Even if you avoid late fees and penalties which can make it worse, the regular interest you pay on your card balance effectively makes every purchase more expensive. Consider this: if you typically roll over your balance for a year and pay 18% interest, then your $30 gas purchase … [Read more...] about If you carry a balance: save money on every purchase by not charging it
tip
Get paid just for opening an account
Online banks and the websites of many major banks will sometimes offer free money just for signing up for an account online, and/or referring a friend. Always check before you open the account; once you do it's usually too late to collect. You can find a fairly up-to-date list … [Read more...] about Get paid just for opening an account
Intro rates matter, but they are merely the introduction to what could be a life of higher fees
If you normally carry a balance on your card, and want to get some immediate savings with a low intro rate offer, this can be a good way to immediately save some cash. However, the regular rate is where your balance will spend most of its time so pay just as much or more … [Read more...] about Intro rates matter, but they are merely the introduction to what could be a life of higher fees
Watch your interest rate
Other than CDs which lock in an interest rate for a specified period of time, most basic savings accounts have interest rates that fluctuate (this includes money market and "high yield" savings accounts). It's worth taking a look at the current rates each time you get … [Read more...] about Watch your interest rate
Cut out the fees from your account for services you don’t need
There's no sense paying for something you don't want or need, so look over your bank statement to see where you are getting hit with fees and contact your bank to get rid of them. Some examples include "check image fees" (for seeing cancelled checks), paper statement fees (which … [Read more...] about Cut out the fees from your account for services you don’t need