Nobody wants to be paying as much as they do on a month-to-month basis. Home payments can make up a large portion of your monthly payments, but there’s a good chance you have other recurring expenses as well.
If you’re looking to save some money, monthly payments are where you should be looking. Depending on your current spending and payments, you could end up saving hundreds of dollars each month.
Some changes you should make to reduce your monthly payments won’t be fun, but others are going to be so easy that you’d wished you made the change months ago.
Here are some of the best ways to save money on your monthly payments:
Click to check today’s rates.
Improve the energy efficiency of your home
One of the quickest ways to reduce your monthly payments is to look at your bills. There’s a decent chance that your electric bill is a little larger than it should be.
Changing out lightbulbs and some appliances for more energy efficient versions can save you some decent cash pretty quickly. If you have the cash for it, replacing your windows with more energy efficient windows will also reduce your monthly payments while increasing the value of your home.
To further reduce the size of your energy bill, unplug devices when they aren’t on. Anything that’s plugged in is using “ghost power,” which basically means you’re paying for your devices to be off!
Get a VA refinance
The quickest way to reduce your monthly payments is to get a refinance, and, if you’re able, to get it through the VA.
There are two types of VA refinance: streamline and cash-out. Both will lower your monthly payments in the most important way: reducing your mortgage rate. Also, you’re able to use cash on both refinance options to make your home more energy efficient. This will save you money in two ways.
Refinances save people plenty of money on their monthly payments, and the VA gives homeowners different options for refinancing.
Click to check your VA refinance eligibility.
Non-Housing Ways To Save Money
Yes, your housing payment is likely the biggest expense you have each month. But that doesn’t mean you don’t have other expenses which could save you some cash.
The more you save each month, the easier it is to make mortgage payments while storing a little extra. To take the pressure off your mortgage payments, here are some ways to save money each month:
Change your cell phone/cable plan
Most cell phone carriers have similar reliability, so now they’re forced to compete with each other for lower rates and fees. You can take advantage of that. Shop your cell phone plan around and see if there’s an option that can save you some quick cash.
Another place to look is your cable plan, or whatever you use for TV. Many people have channels they don’t need, and some people could get by without cable completely. Reevaluate how badly you need all those channels – it could save you money.
Find lower insurance rates
If you’re a safe driver, odds are you can get a lower rate somewhere. Shopping insurance rates isn’t fun, but it saves you money.
The same applies to just about every type of insurance. Take a closer look at what you’re paying for and ask yourself if you really need it. Don’t try to get too skimpy with payments here, though – better safe than sorry at the end of the day.
Pay attention to monthly subscriptions
A monthly payment of $10.99 doesn’t seem like much, but when you have multiple subscriptions going on, this can add up pretty quickly. Services like Netflix, Hulu, subscription gaming and other streaming services are booming in popularity, and one reason the subscription service works is because you forget about it.
Go through your finances and look at services you pay for. Do any of them really add that much value? Just cutting out a few subscriptions could save you $25 a month, or $300 a year. The more you cut out, the more you’re bound to be saving.
Cutting your monthly payments isn’t always glamorous, but these methods will take you to your main goal: saving money. Refinancing is the most effective way to cut monthly payments without sacrificing too much (or anything), but if your goal is to save money, you shouldn’t stop with a refinance.
Welcome to NerdWallet’s Smart Money podcast, where we answer your real-world money questions.
This episode is dedicated to exploring the motherhood pay gap and potential solutions.
Check out this episode on either of these platforms:
Our take
You might have heard about the gender pay gap — or the difference in earnings between men and women — but what about the “motherhood penalty”? According to a recent report from the Pew Research Center, the gender pay gap grows more pronounced during a time when adults are likely starting and building their families: between ages 35 and 44.
But what does that look like in real numbers? Calculations from the National Women’s Law Center show that women who work full time year-round make 84 cents for every dollar men make. Mothers make only 74 cents for every dollar fathers make, amounting to $17,000 less per year.
In this episode, we explore the financial hit women take when they become mothers. We speak to experts who help us understand not only what’s driving the gender pay gap but also why it’s so difficult for women to recover financially after they have kids. We also learn more about policy changes at the federal, state and employer levels — from pay transparency to paid leave — that can help to close the gender pay gap for all women, not just mothers.
To a large extent, simply having more knowledge can empower women to ask for more when accepting a job offer or negotiating a raise.
More about parenthood, pay equity and finance on NerdWallet:
Episode transcript
Sean Pyles: Happy Mother’s Day, Amanda.
Amanda Barroso: Thank you, Sean. I’m sitting here in my closet where I record all the podcasts, and my toddler is right outside the door. I’m feeling about 20 months pregnant with our second. So needless to say, I’m feeling very much like a mother right now.
Sean Pyles: You are channeling and embodying Mother’s Day right now.
Amanda Barroso: Yes. Yes.
Sean Pyles: So how are you celebrating your day?
Amanda Barroso: So aside from a delicious brunch cooked by my husband and some family time, I’m setting aside some time to chat with you about the gender pay gap and how it widens for women once they become moms.
Jasmine Tucker: So I think we really need a multipronged approach to this. We need stuff to happen at the employer level. We need stuff to happen at the state level. We need stuff to happen at the federal level.
Sean Pyles: Welcome to the NerdWallet Smart Money podcast. I’m Sean Pyles. I’m here with NerdWallet writer Amanda Barroso for a special Mother’s Day episode about the gender pay gap and the motherhood penalty women face. Welcome back to Smart Money, Amanda.
Amanda Barroso: Hey, Sean. I’m happy to be here with you. The gender pay gap probably isn’t the first thing that comes to mind when people think about Mother’s Day. They’re probably thinking about flowers, brunch, chocolate. But this is something that’s personal to me.
Aside from being a mother, I’ve been thinking about and researching this topic for a long time. So before I came to NerdWallet, I got my doctorate in women’s and gender studies and then worked in D.C. for about five years at nonprofits that researched this issue. So it’s been on my mind for a while.
Recently, one of my former colleagues at the Pew Research Center published a report about the just persistent and enduring nature of the gender pay gap, and it turns out that parenthood is part of what’s made this thing stick around for so many years. The thing about the gender pay gap, though, is typically women never really recover from it financially, especially once they become moms. So the topic is on my mind, especially as I prepare to have our second child in just a few months.
Sean Pyles: All right, so in this episode, you’re going to help us understand what the gender pay gap really is, why it’s worse for mothers and maybe even talk about some solutions to what can feel like an insurmountable problem.
Amanda Barroso: That is the goal, at least.
Sean Pyles: OK. Well, let’s start with the basics. Can you lay out for us what exactly the gender pay gap is?
Amanda Barroso: Sure. So simply put, the gender pay gap is the difference in earnings between women and men. Every year, researchers are updating their calculations. One source of data from the National Women’s Law Center shows that women who work full time and year-round typically make 84 cents for every dollar that men make. For moms, this drops to 74 cents for every dollar that fathers make. This amounts to a $17,000 loss in income every year.
Sean Pyles: $17,000. That’s enormous, Amanda. I mean, just think about all that a mom could do with that amount of money.
Amanda Barroso: Totally. I mean, it’s not pocket change for a Target run, that’s for sure. The reason that I wanted to make this podcast, actually, is because it was unclear to me what it is exactly about motherhood that penalizes women financially, but then on the flip side, rewards men who become fathers at the same time. In research, this is something called the fatherhood bonus. So I’m just thinking, what’s going on here?
Sean Pyles: OK, so just to make sure that I’m following you, there’s the motherhood penalty, and then there’s also the fatherhood bonus. These terms seem pretty self-explanatory, but can you give us a quick definition of each so that we’re all on the same page?
Amanda Barroso: So the motherhood penalty is the earnings hit that women take when they become mothers. Sometimes it’s because they have to step back or scale back from the workplace to become primary caregivers, and of course that impacts their overall earnings. But for men who become fathers, the data shows that they get a boost in their earnings, actually. And this may be because employers are more likely to see fathers as providers, offer them more hours, more opportunities, and the fathers can then take advantage of that because, surprise, they have someone at home taking care of the kids and the housework.
Sean Pyles: Got it. I think there may also be psychological and cultural pressures going on as well. A lot of dads may feel like it’s important to step up and work harder once they have a kid, or they’re afraid that if they do try to take time off and prioritize child care, that they’ll be judged harshly and their careers might suffer.
Amanda Barroso: Totally. So to understand the origins of the parental pay gap, I talked with Jasmine Tucker — she’s the vice president for research at the National Women’s Law Center — and that’s who you heard at the beginning of the episode.
Jasmine Tucker: So what we see in the data is that women face a wage gap right as they begin their careers, but it’s smaller. So people are just graduating college, people are just graduating high school and entering the workforce. Women are making 90 cents for every man’s dollar.
Amanda Barroso: So the playing field is more equal when young men and young women are first starting their careers because, you think about it, they’re both starting at entry-level positions at the lower end of the pay range. But then something starts to happen as they enter their 30s. And this is where you see that motherhood penalty and the fatherhood bonus emerge that we were talking about earlier, Sean.
So to understand this, I talked to Rakesh Kochhar — he’s a senior researcher at the Pew Research Center — and he’s the one who wrote the report that I mentioned earlier. So I wanted to learn a little more about this window of time and what exactly happens to mothers and fathers.
Rakesh Kochhar: The most significant increase in the pay gap happens around age 35 to 44. Beyond that, it pretty much stays steady, so it doesn’t rebound back to pre-parenthood days, but it stays widened. Parenthood widens it, and that widening does not go away.
Sean Pyles: OK. So what Rakesh is saying is that not only is there a gender pay gap, but that this gap widens between mothers and fathers between the ages of 35 to 44. So under one roof, you could have one parent reaping the benefits of this gap, while the other’s pay is suffering.
Amanda Barroso: And that gap never closes, even as women age. Plus, this data isn’t even factoring in same-sex households. I mean, another thing that we should also clarify from Rakesh’s work is his research shows that women with kids at home earn less than women without kids at home. And here’s where the fatherhood bonus really comes into play. Fathers earn more than other workers in general, including men without children.
Sean Pyles: And I know there’s a ton of data out there around the pay gap, but I want to zoom out. There are still a lot of people who don’t think the pay gap is well, real. Or they believe that women simply pick fields with lower wages, things like being a teacher or a service job, while men happen to choose jobs with higher earning power, like something in tech or banking or engineering.
Amanda Barroso: There’s obviously a lot more at play than men and women just simply choosing different jobs. The true meaning of occupational segregation takes into account how a particular group, so here we’re talking about men and women, how they’re overrepresented in a certain job, and this is often due to social forces and pressures or policies that create this division. It’s certainly more than just men and women just happen to choose these separate and distinct fields, right?
Sean Pyles: Yeah. Well, the other thing that critics of the gender pay gap dispute is the role of discrimination. Did the experts that you talked with get into that at all?
Amanda Barroso: Yeah. On the question of whether the pay gap is real or not, Jasmine was just like, “Look, here’s the data.”
Jasmine Tucker: We see a wage gap in 94% of occupations. We see a wage gap when you look at different education levels and especially women of color gaining higher education, like Black women and Latinas, they’re still losing millions of dollars over a career compared to white non-Hispanic men.
Sean Pyles: So Jasmine has the data to back up the wage gap, but what about the occupational segregation and discrimination question? Did she or Rakesh talk about that?
Amanda Barroso: So Rakesh was basically like, “Look, occupational segregation is a thing. It is an undeniable thing that happens, but so is discrimination.” But that last piece is just a little harder to precisely measure.
Rakesh Kochhar: Yes. So both are factors. One, as you noted, is easier to measure than the other. The easier one to pick up on is what are the types of jobs men and women do, or what are their occupations? And there are distinct differences that continue to linger. For example, women, much more so than men, are represented in education or health care jobs. Men, on the other hand, are more likely than women to be in STEM jobs or in managerial occupations and some other occupations. And the differences have narrowed over time. But this narrowing also halted around the turn of the century.
The other side of the equation you mentioned is discrimination. That is where an employer may treat men and women differently at the workplace or during the hiring process itself. Many experiments have revealed it as a likely factor. So there is evidence of discrimination, but precisely how much and where it happens, that’s harder to measure.
Sean Pyles: All right, I’m glad we cleared that up. But what I’m wondering about now is where does this pay gap come from? There are people behind the decisions to pay a mother one amount and a father a different amount. What’s actually driving the gender pay gap?
Amanda Barroso: You know, Sean, I asked Rakesh that exact question. Here’s what he said.
Rakesh Kochhar: In a survey we did accompanying this report, we find that women with children at home are much more likely than men to feel a great deal of pressure to focus on family needs. So partly a result of these pressures and perhaps partly by choice — it’s hard to sort out or disentangle these two forces.
What we see is that with the onset of motherhood, when about two-thirds of women ages 35 to 44 have children at home, we find that they tend to retreat from the labor force. Labor force participation decreases, and at the same time, women tend to work fewer hours on average per week.
So in effect, what this means is parenthood impacts the amount of workplace experience women acquire relative to the workplace experience that men are able to acquire. And men are seen to work harder because they actually increase the number of hours they work on average per week and they become more active in the labor force when they become fathers. So partly through a withdrawal on the part of women and partly through more engagement on the part of men, we see the gender pay gap widen around that time. And this increase happens most noticeably around ages 35 to 44.
Amanda Barroso: So, as Rakesh mentions, there are significant cultural forces involved here, but I wanted to hear a little more from Jasmine about how this plays out, especially around notions of who is a breadwinner.
Jasmine Tucker: What I think is at play are a couple of things. So first is outdated notions about who’s caring for families, who is dedicated to the work, who needs the money. And so if you think about dads in the workplace, you’re like, “Oh, well so-and-so just had a kid. We need to put him up for promotion because he’s supporting three people now instead of two,” whatever.
