This article originally appeared on The Avocado Toast Budget.
This post is sponsored by Credit.com.
Here at the ATB, we are all about budgeting in a way that works for you and finding realistic ways to feel more confident with your money.
Now that 2020 is (finally) over, here are ways that you can start to take hold of your finances and build confidence with your money in 2021.
Write down your short, medium and long term financial goals
I’m a big believer that you don’t need to stress over how to maximize the value of every dollar you come across.
Much of personal finance is behavioral and relies on us finding value in how we navigate our money!
Because of this, I found it incredibly helpful to sit down and brainstorm short, medium and long-term financial goals to decide what I wanted my money to do for me.
Write down your short, medium and long term financial goals
Here’s how I break it up:
Short-term goals – less than two years
Medium-term goals – 2 – 10 years
Long-term goals – 10+ years
Feel free to dream big!
We want to make realistic and attainable goals, but we also want to allow ourselves to dream about what we really want our lives to look like, and how our money plays a role in that.
Get to know your credit score
Wanna know a secret? I avoided my credit score for the longest time.
Turns out, once I finally faced my credit score, I became more empowered to understand how my credit score affects my finances and what I could do to change it.
While free resources can give you a ballpark estimate of your credit score, that score isn’t very useful and certainly isn’t what creditors see!
Knowing your true score, and seeing your credit reports from all three major credit bureaus, gives you security and control over how to navigate your credit score going forward.
While it can be daunting, credit plays an important role in our lives from renting, to car insurance, to mortgages, to career opportunities and more.
That’s why it’s important that you stay informed of what your credit actually looks like that’s why I signed up for ExtraCredit’s free trial!
Set up automatic savings
Automating your savings is LIFE CHANGING.
Setting up automatic savings is often referred to as “paying yourself first” because you are prioritizing saving money for Future You.
There are tons of different savings goals that you can put this money toward, but the important part right now is to set up automatic savings so you can set it and forget it.
Trust me—you miss that money a lot less if you never see it in your account in the first place.
If you have automatic deposits at work, it’s super easy to add a savings account and have a certain % or dollar amount go into that account every month without it EVER hitting your checking.
In my opinion, this is the best way to go. Out of sight, out of mind.
You’re way less likely to touch this money, and you’ll be shocked at how much it grows over time!
If this isn’t an option for you, you’re not out of luck. You can set up automatic savings transfers into your savings account from your checking account through your bank.
Find a budget that works for you
Here at the ATB, we are all about budgeting in a way that makes sense for you and your life.
Budgeting doesn’t have to be stressful and restrictive. It should actually be freeing and allow you to feel more confident and in control of your money!
There’s no one right way to budget, and there are TONS of different types of budgets depending on your income and financial goals.
Personally, I use a zero-based budget which allows me to track and decide where every single dollar I have is going.
If you have big savings goals, low income or high debt, I definitely recommend checking out a zero-based budget.
Learn how to increase your credit score
Your credit score has a bigger impact on your life than just determining your eligibility for loans.
Credit can impact your ability to rent, job opportunities, car insurance rates and more.
Once you know what your credit score is, it’s important to understand what makes up your credit score, and what steps you can take to increase it.
There are five factors that influence your credit score:
Payment History
Amounts Owed
Length of Credit History
New Credit
Credit Mix
Payment History makes up 35% of your credit score, so it is the most important factor.
ExtraCredit gives you the ability to report rent and utility payments, adding new tradelines to your credit profile. Adding payment history to your credit file.
And if you need help working to repair your credit, you can also use the Restore It feature to get an exclusive discount from a leading credit repair company. Remember: your best credit score is an accurate one.
Understanding how to increase your credit can take a lot of stress out of your finances and help you feel more in control of your credit future.
Make a debt payoff plan
I paid off $20k in CC debt in less than a year, and in order to do that, I needed a concrete plan of how I was going to tackle my debt.
Prior to that point, I had just been throwing a little bit here and there, hoping that my balance would eventually decrease.
Shockingly, that never happened.
Once I decided to use the debt avalanche to tackle my credit card debt, I was able to calculate how much extra money I could throw at my debt every month in order to make progress toward my debt free goal.
With this method, I paid the minimum payments on all of my debt except for the one with the highest interest.
With the highest interest debt, I put any extra money I had toward paying that down.
This gave my money more of a purpose than just throwing extra money here and there at my different debts.
It was also reassuring and motivating to see the loan amount decrease drastically as I threw the extra money I had towards it.
Are you thinking about selling your engagement ring? People sell their engagement rings for all sorts of reasons, such as no longer being in a relationship or inheriting a ring. Whatever your reason may be, you can most likely sell your engagement ring and make extra money. You can use this extra money towards paying…
Are you thinking about selling your engagement ring?
People sell their engagement rings for all sorts of reasons, such as no longer being in a relationship or inheriting a ring.
Whatever your reason may be, you can most likely sell your engagement ring and make extra money.
You can use this extra money towards paying off debt (like credit card debt or student loans), starting an emergency fund for unexpected expenses (like medical bills, vet visits, or house repairs), putting the money into your retirement savings, or even saving for financial goals (like a home deposit, buying a car, or going back to school).
Today, you’ll learn how to:
Get your engagement ring appraised
Negotiate for the highest price
Find the best place to sell your engagement ring
And, of course, the step-by-step process of how to sell an engagement ring!
How To Sell An Engagement Ring
How much is an engagement ring worth?
Before you sell your engagement ring, you should try and figure out how much it is worth.
One of the things to think about when valuing a diamond engagement ring is the “4 Cs of a Diamond.” If you want to know where to sell diamond rings, first you must figure this out.
The 4 Cs stand for:
Carat – This is the size of the diamond. Larger diamonds are usually worth more money.
Cut – This is not the diamond shape. Instead, this is the quality of the diamond’s cut which will impact how beautiful and brilliant the diamond is.
Color – A diamond’s value increases with less color, as a completely colorless diamond is worth more.
Clarity – Clarity is all about the imperfections and blemishes that a diamond may have. The fewer there are, the more valuable the diamond.
Other things that may increase or decrease the value of your used engagement ring include:
Condition – The overall condition of the ring is important. A ring that has been taken care of and shows minimal signs of use will typically hold onto more of its value in comparison to a ring that displays noticeable wear and tear.
Resale market – Rings with a popular style or from a well-known designer may see a higher price when resold.
Certification and documentation – Having a document such as a diamond grading certificate can help determine the quality of the ring.
Designer and brand name – Rings from certain designers or brands (such as Cartier or Tiffany & Co.) tend to have a higher resale value due to their reputation and craftsmanship.
Even though a pre-owned engagement ring may have a lower value compared to a new one, it can be a great value for buyers looking for a high-quality ring at a more budget-friendly price. And, that is why people buy them – they can save some money over a new ring.
Recommended reading: 8 Items To Sell Around Your Home For Extra Money
Gather documentation for your engagement ring
If you’ve decided to sell your engagement ring, it’s time to collect all of your paperwork related to the ring such as the diamond’s certification, receipts, and appraisals.
These documents will help figure out the ring’s value, establish its authenticity, and make the process of selling a little more smooth.
Here’s a list of the paperwork you might need:
Appraisal certificate – The appraisal certificate is a professional evaluation of the engagement ring. This document includes details about the diamond’s cut, color, clarity, carat weight, and quality.
Original receipt – Having the original receipt from the purchase of the engagement ring will help show that the ring is authentic.
Diamond certification – If the diamond was graded and certified by a recognized gemological laboratory, this can be helpful.
Gemstone certificates – If your engagement ring has other gemstones besides diamonds, include these certificates for the stones as well.
You don’t need any paperwork to sell an engagement ring, but, it can make things a little easier and may get you a little more money.
How to get an engagement ring appraised
Getting an engagement ring appraised by a certified gemologist or jewelry appraiser will give you an accurate estimate and valuation of how much your engagement or wedding ring is worth.
This can help you when negotiating (such as with a pawnshop) and simply knowing the amount that you should be looking for when selling your ring.
You can get your engagement ring appraised by:
Looking for appraisers – You can search online for certified gemologists or jewelry appraisers in your area. You can also ask local jewelry stores for their recommended appraisers. It’s important to find an appraiser with credentials from places such as the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), the American Gem Society (AGS), or the International Society of Appraisers (ISA).
Contacting the appraiser – Call the appraiser and ask for their fees and to schedule an appointment. You may need to bring documents such as receipts, certificates, or previous appraisals for the ring.
Getting the ring appraised – Take the engagement ring to the appraiser. They will examine the engagement ring’s characteristics including the diamond’s cut, color, clarity, and other important factors.
Receiving the appraisal report – Once the appraisal is done, the appraiser will provide you with the report. This report includes information about the ring’s characteristics as well as an estimated value based on the current market. Ask the appraiser any questions you might have or if you need a question answered.
Where to sell an engagement ring
Now is the time to look at your different options for selling the ring. You can sell engagement rings at jewelry stores, pawn shops, online marketplaces, auction houses, consignment shops, and more.
Some things that you will want to about when deciding where to sell your engagement ring include the amount that they are giving you (of course, you want the most money, right?), the fees that they may be charging to sell your ring, how much work it will take you to sell it (for example, do you have to create the listing or do they?), whether you feel safe meeting someone to exchange the ring for cash in-person, and more.
As you can see, there are going to be pros and cons for each of the places where you can sell your jewelry.
Below, I go further into each of the best places to sell an engagement ring:
1. Sell your engagement ring online in a marketplace
If you want to sell your engagement ring, one of the best ways to get the most money for it is to sell it online.
Selling your engagement ring online can be convenient and also help you reach a wider audience of possible buyers.
Some of the different places you can sell an engagement ring online include eBay, Facebook Marketplace, and Craigslist.
Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you sell your engagement ring online:
Make your ring presentable – You should clean your ring and take quality photos of it from different angles.
Choose the marketplace – There are many different sites to sell your engagement ring like eBay, Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, specialized jewelry-selling websites, or online auction sites.
Create a detailed listing – In the listing, write a detailed description of the ring along with its condition and any unique features. Be honest about any imperfections. When listing your ring for sale, you should also describe the ring, such as the diamond’s cut, color, clarity, and carat weight.
Set a price – You should research similar engagement rings or get your ring appraised to find the most accurate price based on current market value.
Shipping – If you’re shipping the ring, make sure to package it securely to prevent any damage in transit and also pay for shipping insurance.
2. Sell your engagement ring on Worthy
Similar to the above, some websites are dedicated to selling jewelry and valuables, such as Worthy.
Worthy does not buy your engagement ring directly as that is not their business model, but they will clean it up and sell it for you.
Worthy makes it really easy to make money with your engagement ring and this is the best place to sell engagement rings online. You simply ship your jewelry to their office with a prepaid shipping label (a FedEx label) that they give you (it’s insured as well). Then, once they get the ring, they prep it for auction. They will clean the ring, take professional photos of it, and grade it.
After that, your ring will go up for auction, and professional jewelry buyers can bid on it. You can set a reserve price that you are comfortable with. Once the auction is done, you will receive the final sale amount after Worthy’s fee. Payment is then sent to you within 1-5 days.
The whole process typically takes around 2 weeks from shipping to getting paid.
So, what are Worthy’s fees? They do almost all of the work for you, so it makes sense that they would charge a fee. They take 18% for up to $5,000. After that, it is a 14% fee for $5,001 to $15,000, a 12% fee for $15,001 to $30,000, and a 10% fee for over $30,000.
So, for example, I found a 1-carat diamond ring on Worthy that eventually sold for $2,792. That means the seller received around $2,289 after the 18% fee that Worthy charges.
3. Work with a jeweler
Jewelers may offer to buy your engagement ring. You can simply call around local jewelry stores near you and ask if they buy used engagement rings.
Sometimes this can be the most straightforward and convenient option for selling your engagement ring as you can possibly sell your ring the same day.
To sell your engagement ring to a jeweler, you will want to look for jewelry stores near you and give them a phone call to see if they buy used engagement rings. I recommend looking for ones with positive reviews.
If you have any documentation for your ring then make sure to bring it with you so that you can show the jeweler.
If they are interested in your engagement ring, then they will give you an offer. If you’re happy with the offer, then you can ask any other questions and possibly sign paperwork to get your cash.
Jewelers may offer instant payment either via cash, check, or electronic transfer and you will want to confirm the payment method before completing the sale.
4. Sell your engagement ring to a consignment shop
You may decide you want to sell your used engagement ring to a consignment shop. Consignment shops have benefits such as offering exposure to multiple buyers. However, they likely charge a commission fee.
To sell your engagement ring through a consignment shop, you will want to Google search for consignment shops in your area and specifically look for shops that sell jewelry or high-end items (make sure the shop has good reviews and even testimonials of previous successful sales of engagement rings).
Once you have an idea of which consignment shops you’re interested in selling your ring at, you should ask them questions about their consignment process, what commission rate they charge, and the terms of the sale.
Then, you’ll give the shop the ring to display in their store.
The consignment shop handles the transaction if someone is ready to buy the ring. You’ll receive payment after the commission fees are taken out.
5. Sell your wedding ring to a pawnshop
When people think about where to sell an engagement ring, one of the first places they think about is probably a pawn shop.
And, it makes sense – pawn shops make it very easy and you can sell your engagement ring for cash here. You can most likely even get paid on the same day!
But, you should keep in mind that they usually give you the lowest amount of money.
If you want to sell your old wedding ring to a pawn shop you will first want to make sure the ring looks nice and clean because that can help you get a better price. Get any papers you have about the ring, like appraisals or certificates, to show how much it’s worth, and make sure you know this number before you go in because you will most likely have to negotiate.
