Money Tips Network
Revisiting the Last Little Bit in the Container
Tubes of toothpaste. Bottles of shampoo. Soap dispensers. All of these things are easy to use at first when they’re full, but eventually they empty out, leaving just a bit of the soap or paste inside.
This isn’t just in our imaginations, either. Most packaged liquids and pastes tend to leave a little behind in the bottle or the tube:
In order to determine how much product does not come out, Consumer Reports conducted tests. A total of 22 products were tested, including glass cleaners, lotions, liquid detergents, and toothpaste. The tests found out that lotions were the hardest to empty, and pump bottles leave 20 percent of the lotion behind. Glass cleaners delivered most of the product. Plastic squeeze tubes can trap 10 percent of the toothpaste.
Are You Checking Your Credit Reports Often Enough?
Trying to earn and maintain healthy credit without checking your credit reports is like trying to lose weight without ever stepping on the scale.
Your odds of success are much better if you’ll take the time to check your credit reports on a regular basis, not just when you’re about to apply for a loan or you hear about the latest data breach on the news. It’s quick and free, so there’s really no reason you shouldn’t do it as soon as you get done reading this.
Your Free Annual Credit Reports
As an American citizen, you have the right to a free copy of all of your credit reports once every 12 months. You’ve had this right since 2003, when the Fair Credit Reporting Act was amended by an act called “FACTA.”
8 Travel Gadgets to Take on Your Next Road Trip
There's something about loading up the car, putting on some awesome tunes, and hitting the open road that appeals to everyone — young or old. It's the sense of freedom, the promise of fun times, and the relative ease that has made road-tripping one of the great American traditions.
An experiment: Saturday morning money conversations on the GRS Facebook page
The world of blogging has changed since I started Get Rich Slowly in April 2006. For one thing, “blogging” now encompasses other media. Some folks prefer to get their info via podcasts or video. (Me? I’m a reader.)
As an experiment — and to prove I’m not that old — I’m going to try a series of four weekly Facebook Live discussions. For the next four Saturdays, Kim and I are going to have a Saturday morning conversation about personal finance in front of dozens (hundreds?) of other folks.
That’s right: My girlfriend is going to join me for this project.
When Your Career Is Comfortable, But You Yearn for a Change
You’re at a job that’s comfortable and secure and, frankly, fairly easy in many ways. There might be a few elements that you don’t really like, but for the most part, it’s fine.
Here’s the catch, though: You’re still pretty unhappy at work. You don’t enjoy going to work. You don’t enjoy most of the things you do at work. The little problems at work are like little pebbles in your shoes, building a minor issue into something that’s almost intolerable. Perhaps you simply yearn to be doing something different, maybe something a little more challenging or something that’s a little less stressful.
Does this sound like you?
Single Parent Finances: Six Tips to Find Financial Success When It’s All on You
During your most challenging, stressful, and uncertain moments, being a single parent can seem like the craziest financial decision you’ve ever made.
I’m talking about those moments when you’re deciding between whether to buy gas for your car or groceries to feed your family (while trying to avoid using a credit card for either purchase yet again). And the moments when you’re staring at your retirement account wondering if you’ll ever make any real headway. Not to mention those long, exhausting nights when many other parents are likely resting comfortably in their beds while you work a second or third job to help make ends meet and pay for the extra things you’d like to be able to give your family.
Becoming a parent is easily one of the most profoundly rewarding things I’ve ever done with my life, and living each day as Aidan’s mom is my deepest honor, one I wouldn’t trade.
Ask the Readers: What Are Your Tips for Back-to-School Shopping?
Editor's Note: Congratulations to Heather, Anissa, and Chrissy for winning this week's contest!
Back-to-school sales are in high gear! It's a great time to buy school supplies for your student — or stock up on stationary, office tools, and craft gear for yourself.
10 Safe Cities to Visit in the U.S.
Whether you're looking for a fun day out, a weekend getaway, or a longer vacation, safety is always a primary concern when choosing where to go. Reading the news each day can make you feel like the U.S. is an overwhelmingly dangerous place to travel within.
Which New Car Would You Buy?
Last week via email, reader David Hatch asked:
If you were going to buy a new car, what would you get do you think?
I wrote a short email reply…then decide this topic is worth a deeper dive (of only for my own personal edification).
You see, Kim and I have been talking about cars lately. Mine is fifteen years old and hers is over twenty. Although both are running fine, we realize that we’ll have to replace one (or both) of them in the near future. When we do, what will we buy? What kind of new car is right for Kim? What kind of car is right for me?
Let’s start by looking at the cars I’ve owned in the past.
Every Car I’ve Ever Owned
I am not a car guy. Even though I can appreciate nice cars, I don’t have any desire to own them. I’m not sure why. Maybe it’s because my parents never had nice cars when I was a kid. They had practical, serviceable vehicles that got the job done.
During my 33 years of driving, I’ve owned five cars.
Questions About 401(k) Matching, Book Recommendations, Educational Savings, Trade Schools, and More!
What’s inside? Here are the questions answered in today’s reader mailbag, boiled down to summaries of five or fewer words. Click on the number to jump straight down to the question.
