Money Tips Network

How to cancel a credit card (without killing your credit score)

I have a credit card I'd like to cancel, but I don't know if I should. I'm afraid it'll hurt my credit score. Today I'm going to walk you through in real time as I evaluate this decision. Then I'm going to explain how to cancel a credit card, no matter why you want to do so.

I normally don't pay much attention to my credit score. I know that it ranges between 800 and 820, so I don't worry about it. With a score like that, I'm considered to have “exceptional credit”, and that's good enough for me. (Kim's very proud that she has a higher credit score than I do, by the way.)

Four Tips for Selecting Preeminent LED High Bay Light

LED high bay light, also
known as LED warehouse light, is mainly used in workshops of mechanical
manufacturing industry. It is an essential part of public lighting and the best
choice for the energy-saving transformation of traditional industrial plants.
With the continuous development and progress of LED lamps, the competition in
the market is becoming more and more fierce, and at the same time, some
unqualified products will appear. So, in the face of this situation, how should
we distinguish the quality of LED high bay light?

(OBALS LED High Bay Light)

  1. Observe
    the Power

The lower the power factor is, the worse the driving power and circuit design settings are, which will significantly reduce the durability of LED high bay light.

2. The Quality of Light Bead

Teaching Children to Save: Highlights from Our Chat With American Bankers Association

American Bankers Association joined us for our #WBChat on March 28th to share insights on keeping your money safe. Our #TeachChildrentoSave #WBChat featured wonderful tips and to help our chatters learn more about how teaching children to save.

Crypto Market Predictions – Will The Crypto Market Keep Falling?

Looking at the
current volatility and uncertainty of cryptocurrencies, crypto market
predictions can only give you a vague idea which digital coin can turn out to
be the big winner of your portfolio. However, these crypto speculations have
brought to the surface questions which seem to become favorites of the crypto analysts,
influencer, investors, and crypto news sites
to answer. These questions include:

Can Bitcoin hit the
$50,000 mark this year?

Will Bitcoin be worth
$1 million as predicted by John McAfee?

Will the crypto
market keep suffering through 2019?

Will the cryptocurrency
market valuation hit $1 trillion this year?

Happiness and Money, With Insights from John Bogle

According to an authoritative article in American Psychologist magazine, it’s not money that determines our happiness, but the presence of some combination of these three attributes:
(1) autonomy, the extent to which we have the ability to control our own lives, “to do our own thing”;
(2) maintaining connectiveness with other human beings, in the form of love of our families, our pleasure in friends and colleagues, and an openness with those we meet in all walks of life; and
(3) exercising competence, using our God-given and self-motivated talents, inspired and striving to learn.

– John Bogle, Enough, page 131

Master Your Money Super Bundle: Money courses for pennies on the dollar

Have you ever gotten a life-changing idea from someone? One that single-handedly caused a giant breakthrough in something that was bugging you?

Maybe you've run across one of these ideas in a website or video.

Finding that one good idea for free is like hitting the jackpot! But it sure does take a lot of time searching, doesn't it?

If you're wanting to up your game with your personal finances right now, then you'll want to read on.

Enter the Super Bundle

I've paid out lots of money for training and courses to get me over various hurdles in my life and my work.

Most of the time, I've been happy with the value I've gotten out of these courses.

Join Our Tweetchat on Thursday 3/28, 12pm PST for a Chance to Win $200 in Prizes!

Join our Tweetchat Thursday 3/28 at 12:00 p.m. Pacific/ 3p.m. Eastern for lively conversation and a chance to win a $100 Amazon gift card or one of two $50 Amazon gift cards! Use #WBChat and #TeachChildrentoSave to participate.

This week's topic: Teaching Children to Save!

How I learned to stop worrying and love DIY

“Oh good,” Kim said when I rolled out of bed yesterday morning. “I’m glad you’re up.” She gets up at 5:30 for work most days, but I tend to sleep in. Especially during allergy season.

