Advertiser Disclosure
The credit card, banking, and other financial offers that appear on this site are from companies that compensate us – for example, when you click a link, are approved for a product, or open an account. This compensation may influence how and where offers appear on the site, including the order in which they appear on category pages. It does not influence our evaluations, ratings, or opinions, which are ours alone. We do not include every bank, credit card company, or offer available in the marketplace.
CEO & Co-founder
Andrew started his career at a Chicago hedge fund and quickly noticed a problem: the people who most needed financial guidance weren’t getting any. He co-founded Money Crashers in 2009 to fix that with free, plain-language money education. He’s been interviewed by MSNBC, CBS News, NBC News, and Fox News, and featured in Forbes and US News & World Report. Off the clock he plays ice hockey and tennis, and meditates. Andrew holds a bachelor’s in economics from Brown University.
Part of your rent covers your landlord’s property tax, and several states give renters a tax credit for it. Before you file, check your state revenue department’s website for a renter’s credit. If your state’s credit is refundable, it pays even if you owe no income tax, so claim it in years you wouldn’t otherwise file.
To find your retirement number, estimate what you’ll spend in a year of retirement, subtract what Social Security or a pension will pay, and multiply the gap by 25. Savings of that size have historically supported withdrawals that start at 4% of the balance and rise with inflation for at least 30 years.
When you hire movers for an out-of-state move, get a binding estimate in writing before anything goes on the truck. A binding estimate fixes the price for the move it describes. A non-binding one is only the mover’s best guess, and the final bill can run higher.
Check the purchase date before you sell an investment at a profit in a taxable brokerage account. Sell on or before the one-year anniversary and the gain is taxed at your ordinary income rate. Wait one more day and it qualifies for federal long-term capital gains rates of 0%, 15%, or 20%.
Your own 401(k) contributions are always yours, but employer match money can take years to vest, and leaving weeks before a vesting date can forfeit thousands. Before you give notice or accept an offer, look up that date, then negotiate a start date after it or a signing bonus that covers the loss.
If you pay for daycare, preschool, or day camp so you can work, enroll in your employer’s dependent care flexible spending account (FSA) at open enrollment. Money you put in skips federal income and payroll taxes, so in the 22% bracket each dollar of care costs you about 70 cents. Elect only what you’re certain to spend.
If your fixed-rate mortgage payment jumped, the rate didn’t change. Your escrow did, because property taxes or homeowners insurance rose, and your mortgage servicer may be collecting a shortage too. A shortage is a one-time catch-up, but the bills recur, so shop your homeowners policy and appeal a tax assessment that overstates your home’s value.
In most states, car insurers price your policy partly on a credit-based insurance score, so better credit can cut your premium. The savings won’t show up until an insurer checks your credit again. Once your score climbs, ask your insurer for a new rate based on a current credit report, and get a few competing quotes.
Nearly every financial scam borrows a trusted name, invents a problem or prize, demands you act now, and wants a payment you can’t reverse. The deadline is the part you can always catch. When anyone pushes you to pay or move money today, hang up and call back at a number you look up yourself.
Buying a home doesn’t put a homestead exemption on your property tax bill. In most states you have to file for it with your county, and a year you miss costs you the exemption unless your state accepts a late application. Apply as soon as you move in, so the exemption covers the first year you qualify.
End of content
End of content
