One way to reach your financial goals is to “set it and forget it” when saving and investing money. You can even put important bills on autopay to avoid late payment fees. But not everything should go on autopay. There are some bills that, once on auto-renewal, can drain your bank account and bust your budget. Here are some items to avoid putting on autopay. 1. Warehouse club memberships Warehouse clubs like Costco and Sam’s Club offer annual memberships. With these, you have the option to set up auto-renewal, so you’re charged automatically each year. Rather than assuming that you’re…
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Monkey Business Images / Shutterstock.com Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared on The Penny Hoarder.Meal delivery services, or meal kits, have been around for more than a decade but have grown in number in recent years. You may even be wondering which one is the cheapest meal delivery service. You’ve seen the commercials and likely received the direct mailers to your door. And if you live in an apartment building, you might have almost tripped over the 30-plus-pound boxes in the hallway outside your neighbor’s door (the weight from ice packs and filler packaging adds up quickly). The direct-to-door business…
I’ve been watching the travel industry for decades, and I can tell you that when governments make it harder to cross their borders, local economies bleed cash. Right now, while many Americans are simply trying to figure out how to get the best deals on travel, Washington is quietly building a financial fortress around the country. Two new hurdles are being thrown at international tourists: steep visa bonds and unprecedented social media background checks. The goal is to increase security and stop visa overstays. But the economic blowback is going to be brutal. If you own a restaurant, run a…
Tax Day is coming. You haven’t filed yet. In truth, you haven’t even started. Preparing a tax return can trigger paroxysms of stress at the best of times. If you’re rushing to finish your taxes ahead of the April 15 deadline, you may be rushing things. Between stress and haste, you could wind up making costly errors. Here, then, is a list of common mistakes people make before filing their taxes, adapted from a March 25 list published by the Illinois CPA Society. To honor the Land of Lincoln, we’ll include comments from Illinois accountants. Your Name You probably won’t…
Recently, the folks over at MarketWatch published a piece on the six biggest changes to Social Security over the past 20 years. It got me thinking. You can’t rely on your parents’ retirement playbook. The rules have shifted dramatically, and if you aren’t paying attention, you’re going to leave thousands of dollars on the table. Here are the six shifts in Social Security since 2006 that you need to understand right now. 1. The full retirement age hit 67 If you were born in 1960 or later, your full retirement age isn’t 65. It isn’t 66. It’s 67. Although Congress…
Editor’s Note: This story originally appeared on Boldin. Where should you retire? Choosing the perfect retirement destination is actually a deeply personal and multifaceted decision. And frankly, most people love where they already live. However, if you want to relocate, you’ll want to carefully consider factors ranging from climate and cost of living to healthcare access and social connectivity. By understanding your retirement vision, conducting thorough research, and prioritizing your needs and preferences, you can identify the place that feels like home for this next chapter of your life. Remember, retirement is not just about where you live, but how…
A California-based company is recalling some male-enhancement chocolate products due to the products containing “undeclared active pharmaceutical ingredients,” according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The products – Gold Lion Aphrodisiac Chocolate Male Enhancement Sachet and ilum Sex Chocolate Male Sexual Enhancement Booster – contain sildenafil and tadalafil, which the FDA says may pose a threat to consumers because the active ingredient could interact with nitrates found in prescription drugs, potentially causing a “life-threatening” drop in blood pressure. “Among the adult male population who are most likely to use these products, adult males who use nitrates for cardiac conditions…
A couple days ago, we had some parents from the neighborhood over for dinner. At some point the conversation shifted to what it cost to fill up their cars that week, and everyone had a number. $95. $110. One guy said he’d just paid over $6.00 a gallon in Orange County. The table got quiet for a second. I drive electric, so I don’t feel it at the pump the same way. But I felt it in a different way, because I’ve been paying attention to what’s driving those prices, and it’s bigger than most people realize. Here’s the short…
FRISCO, Colorado ‒ Stretching out in their beach chairs as the temperature climbed toward 70 degrees, Seth and Renee McLaughlin watched their three kids play in the sand on what was supposed to be family ski trip. Booked last November, their spring break vacation to Colorado’s mountains required a hard shift in plans following a historically warm and dry winter: Instead of zipping down the slopes, the couple watched their kids sift sand into colorful toy buckets on the shores of Lake Dillon. “It’s obviously frustrating. You want to go skiing, and usually we ski until May, and instead we’re…
Social Security payments in April will follow a normal schedule, with the first payments hitting on April 8. Social Security benefits – paid mostly to recipients who are older or retired – are typically scheduled to go out on Wednesdays. On the second Wednesday of the month, payments are issued for beneficiaries whose birthdays fall between the first and 10th days of the month (for April, that is April 8), according to the Social Security Administration’s calendar. Recipients born between the 11th and 20th get paid on the third Wednesday (April 15) of the month; those born after the 20th…