Buying a House in Cash in Your 30s: Yes, It's Possible. My wife and I paid cash for our last three homes. And yes, it is nice not having a monthly payment. There also are many other reasons to buy a house for cash. You can get a better price and save thousands in closing costs. But is buying a house in cash even possible for the average person? In fact, almost a third of home sales in the U.S. are made in cash, and in southwest Florida, more than half of the area’s transactions are cash sales. Of course, the latter statistic is partly the result of so many retirees buying homes in cash after a lifetime of saving and building equity in previous residences.
But even if you’re nowhere near retirement and haven’t saved enough for a down payment — let alone the whole house — there is hope. Steve Gillman’s duplex in Florence, CO. My wife and I first paid cash for a home in our 30s. Here’s how we did it, and how you, too, can (eventually) buy a house with cash. Live With Your Parents Start Saving Now We can help! The last item deserves an explanation. Welcome to Mint Sim | Mint Sim. This Free Checking Account Means I’ll Never Pay an ATM Fee Again.
I recently made a huge move — from Wisconsin to Florida — but it’s not my first. Before that, I had stints in Seattle, Salt Lake City and San Francisco. Plus there was a period where I didn’t have any residence at all. I bounced from city to city for about eight months via hotel rooms, couches and lots of goodwill. To say this lifestyle makes banking a challenge would be an understatement. I need an easy way to access my cash and an account I can manage from anywhere — but beyond that, my banking needs are pretty simple.
Plenty of institutions offer online banking or brick and mortar branches around the country, but many also come with fees or requirements I don’t want to be bothered with. I don’t need much from my bank. That’s why I was happy to discover Aspiration. Aspiration’s Summit Checking Account is an online-only bank account with no fees, no minimum balance and no minimum monthly deposit. It yields up to 1.00% interest, which is 100 times more than my existing checking account! RingPlus Mobile. Free Wireless Internet & Phone Service. Cheap Internet Hotspots & Smart Phones - FreedomPop. Best cell phone plans & deals for 2016 | Clark Howard. Are you looking to save money in 2016? Switching your cell phone carrier can be a great way to do it! Now more than ever, you have a lot of choices when it comes to cell phone service.
Consumer Reports National Research Center recently surveyed about 90,000 cell phone users and discovered that half of the respondents who switched providers cut their monthly bill by $20 or more! There are so many different options for cell phone service right now and so many factors to consider to get the very best deal for you -- including how many people will be on the plan and the network that works best in your area.
So to help you compare plans across carriers, we've compiled a simple list. Read more: The best performing wireless network in America is… Unlimited plans Several providers are offering unlimited service for under $80 per plan, per month. Low-cost carriers Freedom Pop 100% free basic plan: 200 minutes, 500 texts, 500 MB each month.Cancel anytime. RingPlus (Sprint Network) Ting Total Wireless. Affordable No Contract Phone Plans + WiFi Calling | Republic Wireless. Ting | Save big on your monthly cell phone bill. Project Fi. Twigby - Welcome to Twigby! Prepaid Cell Phones, Unlimited Mobile Plans: StraightTalk Wireless. Prepaid Unlimited Cell Phones - No Contract Phones & Plans | Virgin Mobile.
Consumer Cellular Mobile. Is Buying a Duplex a Good Investment? If you buy a duplex and live in one side, you have a home, and rent coming in from the other side to help pay it. Investment real estate also offers tax advantages. And what could be easier than managing a rental next door? You’ve probably heard the arguments for buying a duplex instead of a single-family home. But is it really a good idea for you? Maybe. Recently, after four years of Florida’s heat and humidity, my wife and I moved back to Colorado to buy a duplex in the small town of Florence. We’ve only lived here for a short while, so I can’t offer a comprehensive guide to buying a duplex as a home. Maybe even enough to decide if you’re ready for this lifestyle/investment… Buying at a Distance My wife was busy, so I flew out to Colorado alone for four days to look for our new home and investment.
Once I was back in Florida, we tried to buy a multiunit property — my favorite of the seven properties I’d seen. If the inspector had found any major problems, we could’ve backed out. Lessons: 1. This Flowchart Tells You When and Where to Invest Money. Pamela D. Maxwell/Shutterstock.com Though we all know we should be saving more money, or even investing it in stocks or something, where and how to do so remains a mystery for many of us. After necessities, should you pay down debt? Pad your kids’ college fund? Or save for your own retirement? Though everyone’s situation is different — and you should carefully assess what works for you — a Reddit user recently created an easy-to-follow flowchart that provides a great starting point.
This Flowchart is So Simple, It’s Brilliant The flowchart presents a series of yes/no questions that explain exactly how you should prioritize your spending and investing. Instead of going into too much detail, I’ll just share the darn thing with you. Then, below, I’ll share related posts that have tons of advice and tips to help you with each step.
