Money Tips Network

Mutual funds are an easy way to invest in a broad portfolio of stocks, bonds, and other securities. You don’t need to spend a lot of time picking individual stocks and making trades.

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In what has become a depressingly consistent tradition, a recent Bankrate survey revealed that 61% of Americans would not be able to cover a $1,000 unplanned expense.

Unemployment is currently quite low by historical standards, so the problem is not that people can’t earn money. It’s more likely that, for a variety of reasons, most people are not saving enough of each paycheck to establish an adequate emergency fund. That being the case, using a budget to kickstart good savings habits is more important than ever.

Buying a used car can feel a little like a crap shoot. Is the car you have your eye on really worth the thousands you're going to spend on it?

A packable daypack can keep you organized without taking up precious space. This makes it ideal for travel, backpacking, day trips, hiking, and shopping.

You've got questions about your fancy serial number. Here are some answers …

After publishing hundreds and hundreds of articles here, these articles on fancy serial numbers and currency errors have been some of the most popular:

• Fancy serial numbers: Dollar bills worth money
• Currency errors: Treasures in your wallet

I get a lot of questions about particular serial numbers and errors, both in the comment sections of those posts and through my contact form.

Here are some frequently asked questions regarding fancy serial numbers, along with answers and resources.

I have a $1 bill with [serial number]. Is it worth anything?

It's definitely worth at least $1.

Over the last year, I’ve learned to make a lot more meals and staple foods at home. I have focused on this specific area of self-improvement for a few reasons. Not only does homemade food taste better, but it reduces my family’s intake of preservatives, it’s more nutritious, and it’s often substantially cheaper than what you find in the store. It does take time to make most meals from scratch, but most people get faster with experience. Once you get used to cooking from scrach, most food preparation doesn’t take much more time than going to the store, buying it, taking it home, popping it out of the package, and following the directions.

Breadmaking is a prime example of this phenomenon. Homemade bread is substantially tastier than store-purchased bread, it isn’t laden with preservatives, it is very inexpensive to make, and it doesn’t take all that much time, either.

The idea of having “cash under the mattress” has a lot of appeal to many people. After all, cash is king and having some cash around in a quick pinch can solve a lot of problems.

An older friend of mine used to have a coffee can full of cash that he kept hidden away somewhere in his house. I’m not sure where he kept it, but I saw it produced a time or two and I couldn’t help but notice that it contained a large quantity of cash. He used it to take advantage of opportunities and to take care of things in emergencies.

The stock market had a great year in 2017, with the S&P 500 rising more than 19 percent. Did your portfolio do as well? If not, you may feel like you missed out. You may even be tempted to make some changes, going all in on headline-making companies that did well in 2017.

But hold on.