Now, when selling at a pawn shop, you can typically negotiate. To do so, you will want to find out the ring’s value, current market trends, and comparable sales. You can even make a better case for your price by showing documents on the ring and appraisals from certified gemologists. If the pawn shop cannot meet that price, you may just want to move on and try to find another buyer.
When the pawn shop makes an offer, remember they need to make a profit too, so it might be lower than you expect. If you’re not happy with the offer, you can try selling it to someone else. If you agree to sell it, you’ll need to show some ID, sign some papers, and then you’ll get paid.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below are answers to common questions about how to sell an engagement ring.
Is it possible to sell an engagement ring?
Yes! Many places buy engagement rings and wedding rings so that you can make money.
How much can you get for selling your engagement ring?
The amount of money that you can get for selling your engagement ring will vary and usually, you can earn anywhere from around 20% to 60% of what was originally paid for it. Yes, this is a wide range (and can mean a difference of hundreds or even thousands of dollars) and this is because there are so many factors that come into the price, such as the condition of the ring, the market demand, and where you decide to sell it.
How much can I sell my 1 carat engagement ring for?
A 1-carat diamond engagement ring will vary due to the 4C’s (cut, clarity, color, and carat). Usually, you can earn around $1,000 to $5,000 for selling a used engagement ring that is 1 carat.
Is it better to sell or pawn an engagement ring?
This depends – do you want to get the ring back? If you decide to sell it, you can get cash right away. This is a good option if you need money quickly.
On the other hand, if you decide to pawn it, the ring can be used as collateral for a loan. This can be a temporary solution if you just need cash right now but you want to get the ring back later. However, it’s very, very important to carefully read and understand the terms and interest rates from the pawnshop so that you can eventually get your ring back.
Why is the resale value of diamonds so low?
So, you may be thinking “But, I paid $10,000 for this ring! Why am I only getting a few thousand dollars?”
You most likely won’t get the same price that the engagement ring was bought for. This is because places that buy your engagement ring still need to make a profit. Plus, they aren’t going to sell the engagement ring for the same price as a brand-new ring.
How can I be safe when selling a ring?
If you aren’t shipping the ring but are meeting in person instead, then you must be careful. You should avoid sharing personal information until you’re 100% sure they are the person they say they are.
I also highly recommend meeting in a public place, such as a police station parking lot. Bringing a family member or friend with you to the appointment or meeting is good so that you aren’t alone. Make sure to use secure payment methods like cash and do not share bank account information, your social security number, or any other sensitive information (buyers do not need this information!!). Also, ignore requests to send the ring before receiving payment and make sure the payment has cleared before proceeding.
Where to sell my wedding ring after a divorce? Is it OK to sell a wedding ring after divorce?
Many people sell their wedding rings after a divorce. If you decide to do so, you can sell your wedding ring on sites like Worthy, Facebook, eBay, and more. Before you sell your engagement ring, though, you should make sure that the ring is legally yours (check your divorce agreement).
How long does it take to sell an engagement ring?
The amount of time that it takes you to sell an engagement ring depends on where you are selling it. For example, selling a ring on Worthy will take around 2 weeks (it takes a little longer to sell on Worthy, but you may get the best price for your diamond jewelry this way because they have many diamond buyers). Whereas, selling it to a pawn shop may mean that you get paid the same day (however, it’s typically for a lot less money).
What is the best way to sell an engagement ring?
The best way to sell your engagement ring depends on what you’re looking for and there is no one best answer for everyone. Do you want to sell your ring for the most money? Or, do you want to sell your engagement ring as fast as you can? Some people may want to just sell the ring to a pawn shop and get it over with. Others may want to take their time and sell it online so that they can get the most money.
How To Sell An Engagement Ring For The Most Money
I hope you enjoyed this article on how to sell your engagement ring for the most money.
Deciding to sell an engagement ring is a big decision to make as you may have an emotional connection to it. Due to this, you should take your time deciding what to do and choose the option that feels best for your situation.
Some of the best places to sell diamond rings include online (such as through Worthy or eBay), or in-person at a consignment shop or to a local jeweler. Many of the places above can be used for selling other pieces of jewelry as well, such as fine jewelry, bracelets, necklaces, earrings, and more.
Each place has its pros and cons. Some will pay you a lot more than others, but some may be much easier and quicker.
I hope you can find the best place to sell your engagement ring and that you get the most money!
Have you tried selling an engagement ring? What do you think is the best place to sell an engagement ring?
You may hit one of those life moments where you need a bundle of cash and fast. Maybe you have been hit with a major car repair bill, you want to attend a destination wedding, or you’re motivated to pay off your student loans ASAP.
Whatever the situation, there are smart strategies that will help you accrue that money as quickly as possible. Tactics like trimming your expenses, selling your unwanted stuff, and bundling your insurance can help you meet a savings goal at top speed.
In this guide, you’ll learn those techniques and more to help you finance whatever is most urgent on your financial to-do list.
How to Save Money Fast 10 Ways
One person’s goal for saving money quickly might be, “I need $500 by the end of the week.” For another, it could be, “I’m going to stash away $10,000 within the next year.” Wherever you may fall in terms of your short-term financial goals, these 10 tactics will help you save money daily and achieve your aspiration.
💡 Quick Tip: Make money easy. Open a bank account online so you can manage bills, deposits, transfers — all from one convenient app.
1. Getting Rid of Unnecessary Expenses
In an age of automated billings and subscriptions, it is easy to lose track of what exactly you’re paying for each month. It is entirely possible that you’re paying for something you’re not even using.
In order to pinpoint any potentially unwanted expenses, review a month’s worth of auto debits from your bank account. You may find that you’re paying $5 a month for a digital magazine you no longer read or that you could save on streaming services by dropping one or two you don’t watch but are paying $15 a month for.
Once you’ve canceled, you could reroute the money you would have spent directly into your savings account. While $20 or $30 a month saved on subscriptions might not seem like much, even small amounts can quickly add up over time. In combination with other savings techniques, this might help you build your savings fast.
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2. Negotiating and Automating Your Bill Payments
Did you know that some companies offer discounts when you set up automatic bill payments, or autopay? This means connecting a bill directly to your bank account and allowing the company to automatically withdraw the amount of the bill on the due date.
Some companies offer a discount in these situations because automatically debiting your account gives the company assurance that the bill will be paid on time. The bonus for you is double: You might get a little discount on your bills, and you won’t have to remember to manually pay the bill each month.
Autopay might also help you avoid unexpected late fees, which in turn could help you build up savings faster. There might be some downsides to autopay, however. If you set up an autopay agreement but then don’t have enough money in your account to cover the charge, you might end up with a canceled subscription or overdraft or NSF fees from your bank.
3. Carefully Considering Big Decisions
Yes, it’s hard to save money, but learning to be mindful about your purchases can help. Instead of buying something as soon as you want it, you might want to sleep on it overnight and see if you still want it the next morning. Giving yourself more time before pulling out your credit card could help you determine if you really need the item or if you were just caught up in the excitement of shopping.
This can be especially useful when making big purchases because they might require more research anyway. For example, if you’re buying a couch and you fall in love with a sectional sofa, waiting overnight might give you a chance to read reviews, double-check the measurements of your space, and look to see if there are similar styles available online that might cost less.
Some people wait longer still. They use the 30-day rule, which involves writing a note in your calendar for 30 days after you see the item you want. If you still are determined to buy it when the calendar alert pops up, then you can probably feel confident that it isn’t an impulse buy and go for it.
By delaying purchases this way, you may be able to avoid compulsive shopping and save funds, which can go towards your savings goal.
4. Considering a Spending “Fast”
Ready to learn another way to save money quickly? Some savers find that they can save money fast with a challenge: They plan a day or two every week where they eliminate all unnecessary spending. That’s what’s called a “fast”: You avoid spending money, similar to the way a dietary fast means you eat nothing.
For example, if you decide to do a two-day spending fast, you might decide that on Tuesdays and Wednesdays you don’t spend any money other than what it costs to commute to work. That means that on those days, you might choose to forgo your daily pitstop at the coffee shop, a lunch from the salad place (you’d bring food from home), or ordering the brand new book you’ve been waiting to read.
Planning to not spend could help you reign in unintentional spending. Chances are that you barely think about that $4 you spend at the coffee shop, but if you give it up twice a week, that’s $8 that could be going into your savings.
If you save an average of $40 a week with a two-day fast, that could add more than $2,000 to your savings in a year.
5. Putting Your Accounts to Work
Choosing the right account for your money can be a great way to save funds fast. Some checking accounts charge monthly or annual account maintenance fees, with little to no interest.
Savings accounts might offer higher interest rates than a checking account, but the reality is that the average interest rates on a standard savings account can still be very low. Instead, you might shop around for a no-fee, high-interest account to make your money work harder for you. These kinds of accounts are often found at online vs. traditional banks.
If you currently have, say, $5,000 sitting in a checking account, earning no interest, if you were to put it in a savings account at 4.50% interest compounded daily, you’d have an extra $230.12 a year later, with no effort on your part.
💡 Quick Tip: Want a simple way to save more each month? Grow your personal savings by opening an online savings account. SoFi offers high-interest savings accounts with no account fees. Open your savings account today!
6. Bundling Your Insurance
Insurance can be one of those “set it and forget it” expenses. You might buy a policy and then never really focus on the cost of the premium again.
Many insurers, however, will reduce your rate if you give them more of your business. Typically, this means having your auto and home insurance with the same company. You might be able to save a chunk of change and put it towards your savings goal.
It can also be wise to review your insurance annually. You might be paying for coverage you don’t really need.
7. Starting a Side Hustle
Sure, cutting back on your spending is one way to save money fast. But so is bringing in more cash. Many people find starting a side hustle is a good way to bring in more income. This could mean anything from selling your nature photography on Etsy or providing social media services to a local business or two.
While one of the key benefits of a side hustle is the money it can bring in, you also might find it personally rewarding and even an entry to a new full-time career.
8. Saving on Essentials
Looking for another idea for how to save money fast? There’s no doubt that many things you spend money on are necessities. Food, personal-care items, and gas for your car. But there are plenty of ways you can trim those costs.
• To save on food, you could do some meal-planning so you can more efficiently manage your grocery budget. Using up what you buy vs. wasting food can help you save a bundle towards your goals.
• You could get a gas card to save at the pump. There are also plenty of apps that point you towards the cheapest gas stations in your area.
• Joining a warehouse or wholesale club can help you save on your typical purchases. If you find the quantities too large (say, a 12-pack of shampoo), partner up with a friend of two to share the wealth.
9. Selling Your Stuff
If you’re trying to save money fast, you might be able to “find” a pile of cash by selling your used items that you no longer need. This could mean anything from selling gently worn clothes online (say, on Poshmark or thredUP) or IRL (at Buffalo Exchange perhaps); putting functional electronics up for sale on eBay; or offering items on places like Nextdoor or Facebook Marketplace.
Just be cautious as there are scammers who try to prey on direct sellers.
10. Checking Your Tax Withholding
Here’s another idea for accumulating money quickly: Double-check your tax withholding. If you get a sizable tax refund every year, you may feel as if you are getting “free money.” Not at all! That’s actually your hard-earned money that you overpaid to the government and are now getting back. It could have been earning interest in the bank rather than being whisked out of your paycheck.
If you typically receive a refund, tweak your withholding, and then put the additional money that stays in your paycheck into your savings.
Is Saving Money Fast Realistic?
Saving money fast can be realistic, as long as you keep in mind your income and the fact that most financial experts say to save 20% of that figure. That’s one of the principals of the popular 50/30/20 budget rule. Fifty percent of your money goes towards essential spending, 30% goes to discretionary expenses, and 20% gets socked away as savings.
So, if you earn $100,000 a year and have an important goal in mind, such as the down payment for a house, you might be able to stash $20K in a single year. That might involve pausing your retirement savings for a year as you go all-in on accumulating as much cash as possible for a home purchase.
Also, if you are able to bring in more income (whether by selling your stuff, starting a side hustle, or via passive income ideas), that can accelerate your savings as well.
Keeping Your Savings Safe With SoFi
Whichever strategies (or combination of tactics) you try, it’s important to find the right banking partner where your money can grow. You’ll likely want a financial institution with Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation coverage, low or no fees, and a healthy interest rate.
Interested in opening an online bank account? When you sign up for a SoFi Checking and Savings account with direct deposit, you’ll get a competitive annual percentage yield (APY), pay zero account fees, and enjoy an array of rewards, such as access to the Allpoint Network of 55,000+ fee-free ATMs globally. Qualifying accounts can even access their paycheck up to two days early.
Better banking is here with up to 4.50% APY on SoFi Checking and Savings.
FAQ
How can I save $1,000 fast?
To save $1,000 fast, you can try a combination of such techniques as trimming subscriptions, essential, and discretionary spending; bundling insurance to cut costs; selling your unwanted items; and/or using the 30-day rule.
How to save up $10,000 in 3 months?
To save $10,000 in three months, you need to save $3,333 after-tax dollars per month. Your income and expenses will influence how doable this is. Some ways to save this amount include going on a spending fast (meaning you eliminate all possible discretionary spending) and starting a side hustle to bring in more money.
How to save $5,000 ASAP?
To save $5,000 ASAP, you can try cutting your expenses, avoiding big purchases, making sure your money is earning a good interest rate, and bringing in more cash via a side hustle.
The SoFi Bank Debit Mastercard® is issued by SoFi Bank, N.A., pursuant to license by Mastercard International Incorporated and can be used everywhere Mastercard is accepted. Mastercard is a registered trademark, and the circles design is a trademark of Mastercard International Incorporated.
