Everyone wants to manage their finances, have good credit, and save up a bit. And if for people who don’t have a financial advisor (i.e. almost everyone), Two Cents at Lifehacker is a popular site for financial advice. They compiled a list of some popular tips that could help you manage your money in 2020.
Check out these 8 ideas that might help you hack your finances.
8. When to Use a Savings Account
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If you live paycheck to paycheck it’s hard to follow financial advice that applies to people with more stability. But once you get a little cushion going, keep only the minimum in your checking account. Move the rest into a savings account, and make sure it has high interest.
You’ll make money off what you keep in savings and feel less tempted to splurge when the time comes.
7. Pay Cash or Credit at the Gas Pump
It’s no secret that card skimmers still prey on debit card users at the gas pump. If you must use your debit card, go inside and pay from there.
6. Use Your Credit Card Points
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It’s tempting to “save” credit card rewards or points until the right moment, but they can actually lose value over time. Use them as soon as you’re able to because credit card companies sometimes drop or change partners, making it hard for you to get what you want later on.
5. Don’t Use a Credit Card with Venmo
Venmo can help you split bills with friends or roommates in a hassle-free way. That convenience is great, but make sure you don’t use a credit card with it because you’ll pay a 3% fee every time. If, for example, you’re splitting rent, 3% of hundreds of dollars every month is no chump change.
4. Use a Credit Card to Buy Flights
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First off, credit cards offer more protection in case of fraudulent charges. Secondly, they offer additional insurance that can protect you in case of a delay or other travel mishap. Third, some cards have other specific benefits having to do with travel (although you should check with yours before you expect anything in particular).
3. Don’t Wait on Equifax
Millions of people were affected by Equifax’s 2017 data breach, but the company’s $31 million fund is not going to pay those whose information was compromised (SUCH A SCAM). That’s because $31 million divided by $125 (what they said they would pay out) is 248,000 people – and a lot more people than that are owed money. Most people will see significantly less, or no money at all.
2. Do NOT Spend Money That Accidentally Ends up in Your Bank Account
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Banks make mistakes, including occasionally depositing money into the wrong bank account by accident. If that happens to you, resist the urge to splurge and let the bank know about the extra cash immediately. Spending the money will almost certainly cause legal problems for you, so do the right thing here.
1. Make Sure Your Credit Is Good Enough
Everyone wants to have an 850 credit score, but it’s practically impossible. A score of 740 or higher is good enough to unlock many benefits without the added stress. Here is one area where good enough is definitely where you should aim.
It may not be easy to adhere to every single tip here, but even implementing one or two of these is bound to help out.
Do you have any financial tips? Let us know!