“Huh?” I grunted. It was 6:10 and I was very groggy. My evening allergy meds kick my butt. Plus, I hadn't had my coffee yet.

“Something’s wrong with the bathroom sink,” she said. “Look. It’s leaking. The floor is soaked.” She wasn't kidding. The bathmat was drenched. When I looked under the vanity, I was greeted by a small lake.

“Ugh,” I grunted. This wasn't how I wanted to start my day.

Kim kissed me goodbye and hurried off to work. I pulled on a pair of pants, poured some coffee, pulled out the vanity drawers, and got to work.

Using Your True Hourly Discretionary Income to Make Smarter Purchases

One of my favorite personal finance ideas is the true hourly wage.

Your true hourly wage is an easy concept to understand. Basically, you add up all of the hours you either work or devote to work-related tasks in a year (this includes things like your commute or working at home), then you add up all extra expenses that you incur due to work in a year (taxes, clothing, commuting costs, fuel, and so on). Take your annual salary, subtract all of the extra work-related expenses, and then divide that resulting number by the total number of hours devoted to work, and you get your true hourly wage.

How to Create a Macro in Microsoft Excel

For those of you who regularly have to do the same task in
Microsoft Excel, it may be a good idea to create a macro to automate particular
processes.

A macro is a process that you are able to initiate to
complete common tasks that need done in Excel. To create a Macro in Excel, you need
to “record” your mouse clicks and keystrokes to tell Excel how to do the repetitive
task you are looking to automate. Then, you don’t need to do this process
again. You can then edit and improve the macro over time if required.

Here is an example of when a macro would be useful. Maybe
each month you have to create a detailed report for a fellow employee about the
latest accounts. A good use of a macro would be to highlight the details of the
overdue customers in red with a bold format. You can create a macro to
completely automate this process making it easier for next month.

74 Million Americans Have More Credit Card Debt Than Savings: What to Do If You’re One of Them

America’s compulsion for credit card spending appears to be reaching entirely new heights.

A recent report from Bankrate found that a staggering 74 million Americans now have more credit card debt than emergency savings, which is the highest that figure has been in nine years.

Looked at another way, only 44% of American households have more emergency savings than credit card debt, according to the same report. That’s the lowest that savings-to-debt ratio has been in nine years.

Also noteworthy: The deterioration of the American households’ emergency savings relative to credit card debt extends across both genders, all ages, all educational backgrounds, all income brackets, and political party affiliations.

In other words, Americans are collectively moving in the wrong direction, says Bankrate chief financial analyst Greg McBride.

5 Things to Photograph When You are Travelling

Many people
love travelling and visit many places, both inside and outside the country.
Most of them carry a DSLR or any other digital camera with them.

The
question that lingers in the mind of many of the tourist is, what to shoot? So,
I will share five things you can photograph next time when you are travelling.

You don’t
have to learn high-end photography to photograph these things. You can get
useful photography tips online and learn how to use your camera.

1.People Portraits

It is a
good idea to take portraits of people. Make sure that you ask for their
permission before photographing. It is for your safety.

Try to
include the essence of that place in your frame. If you are photographing a
villager, then make sure that you capture a photo where some part of the
village forms a part of it.

10+ ways to start saving money

Not in the habit of saving money? You're not alone. Here are some ways to start that all-important habit of saving money …

Not everyone has the habit of saving money regularly.

If this is you, then at least you're not alone. About a quarter of Americans (out of a sample of 1,000 in a study conducted by BankRate.com in June 2018) have essentially no savings for emergencies.

But there are very easy ways to start squirreling away money that aren't really that difficult. Once you have the habit of saving some money, then you're in a position to take it to the next level!

Save money if you use cash

If you're already using cash for most of your purchases, that's great. Keep doing that!

Eloan Personal Loans Review

Eloan.com was founded in 1997 with the goal of connecting consumers with high-quality personal loans with the help of new technology. However, Eloan became a division of Banco Popular de Puerto Rico in 2016, which brought with it over 124 years of experience in the banking industry.