SoFi members with direct deposit activity can earn 4.50% annual percentage yield (APY) on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Direct Deposit means a deposit to an account holder’s SoFi Checking or Savings account, including payroll, pension, or government payments (e.g., Social Security), made by the account holder’s employer, payroll or benefits provider or government agency (“Direct Deposit”) via the Automated Clearing House (“ACH”) Network during a 30-day Evaluation Period (as defined below). Deposits that are not from an employer or government agency, including but not limited to check deposits, peer-to-peer transfers (e.g., transfers from PayPal, Venmo, etc.), merchant transactions (e.g., transactions from PayPal, Stripe, Square, etc.), and bank ACH funds transfers and wire transfers from external accounts, do not constitute Direct Deposit activity. There is no minimum Direct Deposit amount required to qualify for the stated interest rate.
SoFi members with Qualifying Deposits can earn 4.50% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Qualifying Deposits means one or more deposits that, in the aggregate, are equal to or greater than $5,000 to an account holder’s SoFi Checking and Savings account (“Qualifying Deposits”) during a 30-day Evaluation Period (as defined below). Qualifying Deposits only include those deposits from the following eligible sources: (i) ACH transfers, (ii) inbound wire transfers, (iii) peer-to-peer transfers (i.e., external transfers from PayPal, Venmo, etc. and internal peer-to-peer transfers from a SoFi account belonging to another account holder), (iv) check deposits, (v) instant funding to your SoFi Bank Debit Card, (vi) push payments to your SoFi Bank Debit Card, and (vii) cash deposits. Qualifying Deposits do not include: (i) transfers between an account holder’s Checking account, Savings account, and/or Vaults; (ii) interest payments; (iii) bonuses issued by SoFi Bank or its affiliates; or (iv) credits, reversals, and refunds from SoFi Bank, N.A. (“SoFi Bank”) or from a merchant.
SoFi Bank shall, in its sole discretion, assess each account holder’s Direct Deposit activity and Qualifying Deposits throughout each 30-Day Evaluation Period to determine the applicability of rates and may request additional documentation for verification of eligibility. The 30-Day Evaluation Period refers to the “Start Date” and “End Date” set forth on the APY Details page of your account, which comprises a period of 30 calendar days (the “30-Day Evaluation Period”). You can access the APY Details page at any time by logging into your SoFi account on the SoFi mobile app or SoFi website and selecting either (i) Banking > Savings > Current APY or (ii) Banking > Checking > Current APY. Upon receiving a Direct Deposit or $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits to your account, you will begin earning 4.50% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% on checking balances on or before the following calendar day. You will continue to earn these APYs for (i) the remainder of the current 30-Day Evaluation Period and through the end of the subsequent 30-Day Evaluation Period and (ii) any following 30-day Evaluation Periods during which SoFi Bank determines you to have Direct Deposit activity or $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits without interruption.
SoFi Bank reserves the right to grant a grace period to account holders following a change in Direct Deposit activity or Qualifying Deposits activity before adjusting rates. If SoFi Bank grants you a grace period, the dates for such grace period will be reflected on the APY Details page of your account. If SoFi Bank determines that you did not have Direct Deposit activity or $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits during the current 30-day Evaluation Period and, if applicable, the grace period, then you will begin earning the rates earned by account holders without either Direct Deposit or Qualifying Deposits until you have Direct Deposit activity or $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits in a subsequent 30-Day Evaluation Period. For the avoidance of doubt, an account holder with both Direct Deposit activity and Qualifying Deposits will earn the rates earned by account holders with Direct Deposit.
Members without either Direct Deposit activity or Qualifying Deposits, as determined by SoFi Bank, during a 30-Day Evaluation Period and, if applicable, the grace period, will earn 1.20% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances.
Interest rates are variable and subject to change at any time. These rates are current as of 8/9/2023. There is no minimum balance requirement. Additional information can be found at http://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet..
Financial Tips & Strategies: The tips provided on this website are of a general nature and do not take into account your specific objectives, financial situation, and needs. You should always consider their appropriateness given your own circumstances.
Third-Party Brand Mentions: No brands, products, or companies mentioned are affiliated with SoFi, nor do they endorse or sponsor this article. Third-party trademarks referenced herein are property of their respective owners.
Tax Information: This article provides general background information only and is not intended to serve as legal or tax advice or as a substitute for legal counsel. You should consult your own attorney and/or tax advisor if you have a question requiring legal or tax advice.
At the start of every new year, people set goals. Many of the most common resolutions set during the new year are financial in nature. For instance, some people resolve to pay off their debt before the year ends. Others want to decrease their spending and save money.
If you’re one of those people who want to save money, decreasing your car insurance premium is one way to get closer to your financial goals. Here are seven hacks to help you save on car insurance this year.
1. Review Your Car Insurance Every Year
One of the simplest ways to reduce your insurance premiums is to shop around once a year. It may seem unnecessary, but comparing rates from a variety of insurance companies can be beneficial. Firstly, it gives you a sense of how much your car costs to insure on average. Secondly, doing your research lets you determine if you have the best car insurance for your budget.
Remember to compare quotes from at least three providers before making a decision. But what if your current insurer is the cheapest option?
2. Get Rid of Coverage You Don’t Need
Another way to decrease your car insurance costs is by dropping unnecessary coverage. In most states, drivers are legally required to have liability coverage and personal injury protection, or no-fault coverage. In states like New York and North Carolina, drivers must also have insurance that protects them against collisions with uninsured or underinsured motorists. Beyond that, rates vary by state and personal preference.
Types of Car Insurance to Consider
Liability Coverage: This coverage protects you against the costs of covering the medical bills of other drivers after an accident. Liability insurance may also reimburse you for damage to your car. If you don’t have a significant savings cushion or other assets to cover the cost of large claims, liability insurance will protect you financially in the event of an accident.
Collision Coverage: If you’re financing your vehicle, chances are the bank will require this coverage as well. Collision insurance will pay for damage to your car resulting from a collision with another vehicle. It does not cover car damage from potholes, broken windows, fire, or theft.
Comprehensive Coverage: This is like collision insurance, but it covers damage from non-collision incidents. The most common kinds of incidents are floods, vandalism, hitting an animal, or striking a non-moving object.
No-Fault Coverage: This type of insurance protects you against the medical bills of other drivers after an accident. Unlike liability insurance, your own insurer pays your claim; it then submits a claim to the other driver’s insurer. If you have this coverage, maintaining a high deductible can be beneficial because it reduces your premium.
As you review your vehicle insurance, make a list of your state-mandated coverage, bank-mandated coverage, and ones that make sense for your location. For instance, if you live in a town that is known for seasonal hurricanes, floods, or fires, dropping comprehensive insurance might not be the best idea. Consider working with an agent who is familiar with your area.
If your car is older, consider dropping collision and comprehensive insurance. Then, set aside an emergency fund that amounts to your car’s market value.
3. Ask Your Insurance Company about New Discounts
Your insurer may provide discounts for a variety of reasons. For instance, some insurers offer a “good student” discount for teens with good grades. Others may give discounts to drivers who are members of the military or attend certain types of college. If you are enrolled in an accredited driver’s safety course, contact your insurer about getting a discount for completing the class.
Save on Car Insurance by Paying Your Premium Annually
Payment methods can also affect your car insurance premiums. Most insurers offer a discount if you pay a year’s worth of premiums upfront. If you can’t afford an entire year’s worth of premiums at once, pay at least the minimum amount necessary to qualify for this discount.
4. Downsize Your Car
The most effective way to save money on car insurance is by driving a car that costs less to insure. The type of car you choose will depend on your budget and preference, but there are a few things to consider.
For instance, the cost of repairs and parts for some vehicles can be high. Secondly, there are insurance companies that offer discounts to drivers with hybrid cars or vehicles that use alternative fuel.
When you’re looking for a new vehicle, find a safe one with the lowest possible insurance rates. Talk with your insurer, and get online quotes from other car insurance providers to compare costs.
Related Read: What Credit Score Do I Need to Buy a Car?
5. Drive Safely to Save on Car Insurance
Driving safely is often underrated. If you’re a cautious driver, you might qualify for a reduced premium. When calculating your rate, insurance companies consider the following factors:
Age
Gender
The type of car
Your driving history
Improving your driving habits could save you money each month. Plus, it’s safer for everyone on the road. If your current vehicle doesn’t have an accident history, you might also want to consider increasing your deductible, which can save you money.
6. Increase Your Car Insurance Deductible
If you drive safely, you could lower your monthly premium by raising your deductible. Increasing your deductible from $200 to $500, for example, will decrease your monthly premium. And since you know how much your deductible is ahead of time, you can set aside the amount in an emergency fund.
7. Consider Usage-Based Programs
Another way to save on car insurance is by participating in usage-based programs. With this type of coverage, you put a device in your car that records your mileage and driving habits. This data is then sent to your insurer, who can use it to determine how much you should be paying for coverage. Among the common usage-based options are:
Pay-as-you-drive: This program charges you for the miles you drive. Your insurer will typically take mileage into account when calculating your premium.
Pay-how-you-drive: With this program, you pay for your insurance based on safe driving behavior. In some cases, your insurer might offer discounts if you’re an ideal driver.
Takeaway: Saving Money on Car Insurance
There are plenty of tactics to help decrease your monthly insurance costs if you take the time to assess your habits and your vehicle insurance needs. Once you know what must stay and what needs to go, contact your insurance company to make the necessary adjustments.
Sure, savings accounts can be a good place to stow extra cash and build wealth. You’ll typically earn interest, helping your money grow and boosting your progress towards your financial goals.
However, unlike checking accounts, you usually can’t spend straight from a savings account. What’s more, you may find that there are limitations on the number of withdrawals or transfers you can make from out of your savings account.
If you want to avoid getting entangled with savings account rules and restrictions or triggering fees, here’s advice. Read on to learn the ins and outs of spending money from a savings account.
How Does a Savings Account Differ From a Checking Account?
You might think the main difference between a checking account and a savings account is how you view them–namely, one is for now, and one is for later. But the bank also views these two accounts very differently. Here’s a closer look at how savings accounts work vs. checking accounts.
• Savings accounts typically earn interest while checking accounts which generally earn zero or very little interest.
• Savings accounts may come with cash transfer and withdrawal limits. A federal rule called Regulation D used to limit certain types of transactions from a savings account to no more than six per month.
• In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, the Federal Reserve lifted this rule to allow people to have easier access to their savings. Many banks, however, still enforce the six-per-month cap on savings account transactions.
• Savings accounts don’t usually come with debit cards that can be used to make purchases with money from that savings account. Only a few banks offer this service.
💡 Quick Tip: Don’t think too hard about your money. Automate your budgeting, saving, and spending with SoFi’s seamless and secure online banking app.
Can You Write a Check From a Savings Account?
Typically, you can’t write checks from a savings account. Of course, it’s always possible to transfer money from a savings account to a checking account and then write a check from there.
If you want to save money and have the ability to write a check with the money you save, you may want to consider opening up a money market account.
Money market accounts are a type of savings account that often pay a higher interest rate than traditional savings accounts and generally include check-writing and debit card privileges.
However these accounts often come with minimum monthly balances, and falling below the minimum can trigger fees. Like other savings accounts, money market accounts may limit transactions to six per month (which includes writing checks and debit card payments).
Ready for a Better Banking Experience?
Open a SoFi Checking and Savings Account and start earning up to 4.50% APY on your cash!
How to Spend (and Save) With a Savings Account
To take advantage of the interest you’re earning on your savings, and avoid triggering penalty fees or the closure of your account, you may want to keep these savings account spending tips in mind.
Keeping Track of Your Withdrawals
It can be a good idea to find out what your bank’s policy is regarding monthly transactions from savings. Many institutions are sticking with the standard limit of six “convenient transactions” per month, while some are allowing more, such as nine transactions per month.
Convenient transactions include money transfers you make online, by phone, or through bill pay. Transactions, including ATM withdrawals and those that you make in person at the bank, do not typically count towards the monthly cap.
Paying Bills From Your Checking Account
Scheduling automatic bill payments from your savings account may put you over the savings withdrawal limit. It can be a better idea to have automatic bill payments or recurring transfers come out of your checking account.
Withdrawing Money Only for Large Expenses
If you withdraw money from your savings account for everyday spending, it can reduce the amount of interest you earn, and make it harder to reach your savings goals.
It can be wiser to only touch your savings when it’s necessary to cover an emergency expense or a large purchase (ideally, one you’ve been saving up for).
Building Your Savings
A savings account can help you work towards your financial goals, such as creating an emergency fund, making a downpayment on a home, or going on a great vacation. In some cases, you may even want to have different savings accounts for different goals.
To help achieve those goals faster, you may want to set up an automatic transfer from your checking account into your savings account on the same day each month (perhaps after your paycheck gets deposited). It’s perfectly fine to start slowly. Even small monthly deposits will add up over time.
💡 Quick Tip: Want a simple way to save more everyday? When you turn on Roundups, all of your debit card purchases are automatically rounded up to the next dollar and deposited into your online savings account.
Maximizing the Interest You Earn
The higher the interest rate, the faster your savings will grow. That’s why it can be worthwhile to do some research into which institutions and which types of savings accounts are paying the highest rates.
Some options you may want to look into include: A high-interest savings account, money market account, certificate of deposit (CD), checking and savings account, or an online savings account.
The Takeaway
Savings accounts generally aren’t designed for making frequent transactions. Instead, their main purpose is to provide a safe place to store money for the medium- to long-term. This is one of the key differences between checking and savings accounts.
Savings accounts still allow you to have access to your money, of course. To avoid exceeding transaction limits, you can visit the bank in person or use the ATM to make withdrawals or initiate transfers (since these transactions typically don’t count towards transaction caps).