And I think that despite all of this evidence that shows that women are breadwinners in their families, either primary or co-breadwinners, there is this outdated notion that when women have kids, they become less dedicated to their work. And so they have to leave at 4 p.m. to go pick up kids. And so that means that they’re not dedicated to their work, forget that she’s answering emails or whatever she’s doing late at night after the kids are in bed. Child care is definitely playing a big role here. If child care is unaffordable and it’s making up large shares of women’s earnings, they might be more likely to leave the labor force.
Amanda Barroso: That point about child care really hits home, and it’s something that we’ve covered together on the podcast before, Sean. The other thing that she mentions are caregiving responsibilities, which when you think about it, they only multiply with each child that parents have, right?
Sean Pyles: And we know that women tend to take on more caregiving responsibilities than men, too. So women are being paid less for the same job and also having to shoulder more work around the home.
Amanda Barroso: Exactly. So this is what I wanted to know. Does the impact of the gender pay gap then intensify with every child? Here’s what they had to say. Let’s hear from Rakesh first.
Rakesh Kochhar: In the past, we did look at what happens to work effort depending on the number of children you have at home. And the more children you have, the greater the number of hours worked by men or fathers. And the shorter the workweek among women. So having more children definitely has more of an impact on engagement with the workforce on either side, negatively among women and positively, you might say, among men.
Amanda Barroso: So with the birth of each child, mothers are withdrawing from the workplace for one reason or another, while fathers are putting in more time. But what does this mean for actual earnings? Here’s what Jasmine said.
Jasmine Tucker: There are some studies that show there’s like a 7% drop in earnings, like per kid, that you have for women. But we see the opposite when it comes to men. When they have kids, their earnings tend to go up. And so I think over time this creates this divide that widens, right, it just continues to widen and get worse over time.
Amanda Barroso: So is it just a general issue with the imbalance of division of labor? So women are the ones who are assumed to be doing the caregiving. So they’re the ones leaving work early, and then it snowballs from there.
Jasmine Tucker: It all reinforces each other. We saw this in the pandemic. We saw more women leave the labor force than we saw men, and we saw women out for longer periods of time. So we know that early days, in 2020 and 2021, we saw lots of women remain out of the labor force because they were providing unpaid care for their children. And so if somebody needs to take time out of the labor force, who’s it going to be?
Amanda Barroso: Jasmine has a good point here. The pandemic really upended the working lives of many mothers across the U.S. because when you think about it, Sean, so much of that infrastructure that they relied on to be workers, was just no longer available. So things like child care, in-person schooling, after-school activities or weekend activities, things like that that made their working lives possible were just unavailable.
Sean Pyles: Well, what’s interesting is that in recent months, women have returned to work. In February 2023, the number of women in the workforce was higher than before the pandemic, but that was after a steep, sudden drop-off early in the pandemic and then a slow climb back up over the past three or so years. Do you think that that time away from work would have an impact on their earning potential?
Amanda Barroso: Exactly. But the thing is, once women leave the labor force, it’s really hard for economists to understand what it means for their future earnings, even if they return to work again at a future time. And this is something that Rakesh talks about in his report.
Rakesh Kochhar: Now in our data, we only observe the earnings of people who are working, who are employed. And if we look at just employed men and women, we are not anymore looking at women who have withdrawn from the labor force. Some will have withdrawn permanently, some will have withdrawn only for two, three months or four months, and some may be for two, three, four years until a child goes to kindergarten or elementary school. So there’s going to be a varying degree of losses felt by women.
And what we do not observe is this loss in potential earnings: What might have been the earnings of a woman who took, say, five years off from work? We also do not know what might have been the earnings of women who’ve permanently withdrawn because they decided for whatever reason to be at home to look after kids until they’re off to college, maybe, or never returned to the labor force. So there is some loss in the potential earnings of women, their lifetime earnings, that we are not able to observe.
Amanda Barroso: Rakesh points to a blind spot in collecting pay gap data on women, especially as they become mothers and exit the workforce for a time. And as Jasmine mentioned, the pandemic has been especially hard on mothers’ employment.
Jasmine Tucker: So I think early in the pandemic, there was a lot of worry about moms and women just generally leaving the labor force and what that would mean for their careers. We saw 20 million plus jobs just completely gone in two months time, from February to April 2020. And I think initially in the early days of the pandemic, there was, I think, a really scary moment of what’s going to happen to the wage gap? How is this going to impact it? How is this going to set women back?
And so I think the data from the Census Bureau over the last couple of years, it’s been hard to compare it to previous years. Because the labor market looks completely different than it did in 2019, which we would have to consider pre-pandemic.
So what we have seen since 2020 is some closure in the wage gap. And part of that is because we saw a lot of the jobs that were lost were low-paid jobs. So who was left right in the pool of people working full time and year-round were higher-paid workers. So we lost all of these women in low-paid jobs. And so that appeared to shrink the gap.
Sean Pyles: It seems like both the gender pay gap problem and the motherhood penalty that exacerbate it are really complex.
Amanda Barroso: I mean, there’s not a one-size-fits-all solution. I think Rakesh put it really nicely.
Rakesh Kochhar: So it’s that drilling down to individual choices and cultural pressures and family pressures and workplace issues. It’s very heterogeneous; it’s very diverse. It’s very difficult to perhaps eliminate with a sweeping policy.
Sean Pyles: All right, well, that does seem a tall order, but I also see a glimmer of hope in Rakesh’s answer. There are a number of different areas we can mine for solutions on an individual level, family level, culturally and in the workforce.
Amanda Barroso: I know it seems bleak, and in a lot of ways, these issues are so much bigger than an individual mother can solve on her own. Trust me, I feel the weight of this. I’m a mom, I am expecting another one, and I obviously care about my earnings. But you’re right; there are some things and some ways that we can move forward and continue to make progress in closing the gap from others. So I dug into this a little bit with Jasmine.
Jasmine Tucker: So I think we really need a multipronged approach to this. We need stuff to happen at the employer level. We need stuff to happen at the state level. We need stuff to happen at the federal level. So we could do things like pass equal pay bills, like the Paycheck Fairness Act at the federal level. There is right now a lot of momentum in state legislatures this year around pay, salary transparency bills, which is great because it essentially says if you’re posting a job, you have to provide a range in the salaries. The data shows that women underestimate the salary and men ask for the moon, which contributes to this.
Amanda Barroso: So what are some things that employers can be doing? It does seem like some of the issues here are revolving around how managers or HR or people in control are thinking about motherhood and fatherhood.
Jasmine Tucker: I think that there’s a lot that employers can be doing. They can be doing internal audits of how much are they paying people by race and by gender, and what does that look like? And doing some course-correction there. I think that they could be hiring more women and in particular women of color in C-suite positions and in other leadership roles, because if you have a workplace that only is made up of men and in particular white men, I don’t see how those workplaces are going to be family-friendly or actually meet the needs of moms in that workplace.
Amanda Barroso: Your earlier point about employers examining their own pay practices seems really important. And I don’t want to overlook your point about race, either. I mean, the calculations that you’ve done show that Black, Latina and Native women are making even less than that overall 84 cents per dollar figure that we talked about earlier. According to your data, Black women make 67 cents for every dollar, and Latina and Native women make 57 cents. And again, this is compared with white non-Hispanic men. And that’s just the overall number, not the number for moms of color. So that means their total annual losses are much higher.
Jasmine Tucker: Yeah. It’s life-changing money. It could be a down payment for a house; it could be an investment in your education so that you can move from your low-paid field to a higher-paid field. It could be savings toward a kid’s education fund. There, I think, are so many wealth-building opportunities that women and moms are missing out on because they’re being paid less.
Amanda Barroso: What other policies can be implemented or changed to help close the gender pay gap for moms?
Jasmine Tucker: The unionized workplace is good for women. We see wages go up; we see wage gaps decrease.
Amanda Barroso: Workplaces adopting family-friendly policies alone won’t fix the pay gap, though. Rakesh even points to other European countries where these policies are part of workers’ everyday lives already and found something interesting.
Rakesh Kochhar: When we look at Scandinavian countries, such as Denmark, where family-friendly policies are commonplace, you still see that parenthood drives an increase in the wage gap because men and women react differently to parenthood.
Amanda Barroso: This reaction to parenthood Rakesh talks about could point to a bunch of things. I think some of it’s likely a response to cultural and social pressures that fathers face, thinking about putting in more hours in the office, what that might mean, it might mean seeing your child less, added stress. There’s this financial piece of the fatherhood bonus that seems like a positive one, but still there are costs.
Sean Pyles: So we’ve talked about potential solutions at the state and federal levels, but there have to be things that parents can push for in their own workplaces.
Amanda Barroso: I think you’re exactly right, Sean. Look, OK, let’s look at NerdWallet, for example. The company does offer a really generous paid leave policy, around five months leave at 100% pay, which not only means that parents can bond and care for their newborn, but they also don’t have to dig into savings to cover time away from work. I mean financially, that’s huge, right? But in addition to that, all new job ads that NerdWallet puts out provide a salary range, which means that potential candidates have a leg up. So when they get asked that dreaded question that we’ve all been asked in a job interview, “What’s your desired salary?”, they have some information to work with, right? They’re not pulling a number out of the air.
So as of March 9, actually eight states have made salary transparency a requirement on job ads, and 15 states are considering similar legislation, and that’s according to the Center for American Progress. So I think that that’s a step in the right direction.
NerdWallet also recently started providing employees with the salary bands for their job title based on their title and location. So I can log in and see where I fall in that pay band, and when it comes time for review or negotiations, I just have a little more leverage. I have more information and knowledge that I can work with. I think these last two things are huge, especially for women. So studies have shown women tend to undervalue themselves. They ask for less in negotiations or when they’re starting a new job. And in this case, I think for women, knowledge is power.
Sean Pyles: And it just goes to show how big an impact one company’s policies can have on the way you can structure your life, your family, your ability to earn money. And it gets back to the fact that it’s a little unfortunate for many workers that they don’t have those benefits where they work. And we should state that Amanda was not told by NerdWallet to say any of that. It’s just a legit perk that’s made a big impact on her ability to balance motherhood and having a career. Is that right?
Amanda Barroso: That’s absolutely right. But the thing is, there are templates for this. There are companies who are employing some of these policies and measures, and we can learn from those things. I think a big thing is just talking about money, talking about these policies. You hear that your friend or your neighbor that they work at a place like NerdWallet, great. Let’s figure out how they’re doing it so I can bring that back to my employer and see what I can make happen for myself and my colleagues.
Sean Pyles: Exactly. Well, Amanda, thank you so much for coming on the Smart Money podcast to help us explore this really important topic. I appreciate it.
Amanda Barroso: I always love being here and talking about these things with you, Sean, and I am very much looking forward to enjoying that five-month paid leave and catching you on the flip side of that.
Sean Pyles: All right. Well, I’m expecting many baby pictures while you’re out.
Amanda Barroso: Absolutely.
Sean Pyles: And that’s all we have for this episode. Do you have a money question of your own? Turn to the Nerds and call or text us your questions at 901-730-6373. That’s 901-730-NERD. You can also email us at [email protected] Also visit nerdwallet.com/podcast for more info on this episode. And remember to follow, rate and review us wherever you’re getting this podcast.
Amanda Barroso: This episode was produced by Sean Pyles and myself. Liz Weston helped with editing. Sheri Gordon helped with fact-checking, Kaely Montanan mixed our audio, and a big thank-you to the folks on the NerdWallet copy desk as always for their help.
Sean Pyles: Here’s our brief disclaimer. We are not financial or investment advisors. This nerdy info is provided for general educational and entertainment purposes and may not apply to your specific circumstances.
Amanda Barroso: And with that said, until next time, turn to the Nerds.
Welcome to NerdWallet’s Smart Money podcast, where we answer your real-world money questions.
This week’s episode continues our nerdy deep dive into how climate change will affect your money.
Check out this episode on either of these platforms:
Our take
Few people enjoy thinking about home and renters insurance — it’s admittedly not the most riveting subject. But climate change has upended the calculus involved with protecting our home and belongings from natural disasters, and many homeowners and renters are discovering this only after it’s too late. Homeowners in areas at risk for wildfire and hurricanes are finding it harder to insure their homes, while others have learned the hard way that their home and renters insurance does not cover damage from flooding.
In the second episode of our nerdy deep dive into the intersections of personal finance and climate change, NerdWallet insurance editor Caitlin Constantine talks with Nerd Holden Lewis, who covers all things housing and mortgages. They explore the impact climate change is having on home insurance markets around the United States and what that means for prospective and current homeowners. They also discuss the risks of being underinsured and how to make sure you have enough insurance to cover your home and belongings, as well as why you should consider flood insurance even if you don’t think you need it.
Caitlin also speaks with Matthew Eby, founder and CEO of First Street Foundation, a nonprofit research and technology company that has developed a tool to help homeowners better understand climate-related risks like flooding, wildfire and extreme heat. They dig into some common misconceptions about flooding risk and flood zones, as well as some strategies that homeowners can use to better assess their risk and to protect their homes from potential disaster.
More about insurance on NerdWallet:
Sean Pyles: Let’s say a freak storm is headed your way and there’s a chance it could wipe out your home. Homeowner or renter, are you covered? Are you sure?
Holden Lewis: The standard homeowners policies don’t cover floods, and that means that they don’t cover rising water. They do cover falling water. If your roof blows off and rain falls inside, they’ll cover that. But that’s just one type of under insurance that people have.
Sean Pyles: Welcome to the NerdWallet Smart Money podcast. I’m Sean Pyles.
Caitlin Constantine: And I’m Caitlin Constantine.
Sean Pyles: We’re back with episode two of our nerdy deep dive into the broad effects of climate change on our financial lives. Caitlin, I know you’re going to talk about this more in a little bit, but you’ve had your own brushes with housing disaster, right?
