Smart Money Links 4U

If we all waited until we were financially secure enough to start a family, the human race would die out. OK, maybe I’m exaggerating a little, but even amid the current uncertainties, at least one thing remains true: Starting a family costs money. And if you’re not careful, you can end up in a lot of debt.  The Baby Center has a first-year calculator to help you estimate how much you’ll spend in the first year alone — think double digits. And when you figure in the ongoing costs of childcare , future school tuition and the endless number of shoes they’ll outgrow in six weeks, it can really start to add up. But don’t panic (at least, not about the shoes), because we have some helpful strategies for avoiding debt when starting a family. 5 Ways to Avoid Debt When You’re Starting a Family Kids are expensive. OK, that’s not exactly a news flash if you’re a parent. But if you’re a new parent — or about to become one — you might just be starting to realize how much of a money vac...

In before times, you could almost set your watch by a college-bound high school senior’s life. First there were the standardized tests. Then college applications and the agonizing waiting game followed by a decision about where to go. Graduation came next and then prepping, packing, and tearful send-offs.  That was then. COVID-19 changed everything. Now there are questions about if colleges and universities will open to on-campus students and even if some schools will open at all.  Here’s all of our coverage of the coronavirus outbreak , which we will be updating every day. “It’s just the uncertainty. You just don’t know when it’s going to end and you can’t look beyond basically three days out,” said Casey Weiser, whose daughter is graduating from a Virginia high school and is planning to attend the University of Miami. “In a normal year and she were going away to college, I would pencil in the day on the calendar, we would book plane tickets.”  Instead, the Weiser ...

Some of the links in this post are from our sponsors. We provide you with accurate, reliable information. Learn more about how we make money and select our advertising partners . This article was originally reported in May 2018. Sometimes it feels like no matter what you do, your credit score just won’t budge. It’s terribly frustrating. Sure, maybe your past self wasn’t as responsible with money — or maybe you faced some unexpected financial obstacles — but you’re really trying now. Even so, that three-digit number just keeps holding you back. Buying a home feels forever out of reach, and even securing a credit card can be tricky. Kariel Morrison gets it. The 26-year-old medical assistant who lives in Tampa, Florida, has overcome a lot in her life — job loss, homelessness and a debilitating car accident. She’d accrued unexpected debt and unpaid bills, and her credit score was stuck in the low 500s. Just when she was feeling totally helpless, she decided to take out a credit-build...

When I unwrapped my new tablet, I was quick to download a bunch of ebooks. However, I soon realized the cost of replacing my library habit with a bunch of Kindle books was adding up.  To save some money without denying my reading needs, I’m using a site called BookBub ; in the first two months, I estimate it saved me $60 on five titles. How Does BookBub Work? You create a free account, which was pretty painless by my standards, then indicate the device you use to read ebooks and choose your favorite genres. I checked mysteries, nonfiction and young adult. Each afternoon, BookBub sends me a customized email with a list of discounted books in my chosen genres. Most are on sale for $1 to $1.99, a few are free and a couple might cost $2.99. The highest price I’ve seen is $4.99 for an entire series. Publishers pay a fee to submit their books to BookBub and be included in the daily email. Lucky for us, the service is free for readers. How Do You Buy the Books? BookBub doesn’t se...

With control of more than $90 billion in assets, BBVA is not a Big Four bank, but it’s pretty big.  That said, we found its offerings to be surprisingly mediocre for such a powerful financial institution. Although a free checking account is available, there’s not really any incentive to bank with BBVA specifically — especially since it still carries a $25 minimum opening deposit. Its interest-bearing checking account carries a monthly service fee of a whopping $19 per month (and requires $4,000 in qualifying monthly direct deposits or average daily balance to waive), and only earns 0.05% APY — which is less than the average for such accounts, per the FDIC. The savings accounts aren’t much better, earning the same low rate, and insufficient funds fees of $38 per transaction can be charged up to six times per calendar day.  While its mobile banking options are well-rated and many customer service channels are available, these positives may not be enough to make up for the ba...

This whole credit thing can feel overwhelming.  Just building a credit score in the first place is a mystery to a lot of people. The availability of credit and the opacity of the industry can make keeping your score intact seem impossible. You might be ready to throw in the towel if you’re stuck with a low credit score you can’t seem to budge. Credit repair companies come in with flashy ads and over-the-top promises of fixing all these problems for you. The proposition is tempting. These companies can simplify your life if your credit score is bad because of something complicated like reporting errors, shady debt collection or identity theft.  Regardless of your situation, however, you can always improve your credit without spending any money. And a lot of those flashy ads and over-the-top promises are outright scams. How Do Credit Repair Services Help? A credit repair company’s main job is to clean up your credit reports — basically, help you make sure everything show...

If you’re behind on rent, a new tool can tell you whether your landlord is prohibited from evicting you during coronavirus. ProPublica recently created an interactive database that lets you search your address if you live in a multifamily property with five or more units to find out whether your property could be covered by an eviction moratorium. How to Find Out if You’re Protected From Eviction The CARES Act put a 120-day moratorium on evictions from properties with a federally backed mortgage. It expires July 25. The moratorium only applies if you don’t pay your rent; your landlord can still evict you for breaking other terms of your lease. You can search the database to find out whether your complex has a federally backed mortgage, which would indicate that it’s covered under the CARES Act.  Here’s all of our coverage of the coronavirus outbreak , which we will be updating every day. Government-sponsored mortgage buyers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have their own da...