To make the most out of your savings account, you may also want to look for an account that pays a higher-than-average interest rate.
Open a SoFi Checking and Savings Account
Another savings option you may want to consider is opening a checking and savings account, which can combine the best features of each kind of financial vehicle.
Interested in opening an online bank account? When you sign up for a SoFi Checking and Savings account with direct deposit, you’ll get a competitive annual percentage yield (APY), pay zero account fees, and enjoy an array of rewards, such as access to the Allpoint Network of 55,000+ fee-free ATMs globally. Qualifying accounts can even access their paycheck up to two days early.
Better banking is here with up to 4.50% APY on SoFi Checking and Savings.
The SoFi Bank Debit Mastercard® is issued by SoFi Bank, N.A., pursuant to license by Mastercard International Incorporated and can be used everywhere Mastercard is accepted. Mastercard is a registered trademark, and the circles design is a trademark of Mastercard International Incorporated.
SoFi members with direct deposit activity can earn 4.50% annual percentage yield (APY) on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Direct Deposit means a deposit to an account holder’s SoFi Checking or Savings account, including payroll, pension, or government payments (e.g., Social Security), made by the account holder’s employer, payroll or benefits provider or government agency (“Direct Deposit”) via the Automated Clearing House (“ACH”) Network during a 30-day Evaluation Period (as defined below). Deposits that are not from an employer or government agency, including but not limited to check deposits, peer-to-peer transfers (e.g., transfers from PayPal, Venmo, etc.), merchant transactions (e.g., transactions from PayPal, Stripe, Square, etc.), and bank ACH funds transfers and wire transfers from external accounts, do not constitute Direct Deposit activity. There is no minimum Direct Deposit amount required to qualify for the stated interest rate.
SoFi members with Qualifying Deposits can earn 4.50% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances. Qualifying Deposits means one or more deposits that, in the aggregate, are equal to or greater than $5,000 to an account holder’s SoFi Checking and Savings account (“Qualifying Deposits”) during a 30-day Evaluation Period (as defined below). Qualifying Deposits only include those deposits from the following eligible sources: (i) ACH transfers, (ii) inbound wire transfers, (iii) peer-to-peer transfers (i.e., external transfers from PayPal, Venmo, etc. and internal peer-to-peer transfers from a SoFi account belonging to another account holder), (iv) check deposits, (v) instant funding to your SoFi Bank Debit Card, (vi) push payments to your SoFi Bank Debit Card, and (vii) cash deposits. Qualifying Deposits do not include: (i) transfers between an account holder’s Checking account, Savings account, and/or Vaults; (ii) interest payments; (iii) bonuses issued by SoFi Bank or its affiliates; or (iv) credits, reversals, and refunds from SoFi Bank, N.A. (“SoFi Bank”) or from a merchant.
SoFi Bank shall, in its sole discretion, assess each account holder’s Direct Deposit activity and Qualifying Deposits throughout each 30-Day Evaluation Period to determine the applicability of rates and may request additional documentation for verification of eligibility. The 30-Day Evaluation Period refers to the “Start Date” and “End Date” set forth on the APY Details page of your account, which comprises a period of 30 calendar days (the “30-Day Evaluation Period”). You can access the APY Details page at any time by logging into your SoFi account on the SoFi mobile app or SoFi website and selecting either (i) Banking > Savings > Current APY or (ii) Banking > Checking > Current APY. Upon receiving a Direct Deposit or $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits to your account, you will begin earning 4.50% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% on checking balances on or before the following calendar day. You will continue to earn these APYs for (i) the remainder of the current 30-Day Evaluation Period and through the end of the subsequent 30-Day Evaluation Period and (ii) any following 30-day Evaluation Periods during which SoFi Bank determines you to have Direct Deposit activity or $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits without interruption.
SoFi Bank reserves the right to grant a grace period to account holders following a change in Direct Deposit activity or Qualifying Deposits activity before adjusting rates. If SoFi Bank grants you a grace period, the dates for such grace period will be reflected on the APY Details page of your account. If SoFi Bank determines that you did not have Direct Deposit activity or $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits during the current 30-day Evaluation Period and, if applicable, the grace period, then you will begin earning the rates earned by account holders without either Direct Deposit or Qualifying Deposits until you have Direct Deposit activity or $5,000 in Qualifying Deposits in a subsequent 30-Day Evaluation Period. For the avoidance of doubt, an account holder with both Direct Deposit activity and Qualifying Deposits will earn the rates earned by account holders with Direct Deposit.
Members without either Direct Deposit activity or Qualifying Deposits, as determined by SoFi Bank, during a 30-Day Evaluation Period and, if applicable, the grace period, will earn 1.20% APY on savings balances (including Vaults) and 0.50% APY on checking balances.
Interest rates are variable and subject to change at any time. These rates are current as of 8/9/2023. There is no minimum balance requirement. Additional information can be found at http://www.sofi.com/legal/banking-rate-sheet..
Financial Tips & Strategies: The tips provided on this website are of a general nature and do not take into account your specific objectives, financial situation, and needs. You should always consider their appropriateness given your own circumstances.
When it comes to investing, your time horizon refers to the desired amount of time before you reach a financial goal. It’s one of the most important factors in your financial plan because the amount of time you have to reach your goal — whether it’s 3 months or 30 years — influences how much risk you want to take on, and therefore which investments you’ll choose.
In fact, a good way to think about your investing time horizon is like the leg of a table. Four key decisions uphold your investment portfolio, and the first is how much time you have, ideally, to attain a certain goal. The other three cascade from there: your risk tolerance, your investment choices, and your asset allocation.
Recommended: Investment Strategies for Beginners
What Is a Time Horizon?
What is an investment time horizon? In short, it is the expected time available to hold an investment or to achieve a financial goal.
First, an investing time horizon can refer to the amount of time that an investor is planning on holding an investment. For example, an investor may be planning to hold an investment for 10 years. Therefore, the investment horizon is 10 years.
Or, investors can think of a time horizon as a type of deadline: e.g. how long they plan to work toward a goal. For example, one common goal is to save and invest for retirement, which may be decades away.
This investing time horizon will likely be determined by the age of the investor and how much progress they are making towards their retirement goal.
An investment time horizon could also be short, long, or somewhere in the middle. 💡 Quick Tip: When people talk about investment risk, they mean the risk of losing money. Some investments are higher risk, some are lower. Be sure to bear this in mind when investing online.
Why Is Time Horizon Important?
Most financial goals have a time horizon attached to them implicitly, even if you haven’t spent much time thinking about it. If you’d like to buy a home, you might be thinking 2-3 years — or 10 years. If you’d like to buy a car, you might be thinking six months to a year. It all depends.
What drives the time horizon is the urgency of your goal. If you need a bigger home as soon as possible for your growing family, the goal of saving for a downpayment might be a short-term goal, with a shorter time horizon. If you want to buy a car, but you want to pay all cash, you might need a few years to save that money — so that goal would have a longer time horizon.
Goals like saving for college or retirement typically take years, and those time horizons are longer.
Once you can identify a realistic time horizon for the goal you’re investing toward, you can think about your investment strategy in more detail. Understanding the difference between short- and long-term investments is important, because some strategies will support your goals better than others.
Time Horizon and Risk Tolerance
Deciding on a short or long time horizon can help inform (or influence) your risk tolerance. Your tolerance for risk is, as it sounds, how much investment risk you can tolerate, when risk = the risk of losing money. If you can’t sleep unless you know your portfolio is relatively secure, and you’re on edge when markets are bumpy, you probably have a low risk tolerance.
Investors who have a low risk tolerance are considered risk averse, and they may prefer more conservative investments, like bonds. Low-risk investments like bonds and certificates of deposit (CDs) are less volatile, but they typically also have lower returns than higher-risk investments like stocks.
If you have a shorter time horizon of a year, and you don’t want to risk losing money, you may choose lower-risk investments like short-term bonds or types of CDs.
But if you have a higher risk tolerance, and you want to take on more risk with the hope of seeing higher returns, you might want to invest in stocks, mutual funds, or exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Now let’s say you have a low risk tolerance, but you have a long time horizon to save for retirement: say 25 or 30 years. With a time horizon of three decades, your portfolio has more time to recover from periods of volatility, so you might feel more comfortable having a higher percentage of stocks in your portfolio, even though that increases your risk to some degree. It also increases your potential for growth over time.
This is often referred to as the risk-reward ratio, or a risk-reward calculation. Since no investment is genuinely risk-free, using a risk-reward ratio helps calculate the potential outcomes of any investment transaction — good or bad.
Recommended: 11 Golden Rules of Investing
Time Horizon, Risk, and Investment Choices
From the above examples, you can see that there is an interaction between the time you have until you achieve your goal, how much risk you’re willing to take on, and therefore what investment choices you might be open to.
Various investment types can exhibit different risk characteristics over different time periods. The stock market can be volatile during short time periods, like a month or a year. But over longer periods, the stock market generally continues to rise.
In fact, long-term investors may want to view risk through a different lens: If you don’t take on enough risk, you might not reach your investing goals. It is also possible to lose money by doing nothing, due to the effects of inflation. When cash just sits in low-interest accounts, it tends to lose purchasing power over time. 💡 Quick Tip: When you’re actively investing in stocks, it’s important to ask what types of fees you might have to pay. For example, brokers may charge a flat fee for trading stocks, or require some commission for every trade. Taking the time to manage investment costs can be beneficial over the long term.
Asset Allocation and Time Horizon
The purpose of deciding on the time horizon for your goals, examining your risk tolerance, and selecting different investments is to then land on an asset allocation that makes sense for you.
Asset allocation is the investor’s decision to divide a portfolio among various asset classes. Popular asset classes can include different types of stocks, bonds, as well as cash and cash equivalents (e.g. money market funds).
Asset allocation typically has a large impact on the performance of a portfolio over time. So, once again, an investor’s time horizon and risk tolerance will influence not only the selection of certain securities, but the proportion of higher- and lower-risk investments in a portfolio.
Asset Allocation Formula
For investors saving for retirement, there’s a general rule of thumb for deciding asset allocation. Subtract your age from 110, and that’s how much an investor should allocate to stocks.
If an investor is 30, subtract 30 from 110, which is 80. Thus the investor might consider an allocation of 80% stocks, with the other 20% going to bonds and cash. Of course, this is just a general rule — each investor will likely need to use their discretion and evaluate their overall financial profile and risk tolerance as they make investing decisions.
Short-Term Investing Time Horizons
A short-term investing time horizon could be anywhere between zero and three years. Some examples of short-term goals include: saving up for a vacation, emergency funds, holiday gifts, or a down payment on a home.
For the most part, it makes sense to keep money for short-term goals in cash or cash equivalents, because the focus is generally on safety and liquidity — and investors won’t want to risk losing money that they’ll need relatively soon.
This can be especially true when the goal does not allow for any timing flexibility.
For example, say that you’re saving up for a down payment on a house in about six months. Because this is a short-term time frame, and because the objective is to make sure that the money is available for use in six months, it does not make much sense to subject this money to risky assets with high volatility, like stocks and bonds.
Cash can be held in a checking or savings account. This can be done with a traditional retail bank or an online bank account.
Another option to consider is a short-term CD at a bank or local credit union. Investors may be able to earn slightly more interest with a CD. Tread carefully, here: There may be a penalty to access money held in a CD before the maturity date.
For short-term goals that are flexible on timing, it may be possible to invest all or some of that money. For example, imagine an investor with the goal of starting a business in about three years.
Because they are flexible on timing, and willing to take on more risk in order to potentially see bigger gains, they may put some of their business start-up money into stocks or equity mutual funds or ETFs.
Recommended: Investing for Beginners
Ready for a Better Banking Experience?
Open a SoFi Checking and Savings Account and start earning up to 4.50% APY on your cash!
Medium-Term Investing Time Horizons
A medium-term investing time horizon could be anywhere between three and 10 years. Examples of medium-term goals include: starting a family or paying for a child’s college education, or potentially a house remodel.
Investing in mid-term goals can actually be more complex than investing for both short and long-term goals.
Likely, an investor will want to consider a balanced approach in a diversified combination of investments. The nearer the goal, the more bonds and cash the investor will likely want to have. The farther out the goal, the more risk that an investor might take.
How much an investor allocates to equities (stocks) will depend on their comfort level with the stock market during a medium investing time frame, and their willingness to be flexible.
Long-Term Investing Time Horizons
A long-term investing time horizon is generally longer than ten years.
Examples of long-term financial goals include: paying for college, retirement, financial independence, creating an endowment, and building intergenerational wealth.
How should long-term money be invested? In general, longer investment time horizons allow for more risk — which may set the stage for higher potential returns. Therefore, it is possible to have the majority of long-term funds invested in the stock market or similarly risky asset classes, if the investor’s personal risk tolerance allows.
The notion of risk is complex during longer periods, however. With money that is saved and invested now to be held for use over the long-term, investors may have to contend with losing purchasing power to inflation, in addition to market volatility.
Inflation is the economic phenomenon of rising prices, which means that over time each dollar can buy less. Historically, the inflation rate has run at 2% to 3%, which means money that’s “earning nothing” is actually losing 3% each year. Therefore, one of the biggest risks for long-term investors may actually be acting too conservatively, too soon.
Example of an Investment Time Horizon
To recap the above, an investor’s time horizon depends on the goal in question. Not all goals have a specific time horizon, but those that do — like retirement or buying a home or paying for college — require careful planning.
In order to reach a specific goal with the needed amount of money, investors must take into consideration how much risk they are willing to take on, given the time allowed, and choose their portfolio investments and asset allocation accordingly.
Investment Time Horizon and Risk Types
Investor’s must contend with different types of risk, depending on the time horizon for their goal.
