If your emergency savings fund is looking a little sad these days – or worse, is non-existent – it’s time to get creative. After you’ve made as many cuts to regular bills and expenses as you can to free up cash for your savings, the next step is to increase the income side of the equation? Don’t have time for a second job? Don’t worry – there are plenty of unusual ways to earn cash without taking on another job.
Posts Tagged ‘savings accounts’
6 Weird Ways to Boost Your Emergency Fund
September 27, 2011SmartyPig Review: Online Savings for the Goal-Oriented
May 18, 2011Learn more about some of the great financial tools offered inside of Quizzle, including SmartyPig, an online “piggy bank” that helps people save for specific goals like a wedding, vacation, car, a down payment on a new home, home improvement or other “big ticket” expenses.
US Series I Savings Bonds: A Bad Idea for Your Tax Refund?
March 29, 2011If you’re fortunate enough to receive a tax refund this year, you may be interested in stashing that money somewhere safe where it can grow. A US Series I Savings bond is considered by many to be a conservative investment for several reasons. Find out what perks the IRS is offering to put your tax refund into savings bonds, what the benefits of these investments are and if they’re right for you and your money.
Savings Accounts: Online vs. Offline
March 11, 2011Everyone is in pursuit of the highest interest rate savings account. Traditionally, opening a savings account requires a trip to your local bank. Modern times call for modern measures and now online savings accounts allow you to open and manage your savings account completely on the Internet. Before you run off to open your online savings account, first learn the pros and cons of each type of account.
Cash Savings: Is It Better to Sit on It, Invest It or Use It?
January 28, 2011If you happen to be sitting on some extra cash, you may be wondering how to put it to its best use. The answer depends on your personal financial situation. Learn how to assess your situation and determine when to save your cash, when to invest it and when to use it to pay down or pay off debt.
Why You Need an Emergency Fund – STAT!
November 19, 2010In more than a decade of financial planning for families, Certified Financial Planner, Kevin Worthley, has found a startling trend – most families do not have an adequate emergency fund. Yet, the consequences of not having such a safeguard can be disastrous. Kevin covers why it’s so important to have a rainy day fund and how to get started.
What Swordfishing Can Teach You about Risk and Return
November 16, 2010Do a little reading up on the relationship between investment risk and return and you’re likely to come across complex math models and detailed discussions about betas, coefficient of variation, negative correlation, standard deviation, capital asset pricing models, and on an on. Sound like a fun time to you? Me, neither. I learned all those models and terms in graduate business school (I had to, they made me), and while they’re definitely worth knowing, the basic concepts of risk and return are pretty simple.
Save for College or Retirement?
October 29, 2010Historically, Americans aren’t big savers. Pile on top a global recession, lost jobs and wage cuts, saving for the future is challenging. But saving for retirement AND your child’s college education? That may seem downright impossible. We help you prioritize and offer suggestions about how to make the most of your money so you can save for all of life’s biggest events.
How to Get Your Retirement Savings Back on Track
October 13, 2010Over the last couple of years, retirement funds have taken some hard hits. Now that the worst appears to be over, is it time to tread lightly back into the stock market? How do you get your retirement savings, which likely lost a lot of its value over the last two years, back on track?
New Financial Regulation Means New Bank Fees
October 6, 2010New financial regulation legislation recently passed by Congress is having widespread impact. Credit card companies have already tacked on new fees, raised minimum payments and taken other steps to recoup some of their lost profits. But they’re not alone. Banks are adding new fees and requirements as well. Find out what those fees are and how they will affect your wallet.
What the Heck Is the Fed Funds Rate and Why Should I Care?
September 23, 2009The Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) – a bunch of smarty-pants from the Federal Reserve Board and Federal Reserve Bank – meet eight times a year to talk about money issues, one of them being the federal, or “fed,” funds rate. The fed funds rate is the rate at which banks lend money to one [...]