Caitlin Constantine: Yeah, so I’ll go into depth in this during the episode, but I lived in coastal Florida for more than 20 years. During that time, I also worked for quite some time in local news. So I’ve lived through multiple hurricanes and tropical storms, and I’ve also reported on the damage that they can cause. And I’ve actually been pretty lucky to have never lost my house, but I’ve seen firsthand how these storms can really cause a lot of chaos and destruction, and how the effects of those storms last for years long after the storm has passed.
Sean Pyles: OK, so can you tell us why we’re doing a whole episode on housing?
Caitlin Constantine: Sure. For most people, their house is their biggest expense, and for a lot of us it’s also our biggest and most valuable asset. And regardless of whether you’re renting or owning your home, it’s usually way up there on the list of things that take money out of your bank account. And the risks around climate change for homeowners are especially fraught because of insurance costs.
Sean Pyles: Right. And it can be hard to fully understand what you need to know about the kinds of coverage and policies that will help protect your assets from climate risk. And, Caitlin, I don’t know about you, but I did not get a Ph.D. in risk evaluation as part of my schooling, and I’m a homeowner.
Caitlin Constantine: And I didn’t either. Although a Ph.D. in risk evaluation might make my job a little easier sometimes.
Sean Pyles: Yeah, I imagine.
Caitlin Constantine: But honestly, sometimes it really does feel like you might need that Ph.D. because climate change is affecting so many parts of our lives, including decisions about where we choose to live. And a lot of it’s really kind of unknown, which is what leads to people having a lot of uncertainty and anxiety around these issues.
Sean Pyles: All right. Well, before we dive in, we want to remind our listeners to tell us what you think. Share your ideas, concerns and hopefully some solutions around climate change and finance with us. Leave a voicemail or text the Nerd hotline at 901-730-6373. That’s 901-730-NERD. Or email a voice memo to [email protected].
Caitlin Constantine: Yeah, I would really love to hear from people who have stories about how climate change or a natural disaster has affected how they think about homeownership and where they want to live.
OK. So our first guest is fellow Nerd, Holden Lewis. Holden covers all things housing and mortgages. Welcome back to Smart Money, Holden.
Holden Lewis: Hey, it’s a pleasure to be here.
Caitlin Constantine: So we’re here today to talk about how climate change is actively affecting the housing market here in the U.S. Clearly, we’ve all seen some of the catastrophic damage from natural disasters like flooding, fires, the tornadoes that have ripped through the Southeast this spring. But can you give us a sense of what’s happening even more broadly? And then we’ll get into some of these details.
Holden Lewis: Sure. If you could move anywhere, it would really be a good idea to consider the role of climate change in where you live, because places all over the country are affected by disasters and that they seem to be exacerbated by climate change. I live on Florida’s East Coast and climate change is at the top of my mind because of hurricanes. Experts have said that climate change makes hurricanes wetter. I think we saw that especially in 2017 when that hurricane hits Houston and just parked itself over there and flooded everything. Hurricanes are just, they’re dropping more rain. And then with sea level rise, storm surges are pushing water farther inland, but storm surge isn’t the only kind of flooding to worry about because heavy rainfall causes rivers and creeks to overflow their banks and that causes flooding. And then there’s something called pluvial flooding, which is what happens when it rains faster than the water can drain away.
But water isn’t the only problem. Because of prolonged droughts, we see more wildfires in the West. They’ve wiped out entire towns and they pollute the air enough to cause danger to people’s health. So there is a lot to consider. And despite all these issues, people are moving into these high-risk areas. We have 40% of Americans live in coastal area. People are moving to places with high and extreme heat like Austin and Phoenix. And 30% of American homes are in wildlands, technically called the Wildland Urban Interface. Those are places that are vulnerable to fires where basically houses are near the woods. So as more Americans live in high-risk areas, they’re in greater risk of losing their property or even their lives because of natural disasters.
Caitlin Constantine: You and I actually both have personal experience with this. You mentioned that you live on the East Coast of Florida. So just tell us a little bit more about this.
Holden Lewis: I’ve lived on the East Coast of Florida since 1999. We’ve been hit by a lot of hurricanes. I mean, there has been a few times when I’ve been able to sit on our front porch while a hurricane blew from the back of the house. So we’re sitting there in this sheltered area. My wife and I are watching entire sections of roof tiles just blow off of houses across the street and just kind of ply through the air like Frisbees.
In our house, we’ve been fortunate. We’ve had several direct heads and some damage to the house, but not a whole lot. The hurricanes do tend to blow down our wood fences. Our homeowners insurance policy has a windstorm rider, which has its own deductible. So you have a higher deductible for hurricane damage. We haven’t had major enough damage to bother with filing a claim, but I’ve spent a lot of hours rebuilding fences in very hot and muggy weather several times. So, Caitlin, you were on the West Coast of Florida, right? What was your experience?
Caitlin Constantine: So, yeah, as I mentioned in our last episode, I lived on the West Coast of Florida for about 20 years, and I left last year. When I lived there, that part of Florida doesn’t get as many direct hits as the East Coast does, but I’ve experienced my share of hurricanes as well. So you mentioned the 2004 hurricane season. We had, I think, four hurricanes crisscrossed the state within a six-week period. And that was actually when I realized that hurricanes were serious business and not just an excuse for a hurricane party. And Hurricane Jeanne, which was the last one, it actually ripped the roof off of my apartment building. And because so many other people had damage at the same time, it took a week just to get a tarp on the roof and it rained before that could happen. And so later that winter, I ended up dealing with mold all over my apartment. And that was not a fun experience.
And then I also went through Hurricane Irma in 2017, and that was probably more significant for us. It tore down my fence and it uprooted some really big trees in my neighborhood, and it left me in my neighborhood without power for a week. And this is in September, so it was getting up to be 90, 95 degrees inside my house. The linemen who rolled up to fix my power, they got the biggest, teariest, sweatiest hug from me that day. I was so thrilled to see them. And by the way, for the folks who are not from Florida who are listening, this is a common pastime for Floridians comparing notes on our hurricane stories. We all do this, right?
Holden Lewis: I have so many. I’ve heard so many.
Caitlin Constantine: Fortunately, like you, I never had to file claims or deal with insurance after any of these storms. But as many people are aware, home insurance costs really recently increased pretty significantly in Florida, and that’s in large part due to damage from frequent severe weather that happens there quite a bit. And so by the time I moved away last year, I was paying $5,000 a year for my home insurance. So with that, let’s talk a little bit about how the insurance picture has changed as the planet warms. So we all know that most people have to get insurance on their homes to get a mortgage, right? Talk us through what that’s for and what climate change has done to the calculations.
Holden Lewis: We tend to think of homeowners insurance as something that pays for home repairs if bad things happen, but it really helps to broaden that view and just to think of insurance as protecting your wealth and your financial stability and really your mental health.
So here’s how it works. Insurance pools risk. What that means is that you and other people each add to a big pool of money. And then when one of those people has damage, that person withdraws from that pool of money. The problem with disasters is that when they’re really big, whether they’re just huge geographically or very severe, that pool of money can end up being drained and then they’re still claimants who still need to draw from it. And that’s happening more and more because of the increasing frequency of climate-related disasters.
And insurance markets have suffered in high-risk states. Look at Florida. The insurance market has had challenges since Hurricane Andrew in 1992, and there’s just not a lot of large insurers who want to write policies in Florida these days. And so that means the rates have just been skyrocketing. Louisiana is grappling with damage from multiple hurricanes in 2020 and 2021. The state recently approved rate hikes of 60% for its insurer of last resort. And you look at California, they’re dealing with all those wildfires that are caused by prolonged drought, which maybe has ended with all the snow this year, but that’s going to cause its own problems. And homeowners who live near wild areas are being dropped by insurers.
Caitlin Constantine: So we’ve got these issues of availability that’s happening in these high-risk states, but we’re also seeing issues around under insurance. People maybe think that they’re covered and they discover that they’re not, or they don’t have the level of coverage that they need to rebuild after a disaster, or maybe they don’t fully understand what their policies cover. It’s not uncommon for people to think that their home insurance policy will cover flood damage when that’s typically not the case.
Holden Lewis: That’s true. The standard homeowners policies don’t cover floods, and that means that they don’t cover rising water. They do cover falling water. If your roof blows off and rain falls inside, they’ll cover that. But that’s just one type of under insurance that people have. One thing to consider is that inflation and the increases in the costs of labor and supplies, that means that a lot of homeowners are underinsured and they don’t know it because they have policy limits that maybe as costs rise, those policy limits aren’t going to cover all the damage that happened.
One other thing is that I hear people say, “If I’m hit by a disaster, I’ll just rely on government grants or federal loans.” Those are probably not going to be sufficient, and that help is going to be slow. So homeowners do have a few tools to help them understand their true risk. The current FEMA flood maps are based on historical data, and that doesn’t account for future climate change impacts and it doesn’t account for flooding that’s caused by extremely heavy rainfall, but it’s a place to start.
Another thing to keep in mind is that many states don’t require sellers to disclose the flood history to homeowners or home buyers. There’s almost no federal involvement in insurance regulation because insurance is regulated by each state. So nongovernment organizations like First Street Foundation are trying to fill in those gaps.
Caitlin Constantine: And that’s actually a good preview for the second half of this episode when we’ll be talking with the First Street Foundation about how people can better assess what their true climate risk is for housing in a given area. So Holden, for those listeners who are thinking that this all sounds a little bit overwhelming, which by the way is a completely understandable way to feel, can we give people some advice for things that they can do right now to protect themselves as much as possible?
Holden Lewis: Yes. The standard advice is to review your homeowners policy every year. In my mind, that’s boring, but don’t feel bad if you don’t do it that often. But really it helps to assess your coverage. And just get questions answered when it’s time to renew that policy. So what does that mean? Well, first, pay attention to the exclusions that lay out what the policy doesn’t cover. Flooding, for example, but also earthquakes and sinkholes. Those aren’t covered. Mold damage, that’s often not covered. Talk to the agent. Find out if you have enough coverage to replace the home and belongings if it’s destroyed in a disaster or even a fire. Ask about coverage for living expenses if you’re displaced and you have to live somewhere else for a while. And are there caps on that coverage? And look into extended or guaranteed replacement cost coverage.
And then there’s also inflation guards that you can have on your policy which adjust your coverage to account for inflation. Both of those are generally going to cost more, but if you can afford it, it might be worth the peace of mind. Just make sure you have additional coverage that you might need. We recommend looking into flood insurance even if you’re not in a place that’s designated a high-risk zone. Flood insurance costs less in medium- and low-risk areas, so it’s probably worth the investment. And then, finally, just think of your contributions to climate change and how you can reduce them. Look for opportunities to decrease your carbon footprint by reducing energy usage like when you replace windows where you add insulation. And consider installing solar panels.
Caitlin Constantine: These are all great ideas and great advice. And as the home insurance editor for NerdWallet, I definitely cannot emphasize the importance of looking into flood insurance enough. There’s one more thing that we also need to talk about, which is the key timing issue on all of this, especially when you’re buying a house. So a lot of potential home buyers, they don’t really think too much about insurance when they’re going through the process of buying a house. They’re focused on the price, they’re focused on getting the mortgage. And insurance is kind of treated as this minor thing to be just checked off the list before closing, but it’s really important to think about insurance from the start to make sure that you’re fully covered should the worst happen.
Holden Lewis: It’s a really, really good point. And it’s especially important if you’re moving from a different part of the country. Let’s say you live in the Midwest or the Northeast and you move to Florida or Texas. You might be shocked at how much it costs to insure the home. What that means is it’s really increasing your monthly house payment, and that might not be something that you’re thinking about when you’re just thinking about the property taxes and the principle and the interest. So get a ballpark estimate of your insurance costs. That way you can factor them into how much you can afford to pay for the house.
Caitlin Constantine: Right. That’s such a great point. I actually read an article about a couple that retired from New Jersey to Florida thinking that they would save money on taxes and insurance, and they were absolutely shocked to find out that wasn’t the case. They saved money on taxes, but what they saved was erased by how much more they were paying with insurance.
So thank you so, so much for joining us and for sharing this really important information with us today. We really appreciate you taking the time to join us.
Holden Lewis: Hey, I appreciate the opportunity.
Caitlin Constantine: So, Sean, I dearly hope that you as a homeowner are more than adequately insured based on what Holden just told us. I know you have a house on the Southwest Coast of Washington state.
Sean Pyles: Yeah, well, I can hear the waves from my house, and I’m embarrassed to say that I do not have flood insurance. But after your conversation with Holden, I’m going to be calling up my agent, I promise. But also, Caitlin, I’m maybe spiraling a little bit about how I’m supposed to evaluate the climate risk around my house.
Caitlin Constantine: OK. Well, I’m going to be following up to make sure that you get flood insurance. But also —
Sean Pyles: Thank you.
Caitlin Constantine: Very important. But also we’re going to get a little bit into how you can better evaluate climate risk around your house with a literal expert on risk assessment. So Matthew Eby is the founder and CEO of First Street Foundation. It’s a nonprofit research and technology company that is all about risk prediction in this time of climate change. It’s developed all these cool mapping technologies that model flood, fire and extreme heat risks all over the country. And those models are integrated into real estate sites like Redfin and Realtor.com, so consumers can look up properties they’re interested in and then make a judgment about future risk.
Matthew Eby, welcome to Smart Money. It is so good to have you with us today.
Matthew Eby: Yeah, thank you so much for having me.
Caitlin Constantine: All right. So we have just heard from my colleague Holden Lewis about all of the negative factors that are affecting housing as we find ourselves in this era of significant climate change. Can you talk with us a bit about what you’re seeing out there and whether it’s as discouraging as it seems?