Market Risk
This is the most common and likely the most well-known type of risk: it’s simply market volatility. The more exposure you have to the equity markets (or any market with greater volatility, e.g. crypto, commodities, high-risk bonds) that puts you at a higher risk for losing money.
While market risk is a factor for most investments to some degree, time horizon obviously impacts how much market risk you’re exposed to.
Inflationary Risk and Investment Time Horizon
As noted above, a big risk factor for longer time horizons is inflation risk: The risk that your money won’t grow enough to keep up with inflation. If an investor has a 20-year time horizon, for example, and invests conservatively during that time, there is a risk that they won’t end up with enough growth.
Interest Rate Risk
Interest-rate risk is the risk that interest rates could rise, affecting the value of the fixed-income part of a portfolio. While interest rate changes can impact many investments, bond values fall as interest rates rise.
Investing With SoFi
Your investment time horizon is effectively a type of financial deadline for any given goal. Some time horizons are more flexible than others — and that’s important to know, because the amount of time you have may influence your risk tolerance and investment choices.
Ready to invest in your goals? It’s easy to get started when you open an investment account with SoFi Invest. You can invest in stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), and more. SoFi doesn’t charge commissions, but other fees apply (full fee disclosure here).
Invest with as little as $5 with a SoFi Active Investing account.
FAQ
How do you calculate your time horizon?
Your time horizon is simply the amount of time between now (or when you start investing for your goal) and when you hope to reach your goal. For example, if you’re 35 and you’re planning to retire at 65, your time horizon for that goal is 30 years.
If you’re aiming to buy a home once you have $50,000 saved, you need to create a time horizon for when you’ll be able to reach that goal, based on the amount you can save per year, and your expected rate of return for the investments you choose.
What is the ideal investment horizon?
The ideal investment horizon varies from goal to goal. In the course of your life you may find yourself dealing with multiple time horizons for a range of goals. In some cases (e.g. saving for college or the arrival of a new baby), there’s an inflexible time horizon and you may have to adjust the amount you’re saving or the investments you choose. In other cases, like retiring or buying a home, you may be able to take more time to reach your goal.
What is time important in investing?
Time is a critical element in all investing decisions, whether long term or short term. As its most basic, time may allow investors to save more, recover from market volatility, adjust their risk exposure (if needed), and potentially see greater gains.
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Investment Risk: Diversification can help reduce some investment risk. It cannot guarantee profit, or fully protect in a down market.
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Financial Tips & Strategies: The tips provided on this website are of a general nature and do not take into account your specific objectives, financial situation, and needs. You should always consider their appropriateness given your own circumstances.
Food stamps, or SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits, help millions of Americans who earn lower incomes or face economic hardship feed their families. In one recent year, 12% of all Americans accessed this benefit.
In the not too distant past, however, SNAP benefits weren’t always the most convenient way to go food shopping. A person had to go to the store and pay for their groceries with the program’s EBT card. Today, however, as so much of life is going digital, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) offers an online purchasing program to make food stamps more convenient for residents of every state. It’s becoming easier to use SNAP benefits online.
Here, you’ll learn more about how, where, and when you can use these benefits to grocery-shop online.
What Are Food Stamps?
“Food stamps” is an older, but still commonly used term to describe SNAP, or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
SNAP is designed to provide nutritional assistance to low-income families, as well as the elderly, disabled, and people who have filed for unemployment. SNAP is a federal program administered by the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service, which has a network of local offices.
While SNAP doesn’t cover all the items you might pick up at the supermarket, it can significantly cut your grocery bill.
• You can use food stamps to purchase meat, poultry, and fish; vegetables and fruit; bread and cereal; dairy products; snack food; and seeds and plants that produce food.
• However, you can’t use them to purchase tobacco, wine, beer, liquor, vitamins, prepared food, and nonfood items like cosmetics, hygiene items, and cleaning supplies.
Everyone on food stamps has a bank card called an EBT card, backed by the government. The program allows for customers to pay in-store and increasingly online, using their EBT just like a debit or credit card.
The maximum monthly food-stamp assistance you can get varies by where you live and how many people are in your household. A family of four living in the U.S. can now receive around $939 a month.
💡 Quick Tip: Want to save more, spend smarter? Let your bank manage the basics. It’s surprisingly easy, and secure, when you open an online bank account.
Who Qualifies for Food Stamps?
A household is eligible for Food Stamps, or SNAP, when it meets specific criteria. Each state has an income limit that SNAP households must stay under. Additionally, they may factor in your finances and savings to determine your eligibility.
To apply for food stamp benefits or to get information about the SNAP program in your area, you can contact your local SNAP office. You can find local offices and each State’s application on the USDA national map .
Each state has its own application form. If your state’s form is not on the web yet, you can contact your local SNAP office to request a paper form.
Recommended: Average Grocery Budget for a Family of 5
Can You Use Food Stamps Online?
Yes, food stamps can be used online. Thanks to the expedited expansion of an online purchasing pilot program run by the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service, households receiving SNAP benefits in any of the 50 participating states (along with the District of Columbia) can now use EBT to pay for groceries online from select retailers.
If a retailer is enrolled in SNAP’s online program, people on food stamps can select foods eligible for EBT benefits online and then arrange for in-store or curbside pickup. In some cases, it may be possible to have your groceries delivered. If the retailer charges a delivery fee, however, you cannot use your benefits to cover that fee.
💡 Quick Tip: Most savings accounts only earn a fraction of a percentage in interest. Not at SoFi. Our high-yield savings account can help you make meaningful progress towards your financial goals.
What Stores Accept Food Stamps Online?
You now know the answer to “Can food stamps be used online?” The next question is probably, “Where exactly can I use food stamps online?”
Fortunately, many stores now accept food stamps online. While Amazon and Walmart are among the best known retailers for online EBT shopping, the number of stores accepting EBT card payment online is continuing to expand.
• FreshDirect, an online grocery delivery service, now delivers for free to SNAP participants in some zip codes in the New York metropolitan area.
• Instacart, a grocery delivery service, is currently partnering with many local stores in the U.S. to offer SNAP EBT benefits. The latest version of the Instacart app should display whether your local store offers EBT SNAP.
Which retailers (and which specific locations) participate in the online SNAP program will vary from one state to another, so it’s a wise idea to check which options are available in your area.
Here are some of the retailers that are now accepting food stamps for online shopping (for either delivery or pickup):
• Walmart
• Amazon
• Aldi
• Food Lion
• Publix
• FreshDirect
• BJ’S Wholesale Club
• Kroger
• ShopRite
• Fred Meyer
• Safeway
• Albertsons
• Vons
• Hy-Vee
5 Ways to Use Food Stamps to Buy Groceries Online
The rules for using food stamps online will vary by retailer. Here are some ways this transaction might work.
1. Use Food Stamps on Amazon
For example, when shopping on Amazon, you can add your SNAP EBT card, shop for groceries, and when you check out, you enter your EBT PIN to pay for eligible purchases.
2. Order Groceries With Food Stamps at Walmart
For Walmart, you can order groceries online or through the store’s grocery mobile app. You first need to sign into your Pickup & Delivery account and then select Payment Methods.
3. Use Food Stamps Online at a Local Store
If your local store accepts EBT Online, you’ll see an option to add your EBT card to your account and can then add your card. During checkout, you select EBT as your payment method. You can then enter your PIN and complete your order.
For instance, at ShopRite, you can order groceries online at Shoprite.com or via the store’s mobile app. During checkout, you can select Pay Online and then click the Place Order button. You can then choose the EBT Snap Card as the payment method to complete checkout. That’s another way to use food stamps online.
4. Know Which Are Non-SNAP Items
At some retailers, you can also include non-SNAP items in the same order, but you’d need to pay for them separately with a debit or credit card. If the store charges a delivery fee, that charge would also need to be paid via a separate payment card since service fees are not included in SNAP benefits.
5. Continue to Check As Options Expand
If you don’t find EBT SNAP as a payment option when attempting to order from your preferred grocery store, you may want to keep checking back — the coverage areas and list of participating stores continue to expand.
Recommended: Average Grocery Budget for a Family of 3
Other Ways to Save on Groceries
If you don’t qualify for SNAP benefits or are looking for additional ways to trim your grocery budget, try these tips. They can help you save, regardless of how much you usually spend on food per month.
Plan Your Meals
By planning your meals ahead and buying in bulk, you can save money on food. Say you decide in advance that you’ll buy chicken that’s on sale and make a stir-fry one day, a sheet pan dinner the next, and will grill it as well. You might even double up on your cooking and freeze leftovers for the following week.
Shop Solo and Stick to Your List
Impulse buys have a way of wrecking your food budget, and if you have your family with you at the supermarket, it can be more likely that they will spot enticing and expensive items. It can be more economical to hit the grocery store on your own and stay laser-focused on your list.
Use Coupons
Whether you choose to clip the old-school paper coupons or use some of the digital couponing options, those deals can help you stay on your budget. You may even be able to use coupons in a way that doubles their saving power for even lower prices.
The Takeaway
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) — better known as food stamps — provides assistance to low-income people in the form of an EBT card that can be used to purchase certain types of food.
Many national retailers and supermarket chains now allow SNAP recipients to order eligible groceries online and then go into the store to pick them up, either in-store or curbside, or have them delivered.
Looking to keep better tabs on your grocery (and other) spending? Finding the right banking partner could help.
Better banking is here with up to 4.50% APY on SoFi Checking and Savings.
FAQ
Can you use EBT anywhere in the US?
Yes, if you qualify for EBT, you can use your benefits anywhere in the U.S.
Can EBT be used on DoorDash?
Yes, it can: DoorDash is partnering with Safeway and Albertson to enable shoppers to use EBT as payment in the app.
How much do you get for one person on SNAP?
In 2023, the average benefit for SNAP for a single person is $195 per month, though the benefit could be as high as $281.
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Looking for an app that does it all – automate savings, track spending, investing, and get a free $250 cash advance?
Welcome to my Albert App Review.
Looking for an all-in-one personal finance app that will help you manage your money, save for your future, or even get a free cash advance when you need it?
In that case, you’ve come to the right spot!
In this Albert App Review, I’ll go over everything you need to know about the popular Albert app, and I will discuss its features, benefits, how the app can help you, and more.
You can sign up for the Albert app here.
The Albert app is becoming more and more popular as a money tool that can simplify your life. Instead of needing a bunch of different financial apps, Albert can help you consolidate your phone and need less. The app is a one-stop shop for your monthly financial needs – it automates savings, helps you manage your budget, and has spending, borrowing, and investing tools. With this easy app and the wide range of tools that you can use, Albert has many benefits.
This app reduces the need for multiple apps since it offers a wide range of tools and features.
If you’re looking for a money saving app, Albert can be a great option to start with. There’s a reason why it’s one of the top money apps in the App Store!
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Albert is one of the most popular personal finance apps, and it is designed to make it easier to save and invest all in one place. This app has features for saving, investing, and budgeting.
Quick Summary – Albert App Review
Albert app is a financial management tool that helps you to save, spend, and invest right in the app
The Genius feature allows you to ask any money question and get a real response from a real person
Albert app’s cash advance feature can get you up to $250
The app is free, but some features do require a monthly subscription
Albert App Review
What Is The Albert App?
The Albert app is a personal finance app that will help you manage your money better by making it easier to save and invest all in one place. This app has features for saving, investing, budgeting, and more.
It has many different features, such as budgeting tools, real-time alerts, and a helpful service where you can ask an expert money questions and get real answers catered to your situation. The app strives to make financial management easier and more organized for everyone.
Albert makes it easy to manage your finances, eliminating the need for visits to physical bank branches or formal phone calls with a financial expert. With the ease of using an app, you can easily track your financial well-being, helping you stay organized, reach goals, and find smart ways to save, spend, and invest. Albert stands out by simplifying your personal finances, all while keeping things very easy to use.
Albert also has a feature where you can get a small cash advance of up to $250 with no late fees, interest, or credit check. This advance is repaid from your next paycheck, giving you the option to avoid high-interest personal loan lenders for those in need of quick cash.
There are no hidden fees, and it is free to sign up. They do have a paid subscription plan that you can sign up for which will give you access to different features such as financial advice from experts. I talk about the paid part further below.
Does The Albert App Give You Money?
Albert provides instant cash advances to users who need small amounts of money before their payday. They do not charge late fees, interest, or run a credit check for this feature.
This can be a great way to not pay high rates on payday loans for when you just need a little bit of cash.
How it works is that the Albert app will send you up to $250 from your next paycheck straight to your bank account. Then, you simply repay them when you get paid. You can pay a small fee to get your money instantly, or you can wait 2-3 days and get the cash advance for free.
Albert Instant is available to all members of the Albert app who qualify, whether they are a paid subscriber or not. Now, not everyone will qualify. To determine your eligibility for a cash advance, they look at things such as if your income is direct deposited into your connected bank account, if your bank account has been open for at least 2 months and has a balance greater than $0, and if you’ve received consistent income in the past 2 months from the same employer.
Albert App Features
The Albert App has many other features, such as:
Banking with Albert
Albert has a user-friendly banking service through its partnership with FDIC-insured Sutton Bank. This includes features like no minimum balance requirement and access to your paycheck up to two days early.
With an Albert account, you can also earn cash back rewards, such as getting a cash back bonus on gas, groceries, and more when you purchase items with your Albert debit card. You can earn an average of $2.00 per gas tank fill-up. You do need to be a Genius subscriber to take advantage of this benefit.
The app also has fee-free ATMs for their paid subscribers at over 55,000 ATMs (when using the Albert Mastercard debit card).
Albert Savings
Albert Savings is the app’s automatic savings tool that is available to Genius subscribers. It saves money from your linked bank account to your Albert Savings account.
