Money Tips Network

The COVID-19 pandemic is changing many things about the way we live. Thousands of Americans have already fled to suburban and rural locations since the first lockdowns in March 2020. With the coronavirus, social distancing and remote working seemingly here to stay indefinitely, it’s only natural for people in major urban areas to ask themselves: “Should we move out of the city?”

However, depending on where you’re thinking about moving, suburbs and small towns aren’t always cheaper than cities. Hidden costs can eat away at your budget, and moving out of the city could end up being more expensive than staying put.

This week’s batch of reader questions focus on the fundamentals of personal finance: emergency funds, credit and banking.

1. Should people have more than a month in emergency funds?
2. What is credit?
3. What’s a good online bank?
4. Is online grocery shopping cheaper?
5. What exactly is a budget?
6. What’s the best first credit card?
7. What are premiums and deductibles?

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, millions of people have been watching the race for a successful vaccine — including investors. As a result, some vaccine stocks like Moderna, Novavax, Vaxart and Regeneron have seen huge spikes in 2020 after positive news from clinical trials. But is it wise to invest in vaccine companies in the middle of a historic pandemic?

“The unfortunate truth is that if someone is investing in a given company solely based on a potential vaccine, that is speculation or gambling,” says Ryan Scribner, co-owner of Investing Simple. “Trying to pick the company that will eventually have an approved vaccine is nearly impossible unless you had some kind of insider knowledge, which would not be legal.”

That said, there are still good reasons to invest in biotech and pharma, provided it’s part of a thoughtful, well-rounded investment plan.

Here’s what you should know.

You can get a good return on investment if you replace or upgrade things that annoy the tar out of you.

Container craziness

I've mentioned before that I come from a long line of pack rats. I've gotten better over the years, but old habits die hard!

In between eating more at home because of the pandemic, and starting a weight-loss journey with Noom, we've been eating a lot of leftovers and cutting up a lot of vegetables.

For a number of years, we've had a repurposed diaper-changing station with drawers in our kitchen. It has our coffee equipment supplies on the top and in the side drawers, and our plastic container collection in the wide drawers.

The plastic containers had gotten … unruly. And really annoying.

All across America, some families are choosing to forgo city life for the suburbs. According to a recent survey from The Harris Poll, nearly one-third of Americans are looking to move from denser areas to more open spaces, with many citing the COVID-19 pandemic as a primary concern. With space in urban districts already at a premium, many city-dwellers are contemplating moving to regions with a smaller population and larger lots for houses.

Using recent rankings provided by Niche, we compiled a list of 25 affordable suburbs in America that are the best for raising a family. Niche calculated the rankings by providing a comprehensive assessment of key factors — the quality of local schools, safety, affordability, and access to family amenities, to measure the appeal of an area for families.

Human beings are interesting creatures. I'm fascinated by them. That's probably the reason I was a psychology major in college. It's certainly the reason that I believe (strongly) that everybody is talented, original, and has something important to say. (That bit of philosophy is something I picked up from Brenda Ueland's marvelous book, If You Want to Write.)

People are awesome — even if we're each flawed in our own way.

One thing I've noticed over the past few years is the dichotomy between knowing something and doing something. It's one thing to understand a concept or fact intellectually; it's a completely different thing to experience a fact or concept, or to put it into practice.

In this week’s reader mailbag, we’re talking about families, particularly financial issues involving children and parents. This is a topic near and dear to me as a member of the “sandwich generation,” meaning that I simultaneously have young children at home as well as parents and in-laws who are already retired. Most of the questions in this mailbag deal with those challenges.

I still remember the moment when I realized I was starting to cross the line from frugal to cheap. I was pumping gas into my vehicle after buying groceries for my family, which is normal, right? The problem is that I had driven about five miles out of my way to get slightly cheaper gas. […]

The post When Going Cheap Is a Bad Idea appeared first on The Simple Dollar.

Three weeks ago, I drove from Portland to Colorado Springs to participate in Camp FI, a weekend retreat for people interested in financial independence and early retirement.

Under normal circumstances, I wouldn't drive this distance. It's a 1300-mile trip that takes at least twenty hours to cover. Or, if you're me, it's a 1400-mile trip that takes 23 hours of driving spread over two days.

But, in case you haven't noticed, we're in the middle of a global pandemic, and although I'm not nearly as cautious as many of my friends, I don't relish the idea of confining myself to close quarters with dozens of strangers for hours on end in an airplane. Besides, I like to drive. And I love the beauty of the American west. And I needed some time alone to think deep thoughts — and to listen to the Hamilton soundtrack over and over and over again.