Matthew Eby: Sure. Well, the top line is the benefit that we have today is that we have data. And so we’re able to understand things that we were not able to before at a property level. So kind of what you might experience or the likelihood, the probability of an event impacting a home. So whether that’s a wildfire or a flood or a wind event or something of that nature is now something that we can understand and plan for. So while these are not great things, it’s very helpful to know what’s happening because what gets measured can be managed, and then you can do things to take proactive steps to ensure that anything that does happen can be offset with, whether it’s a risk transfer product like insurance or whether it’s something that you can do smart with your home, whether it’s elevation or defensible space from fire or a number of other things that you can do to be proactive about it.
Caitlin Constantine: Yeah. A common theme that we’ve heard over the course of this podcast is the uncertainty is a challenge for a lot of people. So your point that we now have data, that seems like it could be something that could help mitigate that uncertainty a little bit.
Matthew Eby: Yeah, that’s exactly what we do at First Street Foundation, is we work with the world’s best scientists and modelers to create transparent and peer-reviewed models that we then turn into tools that you can access free of charge on Risk Factor. So if you go to riskfactor.com, you can actually type in an address and understand what the risk may be to your home today from winds or wildfires or floods or extreme heat, and then how that’ll change over the next 30 years. So understanding that uncertainty or those probabilities and that range of outcomes that could happen really then informs those next steps for you.
Caitlin Constantine: OK. And so when, say, somebody goes and they go to Risk Factor and they put in their address, I know that I’ve done this, I’ve recently bought a house and it gave me factors for flood, extreme heat and fire, how does somebody interpret that information that Risk Factor displays on the screen when they do that?
Matthew Eby: Well, the first thing that you’re going to see is a score from 1 to 10. One being minimal where we don’t identify risk within our models and then 10 being extreme. That score for the perils that you’re talking about is representative of a 30-year ownership period. So we don’t just look at what is the risk today, we say, “OK, if you’re going to own this home for 30 years, how likely is it that you’re going to be exposed to these things that would then be potentially consequential to you?” And so that score is a really indicative of what you need to dig further on.
So if you see one of the numbers kind of above 1, you’re going to want to click in and then know what might happen from those. So if we stick with this flooding example, say you had a flood factor of 5, you would click in and then you could understand what is the actual risk to the building. Is it likely that that water would make it inside the home and cause damage? And then you want to look at other things around, because we always talk about the home may be fine, it may be that 1 like we’re talking about, that great scenario where it’s a minimal risk and we don’t see it, but your neighborhood or your roads or the critical infrastructure in your community may be at risk. Those are all things we also show within the tool. So those scores are the great place to start to know where to dig deeper. But just because you see a 1 doesn’t mean you should also not take a peek around what might be at risk for your community overall and for those other pieces of social infrastructure, critical infrastructure or other residential properties around.
Caitlin Constantine: Right. So Risk Factor is like a starting point. We know that there’s been a lot of discussion about how difficult it can be for people to assess their risk, obviously. One other thing that we have heard as a suggestion is to just go and talk to the people in the neighborhood about their experiences while living there. Does that seem like a way that you can learn a little bit more about what your risk could potentially be?
Matthew Eby: Absolutely. One thing we are always telling folks is that a model is a model and it is not certainty. What you can actually do is look at your, as many models as possible. Or if we were talking about flooding still, talk to your local floodplain manager, talk to neighbors around what you may have seen in the past. The only difficult side with that is that won’t incorporate this idea of what’s going to happen in the future. So we know from carbon emissions to greenhouse gasses that things are getting warmer. We are able to quantify the differences of what will happen in those future scenarios and then understand how that’ll change certain events like flooding and wildfire and heat and hurricane winds and things of that nature. So while the history and the historical events are very important and helpful to know, it’s also important to take all of these pieces of information together to make a very informed decision versus just relying on one of them alone.
Caitlin Constantine: That makes a lot of sense. So we’ve just talked a little bit about where future homeowners should be thinking about when they’re shopping for a house during this time of climate change and uncertainty. Can we also talk a little bit about what you buy? For instance, if you’re buying an older house or if your home has new construction, can you share a little bit about that?
Matthew Eby: Sure. So when you are looking at your property, each one of these risks are going to have different vulnerabilities to that structure. So one thing, as you just mentioned when it was built, means the building code standards were going to be either today’s because it’s a new build or one of the past building code standards that would have different rules about how it must be constructed. And so you’re going to want to look at the age, which is then driver of the building code standard, but then also sync with things like wildfire. For a lot of the homes that are on the West Coast, what are we seeing for what’s called defensible space? So is there a bunch of shrubs around the property or trees around the property? Because that’s really the major driver of what sets so many homes to actually combust, is because fires get so close under those trees and shrubs. So there’s a mixture of not just the structure itself, but also what’s around structure.
Caitlin Constantine: As somebody who just bought a home that’s near a lot of trees, I have been paying a lot of attention to that buffer zone around my home where all the vegetation is because I know that I live in the [Wildland] Urban Interface. So let’s take a bigger picture view of this and talk about what we as housing consumers, do you think that we are actually paying enough attention to climate risk when we’re looking at and thinking about where to live?
Matthew Eby: Unfortunately, it’s not something that is part of every transaction. So there are things like the National Flood Insurance Program and the FEMA flood zones, which give you an understanding of risk from flooding as FEMA sees that. But that is a stationary view of risk. It doesn’t include how this will change in the future. It’s also dependent on when those maps are made and whether they’re even available for your area. And they miss things, like they don’t include basics like precipitation flooding, so they don’t have zones associated with just rainfall flooding, which actually causes so much damage to so many homes each year.
So there’s one issue there with kind of the government standards on flooding and how it doesn’t do that. Outside of that, there’s just not data for other things, like there’s not a data for wildfires at a property level. There’s things from the Forest Service where you can go to wildfirerisk.org and get an idea of your community risk, but it doesn’t tell you about your individual property. So those are the kind of the negatives.
The positive is that data like ours is now being integrated into Realtor.com, Redfin, these types of real estate sites or brokerages like Compass that are where people are looking for homes. So they actually, “While I’m seeing the listing, I can understand the level of risk and then make an informed decision based off of it.” So while we’re making great strides, it’s just not all the way there yet.
Caitlin Constantine: I’d like to shift gears really quick to talk about people who are already homeowners, especially people who already are in high-risk areas, like places that are already seeing rising sea levels or people that are in the [Wildland] Urban Interface where fire risk is more severe. How do you talk to people about managing their risk when they already live in these places?
Matthew Eby: Yeah, I mean, the first thing you can do is just know what your risk is. Talk to your local floodplain manager, talk to your local fire department to understand what might be at risk, what might not be. And then with that knowledge, you can start to put together a plan. Is it just your individual home that’s at risk and you need to think about adaptation, mechanisms, how do you harden your home so that it isn’t as exposed to these risks if they were to happen? Or, once you see your individual home risk, how do you collectively as a community start thinking about it? But it is a collective action that if everyone is willing to, together, do the best that they can to protect the community, you’re going to be in a much better spot than you just trying to do it as an individual.
Caitlin Constantine: So if there was just one lesson that you could have people learn and understand about the risks of owning a home in this time when the climate is changing, what would that one lesson be?
Matthew Eby: I think the thing that people get wrong all the time is probabilities, because probabilities are really hard. And so when you think of a 1 in 100 flooding event, you can’t think of it as “This will happen once every hundred years.” This is a 1% risk today. And then next year you have another 1% risk and so on and so forth. So if you think of that accumulative probability without anything to do with climate change yet, means that 1% event has a 26% chance of happening over a 30-year mortgage. So if you’re planning on living in your home for 30 years and you have a 1% risk, it’s a 1 in 4 chance that horrific event is going to happen to your property. So you have to think of it as, that is a significant amount of risk and you really need to plan like it’s going to happen.
Now, you add in climate to that and it’s 1% today and it’s growing over time. Those probabilities just compound. And so really what you need to be thinking about is cumulative risk with climate change. And so what are my actual odds of this if you’re a probability person, but really just thinking about homeownership as a length of time, not like an insurance policy where you look at risk on a year-by-year basis. Think of it as the homeowner as the period that you’re going to live in it or your whole period of it’s an investment.
Caitlin Constantine: I am really glad that you made that point because I’m not going to pretend like I’m great at math, but I know that this is an ongoing challenge for a lot of people because as you said, they hear 1 in 100, one flood out of every 100 years, and then there’s a flood and they’re like, “Cool, we’re good for the next 99 years.” And as you have —
Matthew Eby: “We’re good to go.”
Caitlin Constantine: Yeah. And as you’ve just stated, that’s actually not how probability works at all.
Matthew Eby: Yeah, exactly. Exactly. Yeah, the unfortunate part with flooding is that something like that happens, literally it could happen the next day. It’s just the lottery. You bought a lottery ticket and there’s a 1 in 100 chance of winning. You won. You buy a ticket the next day. You could win and get the exact same thing with flooding. But whereas something like wildfire is a little different because it needs fuel to burn. So once it burns, then everything changes. But that’s also so much more destructive than flooding. So each peril is different, but those probabilities are just so important to understand.
Caitlin Constantine: Matthew, this has been really great. Thank you so much for joining us today.
Matthew Eby: Oh, thanks so much for having me.
Sean Pyles: OK, Caitlin, the first thing I’m doing when I wrap up my work for the day is I’m going to put my property into Risk Factor, and then I’m going to study my home insurance policy.
Caitlin Constantine: That sounds like a fabulous evening. I hope that you’re going to enjoy an adult beverage along with that scintillating plan.
Sean Pyles: Yeah, maybe two.
Caitlin Constantine: I’m kidding, sort of. That’s actually a great plan and something that everyone should do regardless of whether you have an adult beverage with you or not.
Sean Pyles: Yes. So listeners, please put that on your to-do list. You will thank yourself later. But, Caitlin, can you tell us what’s coming up in episode three of the series?
Caitlin Constantine: Well, Sean, a lot of people want to know concrete steps they can take to help fight climate change. And one thing they may have heard about is what’s called ethical investing or ethical banking or ESG or sustainable banking or socially responsible investing.
Sean Pyles: OK. OK, Caitlin, I’m about to call the jargon police. These terms seem slapped together by a marketing team.
Caitlin Constantine: Oh, I agree with that. It is a lot of word salad, and we’re going to actually cut through that salad.
Sean Pyles: OK. I’m going to get a good fork and a good knife and maybe some tongs.
Caitlin Constantine: Yeah. And maybe a nice balsamic vinaigrette to go on top of it when you’re done.
Sean Pyles: Yes. Yes. All right.
Caitlin Constantine: So yes, but we’re hoping that this will give folks better tools as they’re making their decisions about how they can save the planet.
Spencer Tierney: We have to be honest with ourselves that our individual impact isn’t going to change the world on its own. It’s really going to be a group effort to create systemic solutions to climate change. And the more people who choose a bank based on its sustainable focus, the more of a hold sustainability will have in the banking industry.
Caitlin Constantine: For now, that’s all we have for this episode. So do you have a money question of your own? Turn to the Nerds and call or text us your questions at 901-730-6373. That’s 901-730-NERD. You can also email us at [email protected]. Also visit nerdwallet.com/podcast for more information on this episode. And remember to follow, rate, and review us wherever you’re getting this podcast.
Sean Pyles: This episode was produced by Tess Vigeland and Caitlin Constantine. I helped with editing. Sarah Schlichter helped with fact checking. Kaely Monahan mixed our audio. And a big thank you to the folks on the NerdWallet copy desk for all their help.
Caitlin Constantine: And here’s our brief disclaimer. We are not financial or investment advisors. This nerdy info is provided for general educational and entertainment purposes and it may not apply to your specific circumstances.
Sean Pyles: And with that said, until next time, turn to the Nerds.
A popular retailer has filed for bankruptcy and has announced its store in Flint, Michigan, will close.
Photo byAdobe
Christmas Tree Shops, a home decor, furniture, and discount gift retailer, is the latest business to file for bankruptcy protection. It has also announced ten of its stores will be closed.
The Christmas Tree Gift Shop (now known as CTS) first opened as a seasonal gift shop open between May and October in the 1950s. Bed Bath & Beyond owned it for some time before being acquired by Handil Holdings in 2020.
At the time of the bankruptcy filing, the brand had 82 stores across 20 states and employed more than 5,700 staff nationwide.
According to Forbes, the “company attributed the bankruptcy to high inflation, recent interest rate hikes and dropping consumer demand for home goods and seasonal decoration.”
“Christmas Tree Shops is in bankruptcyprobably for the same reasons as Bed Bath & Beyond but with less of a lead-up. It’s another store that sells everything, and you can still get that stuff easier from Amazon.” Ted Gavin, managing director and founding partner of Gavin/Solmonese, a corporate recovery firm
Stores closing in Flint, Michigan
The store in Flint was one of the ten stores listed to close. A sale has commenced, and according to a press release, “shoppers can take advantage of discounts up to 30 percent off the lowest ticketed prices throughout the store. These stores offer a huge selection of home décor, furniture, gifts, and so much more, including popular brands, now at even lower prices.”
4071 Miller Road, Flint, MI, 48507
No date has been listed for when the store may close, so shoppers should act quickly to take advantage of this sale.
Several retail chains have filed for bankruptcy recently, including Bed Bath & Beyond, Tuesday Morning, David’s Bridal, and Party City. Other major retailers such as Walmart, Macy’s, GAP, and Best Buy are also closing stores across the United States.
Your thoughts
Are you concerned about the number of retail businesses closing? Do you believe the government should offer these businesses more financial support? Do you fear we will head toward a recession? Who is to blame for this retail crisis?
Please leave your thoughts in the comments below and share this article on social media so more people can join the discussion. And to keep up to date with all the latest retail and business developments, make sure you click the follow button!
