How Your Spending Throughout Your Life Affects Your Retirement Planning

During your working life, it's important to pile up enough money to comfortably maintain your lifestyle once you retire. In this effort, one of the most important factors for success will be your personal spending habits. Here are four ways your spending throughout your life affects your retirement planning.

The More You Spend, the Less You'll Save and Invest

The most basic way in which your spending will affect your retirement is by determining how much you can set back in savings and investments. 

While cutting your spending to the bone won't allow you to enjoy life properly, it's important to set aside enough to fund your retirement accounts. The less money you can get away with spending, the more comfortable you'll be when you reach retirement.

Financed Purchases Will Still Need to Be Paid For

In addition to how many things you buy, how you buy them will also affect your retirement planning. Purchases made by taking on debt will have to be paid off before you retire, otherwise, you'll end up continuing to pay monthly on your loans. 

Before you retire, it's important to try to eliminate as many of your debts as possible so that your expenses will be relatively low and you won't lose money on interest payments. 

Sit down with a financial advisor to create a plan for managing your debts well and keeping them manageable as you approach retirement. This will help you to ensure that you will be in the best position possible as you enter retirement.

Good Spending Habits Will Help You Navigate Retirement

If you develop good spending habits during your working life, you'll be well-equipped to manage your income properly in retirement. Creating budgets and sticking to them will help you avoid overspending and using your retirement savings irresponsibly. 

If you haven't already gotten into the habit of writing a detailed budget each month, you should get started as soon as possible.

Your Spending Determines the Lifestyle You Have to Support

The main goal of retirement planning is to allow you to transition away from work without a massive downgrade in your lifestyle. The more money you need to support your lifestyle, the greater your retirement savings must be. Keep this in mind when making major spending decisions over the course of your life.

Spending has many effects on your retirement planning. By being conscious of your spending and managing it well, you can set yourself up for a more successful retirement.

How Your Spending Throughout Your Life Affects Your Retirement Planning

During your working life, it's important to pile up enough money to comfortably maintain your lifestyle once you retire. In this effort, one of the most important factors for success will be your personal spending habits. Here are four ways your spending throughout your life affects your retirement planning.

The More You Spend, the Less You'll Save and Invest

The most basic way in which your spending will affect your retirement is by determining how much you can set back in savings and investments. 

While cutting your spending to the bone won't allow you to enjoy life properly, it's important to set aside enough to fund your retirement accounts. The less money you can get away with spending, the more comfortable you'll be when you reach retirement.

Financed Purchases Will Still Need to Be Paid For

In addition to how many things you buy, how you buy them will also affect your retirement planning. Purchases made by taking on debt will have to be paid off before you retire, otherwise, you'll end up continuing to pay monthly on your loans. 

Before you retire, it's important to try to eliminate as many of your debts as possible so that your expenses will be relatively low and you won't lose money on interest payments. 

Sit down with a financial advisor to create a plan for managing your debts well and keeping them manageable as you approach retirement. This will help you to ensure that you will be in the best position possible as you enter retirement.

Good Spending Habits Will Help You Navigate Retirement

If you develop good spending habits during your working life, you'll be well-equipped to manage your income properly in retirement. Creating budgets and sticking to them will help you avoid overspending and using your retirement savings irresponsibly. 

If you haven't already gotten into the habit of writing a detailed budget each month, you should get started as soon as possible.

Your Spending Determines the Lifestyle You Have to Support

The main goal of retirement planning is to allow you to transition away from work without a massive downgrade in your lifestyle. The more money you need to support your lifestyle, the greater your retirement savings must be. Keep this in mind when making major spending decisions over the course of your life.

Spending has many effects on your retirement planning. By being conscious of your spending and managing it well, you can set yourself up for a more successful retirement.

Suffered an Injury? Here's What You Will Need to Recover Physically and Financially

Injuries can happen anywhere, place of work, on the road, or during medical malpractice. Whichever the cause of the injury, you need to get to your original physical, mental, and financial position. 

