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Lenders look at a myriad of financial factors when they run your credit report, but there’s another unlikely indicator that creditors are starting to pay attention to: your friends as presented by your social media accounts.
What do your Instagram friends have to do with your credit history? Well, the concept of peer pressure, far from being confined to your school days, has been proven to carry through into adulthood.
Taking a look at the spending habits and financial situations of your closest friends can often reveal quite a bit about your own.
While some newer financial institutions have started using social media to further reveal the credibility of their clients, it’s not a general practice so you don’t have to rush to clean out your friends list just yet. However, being aware of how your friends might be influencing your spending will help you stay on track with your budget, and/or distance yourself from those who constantly hijack your efforts at frugality. [ continue reading… ]
The unemployment rate has been extremely low for what seems like years now, but that doesn’t change the fact that six million Americans are currently out of work, according to the most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report. Add to that the 2023 college graduates who are competing for every job out there, and it’s clear that it could be tough to land a job even if the statistics make it seem like there are plenty of opportunities to go around.
Since the average length of unemployment is still a depressingly long 20 weeks according to BLS, it can feel as though those struggling to find a job have an uphill battle. However, it’s important to note that a long employment gap no longer has the stigma it once held. Employers are sympathetic to the difficulty of the job market. But that doesn’t mean that you should stay idle while waiting for your dream job to open up. Here are some things to do while you are unemployed that will help your resume, your well-being, and your bottom line: [ continue reading… ]
I come from a family that believes in the deluxe vacation experience. My mother likes to joke that she thinks she’s roughing it when there’s no chocolate on the pillow each night. However, with gas prices at $4 per gallon, airline ticket prices spiraling upward, and the cost of hotel stays making me feel weak in the knees, I’ve had to learn how to vacation on the cheap — or not vacation at all. Even on a budget and an economy in the brink of a recession, it is possible to have a great family vacation without having to take the ubiquitous “staycation.”
1. Stay With Friends or Family. Our family vacation this year will be a week-long trip to see my sister and brother-in-law in Norfolk, Virginia. Our last vacation was a 10-day trip to visit friends who live in the San Francisco area. Both of those destinations not only offer some of our favorite individuals, but also lots of great tourist attractions. By crashing on the futons/guest beds of friends and family, we’re able to visit areas of the country we couldn’t otherwise afford to see. As a bonus, we have local guides to show us around too. Obviously, you want to make sure you’re the ideal guest in this situation, so don’t invite yourself to their house without permission. And do pay for your own groceries, help out around the house, and offer to take your host out for a nice meal as a thank you.
Don’t know anyone outside of your hometown? You can find someone to host you on vacation at www.couchsurfing.org. (And not to worry, despite the name, you probably won’t be sleeping on a couch.) [ continue reading… ]
Many of us donate to a worthy cause year round. Unfortunately, just as there are good people trying to help others, there are also plenty of scammers out there. You want to feel good about where your money is going, and you want to make sure that you aren’t just lining the pockets of some huskster.
As you field phone calls and receive information from those purporting to help the less fortunate, watch out for the following red flags that might indicate you are dealing with a scam:
1. High-Pressure Phone Tactics
Someone insisting that you give money now, over the phone, is a huge red flag that you are probably dealing with a scam. Most legitimate charities don’t employ high-pressure sales tactics that make you feel like you need to donate immediately.
In some cases, scammers insist that you have to just donate, and they tell you time is too short to send you literature or let you look at a website. If a caller gets frustrated and tries to tell you that you need to donate immediately, hang up the phone.
Moving can be an exciting time, as you move into a new space and start exploring the new neighborhood. It’s a lot of work though. Using a moving company can help relieve the stress of moving, but finding a reputable and affordable moving company can be tricky.
How to Request an Accurate Quote Requesting a quote from your local moving company is simple and takes very little time. However, for budgeting reasons, you want your quote to be as accurate as possible. You don’t want to budget for a $300 move and then be overwhelmed by a bill twice that size. To best prepare for a moving quote, you should know as much as you can about your upcoming move.
What is your address for your current location and your future location?
How many flights of stairs will you have to move things to?
Are you moving any high-end furniture, costly antiques, or a piano?
How many boxes will you have to move?
How many square feet is your current home?
And what appliances and large items will you have to move?
Having a solid answer for all these questions will get you the most accurate online or over the phone quote. Requesting an in person quote or sending detailed pictures to potential moving companies can also help you get a more accurate quote. [ continue reading… ]
No matter where you are in your career, retirement is likely to be on your mind. Since this generation of workers can no longer expect employers to provide a generous pension and health insurance coverage, it can feel like all retirement decisions are up to us as individuals.
Add in the fact that there are a number of ways that retirement planning can go off the rails – and not all of those ways are within an investor’s control – and it’s clear that we have good reasons to be worried about retirement.
Fortunately, several of the most common retirement mistakes and pitfalls are avoidable. Here are three ways many people have undermined their own retirement, and what you can learn from their mistakes: [ continue reading… ]
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