Life would be a whole lot easier if someone would just Venmo us $1 million, but unfortunately the chance of that happening is, well, probably zero. (Venmo doesn’t allow transactions that large anyway.)
But even though our chances of becoming a millionaire are slim, we can still manage our money like one. No, we’re not going to tell you how to buy hundreds of shares of Apple stock. Or how to pick out the perfect yacht.
These are simple money moves any normal, non-millionaire person can make today. Each secret can get you closer to achieving your big goals.
Take a look:
1. You Can Cancel Your Car Insurance
Did you know you can save some serious money just by switching car insurance companies?
Its true — rates are at historic lows, and you could be paying way less for the same coverage. All you need to do is look for it.
But don’t waste your time hopping around to different insurance companies. Use a website called EverQuote to see all your options at once.
EverQuote is the largest online marketplace for insurance in the US, so you’ll get the top options from more than 175 different carriers handed right to you.
Take a couple of minutes to answer some questions about yourself and your driving record. With this information, EverQuote will be able to give you the top recommendations for car insurance. In just a few minutes, you could save up to $610 a year.
2. You Can Stop Paying Your Credit Card Company
If you have credit card debt, you know. The anxiety, the interest rates, the fear you’re never going to escape…
And the truth is, your credit card company doesn’t really care. It’s just getting rich by ripping you off with high interest rates — some up to 36%. But a website called Fiona could help you pay off that bill as soon as tomorrow.
Here’s how it works: Fiona can match you with a low-interest loan you can use to pay off every credit card balance you have. The benefit? You’re left with just one bill to pay every month, and because the interest rate is so much lower, you can get out of debt so much faster. Plus, no credit card payment this month.
If your credit score is at least 620, Fiona can help you borrow up to $250,000 (no collateral needed) with fixed rates starting at 2.49% and terms from 6 to 144 months.
Fiona won’t make you stand in line or call a bank. And if you’re worried you won’t qualify, it’s free to check online. It takes just two minutes, and it could save you thousands of dollars. Totally worth it.
All that credit card debt — and the anxiety that comes with it — could be gone by tomorrow.
3. This App Can Help Save You $720 This Year
Keeping track of your subscription services can feel like a game of whack-a-mole. Just when you think you’ve got a handle on them all, another random charge pops up on your bank statement.
It’s easy to let it slide — $5 here, $10 there. But it can seriously add up. Luckily, an app called Truebill can show you exactly where you’re wasting money on forgotten subscriptions and bills that are overcharging you. It saves the average person $720 a year.
Truebill helps you find and cancel things like unused streaming subscriptions and expired free trials, and they’ll also negotiate lower monthly rates with your internet company, phone company and other bills — for the same service.
Truebill has already saved users more than $245 million, and it uses Plaid to make sure all your sensitive information is safe. The app does all the heavy lifting. All you have to do is sign off on these money-saving changes.
It takes just a few minutes to get started and see how much you could save this year. Just register an account and link your bank account, then sit back while Truebill goes to work.
4. This App Will Pay Off Your Credit Card Debt
Credit card debt is the worst. It’s the most expensive kind of debt you can have.
First, you fall behind on your payments. It can happen to anybody. Next thing you know, the credit card companies are gouging you — charging you more than 20% interest on your balance.
But an app called Tally can pay off your credit card debt. Like, all of it. Here’s how it works: Tally gives you a line of credit with a lower interest rate (rates start as low as 7.9%) that you can use to pay off your high-interest credit card debt. Then you’ll just have one monthly payment — and you’ll save tons of money on interest.
If you qualify and have a FICO score of 580 or higher, you can get a line of credit from $2,000 to $25,000 pretty much immediately.
It’s easy to get started, and it won’t affect your credit score just to check your rates. See how much money you could save.
5. Get Paid up to $80/Month — Just for Sharing Your Opinion
Taking surveys might not sound like the best way to make money, but if you’re just vegging out on the couch — or pretending to be interested in your partner’s new favorite show — why not click a couple buttons? It could earn you up to $80 a month. Seriously.