It would mean that you undergo various treatment plans and a good representation from a lawyer if the responsible party is not responding. Therefore, below is a list of what you need to recover physically and financially when you suffer an injury.

Diagnostic Tests

It is important to know the extent of the injury so that the doctor can implement the ideal treatment plan. Therefore, you are supposed to look for diagnostic tests like CT scans and X-rays. The diagnostic test performed on you will depend on the type of injury that you acquire.

Treatment from Medical Professionals

Once you have figured out the scope of the injury, it is time to get the necessary treatments. Comprehensive treatment will guarantee quick and efficient recovery. Also, you will need to consider different specialists to help you recover from the injury. 

For instance, immediately you experience the injury, you will need an ER to nurse the wound before heading to the doctor. At the treatment center, you will need access to various specialists, depending on the type and extent of the injury.

Medication and Prescription

An injury can have varied effects on your body. It can lead to severe pain and permanent injuries when it is chronic. Medication and prescription will help you in the healing process and return you to your initial physical condition. 

For instance, you will need access to pain medication to help you relieve pain. Also, some antibiotics will help you ward off infections as fast as possible. Both short-term and long-term prescriptions are ideal for dealing with minor and long-term injuries, respectively.

Physical Therapy

The injury can cause permanent malefactions on your body parts. However, with effective physical therapy, you can gain these functionalities. Therefore, it would be ideal to consider physical therapy and chiropractic care to aid your healing process.

Personal Injury Lawyer

Treatment plans can be expensive, and you would want to be compensated. However, the company you are working for or the responsible party for your medical malpractice may not be willing to compensate you for the medical expenses. 

Therefore, you will need the services of a personal injury lawyer who would calculate the amount you need to be compensated. Also, a lawyer would help you get funds to make up for the lost income and benefits.

Recovering from an injury can be a painful and long journey. Special medical cover and representation from a qualified personal injury lawyer will help you recover financially and physically.

Why Merchants are Using Chargeback Management Outsourcing Solutions to Effectively Avoid Chargeback Fraud

Chargebacks have massively negative impacts on the businesses of online merchants. Chargeback fraud affects their business reputation, threatens their relationship with banks (ability to accept payments from credit cards), and costs them a lot of unnecessary chargeback fees. There are three main types of chargeback fraud –

• Card Not Present Fraud - Transactions where actual credit cards are not swiped, inserted, or tapped at terminals.
• “Friendly” Fraud - Consumers make purchases only to dispute the charges later.
• Account Takeover Fraud - Cybercriminals steal/hack consumers’ payment information to use them to make fraudulent purchases and chargeback attempts.

Merchants don’t just lose the item they sell to these fraudsters or the money they refund – the exasperating truth is that each fraudulent chargeback attempt costs online businesses a lot more in hidden fees. 

Merchants who fall victim to chargeback frauds also have to deal with -

• Extra transaction fees (typically 4-5% of the transaction amount)
• Unnecessary operational costs to deliver the products to the fraudster; costs like packing, shipping, delivery, etc., make up 15-20% of a merchant’s revenue. All these costs are unnecessarily lost because of chargeback frauds.
• Marketing and lead generation expenses go to waste every time a sale results in a chargeback.

Chargeback fraud costs online businesses way more than they’re aware of. Add indirect costs like customers leaving negative reviews or customers deciding not to do business with your online store because of the security risks to the mix, and you have a huge problem.




These problems only seem to keep growing. One report claims chargeback fraud attempts increase by 20% every year, costing online merchants billions in lost revenues. 

Why are chargeback frauds on the rise? Some factors that contributed to this unprecedented growth in chargeback fraud include -

• Technological Sophistication - Since technologies have advanced, customers have found more innovative ways to defraud online merchants. Merchants may look back at previous attacks and prepare their online platforms for those types of attacks. But, identifying new types of friendly fraud chargebacks or account takeover attempts is very difficult for them.
• Online Banking – Online banking has made it easier for customers to file chargebacks as their phones have easy-to-access mobile banking apps. Technically, just by pressing a few buttons, fraudsters can make false claims and repeatedly commit chargeback frauds against various merchants. Unprepared merchants who can’t come up with evidence to disprove such claims made by fraudsters often end up being punished by the banks.
• The Pandemic – According to some estimates, payment card fraud in 2020 cost online merchants in the U.S. $11 billion. Merchants who had to let go of their customer service teams suffered the most.

