A down payment between 10 and 20% on your first home or condo is more important today than ever before. Following the sub-prime mortgage meltdown, lenders are more cautious with mortgage applications and borrowers have (hopefully) learned some lessons about risky home loans. Of course, socking away $20,000 or more isn’t easy, especially in your twenties. Here are five steps to take to save up your down payment in record time. [...]
Buying a car with cash is stressful enough; finding the right auto loan is even harder. In my car shopping tips from an ex-car salesman, I recommend getting a pre-approved car loan online before heading to the dealership (even with bad credit). Here’s how, plus reviews of online car loan sites. [...]
Want to know how your credit score stacks up? Check out Credit Karma, a new site that lets you check and track your credit score without subscribing to anything. [...]
Stephanie asks: I recently started a new job that will not match 401(k) contributions until I complete one year of service. Should I still contribute prior to being eligible for matching? [...]
On Forbes.com Monday, Charles Biderman of Trim Tabs Investment Services says that if things don’t change, escalating oil prices will topple the U.S. economy. [...]
The July 2008 issue of Consumer Reports dishes out a sobering suggestion regarding consumer rewards programs—namely store-specific rewards credit cards. The advice? Don’t bother.
Consumer Reports names a few cash rewards, gas rewards, and store rewards credit cards as exceptions to the rule, but says rewards programs at businesses—from shoe stores to casinos—tempt consumers to spend more and spend often. Rather than jamming your wallet full of dozens of rewards card, the advocacy publication recommends picking one:
“Carrying the right rewards program cards and ignoring the rest can save you a little money on your purchases as well as some time at the checkout.”
Their picks for the best all-round cash rewards credit cards? We are proud to say they are the same as ours:
I don’t think I have ever had so much fun at work as I did slinging lattes and bagging beans at Starbucks. (If you don’t get it, ask somebody who has worked at one). But at Starbucks, I also learned valuable lessons that have helped me everywhere else I have worked: [...]
A quick apology to Money Under 30 readers for the slow posting pace around here lately. It’s because I took a new job last week and have been adjusting to my new environs and schedule. I expect things to ramp up to normal again this week. Thanks for your patience!
The New York Times recently published an excellent financial primer for recent graduates accepting their first full-time job. The gist of the article is simple: even if you’re only 22, don’t neglect health insurance, taxes, and your retirement. [...]
Yesterday being father’s day, I was thinking about the often controversial topic of twenty-somethings receiving financial assistance from their parents. If your parents offer financial help, should you take it? And how? [...]
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