This automated savings tool helps you build up your funds without the stress of manual transfers. It analyzes your income and expenses to calculate the amount you can save comfortably. Or, you can manually set your own savings schedule.
The Albert saving feature can help you to save more money and reach your goals.
The money in your Albert Savings account is yours, and you can withdraw it at any time.
Albert Budgeting
The Albert Budgeting feature is super handy and packed with a bunch of useful tools to help you manage your money with ease.
The Albert app has budgeting tools to help you track your income and expenses, find fees that you shouldn’t be paying, and watch your financial progress. The app will send real-time alerts and notifications to help you stay on track with your budget. But, that’s not all.
Other features of Albert Budgeting include:
The Albert app can negotiate your bills so that you can save money. The app will help you lower your bills such as for cable TV, internet, cell phone, and more.
The Albert app also makes it easy to see all of your budgeting info in one quick place, such as tracking your recent bills, seeing how much you’re spending in different categories, and more.
The app will categorize your spending so that you can see where your money is going (this can help you to realize where you may need to cut back)
Also, the app will help you find hidden charges and subscriptions that you may not be using.
These are all very helpful features that can help you save a lot of money in the long run.
Albert Investing
If you’re new to investing or you’re looking for an easier way to invest, the Albert Investing side of the app can make getting started much, much easier.
With Albert Investing, you can start an investment portfolio that matches the amount of investment risk you want to take on and your financial goals. The app even provides investment guidance and lets you start investing without any minimum investment amount needed.
So, that means that you can start investing with Albert Investing with just $1.
You can get started investing in the app by answering some questions (the app wants to learn more about you so that it can make selections based on your personal situation). The app will then choose individual stocks or funds for you to invest in (or, you can choose these yourself if you know what you want to invest in). You can even ask the app to only invest in themes as well, such as companies that are interested in sustainability and the environment. You can then continue to invest automatically or on a recurring schedule. The auto-investing feature can be a great tool if you are looking to save time and invest regularly without really thinking about it.
Albert Genius
This is one of my favorite parts in the app.
The Albert Genius service gives you financial advice from a team of expert financial advisors (this is a team of real human experts that you are able to talk to – not a robot), available through a paid monthly subscription in the app.
You can ask their experts any money question that you have, whether it’s a big or small question, a general question, or something more specific to your personal situation. Your questions can be about anything from credit cards, budgeting, student loans, investing, credit card rewards, life insurance, your personal financial life, and more. These experts will help you answer your questions 7 days a week too. And, there’s no limit to the amount of questions you can ask.
This is a very nice feature to have access to.
Some of the questions you can ask include:
How do I start a budget?
How do I lower my car insurance? Am I paying too much?
How much can I personally afford to spend on a house?
How can I improve my credit score?
How much money should I have in my emergency fund?
Should I use extra cash to pay off debt or invest?
Can you help me to better under travel miles and credit cards?
There are so many different questions that you can ask the team at Albert!
Albert Protect
Albert Protect is a feature for paid subscribers on the app.
The Albert Protect feature monitors your money around the clock. The app will alert you if something suspicious comes up for any of your connected financial accounts or your identity. The app continuously watches for suspicious activity on your credit report, the dark web, data breaches, and unusual charges.
How Does The Albert App Work?
Signing up for Albert is easy!
Simply click here to get started.
Or, you can head to the Google Play or App Store, depending on your device (Android or iOS), and download the app. Once installed, the app will walk you through the setup process. There’s no need to worry about a credit check as Albert doesn’t require one for signing up.
Next, you’ll be asked some questions about yourself such as your name and age. The app is trying to learn more about you. Here’s what Albert says specifically about the questions that they ask: “We do this in order to best serve your needs: a 19-year-old single student has different financial objectives and priorities than a 37-year-old professional with two kids who will be starting college soon.”
Then, you’ll be asked to connect your financial accounts to the app. So, you may connect your bank account that your bills come out of, your credit card accounts, student loans, mortgage, investments accounts, and more. You can connect as many or as little as you want. This information helps the app better serve you so that it can give you recommendations, track your spending, give you alerts, and more.
After you sign up, you’ll have access to the many features mentioned above to help you manage your finances. As you learned above, there are a lot of tools in this app, so I recommend just playing around in the app at first to better familiarize yourself with it and see how it can help you. Maybe sit down for a few minutes at a time until you understand how to use the app in the best way for your financial situation. That’s exactly what I did when I first downloaded the app because it was a little intimidating at first trying to see all of the different things that the app can do. But, it’s so nice that everything can be done right from one app!
To sign up for the app, they do require that you be a U.S. citizen or resident, be at least 18 years old, and have a bank account with a U.S. financial institution. Unfortunately, at this time, the app is not available to those outside the U.S.
How Much Does Albert App Cost?
The Albert app has a lot of different features, so you may be wondering what the cost is or if there are any monthly fees.
The great thing is that many of the tools and features on the Albert app are free.
For example, the Albert App has a fee-free cash advance feature to help you cover unexpected expenses. If you need some extra cash until your next paycheck, you can get up to $250 as a cash advance, with no cost. There are no late fees, overdraft fees, or maintenance fees associated with this service.
You can also start investing with as little as $1 and use the free cash advances feature (as long as you meet eligibility requirements) without the need for a subscription.
Now, the Genius subscription does have a cost.
If you’re looking to unlock all of Albert’s helpful budgeting, saving, and investing tools, you might want to consider their Genius subscription. This subscription starts at just $14.99 per month and gives you access to some helpful benefits like cash bonuses and personalized financial advice. Keep in mind that the true value of the Genius subscription depends on how often you use the app and all its features. So, if you’re a frequent user of the app, it could be a great investment in your financial well-being.
Is Albert App Safe to Use?
Yes, Albert is safe to use.
Let’s start with the basics – the Albert app isn’t a bank, but it teams up with FDIC-insured Sutton Bank to offer you banking services. That means that the money in your Albert Cash account is safe because it’s protected by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (also known as FDIC). That’s a fancy way of saying your funds are insured for up to $250,000.
Your Albert Savings accounts are held at FDIC-insured banks, including Coastal Community Bank, Axos Bank, and Wells Fargo.
When it comes to data security and privacy, Albert takes that seriously too. The app has security measures to protect your sensitive personal and financial information.
As for customer service, if you ever face any issues with the Albert app, you can easily reach out to their support team for assistance. Many Albert app reviews have mentioned their responsive customer service.
Pros and Cons of Albert
Like with any personal finance app, there are pros and cons. I can’t write an Albert app Review and not talk about the pros and cons, so that you can make the best decision for yourself.
Some of the benefits of using Albert include:
The app aggregates all of your accounts – Albert gives you an overview of your financial life by combining all your accounts in one place.
Savings and investments – The app offers customizable savings goals and can create a custom portfolio for your investment needs. It will also keep track of your transactions and help you identify potential savings opportunities as well as avoid late fees.
The Albert app is safe – Your information is kept safe with the same level of security used by major banks, as well as FDIC insurance.
Albert Genius – This feature provides personalized money advice from financial experts (real people, not a robot!) to help you make smarter financial decisions. You can ask any money question and will get personalized advice.
Free cash advance – Get a cash advance on your next paycheck without any late fees using Albert Instant, or access your paycheck up to two days early with direct deposit.
Free ATM withdrawals – This is a feature paid monthly members get to have.
While Albert has many helpful tools and features, there are some potential downsides to using the app such as:
App-only functionality – All features of Albert are limited to the app, which may be inconvenient for some people who prefer to be on their computer instead of their cell phone.
Fees – While many features in Albert are free to use, some, such as the Albert Genius service, require a subscription fee. The fee is quite affordable for the services you receive, though.
No phone calls – If you need to talk to customer support, there is no phone number to call. Instead, it’s all done through the app, text message, or email.
Frequently Asked Questions
Here are answers to commonly asked questions about the Albert app.
Is Albert a trustworthy app?
Yes, Albert is a trustworthy app. Your banking money is FDIC-insured, with coverage up to $250,000, and your investments are SIPC-insured. The app has many financial tools and you can even get personalized advice from experts.
How much can you borrow with Albert?
The maximum for a cash advance is $250.
How do you get $250 from Albert app?
Albert offers a cash advance feature called Albert Instant. After you enable this feature and meet the requirements, you can access funds quickly, sometimes up to $250.
Does Albert give you money right away?
In some cases, Albert can provide instant cash advances or help you get your paycheck up to two days early via direct deposit, depending on your employer and banking situation.
How long does it take to get money from Albert?
Getting your hands on the cash you need from Albert is all about the service you’re using. If you’re in a hurry, instant cash advances could have those funds in your pocket right away. But for paycheck advances and other features, it might take a couple of days before you see the money.
What are the requirements to get a cash advance on Albert?
Requirements for a cash advance with Albert include a history of consistent income, using the Albert app for a certain period, and having a bank account linked.
Does Albert hurt your credit?
Albert does not directly impact your credit score as it is not a lender. However, using the app’s guidance to improve financial management can help you work towards building or maintaining a higher credit score.
Does Albert need your social security number?
Yes, when signing up for the Albert app, it will ask you for your SSN. This is because it is an investment app and they need to verify that it is actually you signing up.
Is Albert or Chime better?
Albert and Chime are different financial apps with different features. Albert focuses on money management, investing, and advice, while Chime is a mobile banking app offering checking and savings account services. Your choice should depend on your financial goals and preferences.
Why is Albert taking money from my account?
If you’re already an Albert user, this may be a troubleshooting question that you have (and perhaps you searched Google and found this blog post). Albert takes money from your account (such as your bank checking account) to fund the services you’ve opted into, such as investments or automatic savings. You can check the app’s settings or contact Albert to learn more,
Is Albert app affiliated with a specific local bank?
Albert is backed by Sutton Bank.
Is the Albert app reliable and secure for banking?
Yes, Albert is a reliable and secure app for managing your finances. It is FDIC and SIPC-insured and has a variety of financial tools and resources to help you improve your financial situation.
How is Albert app customer service?
I did some research and I found great Albert app reviews on their customer service. The Albert app has customer service options within the app and online. They do not have an option to call their customer service and speak on the phone. But, if you’re like me, you probably prefer to get your questions answered via text message or email anyways.
Is Albert app legit?
Yes, the Albert app is a legitimate personal finance app that can help you manage and improve your finances. Millions of people (last I checked, over 10,000,000 people use this app) use the app’s many helpful tools. The app is available for people on Apple or Android devices and it has great reviews.
Who is Albert app best for? Who should not use it?
The Albert app is a helpful all-around financial app that can help many different people. If you’re looking for an all-in-one app to help you save, spend, borrow, and invest, Albert might be a good fit for you. The app is helpful for people who:
Want fee-free cash advances up to $250 (this is a feature that many people like because they don’t have to sign up for high-interest rate loans when they just need something for a short amount of time)
Need an app that gives you an overview of all your accounts in one place
Are interested in automatic savings and easy investing tools
Albert takes the work out of managing your finances and may be helpful for people who are trying to stay on top of their personal budget without having to juggle multiple apps.
However, Albert may not be the best fit for everyone and not everyone needs to have it. So, if you fall into any of the below, then this may not be the app for you
If you’re an experienced investor looking for more advanced trading tools, then this may not be the best investing app for you (the Albert app is basic in this area because I think it caters more to those who are new investors or are looking for something easier to manage)
If you’re someone who doesn’t feel comfortable linking their bank accounts to a third-party app (you will need to link accounts in order to get full use of the app – I understand that some people may not want to do this)
Albert App Review – Summary
I hope you enjoyed my Albert App Review.
I think this is a very helpful app, and I can see why it’s one of the most popular money apps today.
Albert is an app designed to help manage your saving, budgeting, investing, and more, all in one easy app. The app has all of the different money tools that you would want, plus some extras that you may have not realized you needed yet.
Albert is an app that helps you to manage many different parts of your financial life right from your cell phone (it’s not available on computers).
They even have the Genius feature (one of my favorite parts of the app), which is an in-app chat where you can ask one of their experts anything related to money, from credit cards, buying a car, student loans, and more. This is very helpful if you ever have questions about money.
And, if you need cash now, Albert may be able to give you a small advance of up to $250. There are no late fees, interest, or a credit check. If you want to avoid personal loan lenders who have high-interest rates, and only need a small cash advance, then Albert may be a place to start with. How this works is that they send you $250 from your next paycheck. You simply repay them when you receive your next paycheck.
You should keep in mind that investment options don’t include retirement plans and customer service can only be reached via email and text. Though the app’s budgeting tools are more basic compared to budgeting-focused apps, the Albert app still has many, many benefits to help you manage your finances effectively and it’s all from one easy-to-use app.
You can learn more about Albert here.
What’s your favorite personal finance app? Do you use the Albert app?
The investing information provided on this page is for educational purposes only. NerdWallet, Inc. does not offer advisory or brokerage services, nor does it recommend or advise investors to buy or sell particular stocks, securities or other investments.
Welcome to NerdWallet’s Smart Money podcast, where we answer your real-world money questions. In this episode:
We discuss some of the unique money challenges that millennials face, and how they can feel empowered to take charge of their financial wellness during tough times.
Check out this episode on your favorite podcast platform, including:
What makes millennials and their financial challenges unique? There are many misconceptions about millennials as a generation — but like the generations before them, their financial wellness (or lack thereof) has been shaped by major events beyond their control.
As millennials grew up and navigated early adulthood, they faced recessions, the COVID-19 pandemic, rising student loan debt and a soaring cost of living. The result for many is discontent and a strained relationship with money.