It’s clear that online merchants need help to address this ever-growing threat of chargeback fraud. Unfortunately, many online businesses assume that their chargeback rates aren’t good enough because their services aren’t good enough. 

Many merchants even misjudge their win-loss ratios because they don’t have the time/resources to track data regarding their chargeback courses from their payment processors.

These inefficiencies lead to exceptionally overestimated win rates. Fake data like that can compel any online business owner to keep their chargeback disputes in-house. 

Thankfully, many online business owners have woken up to the fact that their in-house chargeback management teams aren’t experienced or skilled enough to tackle the odd circumstances they find themselves in.

No one expected the pandemic to drive online sales and subsequently increase the number of chargeback fraud attempts. That’s why many top online merchants are opting for chargeback management outsourcing solutions. These chargeback pros offer –

• Full-Time Dedication – The only job of a trained chargeback management team is to stay on top of the most recent fraud methods and techniques. They focus solely on safeguarding their clients’ businesses. In-house teams that manage online eCommerce platforms can focus on other responsibilities— not fraud prevention.
• Standard Operating Procedures – SOPs in chargeback management companies, are tried and tested fraud-prevention techniques. Online businesses can spend years establish their own in-house SOPs. Or, they can avoid those costs and have their third-party chargeback pros immediately get to work on protecting their businesses against chargeback frauds.
• Cooperation – Online businesses that already have well-jelled in-house fraud prevention teams can benefit even more from getting an outsourced managed services solution. The offshore and in-house fraud management departments can collaborate to make online platforms impervious to chargeback fraud attempts.
• Relevant Skills – Experienced chargeback pros are familiar with the best and the latest practices for fighting new types of chargeback fraud techniques in the market. From tracking each suspicious customer to constantly monitoring chargeback dispute processes – these experts use highly customized tools to make sure chargebacks don’t drain their clients’ finances.
• Insights - Chargeback pros give their clients insights into why and how chargebacks are occurring on their platforms. Based on this data, online businesses can craft customized strategies that work specifically against the types of risks their platforms face.

Having a multilayered fraud protection strategy is vital for online businesses looking to provide seamless online ordering experiences for their customers. Partnering with providers of managed services solutions can help them achieve these objectives.

Four Factors Impacting Business Credit Reports

Three of the largest and most widely known business credit agencies in the US are Experion, Equifax, and DNB. A business credit report agency is able to prepare a high level analysis of how well a company will be able to pay its bills, and this is available after seeing scores from the credit agencies. 

Different business aspects can be combined into a single report and this is very important for every business in the US.

Parts of a Business Credit Report

The following information is provided by every leading business credit report agency:

1. Risk Dashboard - It consists of repayment risk, credit limit recommendations, derogatory legal filings, and fraud alerts to show the level of risk in the business
2. Identity of Business - This is established through information such as an address, name, tax ID#, website, DBA’s, and more
3. Description of Business - It shows the history of a business, its date of incorporation, stock exchange information, number of employees, and other data. It may also indicate company size under the same heading.
4. Summary of Legal Filings and Payments - It shows creditor balances, bankruptcies, liens, days beyond terms, and other information on the same lines

The tasks that need to be done by business credit report agencies are very different from those with respect to personal credit scores. These are highly specialized tasks and require elaborate experience.

How Are Business Credit Scores Helpful?

These scores are helpful for a business that can use reports of other potential clients to know their financial positions. It helps understand the risk appetite of a new client and know how beneficial long-term business here will be. 

Businesses can avoid working with other clients who have payment default histories. Future risk can also be averted through score summaries.

