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Many credit cards include purchase protection, which typically covers new items against theft and accidental damage for 90 to 120 days after you buy them. When something new breaks or gets stolen, check your card’s guide to benefits before paying to replace it, and file quickly, since claim deadlines are short.
If you’ll owe the IRS $1,000 or more after withholding this year, your third estimated payment is due September 15. Don’t guess the amount. Pay a quarter of last year’s total tax each installment, 110% of that if last year’s adjusted gross income topped $150,000, and the underpayment penalty can’t touch you whatever this year earns.
A sale tag shows the discount the store claims, not whether the price is actually low. Before you buy anything pricey on sale, look up its price history and compare today’s price with the lowest it hit in recent months. If it isn’t close to that low, set a price alert and wait.
A carrier’s free phone is 36 monthly bill credits, and they stop if you leave the qualifying plan. Before you sign, multiply that plan’s extra monthly cost over the plan you’d otherwise pick by 36, add what your trade-in would sell for, and compare the total with buying the phone outright and selling your old one.
The beneficiary form on your 401(k), IRA, or life insurance decides who gets that money, no matter what your will says. Pull up every form this week, confirm each primary and backup name, and set a reminder to check them again every few years and after any marriage, divorce, or birth.
Federal student loan autopay now cuts your interest rate by a full percentage point, up from a quarter point, but only if you’re enrolled by September 30. Log in to your servicer this week and turn it on. Ten minutes buys you the lower rate through June 2028.
Raising your auto and homeowners deductibles cuts your premiums every year, but it only works if you could pay the higher amount tomorrow without borrowing. Get a quote at a $1,000 deductible on each policy, and make the switch only if your emergency fund could cover both deductibles at once.
If Comcast told you your data was exposed in the October 2023 breach, you have until September 14 to file a claim. The no-receipt option pays an estimated $50. Document real losses and you can claim more. File at comcastbreachsettlement.com and check your eligibility with the ID lookup tool.
Run your shared bills and goals through one joint account with your partner, and keep a personal account each for spending neither of you has to explain. Fund the joint account with the same percentage of each paycheck, so the split stays fair when one of you earns more.
A health savings account lets your money go in untaxed, grow untaxed, and come out untaxed when you spend it on medical care. If your health plan qualifies, fund it every year, invest the balance, and pay small medical bills out of pocket so the account keeps compounding.
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