Though the flowchart is undoubtedly straightforward and helpful, putting it into action is a whole other story. 1. 2. Lookin’ good! 3. 4. Made it this far? How Clink Can Help You Start Investing With Just $1. Investing is intimidating, right? If you’re anything like me, you might make excuses like “I don’t have enough money” or “The stock market isn’t safe” — and not do anything. So your money sits in a savings account — and rots. Not even earning enough interest to keep up with inflation. Sound familiar? That’s how I dealt with my money, just hoping some investment fairy would come and show me the magical ways of stocks and index funds and compound interest. But only until recently. Even better, it didn’t require me to get my master’s in finance to understand the terms, or give up my firstborn to pay the fees.
Here’s how it works… How I Started Investing With Only $1 a Day So how’d I finally start my investing journey? To get started, you have to download the app, create a profile and link your checking account. And right now Clink’s even offering a $5 signup bonus to new users. Once you’re finished registering, it’s time to determine how — and how much — you’d like to invest.
But my favorite part? Investing for Beginners: Here’s How to Start Small. For too long, we’ve been taught that investing is a privilege reserved for rich people. But you shouldn’t wait until you’re rich to invest. In fact, the right time to start investing is before you’re rich. You might say, “but I don’t have any disposable income.” Here’s the thing: If you invest smart, money you invest isn’t disposable. You’re putting that cash to work to make you more dollars in the long term. Here’s why. Why You Should Start Investing as Early as Possible Investing is all about time. The earlier you invest, the more returns you can potentially earn. In fact, if you start investing when you’re 22 as opposed to 32, you could earn more while investing less money because you started investing younger. OK, so you’re sold. Know Your Investments While it’s great to be educated about the stock market, I don’t actually mean you have to know the ins and outs of every single stock, bond and commodity being traded.
Forget the flashing computer screens and yelling traders. 6 Strategies to Build Your Business from the Ground Up. Money Management: How to Finally Set Your Financial Goals. Saving money is all well and good in theory. It’s pretty hard to argue having more cash in your pocket could ever be a bad thing. But what are you saving for? After all, money is just a tool.
If you don’t have solid financial goals, all those hoarded pennies might end up floating in limbo when they could be put to good use. Figuring out where your money should go might seem daunting, but it’s actually a lot of fun. You get to analyze your own priorities and decide exactly what you think you should do with your hard-earned cash. Talk about adulting, right? But to make the most of your money, it’s a good idea to follow a few best practices while setting your goals. After all, even if something seems like it’s exactly what you want right now (shut up and take almost $300 of my money!) Setting Financial Goals 101 It’ll help you set goals and create smart priorities for your money. First Things First: Where’s the Money? So sit down and take a good, hard look at all of your financial info. See? How to Manage Money If You Make Cash Tips. I’m willing to bet that we’ve all had the experience of getting a gift of cash — maybe $50 from a grandparent for our birthday, or $100 from a parental unit for groceries, or what have you — and opening our wallets a few days later and wondering where that cash went.
If you’re not paying attention, cash spends pretty darn quickly. In a blink, it seems, it’s gone. And that’s all well and good for the “windfall” cash you might get, but if you work for tips, and that cash is the bulk of your income, it’s a problem if it just *poof* disappears. So what do you do about it? Earning the Money Those of you who work in the restaurant industry will probably be familiar with this situation: You make roughly $3.00 an hour, on top of which you earn tips, between 10 and 20% of your sales.
Servers and bartenders are not the only people who get tips, of course. Taxes and Claiming Your Tips Why Report Anything At All? So what do you do? The Solution This is what I did: Here’s an example: The Lessons. Worried About Medical Bills? Here’s a Weird Way to Save. Javier Brosch/Shutterstock.com If you live in the United States, you probably already know — and have had reason to complain about — how expensive our health care system can be. It seems unfair that Americans can end up so deeply in debt over such an unavoidable expense. Even the simplest medical services can cost hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars.
Case in point: the story of the $629 Band-Aid due to hospital fees. Or the fact that in some markets, Medicare is opting for house calls rather than traditional care. Apparently, the old school way isn’t just more personable — it’s actually more affordable, too. But did you know you might stand to save some money on your next medical procedure… by taking a road trip first? The Cost of Health Care By State Last month, the Health Care Cost Institute issued its National Chartbook on Health Care Prices report. And as it turns out, prices do vary. The same is true of Florida, Tennessee and Maryland. Costs vary within state lines, too. SoFi Saved This Woman $12,000 on Her Credit Card Debt. Like most of us in our early 20s, Katherine didn’t always make the best choices when it came to her finances. After finishing her degree at Chico State, Katherine was in search of a job, a place to live — a life.