In the first episode of our nerdy deep dive into millennials and their money, Nerdwallet personal finance writer Tiffany Curtis and host Sean Pyles discuss a recent announcement from the Pew Research Center about changes to how it will study and report on generations. They also chat about the role of social media in our financial lives and if they still believe in the American dream.
Tiffany also talks with Angela Moore, certified financial planner and founder of Modern Money Education, a financial education firm. Angela considers herself an “honorary millennial” and works with a variety of people to help them build a strong financial foundation. They discuss historic and present-day factors that have created millennials’ shaky relationship with money and ways that they can take ownership of their finances. That includes working with a professional to address financial trauma and finances, getting clear on financial goals and establishing what happiness looks like for them individually.
NerdWallet stories related to this episode:
Episode transcript
Sean Pyles: If you are of a certain age, anywhere from your late 20s to your early 40s, you have no doubt found yourself at some point reduced to your generational status. You are a millennial. And while every generation has its benefits and burdens, some also bring a specific, shall we say, attitude to the table.
Angela Moore: I think that a lot of millennials are getting to the point where they do not care what their parents think, or anyone else for that matter, they want to focus on happiness. A big theme now is my job has to be fulfilling. My job has to make me happy. I have to enjoy what I’m doing to a certain extent, right? There has to be that balance to life and a lifestyle element to it.
Sean Pyles: Welcome to NerdWallet’s Smart Money Podcast. I’m Sean Pyles.
Tiffany Curtis: And I’m Tiffany Curtis.
Sean Pyles: This episode kicks off our Nerdy deep dive into millennials and money. We’re going to explore what makes millennials unique in how they make money, manage money and talk about money.
Tiffany Curtis: We’re also going to explore how millennials have opened the door to wider conversations about generational financial trauma, and how they’ve gone about defying expectations about what their financial lives are supposed to look like.
Sean Pyles: OK. So, Tiffany, I am going to ask you the question that I ask all of our guest Nerds for these special series. Why are we doing this exactly? You and I are both millennials, so I’m guessing that is part of it.
Tiffany Curtis: Yes, that’s definitely a part of it. I just turned 30.
Sean Pyles: Congrats.
Tiffany Curtis: Thank you. I wanted to do a special series on how we relate to money because there are a lot of myths about millennials and money. There’s a misconception that we’re simply bad with money, not working hard enough. It also feels like general financial advice and ideas about what financial wellness should look like don’t take into account all of the significant events that we’ve lived through, and how those events and generational trauma impact our relationship with money.
Sean Pyles: Yeah, absolutely. And one thing that’s really interesting to me is how the experiences we have at really formative times in our lives shape the way that we think about our own finances and the economy for years to come. Folks in Gen X and boomers also lived through things like the 2008 financial crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic, but by virtue of being in different places in their lives, they may have been shaped by these events in different ways than we millennials were.
Well, speaking of millennials, Tiffany, let’s talk about this generation that we are a part of and also the whole idea of generations. First of all, can you please give our dear listener a refresher on how millennials are defined?
Tiffany Curtis: Yes. So, they’re generally defined, as you mentioned at the top of the show, as people who are between 27 and 42 years old. So, they were born between 1981 and 1996, so their formative years happened during and around the millennium. Although if you were born in the early ’90s, you probably don’t remember how wild Y2K was.
Sean Pyles: Y2K is such a throwback. I was 9 when Y2K happened, or I guess didn’t happen. I spent New Year’s Eve at my grandmother’s house in small town Minnesota, and I remember being very bored, but also feeling like I was in a relatively safe spot in the event that every nuke in the world was detonated at once or something like that. We all thought that was maybe going to happen.
Well, I think we also do want to acknowledge some of the problems that arise when we divide people up into generations. Millennials are not really one monolith nor are boomers or people in Gen Z. And speaking of Gen Z, the boundaries between one generation and the next can feel a little bit arbitrary, and a lot of issues around money have nothing to do with whichever generation you’re in. Having a tense or strained relationship with money isn’t inherently unique to millennials.
Tiffany Curtis: That’s true, but I think you can make a case that there’s a collective discontentment in the millennial generation. And you can definitely argue that’s the first generation to grow up with the internet ingrained in our lives. That makes us different from say, Generation X. We’ve also witnessed growing economic disparity and insecurity, and we’re the first to stare down a life deeply affected by climate change. And I also think it’s fair to say this generation is disillusioned with the American dream. I think we more openly question who that dream is for and whether it’s something to still strive for.
Sean Pyles: Yeah, amen to that. When I talk about money and the future with many of my friends, who are predominantly millennials, many of them express a sense of despondence or that they feel like they’ll never get ahead financially. But I don’t want this to be too much of a bummer conversation.
So, Tiffany, let’s talk about what is good. You mentioned the influence of the internet, and I would argue that has been a force for both good and bad. On the good side, it has allowed us to have really important conversations openly, publicly about all of those factors that you mentioned.
Tiffany Curtis: Agree.
Sean Pyles: And technology itself has brought changes to our financial lives. For example, do you ever even go inside banks anymore or even like a real old-fashioned brick and mortar store? We do have the world at our literal fingertips from the comfort of our couches.
Tiffany Curtis: Agree. I do still go into banks too, though.
Sean Pyles: Well, that is your own prerogative and good for you because I have not set foot in a bank in a long time.
Tiffany Curtis: But I remember when we were first talking about this series, we ran across some interesting perspectives on this whole “call me by my generation” question, didn’t we?
Sean Pyles: We did, and I particularly want to cite the Pew Research Center, which issued an explainer this year that said it was going to change its approach to studying and reporting on generations. The biggest takeaway, I think, is that they’re going to analyze generations when they have historical data that allows that comparison at similar stages of life. So, for example, they would look at people in their 30s and 40s across time instead of by arbitrary generational designations, and that makes sense to me.
Tiffany Curtis: Me too. But for now, we’re kind of stuck with millennials as a generation, so let’s talk about them.
Sean Pyles: Yeah, might as well, right?
OK, well, listener. we want to hear what you think. To share your ideas, concerns, solutions around millennials and money, leave us a voicemail or text the Nerd hotline at 901-730-6373. That’s 901-730-NERD, or email a voice memo to [email protected].
So, Tiffany, who are we going to hear from today?
Tiffany Curtis: Well, we’re going to start today with Angela Moore. She’s a certified financial planner and founder of Modern Money Education, a financial education firm. She’s based in Florida and calls herself an honorary millennial.
Welcome, Angela. So, glad you could join us on Smart Money today.
Angela Moore: Thank you. I’m excited to be here.
Tiffany Curtis: So, let’s start with an overview of where millennials are in their financial lives right now. What stands out to you as someone who does financial planning with millennials?
Angela Moore: I think what stands out the most is that there’s just so many competing priorities because we’re kind of like a sandwich generation. Many of us have parents that are getting up there in age, close to retirement age, so there’s the need to potentially help them financially or help them plan for retirement, supplement their financial situation. And then, many of us are beginning or have children at this point, so there’s the need to plan for our children and their education and their everyday expenses and needs.
And then, we still have all these competing personal financial priorities, whether it’s our everyday bills or our student loans, purchasing a home or other goals, and there’s so much more to add in there. We don’t have the same type of retirement benefits that previous generations had, and housing prices and the cost of living in general has just skyrocketed.
Tiffany Curtis: What do you think are some specific events that have shaped this generation in terms of how we view the role of money and the attainment of it? I’m thinking about things like the 2008 financial crisis and of course the COVID pandemic. Can you talk about some of the ways that those events affected millennials’ finances?
Angela Moore: Absolutely. The pandemic hit millennials very hard. The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College said that millennials were more likely to be laid off during the pandemic. The Pew Research Center said millennials were hit harder by the COVID-19 pandemic.
And so, I think that’s just part of the story. The other part of it is that there was a study done by the National Institute on Retirement a while back that found that 66% of working millennials have nothing saved for retirement. I think one of the things that really hit home for a lot of millennials is that there’s no stability here and that this system is not really working for us. And I didn’t even mention the student loan situation. I mean, I’ve routinely seen clients that have $200, $300,000 of student loan debt. And so, I think that forces you to have to think outside the box and be creative.
If you’re a millennial and you’re seeing what’s stacked against you, it’s almost like, “OK. Well, how can I now separate myself from this situation and elevate? How can I transcend this situation?” It’s not necessarily because millennials want to be creative and want to do everything differently. And then, it’s almost like you’re getting judged for wanting to be different, you’re getting judged for not taking a traditional route.
One of the historic things that happened was our country did away with traditional retirement plans. Back in the day, a lot of U.S. workers had pension plans. And it became very expensive to maintain these types of traditional retirement accounts or pensions, and so a lot of companies began to move to 401(k)s and 403(b)s and kind of what we call contribution-type plans. And so what that did, it shifted the burden of saving for retirement from the employer to the employees. The traditional advice that older people got when they were younger, it doesn’t work for our generation. It’s not going to work.
Tiffany Curtis: So, what do you think is some of that traditional advice that isn’t working for millennials anymore?
Angela Moore: I think the traditional advice is, “Go to college. Get a job. Save your money. Balance your checkbook.” The standards hold true, but it’s not enough anymore.
For someone who’s just working an average job trying to save and trying to penny pinch and budget their way through their financial situation is not going to have enough money saved to live on all throughout retirement. If you do the math, if you look at, “Hey, let’s say I start working when I’m 20 and I retire when I’m 65. OK, that’s 45 years that I’ve worked.” But let’s say that I live to be 100 or 95, let’s say. That means that in the 40 years that I’ve worked, I need to have saved enough to live on another 30 years. And I’m supposed to be saving this money even with the high cost of living, the high cost of purchasing a house, the high cost of paying for education, the high cost of inflation. And on top of that, I’m also supposed to be navigating this tumultuous financial market, right? The investment market. It just doesn’t add up.
Tiffany Curtis: So, I’m wondering if you can talk about some of the misconceptions that other generations might have about millennials, especially our relationship with money and how we manage it. How do you think millennials are seen by the rest of society?
Angela Moore: I think a lot of society, in the past especially, has looked at millennials as lazy, they don’t want a job. I think those are the most common misconceptions I’ve heard.
But in working with mostly millennial clients, I have to differ with that. I think that millennials are some of the smartest clients I’ve ever had. They’re extremely resourceful. They’re extremely mature. It’s not all about money for millennials, a lot of it is about health and wellness and balance, and I think that that’s key.
I think a lot of millennials do have a sound mind and they are aware of the financial situation and concerned with it. I just think that it’s hard. It’s extremely complex. From a financial standpoint, I think that millennials have actually done an excellent job of being aware of their financial situation and taking steps to try to do the best that they can.
Tiffany Curtis: Where do you think they’re coming from, the misconceptions?
Angela Moore: A lot of older people are not aware of how much it costs to go to college now. You can easily spend $80,000 a year on college now. And there’s a lot of things that the older generations just were not exposed to.
Even finding a job. I mean, even me, when I graduated college, I graduated college in 2002, it was easy to find a job, but things are different now. Things are completely different. And even finding a livable wage, especially in some of these major cities — let’s say you’re earning $100,000, that’s not a lot of money in a lot of these urban cities, in these environments. It doesn’t go very far nowadays.
Tiffany Curtis: So, we talked about things that older generations may not have been exposed to. So, that makes me think of millennials and the internet and how we’re kind of the first generation to really grow up in the age of the internet, and this big boom with social media especially. Can you walk us through the effect that you think that’s had on how we view our finances? Do you think it’s helped or hindered us?
Angela Moore: I think both. I think on the one hand, it’s exposed us to so many different options, so many different career paths, so many opportunities that we wouldn’t have had if we didn’t have access to information.
But then on the other hand, there’s the whole social media aspect and the comparing ourselves, and everyone’s out here living their best life on a yacht in some tropical paradise or whatever. And it just makes you feel like you’re broke compared to everyone else. There’s a lot of influencer type of content out there. And it’s hard when you are putting your head down and you’re working and trying to earn income and trying to save and trying to just create something, and it just looks like everyone else is doing so much better than you.
It’s both helped us in a lot of ways by giving us opportunities and exposure to things, but then at the same time, it can be devastating in a lot of ways as well and overwhelming. And so, subconsciously, you’re holding yourself to that standard. It’s almost impossible for us to separate the two internally in our brains.
Tiffany Curtis: I feel like when it comes to social media and millennials and finances, it very much feels like it just kind of amplifies that feeling of the haves and the have-nots, which makes me think of wealth inequality. There’s a lot of research coming out about the wealth gap among millennials, especially racially, and the major difference in net worth between white millennials and black millennials and other millennials of color. And wealth inequality is a source of generational financial trauma. So, I’m wondering, what does generational financial trauma look like to you?
Angela Moore: I’ll tell you a quick story. When I first got in the industry as a financial advisor, I was working at a huge brokerage firm and we had cubicles. And there was a young woman sitting across from me, and she was on the phone with her attorney discussing her prenuptial agreement like it was nothing. Just casually discussing what she would like to have in the prenup and all these different things. And I thought to myself, “Wow, I’ve never heard anyone talk about this.”
And as I grew in this career, that’s something I saw, is that there are certain families that talk about wealth, they talk about estate planning, they talk about business, they talk about investments, they talk about all these things at the dinner table on a routine basis. And in a lot of black and brown communities especially, you could go your whole life and you’ve never had a conversation about those things.
We’re just not typically exposed. We’re not at the table. We’re not in the room. And obviously, I mean, we all know the history of this country, there are certain families that have had generational wealth that came all the way from slavery times. The same goes for poverty. There is poverty that has been passed down from generation to generation. It’s a poverty mindset. It’s lack of knowledge, even. It’s behavioral patterns and habits that have been passed down. You saw your parents doing it, so you’re doing it.
