Personalfinance tips

Unfortunately, most of the time working a regular 9-5 job won’t make you rich enough to live comfortably. Starting your own business or creating your own side hustle is great way to make some extra cash while taking control of your financial future. One of the main benefits of creating a side hustle and working for yourself is that you are your own boss. You get to decide when you take a lunch break, or when you go on holiday, and if you are sick, you don’t need to call your boss and explain why you need the day off. Creating your own side hustle is also potentially very lucrative. You can scale a business, you can’t scale a job. This means that although you can ask your boss for a raise, there is a limit as to how much you can earn in that job. A side gig has endless potential; the sky is the limit when it comes to how much money you can make on your own. If you are stuck for ideas, check out our 100+ side hustle ideas to get your creative juices flowing.

Shopping is a necessary evil as we all need food and clothing to get through the day. Thankfully, you don’t have to pay full price for things like groceries and other wants and needs when using cashback apps. Cashback apps come in all shapes and sizes and there is almost always one to suit your shopping style. DOSH app is one of the best cashback apps around because of how easy and convenient it is to use. You can sync your cards to the platform and automatically get cashback when you shop at any of their partners. There are literally thousands of shops and online stores that have partnered with DOSH – from shopping to dining to booking hotels. Simply use the card you have synced with DOSH and you automatically get cashback without having to scan receipts or coupons.

Put your money to work and start investing is one of the best personal finance tips around. Oftentimes the income you make from your regular job just isn’t enough. Maybe your income doesn’t allow for any savings or wants. Perhaps you would like to retire with a million dollars, for example. Whatever the reason is it’s usually a good idea to have another source of income. Look into safe investments such as Treasury or Corporate bonds, dividend-paying ETFs, real estate, or gold. Whichever you pick, understand that there are risks that come with investing in these. Research what’s out there because there are plenty to choose from. Related content: How to start investing with free stocks

Talk to your benefits team at your work to discuss what benefits are available to you such as 401(k), health insurance, and flexible spending accounts. Taking advantage of these can help save some money by reducing out-of-pocket expenses and reducing taxes. Be careful with keeping track of everything though because it’s easy to miss something and not claim all your deductions and credits. You should get this out of the way now so you don’t end up scrambling later in the year come tax time. Additionally, although it varies between companies, there’s usually an option called “employer match” where they match what you contribute into your 401(k) retirement plan up to a certain percent. This is essentially free money – take advantage of it now! Related content: Online jobs for college students that pay $20 or more

After you have a clear understanding of where all of your money is allocated, you can now start to improve your debt situation by lowering your monthly bills to your credit card companies. It’s easy to spend a lot when using credit cards. It’s even easier to misunderstand the impact that APY’s can have on your recurring debt.  Every month when your credit card bill is due you are paying interest on the balance of your loan. The bigger your balance is, the more money you’ll be paying to the creditors every month. Work towards lowering and paying off your credit card bills because some APYs can get seriously high – it isn’t uncommon to see them go higher than 20%. If you have multiple loans, medical bills, and balances on your credit cards, it’s best to look into debt consolidation loans with low APYs. You can actually save a ton by doing this.  The added benefit here is that you can reduce stress and clutter by only managing one bill. There are also free tools you can use to keep on track with your credit card payments like a debt snowball worksheet, or a credit card debt tracker.

Being frugal doesn’t make you a loser, it makes you smart. Once you learn all the clever ways to save money you will never look back, and you can use those savings to invest in a more comfortable future for yourself. There are all sorts of tips and tricks to help you stop spending money on things you don’t need, cashback apps that earn you coupons or money back when you shop, tips on how to save money on groceries, how to grow your own herbs to save money, and ways to save money on electricity. Being frugal isn’t just about saving money and spending less, it is also about learning how to get free stuff like coffee. If you are into haircare, skincare, and makeup, then there are ways to get freebies sent straight to your doorstep in the mail. Why not take advantage? The world of frugality is as large as it is exciting, and there are always ways to make your money work harder for you. Being on the lookout for potential savings in your everyday life is one of the best personal finance tips.

We all have to live a little right?  Don’t think you have to live a boring life to keep your finances in order.  If you’ve been keeping track, you’ll notice that we have $1500 left to spend on anything else. Go ahead and spend your hard-earned dollars to go watch a movie at the theaters or go on a vacation with family and friends. There’s nothing wrong with that. Just make sure to spend and save your money wisely so that you don’t go over 30% of your after-tax income on these things that aren’t necessary. Wants are things that you spend money on that you don’t really need in order to live. Upgrading to a Mercedes instead of keeping your Camry, joining a gym rather than working out at home, ordering filet mignon instead of chicken, getting the latest and greatest iPhone 12 when you know your iPhone 8 still does the job – these are all wants because you really don’t need them.

If you do have good credit or you have a cosigner with good credit, connecting with local lenders will often secure you a better rate on your new student loans or your refinanced loans. Local banks and credit unions typically have better interest rates and better customer service, but also require higher credit scores to be approved. Check out Lendkey to get personalized quotes from local lenders. Even a small difference in your interest rate can lead to thousands of dollars in savings over the life of your loan. Get started with Lendkey to check your personalized rates.