So she decided to move to San Francisco, a city she’d loved visiting with her girlfriends while she was in college… and where the cost of living is legendary. Soon, she was paying $2,325 for rent alone. Before utilities. With a roommate. Her mounting credit card debt wasn’t surprising… but was certainly dangerous. When she reached the $12,000 limit on her Southwest card, Katherine knew something had to change. Getting Your Credit Balances to Zero Katherine describes San Francisco as a “young professional playground.” Not only does the Bay Area offer a ton of fun stuff to do (and spend lots of money on) — its famed tech boom means lots of opportunity for young inhabitants. Soon, Katherine had landed a well-paid position in business development at a digital security startup. Open a TD Bank Checking Account and Get a Samsung Galaxy Phone. Has your phone seen better days? Mine sure has. The only thing: I don’t want to drop the cash to buy a new one.
So I was stoked to discover a way to get a brand new Samsung Galaxy S5 or S6 phone for FREE. All you have to do is sign up for a checking account with TD Bank. Here are the deets… How to Get a Free Samsung Galaxy Phone Want to update your phone — simply for updating your bank account? Follow the instructions below. But just so no one gets disappointed, let’s get this out of the way first: This promotion is only available in Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Vermont, Virginia and Washington, D.C. You also must be willing to sign a two-year subscriber agreement with either Sprint or Verizon.
For example, if you choose a plan with Verizon, the 32GB Samsung Galaxy S6 retails for $576. All good? Here’s how to get your free phone: That’s it! This Guy’s Commute to Work Will Help Him Save $2K This Year. We don’t just talk about weird ways to make and save money here at The Penny Hoarder — we live them. While penny hoarding isn’t a requirement to work here, it’s hard not to pick up some frugal habits when your work focuses on them every day. So I was excited to learn our lead developer, Branndon Coelho, landed on a creative solution to save money on gas for his commute to work after he and his family relocated to join our St. Petersburg, Florida, office. Adjusting to a New Commute Before the move, Coelho was self-employed and working from home in Southern California. Coelho, his wife and their two young daughters moved across the country in their 2006 Dodge Ram Diesel Dually. The truck is a beast, long and wide, and “has that diesel sound,” he points out.
Coelho’s wife is home with the kids while he’s at work. They needed a creative solution. Save Money, Time and Headaches With an Electric Bike A little more surprising, though? Why the throttle, instead of good, old-fashioned manpower? This Flowchart Tells You When and Where to Invest Money. How to Save Money Without Wasting Time: 4 Simple Steps. Ever spend a whole Sunday afternoon clipping coupons? Or maybe, like me, you’ve whiled away three hours searching for the very best deal on some fairly minor purchase. We’re Penny Hoarders, so we admire your tenacity. But like the old adage says, time is money — and it’s not going to do you much good to save one at the expense of the other. In fact, if anything, your time is more valuable than your money: You only get 24 hours each day. You can’t make more of it. How to Save Money Quickly While we’re certainly not suggesting you shout “YOLO!”
Figure out your biggest expenditures and focus on big-picture ways to cut them down. Skipping lattes is great — depending on the seriousness of your caffeine addiction, you could save something like $100 a month. But that doesn’t even come close to the kind of savings you get by, say, cutting your grocery bill in half. Or figuring out how to do away with that monthly mortgage payment. Ready to take your savings game to the next level? 1. 2. 3. All right. This Grad Paid Off $50K in Student Loan Debt in 18 Months. Kelsey Kronmiller had a problem many college grads know too well: How are you supposed to start paying back more than $100,000 in student loans when your first job out of school pays somewhere around $30,000? Looking back on her early 20s, sharing an apartment with her then-boyfriend, she lamented, “Here I was in this committed relationship, and I realized all the things I ever wanted in life — a wedding, a house, a family — would never happen because of all the debt I was carrying.”
But Kronmiller wasn’t willing to give it all up. She told John McDermott of Mel Magazine how she paid off $50,000 in student loan debt in just 18 months. How This Designer Hustled to Pay Off Student Loan Debt Kronmiller got deep into Dave Ramsey’s “Complete Guide to Money,” and publicly announced her commitment to pay down her debt on her blog in August 2014.
She used You Need a Budget to minimize spending and get a handle on her budget. But how did she make the extra cash? Well, it helps to have many talents. 6 Ways to Save Money and Live Like a Millionaire. Supermarket Comparison: How to Save Money on Groceries. Retirement Planning: What’s the Best Way to Save Money? Could Grocery Delivery Services Help You Save Money? 9 Reasons Totally Target is One of Our Favorite Coupon Blogs. How Clink Can Help You Start Investing With Just $1. 10 Thrift Store Shopping Secrets You Should Know. CVS to Target: 21 best loyalty rewards programs. 10 Tips to Help You Save $1,000 by Christmas. 205 Ways to Save Money. Best Coupons Sites 2016 | Cheapism. How to Save Money When You’re Broke: Here’s What Worked for Me. How I Save $36,000 With This Simple Trick. 9 Creative Ways to Stretch Your Holiday Budget.