On April 1st, I got an unpleasant surprise, and it wasn’t an April Fools joke or gag. I found out that one of our renters didn’t have enough money to pay all of his rent.
Since nothing like this has ever happened before, I was definitely caught off guard. Still, it wasn’t the end of the world. Since I pay all of our mortgages ahead of schedule, waiting a few weeks for payment wasn’t going to affect my bottom line. And after talking with my tenant, I agreed to accept partial rent on the 1st and the rest of the money on the 17th of April.
I usually wouldn’t make such a big exception. However, this particular tenant is a responsible man who treats our property with incredible respect and care, even going as far as fertilizing and edging the lawn. Since he and his wife have lived in my property for four years and never paid late, I was more than willing to break the rules just this once without giving them any grief. No big deal.
But once our tenant left, my usually frugal husband, Greg, had an idea that shocked me. “We should just let him mow our grass this summer and forget about the $400 he owes.” Our renter did work in landscaping, after all, and he had expressed interest in mowing our yard in the past. However, I wasn’t fully sold on the idea.
We aren’t saving extremists by any means, but we’ve always been the kind of people who do everything ourselves. We clean our own house, do our own yard work, and manage our own rental properties. Greg does our taxes and accounting and I even color my own hair. We rarely farm out any of our responsibilities, and we have saved a lot of money by choosing to be self-sufficient. In fact, that is basically how we dug ourselves out of debt. Some of our first steps toward a healthier financial situation included cutting out unnecessary services and becoming more self-reliant. Since adopting a frugal lifestyle is what got us where we are today, I was extremely hesitant to hire out any of our responsibilities. It seemed like a giant failure on our part and I felt like we were taking a step in the wrong direction.
An unsustainable future
Still, trying to do everything ourselves can sometimes take its toll. A few weeks ago, Kristin Wong wrote a post about being a workaholic, and I could definitely relate. Greg and I both work full-time and have various side hustles and freelance writing gigs. We also have two small children that require a lot of energy and care. For the past year, we have easily worked 55-65 hours or more per week, in addition to doing all of our household chores and being parents. It’s been great for our pocketbook, but it has been extremely hard to maintain a high level of productivity at work and keep everything else running smoothly.
Occasionally, something has had to give. And to the likely disdain of our neighbors, that something has usually been our yard. Last year, we were unable to find time to mow on several occasions, and the result was that our home stuck out terribly on our quiet street of beautifully manicured lawns. Whenever that happened, we were stressed out and overwhelmed until we finally found time to get the job done.
Is a reasonable amount of lifestyle inflation okay?
Considering the circumstances, paying someone to mow our grass started to sound amazing. But, would that really be a responsible decision? Or would we just be giving in to the chief sin of frugality: lifestyle inflation? My husband assured me that this arrangement would work out great for everyone involved. Our tenant wouldn’t owe us the rest of his rent for the month, and in turn, we would have an entire warm season free from yard work. He reasoned that we just cannot keep working so hard without burning out. And, as usual, he had a point.
“It’s time to stop trying to do everything ourselves. We need to find a way to have more free time or we will eventually go crazy.”
He spoke the truth. Aside from vacation, we haven’t had much free time in the past few years. We had been working so hard, had paid off all of our debts, and were able to secure various streams of income. However, we were running short on time to get anything else done. And while working hard wasn’t a problem in itself, the hours we were putting in meant that our other responsibilities were often neglected. Nevertheless, I didn’t want to get carried away by our new penchant for lifestyle inflation. It was important to determine what we really wanted to hire someone to do, and what we would continue to do ourselves.
My husband made another thoughtful suggestion, “let’s just do the math and see if it really makes sense.” So we did. Our tenant currently owed us $400, and we figured that we probably mowed our grass fifteen times last year. That works out to about $25 per mow. And since it typically takes either of us about two hours to get our yard mowed, we would only be paying $12.50 per hour to buy our time back. Looking at the numbers from that perspective made me feel completely different. Was it worth it to pay someone $12.50 an hour to complete a task that we could rarely find time to do? Without a doubt.
We decided to call our tenant and see if he would agree to our suggested arrangement. He was thrilled to have the opportunity, and I was relieved that we would have summer free of yard work after all. And even though my husband suggested that we also hire someone to clean our house, I’m still mulling that suggestion over. I’m just not willing to make several changes at once, and I don’t want to end up paying someone to do everything.
A healthy dose of lifestyle inflation
Even though I was feeling like a failure for not being able to do everything, I am learning to accept that fact that it may make sense to occasionally hire help. And the truth is, I used to clean houses in my early twenties, and the people I cleaned for weren’t lazy at all. They were busy. They knew that their time had become worth more than what they were paying me to clean their home, and I now realize that they were wise to delegate those responsibilities.
In the end, we decided to do what felt right. And since we are finally debt free and starting to earn more, it was time to start reevaluating the way we have been living. Time is our most precious asset, and we needed to spend more time living instead of always cramming in as much productivity as possible. It’s become against my nature to pay for services, but I’m coming around, slowly but surely. And this summer, when my kids are playing in the dirt and I’m enjoying the last hours of the evening, I’ll probably wonder if the money was worth it. I can only hope that the answer is yes.
Do you do everything yourself? Or do you hire out certain responsibilities? What factors do you take into consideration when making those decisions?
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Affirmations have been all the rage over the past few years, and people are using them to achieve their goals.
“I am in control of my finances”
“Money comes easily into my life”
or even “I love money!”
What about you? Do affirmations work for your goal? I’m not one to shy away from a challenge, so let’s find out!
Are you struggling to make more money, even though you work a lot? Do you feel like your finances aren’t where they should be and that there is something missing in your life?
If so, here are some money affirmations that can help.
Affirmations are statements that you say to yourself over and over again.
They can help you manifest your goals by re-affirming them in your mind on a daily basis. They become part of who you believe yourself to be and bring about desired outcomes with ease.
You may have heard these before, but do you consistently say them to yourself? Journal them? Write them everywhere?
I’ve compiled some of my favorite money affirmations for money below. I hope these help give you the encouragement and inspiration to re-affirm what’s important in your life!
What are money affirmations?
Affirmations are a powerful way to change your thoughts and, in turn, your life.
They are simple, positive statements that you repeat to yourself regularly. The purpose of affirmations is to attract whatever you desire into your life- including money!
Why are money affirmations important?
It’s important to remember that affirmations work subconsciously.
You may not see results overnight, but with time and repetition, the desired outcome will manifest. Wealth affirmations specifically focus on money and what a person will do with it after they have made it through the manifestation process.
Affirmations on Money
Although using affirmations is a great way to achieve financial success, they should not be used as the only tool in your arsenal. Manifesting your goals takes time and effort, and affirmation is just one piece of the puzzle. Make sure to take actionable steps towards your goal and be patient!
Affirmations can also be used to create SMART financial goals– specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound goals that you can track over time for motivation purposes
How can money affirmations help you attract more money into your life?
Affirmations are one way to help you focus on your thoughts and dreams.
When you repeat an affirmation, you plant a seed in your subconscious mind that will grow over time.
This helps to manifest what you want into reality.
These seeds will grow over time and bring about new thoughts, beliefs, and habits into a mindset of abundance. Money affirmations have a “magnetic” effect that attracts like-minded thoughts to your life–helping you achieve your financial goals faster!
There are many ways to bring more money into your life, but using affirmations is one of the most effective methods. Affirmations can help create strong positive emotions that attract money and other forms of abundance into your life. When used consistently, money affirmations can be a powerful tool for attracting wealth and prosperity into your world!
Below we will give you exactly what can I say to attract money.
What is a way specific money affirmations can be used to attract more money?
When it comes to attracting more money into your life, there are many different affirmations that can be useful.
Many people ask, “What are the best affirmations for money?”
Below are a few examples to get you started:
“I am abundant and prosperous.”
“Money flows easily and effortlessly to me.”
“I am safe and secure with my finances.”
“My income is constantly increasing.”
“I have all the money I need and more.”
Do affirmations work for money? Absolutely, yes.
How often should you repeat money affirmations in order to see results?
The more often you repeat your affirmations, the better.
However, don’t feel like you have to do it all day long. Just a few minutes each morning and evening should be enough to start seeing some results.
Remember that affirmations are just like any other habit- the more you do them, the easier they become and the better the results will be. So stick with it!
Do money affirmations really work or are they just a waste of time?
There is a lot of debate on the internet about whether or not money affirmations actually work. Some people swear by them and claim that they have had great success using them, while others say that they are nothing more than a waste of time.
One thing that is for sure is that money affirmations do have some very powerful success stories behind them.
People like Oprah Winfrey and Lady Gaga were successful before they ever became public figures, and a lot of their success can be attributed to their belief in themselves and their determination to work hard at everything they do.
In fact, many of the billionaire morning routines include starting their days with positive affirmations.
Can affirmations make you rich and come to abundance?
When it comes to getting rich, many people believe that affirmations are the answer.
The idea behind using affirmations is that if you repeat something often enough, you will start to believe it and eventually it will come true. However, this isn’t magic – rather, it’s a matter of shifting your beliefs.
And while affirmations won’t make you rich overnight, they can cause desired results to appear over time.
Mindset and Affirmations
The key thing to remember with affirmations is to maintain a positive mindset.
You want to be focused on attracting wealth and abundance into your life, not just thinking about what you don’t want. Money affirmations can help raise your vibration and shift your beliefs so that you can start attracting more money into your life.
Remember…Mindset is everything.
How do affirmations work?
Affirmations work because we keep repeating them to ourselves. It’s like a self-fulfilling prophecy!
Our subconscious mind picks up on the positive affirmation and starts to change our behavior over time.
The more effort we put into it, the better chance that our subconscious will start accepting these new thoughts as truth.
Affirmations are conscious and subconscious–both play a role in helping us manifest what we desire. Positive affirmations help us get rid of negative thoughts and replace them with more confident ones. We need to be mindful of our words and truly believe in order for the affirmation to work its magic!
The subconscious begins to accept positive reinforcement over time as long as we continue putting in the work. Eventually, this helps us change our mindset and see things in a different light. “I can” replaces “I can’t.”
This is because affirmations work best when they’re phrased positively!
What do experts say about using money affirmations to attract more money?
When it comes to attracting more money into your life, there are many things you can do to help increase your chances of success. Some people may swear by the power of affirmations, while others find that other methods work better for them.
However, most experts agree that using some type of affirmation is a good way to start visualizing your goals and keeping them at the forefront of your mind.
Affirmations can also help open up your mind to opportunities in a confident way, attracting more opportunities for you. While they won’t create wealth on their own, if used correctly they have the potential to help people create more money.
Keep in mind that affirmation is not a magic solution – it takes hard work and dedication no matter what method you choose – but if you’re looking for an edge, using daily affirmations could be the right choice for you.
What is the science behind money affirmations and how do they work?
When it comes to the science behind money affirmations, there is a lot of research that supports their efficacy.
A study published in The Journal of Positive Psychology found that people who regularly use positive self-statements (such as daily affirmations) have increased well-being and decreased levels of anxiety and depression.
The reason why affirmations work is because they help to change your beliefs and the vibrations you emit into the universe.
When you think positively about yourself, you are sending out positive vibes into the world which can attract more good things into your life.
Your words are powerful magic wands when it comes to shaping your own reality. What you focus on expands! So by repeating money affirmations, you are essentially telling the universe that you want more money in your life and that you are ready for it to come to you.
Affirmations are an easy way to change the way that you think, and they can be used as a tool to remove any barriers that are holding you back financially in life. If you’re feeling stuck under a scarcity mindset, start using some money affirmations today and see how they can help you achieve your goals!
Here are 125+ money affirmations you can start using today!
Money Manifestation Affirmations
When you repeat money affirmations, you are programming your mind to believe that it is easy and natural for you to be prosperous and successful.
You are sending a message to the universe saying, “I am open to receiving wealth and abundance.” As you continue to recite these affirmations, you will start to see changes in your life as you attract more money into your experience.
Manifesting a healthy relationship with money is important.
1. “I have more than enough money, and that’s okay.”
2. “It is easy and natural for me to be successful and prosperous.”
3. “My income is constantly increasing.”
4. “I easily attract new sources of income into my life.”
5. “I gratefully accept all the wealth and abundance the universe has to offer me”.
6. “When I put in the work, the universe will provide.”
7. “I anticipate money to work for me.”
8. “Money + abundance happen to me.”
9. “With the power of attraction, I will bring wealth and money into my life.”
10. “I love having plenty of money.”
11. “The more I give away, the more I receive.”
12. “Wealth can come to anyone including me.”
13. “I am enough and my intention attracts money to me.”
14. “My prosperity is unlimited.”
15. “My path leads to riches.”
Money Affirmations that Work Fast
Money affirmations are a great way to attract more money into your life.
They are positive statements that help you focus on your goals and visualize yourself achieving them. Repeating these affirmations will help you program your mind for success and abundance.
16. “Money is a positive force in my life.”
17. “I will make $100 today.”
18. “I will make $1000 tomorrow.”
19. “By design, I will reach my potential.”
20. “I am a magnet for wealth and abundance.”
21. “I believe in myself.”
22. “Money flows easily and abundantly to me.”
23. “Money is my friend, not my enemy.”
24. “By releasing my money blocks, I open myself to letting money flow in.”
25. “I welcome various ways to make money.”
26. “Money allows us to live the life we want and achieve our goals easily.”
27. “I am in control of my future.”
28. “I attract money easily in my life.”
Powerful Money Affirmations
Money affirmations are a powerful way to attract more money into your life.
Repeating these affirmations will help you to change your mindset and start to see yourself as someone who has abundance, rather than someone who is always short on money.
These power money affirmations reassure you that no obstacle is too big and that you have the power to overcome any hurdle.
29. “I am blessed with an ever-flowing stream of prosperity.”
