It's December 1st and this year, we wanted to do something different. 25 days of budgeting and finance tips. Just a little something you can drop into your life right now that will set 2021 up for success.
Day 1: Contribute to Your IRA's
This month, make sure you take advantage of all the contributions that will help lower your taxes next year. You can contribute up to $6,000 to your traditional IRA's and Roth IRA's. If you're over 50, the limit is $7,000.
If you already have an IRA and you're looking to copy some of the top performing IRA's, then you could go with a Blooom account. They don't make money off the funds in your account. They have a robo advising that allows them to make recommendations that benefit you and they place the trades on your behalf. If you need a minimal maintenance plan, then I would go the Blooom route. Click Here for More Details about Starting an IRA with Blooom.
If you're looking to actively trade your IRA, then you could go with a Webull account. Yes, you can actively trade your IRA. I like Webull because they have better alerts and more in-depth analysis tools. And you get four free stock when you create your account and fund it with $100. Click here to take advantage of that offer.
Consult with your financial advisor. While we provide educational, up to the minute information, this is no way to be taken as advice. We want to bring you high quality information so you can make educated decisions.
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Day 2: Create Your Emergency Savings Account
Welcome to Day 2 of 25 Days of Money Tips…
If you haven't started your emergency savings account, then let's kick-off a high-yield savings account and put away $1,000 in your emergency savings account. You'll use this same account to put 3-6 months of living expenses in your savings account, and this will be for emergency purposes only.
You'll only touch the emergency fund if it's an emergency. This is NOT for Christmas, vacations or bad habits. For this, you could open up a compound interest savings account with Axos.
Compound interest reminds me of the old question, “would you rather have $100,000 right now or a penny doubled for the next 30 days?” Here's your answer:
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Day 3: Boost Your Credit Score
One of the best things you can do for your financial future is to give yourself an 800 credit score. There are simple hacks you can do to boost your credit score.
For example, these factors will increase your score or lower it, but once you understand the game, you can make smart decisions.
- Payment History
- Availability of Credit
- Credit History
- Diversification
Knowing that, you'll want to keep your longest running cards open (and you might charge it every now and then to keep it active). Then, to increase the availability of credit, you simply request higher credit limits. That will increase your availability OR just pay down the balance.
Second, you'll want to check your credit report to make sure there are no errors, no charged off accounts older than 7 years and no surprise accounts.
Click Here to Get All Three Credit Reports
When I was graduated college, I had no clue about credit and credit cards. I had 8 different credit cards completely maxed out and was paying the minimum payments. Those cards were costing me an extra 20% in interest. Simply consolidate every credit card into one payment using Payoff.
I like Payoff because there are no late payment fees and there's a fixed monthly payment which frees up extra cash that you can apply to the principle to pay off the loan early. Plus, it's designed to help boost your FICO Score. Click Here to Get Details on Consolidating Credit Cards
Third, if you're paying rent, you can add rent to your credit report for an instant boost. Most people don't know there are services that will help you connect your rent payments and report them on your credit report.
There companies that help you report rent are:
