I closed three accounts in 2025. Each for a varying reason. Each for an account with a $20,000 limit or more. Those closures did not destroy my credit score, damage my credit history, or have any meaningful impact whatsoever. It is also true that I have many, many accounts, so in the balance of other […]
Don’t be afraid to close credit card accounts you don’t need or want to manage Read More »
As far as checking account signup bonuses go, this one is solid. $500 if you have $10,000 in direct deposits in 90 days? With that long of a time window, that’s actually quite achievable. Bank of America products are sound, they’re a top tier, large bank. Easy to avoid any fees for the account. Hard
Up to $500 for new BofA Checking Account (tiered by direct deposit) Read More »
As far as a deal goes, this appears to be a pretty stellar one. It’s orders of magnitude bigger than other investment account signup bonuses, and the restrictions associated with it are pretty reasonable (cannot withdraw funds for a year else bonus is forfeit). The company/platform I have had less exposure and experience with, but
I don’t like paying fees. I don’t like paying small fees. I ABSOLUTELY don’t love paying big fees. That said, I have found there are many cards where the annual fees are worth the slew of rewards and benefits that come with the membership. American Express Platinum is one of those, despite the outrageous, marketplace-topping
We had a lovely MLK weekend trip up in New York City and Connecticut this past weekend. While we didn’t need (or want) a car in the city itself, we did need one to visit the family in more rural Connecticut. The internet helped find a reasonably cheap booking (<$100 for a one-way, one-day rental),
“Would you like the car rental supplemental damage waiver?” — Absolutely not Read More »
The past few weeks I’ve been targeted for a few Facebook and Instagram ads. I’m a sucker for a deal, and so I like to humor what comes across because occasionally there’s something to take advantage of. Fancy marketing copy. Bold value claims. Big headlines. However, just because you can make something pretty and make
Sometimes too good to be true really is too good – Origins Card 6% Everywhere Card Read More »
It’s Mamdani’s New York now! We’re traveling up to NYC for the long weekend. Some fun with family, some free points from a Hilton timeshare presentation, a play, some good food (I already chomped a halfway decent lox-bagel this morning!) Things are expensive, but that’s no reason to sit back and stand for being scammed.
A Flat Rate Story — NYC Taxi from LGA airport scamming magically resolved… within a day Read More »
We’ve done some nice home upgrades these past few months. Newly painted walls. New wallpaper. New vacuum. New decorations in our front room. Cleaning out our utility closet. Many of these left us with some perfectly functional but used old household items and arrangements. Even more so than making money, I feel wasteful throwing away
For some strange reason, I have a lot of fun in tracking and managing finances. I was taught young to save and invest, and the flexibility that being consistent there will enable. While I’ve got some opportunities to do the investing piece better, I think I’ve got the savings part down pretty good. The biggest
401k Employer Match benefits can really, really add up Read More »
…but there’s always more to the story. I’ll keep this focused on the the cap, and avoid the challenges associated with the…politicization at play. If the question were around affordability and predatory industry behavior, there would be a wide range of other administration focus, like…not gutting the CFPB. With that said, let’s get into it.
Capping credit card interest rates at 10% sure may sound good, on the surface… Read More »