30. “I release all fear and doubt around money.”
31. “More money is coming to me.”
32. “I am confident in my ability to handle any money-related challenges that come my way.”
33. “As a powerful creator, attracting money into my life with the power of my thoughts and feelings.”
34. “I will invest $100 make $1000 a day.”
35. “I know that I can overcome any obstacle and attract more money into my life.”
36. “My guiding belief is my motivation and my reality.”
37. “I am a money magnet; money comes to me easily and effortlessly.”
38. “I am capable of overcoming any money-obstacles that stand in my way.”
39. “Money is a close ally in life.”
40. “Being independently wealthy is a part of my life.”
41. “I am grateful for what I been blessed with.”
42. “I am rewriting my money story.”
43. “Money helps me experience time freedom.”
Positive Money Affirmation
These affirmations underscore the importance of taking a holistic approach to financial health. Self-care is essential, as is developing a strong sense of self-worth.
When you feel good about yourself on all levels, you’re more likely to make healthy financial decisions.
44. “I am worthy.”
45. “I release my limiting beliefs surrounding money.”
46. “Building self-worth will lead to better financial choices.”
47. “I visualize my future self and believe it has already happened.”
48. “Money is just a form of energy that flows to me effortlessly and abundantly.”
49. “I am able to easily afford whatever I want.”
50. “Money is an avenue to have a positive impact.”
51. “I am so lucky that I am able to earn more money than I could possibly fathom.”
52. “Money is attracted to me by virtue of the powerful vibrations I radiate.”
53. “I am not ashamed or feel guilty about having an abundance of wealth.”
54. “Money comes to me in huge quantities through my ability to attract it from the universe.”
55. “It is safe for us to be wealthy and successful.”
56. “I am thankful for the positive impact money has had on my life.”
57. “I love my positive outlook on my life and the riches that come from it.”
Financial Affirmations
While you may be feeling down about your current money situation, know that there are ways to change it. Use a variety of positive financial affirmations for different money goals, such as attracting more money into your life or becoming debt-free. You can also personalize the affirmations to fit your own needs and situation.
These financial abundance affirmations help guide you to where you want to be financially. Learning how to become financially independent starts with believing that you can.
You may not be where you want to be yet, but with time and effort, your wealth situation will improve.
58. “I will have money left over at the end of the month.”
59. “My payday is approaching.”
60. “Money does not control me. I control my money.”
61. “Money comes to me in unexpected and wonderful ways.”
62. “My finances are always in perfect order.”
63. “My income will exceed 6 figures.”
64. “I have complete control over my financial destiny.”
65. “All my needs and wants are always taken care of.”
66. “I love having lots of money to spend.”
67. “Don’t let feeling behind today stop you from building the life you want tomorrow.” — The Financial Diet
68. “I am financially free.”
69. “I am worthy of financial success.”
70. “With hard work, I will attain the financial future I desire.”
71. “I am excited to maintain my budget and reach my money goals.”
72. “Step by step, I will achieve my financial goals.”
73. “Money is a tool available to anyone and I will use it to my advantage.”
Saving Money Affirmations
While your current money situation may be less than ideal, you can use these affirmations to change your mindset and start attracting more money into your life.
Repeating these affirmations will help you focus on the positive aspects of wealth and abundance, and eventually bring more financial security into your life.
74. “Money in the bank makes me feel secure.”
75. “My money situation may not be what I want right now, but I am in better shape than I was last month.”
76. “I will save 10000 in a year.”
77. “I might make a pretty low-income at the moment, but I am still saving money.”
78. “My worth is not determined by my net worth.”
79. “I am saving for my future self.”
80. “Making small sacrifices now will build my increase my savings later.”
81. “Through investing I am able to make passive income.”
82. “A penny saved is a penny earned.”
83. “Financial stability brings me peace.”
84. “I say no today in order to say yes tomorrow.”
85. “I will stay debt-free because money is constantly flowing into my life.”
86. “My saving rate is beyond my dreams.”
87. “The challenge of saving more money lures me in.”
Money Flows to Me Easily and Effortlessly
One of the simplest and most effective ways to attract more money into our lives is through the use of affirmations.
Repeating positive statements about money can help change our underlying beliefs and open up new opportunities for financial growth.
Money comes in both expected and unexpected ways, so it’s important to stay open-minded about how it could enter your life.
88. “I let go of any resistance to attracting money.”
89. “Financing my life is an easy task for me.”
90. “I will double 10k quickly.”
91. “My money situation right now may be tight but it’s changing for the better”
92. “I am surrounded by an aura of wealth and abundance.”
93. “Money comes in many different forms, and it can come to us in both expected and unexpected ways.”
94. “Money is an energy that flows to us in many ways.”
95. “I attract money easily and effortlessly.”
96. “I am open to the flow of money my way.”
97. “Money magnet is my name.”
98. “Money attraction is easy for me.”
99. “I can rely on left hand itching to bring me money.”
100. “I turn money into more money.”
Money Affirmations for Success
These help you cultivate positive beliefs about your ability to earn and manage money. These positive thoughts will help support your efforts as you work towards financial success.
101. “It’s easy and natural for me to be prosperous and successful.”
102. “I am surrounded by people who support my financial growth.”
103. “Money is a tool that lets me construct my life how I see fit.”
104. “I have unlimited opportunities to make more money.”
105. “I am not afraid of achieving success.”
106. “Becoming rich doing what I love is a gift.”
107. “I have super-abilities to be successful.”
108. “Success is the best revenge.”
109. “I don’t need to be a millionaire to be successful.”
110. “I have control of my financial future.”
111. “The sky is the limit to what I can achieve.”
112. “A positive money mindset will serve me well.”
Wealth Affirmations
There are many different money affirmations that can be used to attract more money into your life.
Wealth and abundance come in all shapes and sizes, so it’s important to find an affirmation that resonates with you. “I am worthy” is a good place to start if you want to build self-worth and confidence, which can lead to better financial choices down the road.
You may not be where you want to be yet, but with time and effort, your wealth situation will improve.
These are positive affirmations for success and wealth.
113. “I am open and receptive to wealth and abundance.”
114. “Wealth and prosperity are my birthrights.”
115. “I am open to receiving all wealth life brings me, not just what is coming today or this month.”
116. “Abundance can come in many different forms!”
117. “Wealth is a step towards how to FI.”
118. “I have more than enough money, and that’s okay.”
119. “Financial freedom will happen sooner than I believe.”
120. “The more wealth I have, the more I give back to others.”
121. “There is plenty of wealth to be made.”
122. “Money can be shared when saying ‘I appreciate you.’”
123. “Wealth flows to me easily.”
124. “Having more than enough money does not mean I love money.”
125. “My wealth is limitless.”
How Do You Write Affirmations For Money?
Regardless of how money comes to us, it is important to remember that we always have the ability to attract more of it into our lives. By repeating positive affirmations about money, we can increase our chances of attracting more abundance into our lives.
Following these guidelines will help you write effective affirmations that move negativity out of your life and bring more money into it!
When you’re writing affirmations for money, it’s important to remember a few key things.
Step #1 – Need a Present Tense
First, always use the present tense; this will help your unconscious mind process the affirmation more easily.
Step #2 – Change to Positive Words
Second, make sure your words are positive–for example, “I only spend money on things I love” rather than “I don’t have to worry about money.” This will help you attract financial abundance and success into your life.
Step #3 – Believe it is Already Yours
Finally, before affirming any goal or intention, take a moment to really feel what it would be like to have that already in your life. Our unconscious minds respond better when we can imagine and experience what we want in advance.
There are a number of books that focus on mindset and how to change it for success. The list below contains some of the best ones that I’ve found.
These books teach you to believe in your ability to shape your own destiny and achieve great things.
Remember you need these essential mindset books to help you change your perspective and achieve success. Remember, it’s not about avoiding or getting rid of obstacles, but turning them into advantages.
Embrace the challenges in life and continue moving forward!
Mindset is everything.
This is a simple but profound statement that has been discovered by Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D. She found that success in school, work, sports and almost every other area of human endeavor can be dramatically influenced by how we think about our talents and abilities.
The key to success is having the right mindset – a growth mindset.
In order to achieve success, you need to change your mindset.
This book will teach you how to change your mindset and get the most out of life and some colorful quotes that you will quote.
You will learn how to change what you don’t love, use external forces to kick some serious change in you and find your inner power. You will learn how to embrace your inner vibes.
Each morning start your day with a positive affirmation from this Daily Rituals book. Follow the simple exercises.
By practicing these rituals regularly, you will train your mind and raise your vibration levels.
Color your way to manifest your money affirmations. Unplug yourself and get a well-needed mental break.
Attract the abundance of wealth into your daily life.
Make Money Affirmations Quotes
The best part of all of these powerful money affirmations … you can turn them into quotes!
You can use a simple post-it note and pen! Or upgrade and make them in Canva.
Not artistic? Etsy has you covered! Don’t worry Etsy has plenty of money affirmation quotes.
In fact, we are thinking about designing a package of money affirmations quotes for our readers!
Hang them on your wall as a constant reminder.
How can you tell if money affirmations are working for you?
One way to tell if money affirmations are working for you is to look at your bank account.
If you find that you have more money in your bank account than usual, it is a good sign that the affirmations are working.
Another way to tell if the affirmations are working is by looking at your overall mood and attitude towards money.
If you find yourself thinking about money less often and feeling happier and more positive, then the affirmations are definitely working for you!
Money affirmations take time to manifest, so don’t become discouraged if you don’t see immediate results.
Repeating abundance affirmations can help you to open up to the flow of wealth in your life.
By affirming that you are open to receiving all the wealth life has to offer, not just what is coming your way today or this month, but also the wealth of tomorrow, you start to invite more money into your life.
Check out these millionaire quotes to keep you aiming for the stars!
At the end of the day, you don’t need to feel guilty or ashamed about having an abundance of wealth–that’s perfectly okay!
Know someone else that needs this, too? Then, please share!!
You’ll have to forgive the overt theme of today’s post. I’ve been wanting to write about this topic for a while, but it’s such personal issue that I’ve shied away from it.
But when I realized that this week’s post would fall on Valentine’s Day, I took it as a serendipitous opportunity to break out of my comfort zone and talk about something that scares me a little: my love life. Specifically, this is the story of my love life meeting my financial life. Oh, boy.
A couple of years ago, I met someone who changed my whole perspective. I started to not just think in terms of “me” but also “we.” As these things go, we decided to share a life together. Sharing a life meant sharing an apartment. And sharing an apartment meant sharing finances.
We’ve had many discussions about money, but only one real full-blown fight. But I thought I’d share what I’ve learned about living in financial harmony and ask what you’ve learned, too. But first, a little background.
We’re balanced — usually
I’m an extreme worrier. This is with everything, but especially money. Brian is more easygoing. We’re both hard workers, but when there’s an obstacle, we react differently. When faced with a problem, Brian might let out an expletive or two, but for the most part, he doesn’t let it get to him. I, on the other hand, completely freak out.
Sometimes he should let it get to him more. And sometimes I shouldn’t freak out so much. Most of the time, we come to a reasonable middle ground, and that’s great. For example, last year, when I underestimated my tax payments and lost all my savings, I went into full-blown panic mode. His rational attitude was helpful — he explained that we would just have to tighten up the budget. He explained that, contrary to what I was feeling, this wasn’t the end of the world. “You don’t have debts to pay off,” he reassured me. “You have a job, and you can still pay your bills. You just have to rebuild.” He was reasonable, and it helped.
But there are times that I find his attitude to be too casual, and there are times that he finds my neurosis to be unreasonable. That’s our dynamic. I never really expected to make my GRS journey with someone else, but here we are, and here’s what we’re learning.
We have different financial motivators
In discussing finances with Brian, I’ve realized that my main impulse for financial independence is fear. Last month, I wrote about how I desperately need a new computer, but the poor kid in me won’t spend the money to buy a new one, even though I can afford it. Brian was the one who inspired me to think about the pitfalls of this behavior when he asked, “Why else do you save money if not to have a sense of security and be comfortable?”
When he asked that, I realized that he seeks financial independence because he wants to live a nice, comfortable life. Meanwhile, I seek financial independence because I’m terrified of being poor. That was a weird thing to learn about myself, and I’m trying to transform that fear into something healthy. But in terms of our relationship, realizing our differences helped us learn how to talk about money.
How to talk about money
It’s great that Brian has a different motivation for financial independence, but sometimes, that can backfire, too. When you’re trying to save, for example, the desire to live a comfortable lifestyle right now can get in the way.
Last year, Brian was frustrated over some bills that were much higher than he anticipated. At first, I tried to help by telling him I would “manage” his finances and budget. “I know what works,” I would tell him (this coming from the person who didn’t pay her quarterly estimated taxes). “So this is what you should do.”
I’ll admit, “Do what works for you” has been the GRS tenet I struggle with most. For one, I feel like some things just work for everyone — they’re just universally good ideas. And second, I can be unsympathetic. I forget that people have different ways of motivating themselves. And this is what caused the one full-blown fight Brian and I had about finances, in which I stormed upstairs and sulked because he wouldn’t listen to me.
“Your advice makes sense,” he said. “But I need to figure this out on my own.”
J.D. once asked how we talk to our loved ones about money. He brought up the point that “if they’re not ready to listen, you run the risk of doing more harm than good when you offer advice.”
Realizing there was only so much I could do, I decided to do two things: 1. Lead by example, and 2. Have faith in the man I chose to live with.
Lead by example
It’s easier to budget if you’re living with someone on a budget. Out of the blue one day, I caught Brian using Mint.com — a suggestion I once made that I thought had been shrugged off. Turns out, he saw me make it a part of my regular finance routine and realized this would be the easiest way to keep track of his finances, too. Sometimes, leading by example works better than lecturing, and I think that’s especially helpful in a relationship, because lecturing kind of kills romance.