While many modern banks offer an array of products including checking and savings accounts, home equity loans, and mortgage loans, Eloan still focuses only on the product they do best — unsecured personal loans. This means they’re able to offer some of the lowest cost loans on the market to qualified borrowers, which is a huge plus for consumers.

If you’re in the market for a personal loan and looking for the most affordable online option available, keep reading to learn more.

TD Bank Personal Loans Review

While TD Bank claims to be “America’s Most Convenient Bank” today, the company has humble beginnings and a history that dates back to 1852. Founded in Portland, Maine, as Portland Savings Bank, the company grew through a series of mergers until its transition to Peoples Heritage Bank in 1983.

TD Bank eventually became Banknorth, which was acquired by TD Bank Group of Toronto, Canada, in 2007. Since those days, the bank has expanded to offer a wide range of banking products to consumers in states they service. Offerings include checking and savings accounts, home equity loans, mortgage loans, and more.

HSBC Personal Line of Credit Review

While HSBC isn’t popular across the entire United States, it’s still one of the largest financial institutions in the world. This company serves over 39 million customers through their retail, commercial, and private banking services. They also have a meaningful presence in the Middle East, Asia, Africa, North America, and Latin America.

In terms of personal banking, HSBC offers the typical products most small banks make available to consumers — checking accounts, savings accounts, and credit cards. But the bank also offers a popular personal line of credit that may work well for consumers with good or excellent credit.

What are the Best Mountain Bike Brands for Sale?

Are you on the lookout for your next mountain bike, but you
are unsure about what brand to go with? Worry not, because we thought we’d take
a look at two of the best mountain bike brands for sale to help you select the
right bike for you.

Tommaso

Tommaso is a brand that is known for its quality. We
especially like the Gran Sasso 29er, pictured above.

It has rugged 29er wheels which are able to maintain excellent
grip when riding over rocky terrain.

We have noticed that having the clearance of a 29er wheel
makes such a difference, especially when you are riding on a steep incline.
When it comes to braking, the Gran Sasso 29er delivers, thanks to the hydraulic
disc brakes which allows you to brake in all weather conditions. We would
always recommend that you choose hydraulic brakes over traditional mechanical
disc brakes, as they often half the stopping distance.

Stepping Back: Look at the Bigger Spending Picture

Even after all these years, I still enjoy reading (and still enjoy writing) frugality tip articles.

You’ve all seen them, either here on The Simple Dollar or elsewhere. They’re simply a list of tips on how to spend a little less money while still getting a quality result. Here’s a prime example.

The specific tips in such articles are often useful, but one drawback of many of the tips is that they’re incredibly specific and narrow. The tip describes one specific situation and one very specific way to handle it which will save money, but often won’t save that much money over the long haul.

3 Ideas for Volunteering Abroad in 2019

If you are looking for volunteering opportunities abroad,
and not sure where to turn to, you have come to the right place. We thought we’d
take a look at three opportunities that are on offer from Volunteer Abroad, to give you some
ideas and to help you choose. Let’s take a look!

Conservation or Environmental Volunteering

In these programs, the volunteer will be able to choose from
a range of placements from working in an animal rescue shelter in Escazu or an
animal welfare center in India, to helping out in an elephant sanctuary in
Jaipur or working with sloths in Costa Rica. We are sure you will find a placement
that suits you. Of course, tasks will vary from placement to placement, but you
could be expected to help with such things as construction and cleaning, as
well as the daily feeding and care of the animals at your placement.

How Do Self-Driving Safety Features Affect Your Car Insurance?

Many drivers are ready for autonomous vehicles, even if the insurance industry isn’t. And while the safety features of self-driving cars can reduce the risk of accidents, that may not translate to cheaper car insurance premiums for drivers.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that more than 3,450 people were killed by distracted drivers in 2016, the last time it compiled such data. It notes that sending a text takes the driver’s eyes off the road for five seconds, which is enough time to cover the length of a football field if you’re going 55 miles per hour. As a result, drivers are more inclined to share the road with automated cars than with texting drivers.