There are a bunch of paid survey sites out there, but one of the best we’ve found is Survey Junkie.
They’ll ask you questions about things like, what kind of laundry detergent you use, or if you prefer Pepsi or Coke. You get points for answering, and many people accumulate enough points to request a check within a few hours.
More than 10 million people already use Survey Junkie, and it has 4.5/5 stars on TrustPilot.
Give it a try by visiting Survey Junkie and clicking the “Join Now” button. It’s free.
6. See if You Could Lower Your Car Payment by Hundreds a Year
You know you can refinance your house to save money on your monthly mortgage payment — but did you know you can refinance your car, too?
It’s not a money-saving tactic people talk a lot about, but it could save you a ton of money. A website called Upstart is helping borrowers save an average of $1,025 a year on their car payments. That’s about $4,800 back in their pockets over the lifetime of their loan.
There are no origination fees, and you only need a minimum FICO score of 510. You don’t even need to enter your car’s VIN, and you won’t get any spam calls.
And with an APR range of 2.20% to 29.99% Upstart is saving customers over 17% per month when they refinance. Upstart has helped borrowers save more than $20 million on their car payments in the past year alone*.
Ready to start saving? It takes just minutes to check your rate and see how much you could save.
7. Invest 15 Cents Into the Stock Market
Yeah, we know what you’re thinking: 15 cents? How’s that going to do me any good?
Well, that leftover change from your morning coffee and evening grocery hauls could turn into more than $1,000.
That’s what happened when Penny Hoarder reader Jeremy Kolodziej opened an investment account with Acorns. The app’s round-up feature bumps each of your purchases up to the nearest dollar and puts the spare change into the stock market, which helped him mindlessly save $1,076 in about 20 months.
“It’s a virtual coin jar,” he says. “You don’t even think about it.” He used the spare change to pay for two vacations.
Plus, Acorns invested the money for him, allowing him to grow his savings — without studying stock prices or managing trades.
You’ll even get a $5 bonus when you sign up..
*See important Regulation A disclosures at masterworks.io/cd
*Monifi: Terms and conditions apply
**subject to approval
*Upstart: Car refinance loans not available in IA, MD, NV, or WV. Car refinance loans in IL and MO are originated by Cross River Bank or Midwest BankCentre. Car refinance loans in CO, KS, and TX are originated by Cross River Bank or Rising Bank, Member FDIC. Car refinance loans in FL, GA, and AL are originated by Cross River Bank or Drummond Bank, Member FDIC. All other car refinance loans are originated by Cross River Bank, Member FDIC.
The full range of available rates varies by state. The average 5-year loan offered on Upstart will have an APR of 9.91% and 60 monthly payments of $426 per $20,000 borrowed. For example, the total cost of a $20,000 loan would be $25,540. APR is calculated based on 5-year rates offered in the last 1 month. There is no down payment and no prepayment penalty. Your APR will be determined based on your credit, income, and certain other information provided in your loan application. Not all applicants will be approved.
This information is estimated based on all consumers who were approved for an auto loan through Upstart and accepted their final terms. As of 2/1/2022 the average monthly savings amount is 17%. To evaluate savings on a loan you are considering refinancing, it is important to compare your APR and remaining term from your existing automotive loan to the APR and term offered by Upstart.
Sesame Cash:
1 This is a limited time offer. To be eligible for cash rewards, a minimum deposit, every 30 days, must be made into your Sesame Cash account. Rewards earnings are available for credit score improvements of ten points or more within a 30-day reward cycle. Improvements are calculated from your baseline credit score, as determined by Credit Sesame. Please review the full program terms for more details, including the minimum deposit amount for this program term.
2 Cash back offers are powered by Empyr, Inc. and Button, Inc. Cash back requires the activation of any active offer before payment is made. Offers vary by geographic location and are subject to change. Please review the full program terms for more details.