Have faith
I think most of us have the capacity to come to terms with what’s best for us. But I’ve never really been the type of person who leaves it up to someone else to figure things out. I’m more of a “here just let me do it” kind of gal. But that’s not how relationships work, so I’ve learned that you have to have faith in the other person. Or, as my mom has told me, you have to have faith that you picked the right person.
Brian is both open-minded and perceptive. I had faith in those qualities when we got into that money fight. It was really all I could do for our relationship — I hate to admit it, but I had to learn to be less controlling.
Preparing for the future
I’m not sure how I feel about the phrase “When you know, you know.” Some couples hit it off immediately, get married fast, and then live together in perfect harmony. I did feel something different when I met Brian, but it was more that, as I got to know him, I grew more confident of that feeling. I see us working out whatever hurdles may arise in the future. I see us figuring out a way to combine our finances, should we decide to do that. Because we’ve gotten to know each other’s money habits and behaviors, we’ll have a better idea of what to expect from the other person in our financial future. Money is an unavoidable issue when you’re sharing a life together, but having these financial experiences and discussions makes me feel better about tackling money issues down the road.
Overall, a lot of the stuff that seems to solve money issues in relationships is the same stuff that solves relationship issues in general. We’ve learned to communicate better about money. We’ve learned to be open about our finances. We’ve learned to compromise on our budgets. We still don’t have the same spending and savings habits, but we’ve found a way to live in financial harmony.
But I’m curious what you’ve learned. This is new to me — I’ve never really shared a budget or financial information with a significant other before. So, I’d like to ask:
How did you learn to live in financial harmony with your partner? What were some obstacles you faced?
What’s your advice for preparing for a financial life together?
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Frugal green living is important for everyone because environmental issues affect all of us, not just the people who can afford to be eco-conscious.
Plus the concept of frugal green means you are saving money! And that is always helpful.
This is why I created this blog, to help people save money, find financial freedom, and have choices in life.
Reducing your carbon footprint is one of the greatest gifts you can give to yourself and the planet.
But how do you save money while also making a difference? It’s possible!
This is why choosing to be frugal green is so important!
These are all frugal ways that I have personally done or heard of other people doing as well. They are tried-and-true methods of living a more frugal life, and I hope that you will find them helpful. Plus help the environment at the same time.
This is a win-win situation.
Have you ever wondered how to be environmentally friendly?
Do you want to save money and the environment at the same time?
This article has 91+ frugal green living tips that will help! Let me know which ones are your favorites!
How to save money and be frugal green?
There are many ways to be frugal green and save money while helping the environment.
Plus in the long run living green costs less.
We will cover ideas for your kitchen, car, shopping and so much more. There are many other ways to be frugal green, so find what works best for you and make a difference!
These are ways to live more sustainably while saving money.
Importance of Sustainability and the Environment
You can save money and help the environment without making any major changes to your lifestyle.
Some easy ways to do this include, but are not limited to, changing your habits at home, buying used instead of new, and being more conscious about how you use energy.
Every day you can make the decision to choose to be a thrifty person.
Top 10 Best Frugal Green Living Tips
In order to save money and be more environmentally friendly, try some of these tips:
1. Reduce your use of plastics. This means bringing your own bags to the grocery store, refusing straws when you order drinks, and not using disposable utensils or plates.
2. Make Recycling a Priority. Recycling is important, and everyone should do their part to make it a part of their everyday routine. It’s not just for plastics and paper- there are many different things that can be recycled. By taking small steps like bringing a reusable coffee mug, we can all make a big difference in the long run.
3. Ride a bike or walk instead of driving. Not only is this better for the environment, but it’s also a great way to get some exercise.
4. Do the “green thing” and buy things secondhand! When you’re considering your lifestyle choices, buying things secondhand is a great way to do the “green thing.” You can save money and help reduce the amount of waste that goes into landfills.
5. Only buy what you need. Many times we buy things out of convenience or wants. Truly evaluate whether the purchase is necessary or if you can save money by buying used.
6. Compost as much as possible. Not only does this help reduce waste, but it also helps create nutrient-rich soil for plants.
7. Consider your carbon footprint. Americans use a tremendous amount of resources and impact the planet in many ways. We consume a lot of energy, materials, and water. Our lifestyles have a big environmental impact. There are many ways to be frugal and environmentally conscious, including recycling and reducing food waste.
8. Cut Out Paper and Plastic Waste. One way to be more frugal and green is to reduce the amount of paper and plastic waste you produce. Technology has greatly improved in many ways to cut down on plastic and paper consumption, so take advantage.
9. Think Before You Throw Away and Buy New. We are way too quick to toss things and replace them without even thinking. Next time before you throw it into the landfill, think about how you can reuse, repurpose, or give away the item.
10. Upcycle. The concept of upcycling has gained popularity in the past years. It is a simple way of taking something ugly and worn down, putting some TLC into it, and making it into something beautiful.
Related Reading: Top 10 Influential Frugal Living Tips with a Big Impact
Being frugal and being environmentally conscious may not always go hand in hand.
In some cases, you may have to make a choice between buying an eco-friendly item that is more expensive or sticking with a cheaper, non-sustainable option.
However, many of the aims of frugal families link to eco-friendly living.
Below are simple sustainable products to consider buying instead of their wasteful counterpart.
Reusable food bags are a great way to reduce your environmental impact while also saving money.
There are a variety of different types of food grade eco-friendly bags on the market today. They are made of safe, eco-friendly materials that will not harm the environment and they are lead-free, chloride-free, and BPA free.
Bamboo straws are a great eco-friendly alternative to plastic straws.
They are compostable, meaning they will never pollute the environment or harm animals. Bamboo straws are odorless and tasteless, so you can use them with any drink. Reusable bamboo straws make a great addition to your everyday kitchen supplies.
These dish cloths are also super absorbent and work better than microfiber cloths and paper towels for cleaning.
They are made from cellulose, which is a soft material that is gentle on your hands. They can be used for a variety of tasks, such as dishwashing, wiping down counters, and polishing furniture. And they are durable enough to be reused multiple times.
A reusable K-cup is a great way to reduce your environmental impact while enjoying your favorite cup of joe.
Works perfectly in our house! Not only do they help you save money in the long run, but they also allow you to customize your coffee experience like never before. Plus, using a reusable k-cup is an easy way to reduce waste and help preserve our planet.
Frugal Green in the Kitchen & Table
There are a number of ways to save money and be frugal green in your kitchen.
Use a Reusable Coffee Mug. So simple and easy to do. Pick your favorite up here.
Skip plastic straws. This is a simple thing to do for the environment. Buy reusable straws. And don’t forget the cleaning brush (hint… the cleaning brush will save you from throwing away your reusable straws.)
Skip the Paper Plates and Plastic Utensils. You will be shocked to see the waste this creates. Invest in quality dishes you like and don’t be afraid to wash them up.
Invest in a Water Filter. If you’re looking for ways to improve your diet and save money, consider investing in a water filter. We upgraded to an under-the-sink mount water filter and it was the BEST choice ever! This is the exact one we bought.
Cook at Home. Making your own meals can save you a lot of money in the long run. You’ll be surprised at how much money you can save by cooking simple meals yourself.
Grow a Kitchen Garden. One way to reduce your food costs is to grow some of your own fruits and vegetables. You can start with a kitchen garden, which is a small plot of land near your house where you can plant fruits, vegetables, and herbs. if you don’t have space, check out these Aerogardens.
Stop Using Plastic Wrap. To reduce your reliance on plastic wrap is to invest in some beeswax food wraps. These work just as well as plastic wrap, but because they’re made of natural materials, you can reuse them over and over again!
Air dry dishes. This is because air-drying dishes use less energy than running a dishwasher and takes up less time.
Stick With Instant Pot. When you’re cooking, try to use a microwave or pressure cooker instead of your oven. Ovens produce a lot of heat and use up a lot of energy, so using these other appliances will help conserve resources. This is the Instant Pot/Air Fryer Combo I love (and use ALL.THE.TIME)!
Frugal Green Cooking & Menu Plan
This may not seem as environmentally conscious as other areas, however, it will help your wallet more.
Buy produce at the local market. Fruits and vegetables tend to be cheaper at the market than they are at the grocery store, so this is a great way to save some cash while also doing your part for the environment. Plus you save on the costs of trucking in the produce and support local.
Join a CSA. These community-supported agricultures have become popular ways for consumers to buy local and seasonal food directly from the farm. You normally have a dollar amount buy-in or a certain number of hours worked for food.
Enjoy Organic Foods. Organic foods may be worth the extra cost – organic food has a higher nutritional value than conventional food, plus it’s better for the environment because it doesn’t require pesticides or chemical fertilizers.
Go Meatless. Americans, on average, eat twice the recommended amount of meat. Meat production is one of the leading causes of greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. Consider your carbon footprint when making dietary decisions.
Shop Grocery Weekly Ads. Start by looking out for food sales at the grocery store. This can help you save money while also being more mindful of the environmental impact your food choices have.
Meal Plan. One great way to save money on groceries is to plan your meals ahead of time. This allows you to be more strategic in your shopping and can help you avoid buying items that you don’t need.
Use Leftovers. When you’re cooking a meal, always cook a little more than you need. This way, you’ll have leftovers that can be used to make another meal or stored in a glass jar for later use.
Pantry Challenge Time! One way to save money on your groceries is to consider doing a pantry cleanse. This means eating all the foods in your pantry that are sitting there. Then, only buy groceries that you know you’ll use. This can help you avoid overspending and wasting food.
Skip Pre-Made or Boxed Mixes. Making your own is a more affordable option, as pre-made or boxed mixes can be expensive. There are many recipes online that are healthy and affordable, and by planning ahead you can save time and money.
Shop the Perimeter of the Grocery Store. A lot of people want to save money and be more environmentally friendly, but don’t know where to start. One way to do both is to try to stick to the perimeter of the grocery store. This means avoiding the center aisles, where most processed foods and extra packaging are found.
Buy Generic Brands. Generic brands are less expensive than their name-brand counterparts. This is because generic brands do not have the same marketing and advertising costs as name-brand products. Many times the quality is the same or better!
Key Frugal Green Ideas While Shopping
These are environmentally friendly ways to improve your shopping habits. Many people may call this frugal minimalism.
Donate First. It’s easy to just dispose of something when it’s no longer needed, but sometimes that thing could be reused or recycled. For example, if you have an old TV that isn’t being used, try selling it or donating it before throwing it away. There are a lot of people who might need your old TV, and you can get some money for it if you sell it.
Buy Refurbished. On the other hand, if you’re in the market for a new TV, think about buying one that is refurbished instead of buying a brand-new one. Refurbished electronics often come with the same warranty as new ones and cost way less than buying a brand-new model.
Try Fixing First. Just because something is broken doesn’t mean you have to throw it away! Many times, things can be fixed very easily and cheaply. If your electronic device is leaking toxic chemicals, however, you should definitely not try to fix it yourself–take it to a professional recycler instead.
Reuse your own grocery bags. This will save both money and the environment, as disposable grocery bags often end up in landfills. Also, many stores are now charging for grocery bags, so save a few bucks at the store.
Do not buy new books. You can borrow books from the library or from friends, or you can buy them used. Buying new books wastes resources, and it’s often cheaper to buy them used.
Use the Library. The library has a wealth of books, movies, and music that you can borrow for free. Plus you can find access to tons of digital resources as well.
Shop Second-Hand Stores for your needs. These are great places to find clothes, furniture, and other household items at a fraction of the price.
Stop buying the paper version of the newspaper. Instead, get the daily news online for free. Not only will you save a few bucks each month, but you’ll also help reduce deforestation.
Shop at Sustainable Businesses. Thankfully, many companies focus on being sustainable businesses by making changes from production, to packing to shipping. As a whole, the industry could do better to create less waste. One sustainable company is the Everyone Store.
Think Twice on Gifts. Really consider what someone would want for a gift. Too many times we opt for quick and cheap gifts that are materialistic in nature and never be used. So, consider some of these money gift ideas instead.
Frugal Green Cleaning Products that Are Eco Friendly
You may not be environmentally aware of the hazards of using most cleaning products. In fact, you should check your normal cleaning products with EWG’s database and their standards.
DIY Baking Soda & Vinegar. Using green cleaning products is usually more expensive than traditional ones. Baking soda and vinegar are easy-to-find, cost-effective alternatives to environmentally unfriendly cleaners.
Use Microfiber Cloths. Personally, this is my favorite way to cut the expansive (and not-good-for-you) cleaning products. These microfiber cloths are just as effective at cleaning and will save you money in the long run.
Skip the Disposable Rags. Use up-cycled rags from old clothes to pick up spills.
Stop Using Air Fresheners. Reduce or eliminate the use of air fresheners, which release harmful chemicals into the air. Plus they are super costly!
Frugal Green & Energy Use in the Laundry Room
Use Detergent Powder. Washing your clothes in a washing powder uses less water than liquid tabs, which come in more plastic packaging. Also, the powder is a much better environmental solution and better for your body. This is the detergent powder we use and love (and those I recommended it to love it as well)!
Sniff Test. Implement the sniff test and only wash clothes when they fail the sniff test. Beware of this recommendation with teenagers!
Line Dry Clothes. Additionally, line drying clothes throughout the year can save a ton on your energy bill! Plus your clothes do not wear as quickly.
Watch Your Hot, Wash in Cold. One easy way to save money on your household bills is to reduce the amount of hot water you use. Heating water takes up a large percentage of the energy used in households, so by washing your clothes in cold water, you can cut down on your energy usage significantly.
Frugal Green in the Bathroom & Morning Routine
Use Less Shampoo or Soap. In order to save money on your grocery bill, you can use less shampoo than is recommended. If everyone did this, it would result in significant monetary and plastic savings.
