecorating to major repairs that have been put on hold. Here are our top eight stories on how to save money on home improvement projects. 8 Ways to Save Money on Home Improvements 1. Organize Your Home Without Overspending Keeping your home tidy doesn’t require a trip to the Container Store to spend hundreds on various organizational tools. Browse this list of cheap home organizing solutions for ideas on how to neaten up your pantry, linen closet, junk drawer and more. Some include upcycling items you already have at home. 2. Know Which Home Repairs You Need to Address Immediately It may be financially convenient to put off certain repairs around the house, but ignoring some issues can cause major problems and increase the costs. These eight home repairs are ones y

We all know that credit card bonuses are the absolute best. If you have a good credit score , you can reward yourself with a load of bonus miles or points in return for using a bank’s credit card. Turn those into flights, hotel stays, and you have yourself a nice little paid vacation. And while many of these cards offer huge welcome bonuses, some have some nice perks too. The trick is finding the right cards. One factor that can turn you off to this is that many of the best card offers also have an annual fee. They may give you 100,000 miles but then tack on a $95 or $295 annual fee. If you like the card or you use their partner a lot, as can be the case with airlines or hotels, then keeping the card can make a lot of sense. Maybe the card gives you a higher status with the airline or hotel. Maybe it just gets you to the front of the line at check-in. But what if you’re simply anti-annual fee? I know a lot of people who are against paying a fee out of principle. I get that 100%.