1. Saving to switch careers
2. New personal finance book recommendations
3. Match or no match?
4. Using Roth IRA for education
5. Less frequent 401(k) matching
6. Sensible gift for groomsmen
7. Giving up stuff you love
8. Trade school advice?
The Investment Riskometer
When it comes to investing your hard-earned money, you obviously want it to grow. That’s really the whole point of investing as opposed to keeping it in the bank. But you also know that investing means that you can lose money, and you hate the idea of all that money you’ve saved suddenly disappearing.
So, how do you know which investments will help your money grow without subjecting it to too much risk? There’s no perfect answer, but this post will help you figure it out.
What follows is an investment riskometer that ranks the most popular types of investments from least risky to most risky so that you can find the perfect balance between growth and safety for your personal goals and preferences.
Best Retirement Cities
Here's a list of the 50 best retirement cities from Business Insider:
The top ten:
10. Las Vegas
9. Austin
8. Denver
7. Honolulu
6. Salt Lake City
5. Atlanta
4. Scottsdale
3. Miami
2. Tampa
1. Orlando
A few thoughts from me:
2-Minute Read: What You Need to Know About Credit Reports
Your credit report is a detailed summary of your credit history that's prepared by a credit bureau.
Five Home Improvements Worth a Discount on Your Homeowners Insurance
As a homeowner, the process of renovating, remodeling, and upgrading your property to create your own private corner of paradise can be an expensive hobby.
The silver lining however, is that some upgrades can help pay for themselves over the long run by saving you money on your home insurance bill.
Granted, the renovations that typically help you qualify for an insurance discount are of the less glamorous or aesthetically pleasing variety, but it’s still money in your pocket. And when it comes to home ownership, every penny is important.
Here are some of the projects to keep in mind when considering home improvements that can help pay you back with a discount on homeowners insurance.
Security Alarm
This one is (or should be) a no-brainer for homeowners everywhere. There are about 2.5 million burglaries annually, and 66 percent of them are home break-ins.
Inspiration from Mario Quintana, Toni Morrison, J.J. Watt, and More
Once a month (or so), I share a dozen things that have inspired me to greater personal, professional, and financial success in my life. I hope they bring similar success to your life.
1. Mario Quintana on chasing butterflies
“Don’t waste your time chasing butterflies. Mend your garden, and the butterflies will come.” – Mario Quintana
There are two ways of looking at success in the world.
One of them is the idea that success is something you have to chase. You have to pursue success by “faking it until you make it” and playing whatever games are necessary to get whatever rewards you are seeking.
Another is the idea that success is the result of preparing yourself so that the results you want come naturally, as do the accompanying rewards.
What it means to be rich: The difference between income and wealth
I’m generally a pretty laid-back guy but, like anyone, I do have pet peeves. Because I write about money, I have lots of trivial personal-finance pet peeves. (It’s “saving rate“, not “savings rate”. Dave Ramsey did not invent the debt snowball, and his version is but one kind of debt snowball. It’s not the only debt snowball. See? I told you these pet peeves were trivial!)
It’s silly that I’m bugged by this stuff, but I am. I’m sure you have pet peeves too, especially when it comes to your work.
One of my top pet peeves in the world of personal finance is when people who should know better conflate income and wealth. A high income can lead to great wealth — although it doesn’t always — but they’re not the same thing.
I see this error frequently — even in high-profile articles at major media outlets.
The Magic System for Getting Out of Debt and Building Wealth Quickly!
Whenever I’m on a road trip and I don’t happen to have an audiobook or a podcast available, I’ll spin the radio dial and listen for something interesting. I actually really like local radio shows that cover things that are actually going on in that area, so I’m usually seeking out things like that.
One thing I often hear as I’m spinning the radio dial are advertisements for all kinds of things: local restaurants and car dealerships and so on. I usually keep turning the dial, but for some reason, I always stop on the ads talking about people’s money.
You’ve heard them – they’re the kinds of ads that talk about getting out of debt really quickly or building wealth quickly or things like actually turning your debt into wealth.
I’m always amazed at the incredible claims that these programs make. They really do make it sound like all you have to do is sign up for this program or go to this seminar and suddenly all of your financial problems are solved.
How to Get TSA Precheck or Global Entry Free with a Credit Card
Even the best airports make you wait in line; those who fly have no choice but to show up and go through the motions to get to their gate. The process often starts with a long, boring wait to check in your bags and get boarding passes. From there, a trek across the airport to head through security is inevitable. And, once you get past the rigmarole, you may still have to wait in line for drinks or a snack, and you’ll surely have to wait in line once again to board your plane.
While there’s not much you can do about airport queuing, one perk can help make the worst part — TSA security — a lot easier to deal with. With TSA Precheck, you can avoid the regular security line and the crowds. Since you’ve been preapproved by security, you can also skip some of the most annoying aspects of this part of flying — things like having to take off your shoes and your belt and having to take your laptop out of your bag.
The big fat truth: J.D. Roth interviews JD Roth
I’m not the only semi-celebrity J.D. Roth. For more than fifteen years, I’ve been receiving email and tweets and Facebook messages intended for the other JD Roth, the former executive producer of The Biggest Loser — and tons of other television shows.
Apparently the other JD Roth has a lot of fans. Actually, I’m one of them. I’ve been watching his shows since 2009, when season seven of The Biggest Loser inspired me to start my own weight-loss journey. When he published his book The Big Fat Truth in the spring of 2016, I read it the day it was released. I thought it was great, and wished that I could interview the author, but Kim and I were in the middle of our 15-month RV trip across the U.S. and I couldn’t make the logistics work.
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