Turn the water off while brushing your teeth. It is important to turn the tap off while brushing teeth in order to conserve water. Many people forget to do this, and as a result, millions of gallons of water are wasted every year.
If it’s yellow, let it mellow. If the toilet water is yellow, it’s ok to let it mellow. You don’t have to flush to turn it off every time. Thanks to auto-flush toilets in most places this is very common for people to forget to flush at home.
Take Cooler Showers. This may not be everyone’s favorite. But take a cool shower rather than a piping hot shower. Most of the energy used is the hot water heater warming up the water.
Use Every Last Drop! There are a few ways to get the most out of your products and conserve them- one way is to leave bottles upside down for a couple of hours after you’ve used them so that you can get the last bit of product out. You can also roll up toothpaste tubes to get the remaining paste out. Here is a great product to help you squeeze every expensive ounce out.
Related Reading: Billionaire Morning Routine: How To Achieve Success In Life
Green Lot with Frugal Green Landscaping
Xeroscape Your Lawn. Lawns are often seen as a status symbol, but they’re actually quite expensive and environmentally damaging. They require large amounts of water, fertilizer, and pesticides to maintain, which can leach into the groundwater and pollute the environment.
Change Mowing Schedule. Additionally, lawn mowing emits greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change.
Water Less Often. While this sounds great in theory, you may not be able to fully switch to xeriscaping your yard. If you can’t switch, then check out this Rachio to lessen your dependence on water.
Frugal Green Home Ownership
There are many ways to save money and be more environmentally conscious at the same time when owning a home.
Your home is probably one of your biggest expenses, so it’s important to take measures to conserve energy and save money. Plus there are many ways to reduce the amount of energy your home consumes!
Home Improvement Math. When considering whether or not to make an improvement to your home in order to reduce your carbon footprint, always do the math to see if the improvement will actually pay for itself. Sometimes it will and sometimes it won’t so be sure to weigh all of the options before making a decision.
Downsize Your Home. If you live in a large house, consider moving into a smaller one. This will help you save on your energy bill and make your home more efficient.
Install low-flow fixtures. One way is to install low-flow fixtures, such as showerheads and faucets. This will reduce your energy use and, in turn, your monthly bills. You can also save water by taking shorter showers.
Hang UV Blocking Curtains. By stopping the sun from heating up your house with curtains during the day, you can save on cooling costs in the summer. Using UV blocking curtains is something we did and notice a significant difference in the summer and winter.
Run Appliances with Full Loads Only. Wait until you have a full load of dishes or laundry before running the dishwasher or washing machine. You would be surprised at the amount of energy and water it takes to run those appliances.
Be Reasonable with Air Conditioning Temperature. In the summer, don’t crank up the air conditioning to save on your energy bill. You can also set your thermostat a couple of degrees higher in the summer to save money. Also, you may want to start cooling your house earlier in the day to prevent your AC unit from working overtime and consuming more energy.
Program Your Winter Heating Temperature. In the UK, A/C is not as common as it is in other countries. Central heating is used more often and is set to a lower room temperature for the summer and a higher room temperature for the winter. This is because people want to save on their energy bills.
Open Windows to Cool House. When the weather is nice, open your windows to allow for natural cooling. This is a simple and cheap way to cool your house. Especially after a nice cool thunderstorm.
Buy Energy Efficient Appliances. Energy-efficient models might be more expensive in the short term, but they will save you money in the long run and help reduce your environmental impact. However, these products should only be bought when the older model is worn out–don’t replace something just because it’s energy-efficient!
Replace Windows. On the one hand, it’s a great idea to replace your windows with more energy-efficient models if you’re staying in your home for many years. However, if you plan on moving within a few years, it might not be worth the investment. You’ll need to weigh the cost of the windows against how much money you’ll save on your monthly energy bill.
Get a programmable thermostat. Programmable thermostats are a great way to save money on your energy bill. You can set them to turn off or down when you’re not at home, or during times of the day when you don’t need as much heating or cooling.
Look for Energy Leakage. The typical older home has enough energy leakage that it’s the equivalent of leaving your front door open all year long. You can combat this by installing weather stripping and caulking around doors and windows and adding insulation to your attic. Most utility companies offer an energy audit.
Weatherize your Home. Weatherizing your home is a great way to improve energy efficiency and save money on your energy bills. There are many things you can do this and varies on the area of the world you live in.
Sustainable Frugal Green Transportation
Ditch the Car Completely. One of the biggest expenses for many people is their car. Whether you’re paying for car payments, insurance, gas, or maintenance, it can be a lot of money. You can eliminate this expense by ditching the keys and taking public transportation. Not only will you save money on your monthly expenses, but you’ll also help the environment!
Buy Hybrid Cars. Hybrids cars are expensive but they could help you save money on fuel in the long run – hybrids tend to have lower emissions than conventional cars. So, it might be time to say bye to that beater car.
Drive Less and Play Your Route. Driving less is the biggest way to reduce fuel-guzzling trips. Take it a step further with UPS research on their strategic delivery methods and focus on making only right-hand turns.
Carpool Whenever Possible. carpooling is a much more green choice than driving alone.
Look Into Car Sharing. When you only need a car occasionally, or for short trips, it might be more convenient and affordable to use a car-sharing service. Car-sharing services offer the opportunity to have access to wheels when you need them, and they’re flexible and convenient for short trips.
Invest in Electric Scooter. This mode of transportation is the uber-popular. You don’t need cash for gas, money for registration fees, and completely reliable to get around quickly. Check out the best electric scooters on the market.
Ride a Bike. A commuter bike is much cheaper than a car. Plus you get the added benefits of exercise and no carbon waste. Or upgrade to an E-bike.
Telecommute. If you can do your work remotely, then telecommute more often than not. This will save on transportation costs as well as pollution.
Walk More Often. Plan your day around being able to walk places that take under 30 minutes to get there. Then, it is better to walk than drive. Plus you can hit your 10000 steps quicker. It is a triple for the win – health benefits, free exercise, and fresh air!
Don’t Run Your Engine Unnecessarily. Leaving your engine running unnecessarily while stationary can waste fuel and cause environmental damage. Make sure to turn your engine off when you’re not moving to save money and help the planet!
Drive More Efficient. When it comes to saving fuel, one of the best ways is to drive more slowly and efficiently. This will help you save petrol or diesel and reduce your carbon footprint. For example, slowly put your foot on the accelerate to maintain a speed.
Frugal Green Budgeting Per Month
Choose To Save Rather Than Spend. Every tie you actively choose to save your money rather than spend it. You help the environmental impact. We have plenty of popular money saving challenges to help you save more money today.
Pay Bills Online. When you pay bills online, you can save a lot of time, space, and money. You can also save paper by paying your bills online–instead of receiving paper statements in the mail, you can access them online.
Find Free Things to Do. This one is a win-win for frugality environmentalism. Focus on finding activities from this list of things to do with no money. Many of them are already frugal green wins.
Opt for Paperless. And finally, if you pay your bills online, you may automatically receive discounts on some of your monthly bills! Many companies now charge a $2-5 paper statement to be mailed.
Focus on Financial Independence. This may seem like a crazy idea, but it is true. The more you save, the faster you reach financial independence. In fact, this is with the Frugalwoods decided to be frugal in the first place.
Follow Simple Frugal Living Green Ideas – Way to Go Green
Reduce, reuse, recycle. This old mantra is more important than ever in today’s world. By recycling everything you can, you can help conserve resources and keep waste out of landfills.
Your Mindset is Everything. Just like with anything, if you decide to commit yourselves to become environmentally aware, then you are likely to succeed. You don’t have to become extremely frugal overnight. You just have to remember that mindset is everything in this process.
Turn off electronics when not in use. This includes televisions, computers, and other appliances. By turning them off, you’re conserving energy (and saving money). Plus some older appliances might be fire hazards if left plugged in.
Stop Junk Mail. One way to reduce the amount of junk mail you receive is to go through your postal mail and ask to be removed from lists you’re not interested in. This can be done by contacting the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) or specific companies that send you unsolicited mail.
Grab a Sweatershirt or Blanket when Cold. Instead of automatically adjusting the programmable thermostat higher, you can also save by wearing a sweater or using a blanket. Maybe turn on the fireplace before putting the heating on.
Invest in Renewable Energy. In today’s world, it is more important than ever to invest in renewable energy. There are many reasons for this:
First and foremost, using renewable energy helps to reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, which are finite and contribute to climate change.
Renewable energy also creates jobs and supports local businesses.
And finally, investing in renewables reduces our greenhouse gas emissions, helping to fight climate change.
In the long run, renewable energy can save you money and reduce emissions by providing power more reliably, often more cheaply than a traditional power source.
Are You Ready Live Life Frugal Green?
Living a more frugal lifestyle is good for the environment because it costs less.
It doesn’t take much to make small changes in your life that will have a big impact on the planet. For example, consume less and you’ll be doing the most earth-friendly thing you can do.
There are dozens of ways to save money and be more environmentally conscious which we covered in this post.
Being frugal and being green often go hand in hand.
However, most people lose steam after just a couple of weeks. So, do not attempt to do each frugal green living habit.
Pick your top 3 with the biggest impact.
Add one another 1-3 frugal living tips every month or so.
Over time, you will be surprised to see how easy it is to live frugal green, while also helping you to save money while also protecting the environment.
You can be the frugal green girl or gal with a few of these simple habits. Or choose to follow a frugal blog or frugal forum.
Know someone else that needs this, too? Then, please share!!
Save more, spend smarter, and make your money go further
Just when you think you’ve got this whole credit thing down, some new credit-related phrase creeps into the industry’s vocabulary: DTI ratio, APR, amortization, and the list goes on . Let me introduce you to the world of mortgage credit reporting, which is very different than just “regular credit reporting.” There’s an entire world of intermediary credit reporting companies called Mortgage Reporting Companies that service the massive number of mortgage lenders and brokers. Follow me…
How Mortgage Lenders Gather Your Credit Data
When you apply for a credit card or an auto loan, the lender will buy one of your three credit reports directly from one of the three credit reporting repositories; Experian, Equifax or TransUnion. They’ll then use that information, and the score they bought at the same time, to make their approve/deny decision and set the terms of your new account. That process occurs tens of thousands of times every single day.
When you apply for a mortgage loan, the game changes. Mortgage lenders don’t typically buy one of your credit reports — they buy all three of them. And, if you’re applying jointly with a spouse or someone else, the lender will buy all three of their credit reports, too. So, that’s 6 credit reports and 6 FICO scores (FICO is still the score used in the mortgage industry) of which the lender or broker will take possession.
What is a Residential Mortgage Credit Report (RMCR)?
Now, that’s a lot of credit reports and a lot of pages. It’s also a ton of redundant information. Think about the joint credit card you have with your spouse. That likely shows up on all 6 of your collective credit reports. Does the mortgage lender really need to see the same account 6 times? Of course they don’t.
Because of the large amount of credit report data required by mortgage lenders, the need for an intermediary service exists. This service accesses all of the credit reports required by mortgage lenders from the big 3 credit bureaus and then consolidates them into one easier-to-read credit report. This credit report is called an “RMCR,” or Residential Mortgage Credit Report, and the companies that provide them are referred to as mortgage reporting companies.
These companies act as brokers or resellers of the data maintained by Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. The mortgage lender will subscribe to their services and commonly request a credit report on a mortgage applicant or applicants. The mortgage reporting company will then go to the big 3 credit bureaus on behalf of the mortgage lender and buy the applicant’s credit reports and FICO scores.
But before they deliver this large amount of information back to the mortgage lender, they’ll combine the information into one RMCR. The credit score information will be displayed in one section, the negative data will be displayed in another section, and things like inquiries and personal identification information will be displayed in their own sections. This merged credit report (often called a “Tri-merge”) is considerably easier to read than reading six separate credit reports is.
How Can I Get a Copy of My RMCR?
If you’ve applied for a mortgage-related loan, you probably have your RMCRs in your closing paperwork, as mortgage brokers and lenders will often give you a copy. It’s a very valuable aggregate of information because it’s a comprehensive study of all of your credit reports and it includes your actual FICO scores, along with the 4 reasons why each of them wasn’t higher.
John Ulzheimer is the President of Consumer Education at SmartCredit.com, the credit blogger for Mint.com, and a contributor for the National Foundation for Credit Counseling. He is an expert on credit reporting, credit scoring and identity theft. Formerly of FICO, Equifax and Credit.com, John is the only recognized credit expert who actually comes from the credit industry. The opinions expressed in his articles are his and not of Mint.com or Intuit. Follow John on Twitter.
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New research from Ohio State University suggests that homeowners who obtain home loans from local mortgage lenders are less likely to default than those who borrow from more distant banks.
The researchers noted that even if two similar homeowners received the same type of mortgage with the same interest rate, the borrower who went with the local bank might be better off.
“The door you walk into when you’re looking for a loan matters a lot,” said Stephanie Moulton, assistant professor in the John Glenn School of Public Affairs at Ohio State University, in a statement.
“Local banks seem to offer some protection to homebuyers, particularly those with low incomes who may be seen as risky borrowers.”
Moulton attributed the phenomenon to more prudent underwriting at local banks, who tend to look at income and employment history more closely to ensure borrowers can actually make their mortgage payments.
“Many mortgage brokers base their decisions on whether to offer a mortgage on one or more key numbers, such as a credit score,” she added.
“In other words, if your credit score is above a certain level, and you meet other criteria, the broker will offer the loan. The same may be true of large, non-local banks.”
But local banks and lenders typically have established relationships with their borrowers, including checking/savings accounts, so they know more about those being extended home loans.
Many of these local banks also get their borrowers to set-up automatic mortgage payments, which could lead to a lower default rate.
All that said, you should always shop around to find the best mortgage rates!