And it’s not just that, then there’s also obviously what kind of access to advice that you have. One of the things that really bothered me about my industry when I stepped back and thought about it later in my career was that most financial planning firms and brokerage firms, they cater to high-net-worth clients. And what that means is that they are looking for individuals that have at least a million dollars to invest with them. A lot of these companies don’t even have any services that will cater to you at all. And so it’s like, where do the rest of us go for financial advice?
But I do think that a lot of millennials, what’s great about this is that because of the resources that we have, like the internet for example, people are beginning to take these matters into their own hands and they’re educating themselves. They’re reading books. They’re finding people like me to help them. They’re listening to things like this. They are really trying to empower themselves, which we’ve always done, but there’s now this access to information that wasn’t really available before.
Tiffany Curtis: And speaking of empowerment, what kind of advice do you give to your clients about how to deal with generational financial trauma?
Angela Moore: I think that seeking professional help in terms of therapy is not talked about. There’s trauma, there’s mindset and hindering beliefs a lot of times. So, seeking therapy.
The other thing is associating yourself with like-minded people who are also trying to empower themselves. So, find a Facebook group or whatever it is of people who are trying to financially empower themselves.
And then lastly, find a professional to help you get your finances in order, whether that’s a financial coach, financial advisor, financial planner, an investment advisor, whatever. There’s a lot of different types of financial professionals out there that can help you. There’s even student loan specialists out there. So, there’s just a lot of help nowadays and resources.
Tiffany Curtis: You’ve touched on some resources already, but given everything that we’ve talked about that millennials are navigating when it comes to their financial lives, what are some steps that they can take toward financial wellness right now? Immediately, as soon as they’re done listening to this, what sort of things can they do?
Angela Moore: Yes. So, the first thing you can do is take ownership and get organized. You want to have clarity around your current financial situation.
So, the first step is write out a budget, write down all of your monthly expenses and also any debt that you owe, anything like that. List it all on a piece of paper or a spreadsheet or whatever, just so you can have clarity around that. And then, also, list out how much income are you bringing home every month, and then compare. How much is coming in versus how much is going out? That’s the very first step.
Once you’ve done that, you want to focus in on your goals. So, many people have no clue what they’re trying to accomplish when it comes to financial situations. You could maybe have some short-term goals, maybe some long-term goals.
But then the next step is aligning your budget with those goals, right? Every month money’s coming in. Are you allocating that money in a way that aligns with what you are trying to accomplish in your life? That is the key. If your money’s just coming in and going out to all these random places and it’s not intentional, you’re not being intentional about how you’re spending or where you’re putting your money, then that’s where chaos sinks in.
After that, I would say focusing in on eliminating debt, making sure you have an emergency fund saved, then reviewing your insurance, car insurance, really important, all the different types of insurance. Disability insurance, you should know what disability insurance is, and you need to make sure you have it because disability insurance is insuring your income. If something happens and you are disabled and can no longer work, how are you going to save for retirement? How are you going to buy a house? How are you going to do anything? So, you need to make sure that you’re insuring your income with disability insurance.
And then, another thing is estate planning. Everyone thinks that estate planning is only for wealthy people, but that’s not the case. All of us should do an estate plan because an estate plan says, “Hey, if I’m ever in the hospital, who do I want making medical decisions for me? Who do I want to have access to my finances to be able to pay my bills and make sure my business keeps flowing and all these different things?”
Tiffany Curtis: It makes me think about how millennials are or aren’t redefining what financial wellness feels and looks like for them. So, I’m wondering if you could talk through, what do you think that looks like? Do you think that we’re redefining financial wellness? If we are, how?
Angela Moore: Absolutely. I think that a lot of millennials are getting to the point where they do not care what their parents think, or anyone else for that matter, they want to focus on happiness. And so, a big theme now is, my job has to be fulfilling. My job has to make me happy. I have to enjoy what I’m doing to a certain extent, right? There has to be, like I mentioned earlier, that balance to life and a lifestyle element to it.
I think the other thing is that a lot of millennials are doing what I call thinking outside the box. They are creating their own realities. A lot of millennials are starting to create their own businesses. They are leaving corporate America. They are creating new, innovative ways to make money and create multiple streams of income.
And they’re realizing that they need to increase their income in order to achieve financial stability. And I also think, you know, challenging societal norms. A lot of millennials are not trying to buy a house, some are not trying to get married. People are really looking at, “What makes me happy and what can I do to live the life I want to live in the most authentic way possible, instead of what society expects of me?” And so, that’s something I see that is unique to millennials.
Tiffany Curtis: So, it sounds like the onus is on millennials a lot to come up with these creative solutions and figure out how to do things in a nontraditional way, because like you said, the system isn’t working for us. But if you could, how would you like to see the system better support millennials?
Angela Moore: Well, I think a lot of it is political, and I think we’re seeing that some leaders are trying to address issues. Obviously, there’s a whole lot of issues to be addressed, and so sometimes our particular issues don’t take precedence, but I think that they should. Because the baby boomer generation, which is our parents’ generation, they are aging. They’re retiring, going into Social Security. So, the onus falls on the current working class to fund Social Security for them and fund retirement for them. And because there’s not as many of us, there’s a strain on the system.
These are all major, major concerns. When you add it up and do the math, it’s not going to work out unless something changes. So, I think that hopefully as we become leaders and get into leadership, that we can help push forward change.
Tiffany Curtis: Angela Moore, thank you so much for helping us out today, and helping us kick off the series.
Angela Moore: The pleasure is all mine. Thank you.
Sean Pyles: I love how Angela talked about the importance of empowerment and community. You two discussed a number of big challenges that the millennial generation is facing: wealth inequality, generational trauma, a difficult housing market. And these issues are real and hard to navigate. But at the end of the day, we still do have agency, right? We can decide what to do with our finances and can work to better our situations, even if the broader economic and societal context is difficult.
Tiffany Curtis: We do have agency. We get to decide what our financial priorities are. And I think with open and honest conversations like these, we move a little bit closer to improving our relationship with money, while we continue to hope that systemic change is on the way.
Sean Pyles: Exactly. Hoping that systemic change is on the way and taking action to make that happen. So, Tiffany, Angela touched on this a bit, but I know in our next episode we’re going to dive even further into the idea of generational financial trauma.
Tiffany Curtis: Yeah, we’re going to talk with two guests who have spent a lot of time counseling and educating millennials on how generational trauma intersects with our finances and how we may not even realize that said trauma is at the root of our relationship with money.
Aja Evans: When we start talking about financial trauma, in general, I think that there is a conversation that assumes people were coming from a place of poverty. And yes, that is very, very true for a lot of people, but there are also people who were raised in middle class, upper middle class wealthy families who are dealing with generational traumas of their own with money.
Tiffany Curtis: For now, 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 [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.
Sean Pyles: This episode was produced by Tess Vigeland and Tiffany Curtis. I helped with editing. Liz Weston 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. Also, a special shout out to Kathy Hinson for all of her help on the series.
Tiffany Curtis: 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 may not apply to your specific circumstances.
Sean Pyles: And with that said, until next time, turn to the Nerds.
College is an exciting time: You’re surrounded by new people, new opportunities, and a chance to dive into the next chapter of your academic career. But this transition also comes with different financial realities—and the need to develop new skills around spending and saving money.
Along with navigating your new campus and sharpening your study skills, there’s another key lesson to learn: how to create a college student budget. When done right, a budget can help you limit debt, build some savings, and accomplish your goals. Need to make sure you have enough for textbooks, rent, food—and some left over for a little fun? Want to spend a semester abroad? Creating a college student budget can help with these goals and more.
Whatever financial issue is giving you trouble, Katie Waters, CFP®, founder of a financial planning firm, has tips for how to set yourself up for success. Here’s how to get started.
Assess your income and expenses
As you begin building your college student budget, you first need to figure out how much money you have coming in and how much you have going out. You can use anything from a simple spreadsheet to a budgeting app to track your income and expenses.
How should students pay for monthly expenses? Start by writing down all the sources of after-tax money you get each month, Waters says. That includes money from a part-time job, financial aid, stipends, grants, loans, or a monthly allowance from your parents.
Next, figure out how much you’re spending each month. Waters recommends looking back at three months’ worth of your expenses. To do that, refer to your debit and/or credit card statements, plus any record of money sent through payment apps.
You should account for every dollar you’ve spent, Waters says, separating expenses into common categories such as:
Cell phone
Food
Entertainment (movies, fun with friends, streaming services)
Clothing
Internet
Transportation (airfare, bus tickets, car insurance, gas)
Tuition
Room and board or rent
Textbooks and school supplies
The point is to add up everything, Waters says. “We want a line item for it all.”
If you’ve gotten this far and you already realize that your expenses weigh in heavier than your income, consider ways you could start giving your income a leg up. Check out these tips to help you make money as a college student.
Create your college student budget
Making and following a college student budget is the best way to ensure you have enough money to pay for the things you need while still having some money left over for the things you want. Here’s how to budget as a college student:
1. Create your spending categories.
Your budget should contain categories for all your major spending groups. (Refer to the list of expenses you created when assessing your expenses.) Then decide how much you must spend for each and assign a dollar amount or percentage to that category.
2. Choose a type of budget.
There are different budgeting styles, and Waters notes that one might fit your specific situation better than another. You could try the 50/30/20 rule, which allocates 50% of your money toward needs (food, textbooks, tuition); 30% toward wants (entertainment, clothing); and 20% toward savings.
You can also go with the envelope system, which involves setting aside a limited amount of money for each spending category. Once you hit the limit in a given category by running through money in its envelope—whether literal or digital—you can’t spend any more in that category until the next budget period begins.
3. Optimize your budget regularly.
Once you’ve set a budget, keep track of it. If you’re consistently under or over, see if there are areas where you can save more or spend less. As your needs change, so should your budget.
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Prioritize essential expenses
Whichever kind of college student budget you choose, make sure necessities such as your tuition payment (if you’re paying for school yourself) or things like bus fare to get to your part-time job are covered. To make that easier, Waters says you can find ways to reduce your expenses, such as:
Renting, borrowing, or buying used textbooks
Buying snacks in bulk or cooking meals that are large enough that you’ll have leftovers
Asking for student discounts when shopping in person or looking for online discounts
Opening a cash back checking account or using a cash back rewards credit card to earn rewards1 for purchases you already make.
Focusing on what you must pay for first can help to lessen the debt you acquire, Waters says. Bonus: If you can do that, you’ll also reduce the amount of interest you’ll have to pay while in school or after you graduate.
Manage your fixed and variable expenses
Certain expenses, such as your cell phone or car insurance bill, typically stay the same every month. Those are fixed expenses. Variable expenses include costs that can change from month to month, like food, gas, or entertainment, depending on your behavior. Variable expenses can be tougher to budget for, but they can also provide more flexibility to your budget.
The envelope budget method can help you learn to budget more accurately for variable expenses when making a college student budget. For example, let’s say you spent $140 dining out in month one, $175 in month two, and $120 in month three. Take the average of the three—$145—and set that as your “dining out” monthly line item that you shouldn’t exceed.
“The biggest ‘don’t’ for college students is saying yes to everything,” according to Waters. Instead, it’s important to set limits. “Get to know your town and find ways to hang out that are free or low cost.”
Save for emergencies
College might not seem like a natural time to save money, especially if you’re not making much to begin with—but it can be done. And saving money will be a critical skill you can continue to use throughout your life.
Often, the easiest way to save is to make it automatic, Waters says. You can automate your savings by opening a savings account and setting up regular transfers from your checking to your savings account. You can choose how much is socked away based on a percentage of your income, as with the 50/30/20 rule, or you can set aside a chunk of your remaining balance at the end of each month.
It’s also important to try and build an emergency fund, even if it’s small, Waters says. An emergency fund is money you use for unexpected expenses—think paying to fix a flat tire, covering medical bills, or repairing a malfunctioning laptop. A good goal for the amount to save in an emergency fund is three to six months of your expenses. That might sound like a lot, but you can build your savings slowly over time.
Waters notes that a savings account or emergency fund is also a great place to stash cash you weren’t expecting to receive—like birthday money from Grandma. Think of it this way: If you save $25 a week, in just six months, you’ll have saved $600. This is also a great chance to learn how to invest as a college student. By keeping your savings or emergency fund money in a high-yield savings account, you can watch how your savings grows over time with interest.
Start building your financial foundation today
Once you’ve set a budget that you feel comfortable with, make sure to regularly check in with yourself about your spending. One trick that’s great for budgeting for college students is a financial checklist, which helps you look closely at your spending habits and whether your needs have changed. Earning more or less money, a change in your rent, or a tuition hike can make it necessary to reassess your budget and tweak as needed, Waters says.
College can be the perfect time to start your financial future off on the right foot. Things like building credit, saving for retirement, and creating a thriving savings account all come from making the right choices early—and regularly. Getting a handle on your finances in college with a college student budget is one of the best first steps you can take.
Creating a budget and learning to manage your finances as a college student can put you in a stronger financial position when you graduate. Here are some of the first steps you can take to ensure your long-term financial wellness.
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1 ATM transactions, the purchase of money orders or other cash equivalents, cash over portions of point-of-sale transactions, Peer-to-Peer (P2P) payments (such as Apple Pay Cash), online sports betting and internet gambling transactions, and loan payments or account funding made with your debit card are not eligible for cash back rewards. In addition, purchases made using third-party payment accounts (services such as Venmo® and PayPal®, who also provide P2P payments) may not be eligible for cash back rewards. Apple Pay® is a trademark of Apple Inc. Venmo and PayPal are registered trademarks of PayPal, Inc. Samsung Pay is a registered trademark of Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. Google, Google Pay, and Android are trademarks of Google LLC.