Most businesses require loans either for setting up or expansion. Interest rates on business loans as well as the terms of repayment are assessed on the basis of business credit scores. 

Therefore, companies can make future plans on the basis of these accurate reports and summaries. The best agencies do not just provide services but also educate B2B customers about maintaining good business credit scores.

Top Factors Which Have an Impact on Business Credit

Any entrepreneur who wants to establish a company without giving away equity would require funding. To keep the business vision in check, 100% ownership is often necessary. 

A solid credit score will always make lenders more comfortable with the entrepreneur’s financial behavior in the present and future. Here are the most important factors that impact business credit and have the potential to make or break a company:

1. Accounts and Financials - Every entrepreneur must employ professional bookkeepers for accurate financial records. Lenders will want to see important documents such as YTD P&L statements, YTD balance sheets, and sometimes YTD cash flow statements as well. Without proper records, entrepreneurs can forget about getting the funding they need.

2. UCC Filings - This is one topic about which every entrepreneur should ask the lender. UCC or Universal Commercial Code is a legal notice that a lender files with the Secretary of State for security interest against one of the entrepreneur’s assets. A blanket UCC filing will ensure that should the entrepreneur default, the lender will get access to all the involved assets. This also means that risk in such a business is higher than normal.

3. Business Structure - It is very important to register a business with the Secretary of State whether it is or will be operating soon. If the business has not been incorporated, it means that money for a service or product is being collected under an individual name or registration for sole proprietorship has been done. Lenders will generally not be comfortable giving loans to sole proprietors. 

4. Importance of Payment History - There is no doubt that payment history does affect a personal credit score, but it may also impact the score calculated from a business credit profile. All invoices must be paid early to build this score. Entrepreneurs would also be benefited if they assign contracts with vendors reporting to D&B and Experion.

Although the above are critical factors for business credit, there are others as well. It is important for a proprietor to know about this as the journey to entrepreneurship is begun. Ideas are invariably good, but these will not see the light of day unless they are funded properly.

How to Rectify an Existing Default?

All is not lost after an entrepreneur default on a business-related EMI. Taking a short-term loan too may appear counter-productive, but it is actually useful. 

Paying the new loan on time shows the credit bureau that the entrepreneur is fully capable of clearing debts and handling credit responsibly. 

Therefore, a business credit score that may have fallen back can get the much needed boost to recover. However, all older loans must have been fully paid off to implement this tip.

4 Ways to Bolster Your Savings This Summer

For those who are still keeping their conventional jobs without pay cuts, staying at home means fewer expenses. It is easy to spend when keeping costs low, especially when loaded with offers through your emails and socials. 

However, it’s a more intelligent move to save more so that you can handle the uncertain future.

You have the option to save at a slow and steady pace. Consistency typically pays off when it comes to finances. But, on the other hand, you can also save at a more rapid pace. With hard work and self-confidence, aggression can bring you success as well.

Below are a few ways you can bolster your savings.

Save in a Credit Union

Different from banks, people who put their money in a credit union are members and shareholders. That means members will get back most of the profits, like how shareholders benefit from a corporation.

Credit unions offer better rates for savings accounts and lower interest rates for loans. Moreover, these facilities waive some fees that regular banks enforce. If there are unavoidable fees, these would be much lower than bank fees.

Save in a High-Interest Account

People usually aim to shop for the best products, reading as many reviews as possible. Likewise, it would be best if you also shopped around to find the best savings account. 

Several comparison sites analyze savings plans detailing comparative statistics. Just like buying other things, there can be a stark difference between products.

Deposit savings in Your Expenses

Careful budget planning can result in some savings in your expenses. Make an effort to deposit every single saving into your savings account. 

For instance, most probably you save gas by staying more at home. Transfer these unexpected savings into your deposit account. Small regular deposits will snowball into huge savings.

Generate Side Income

Less traveling to and from work means more spare time. You could use it to do work on the side. Today there are more online jobs than ever. 

The best thing is that you can work remotely. Working in pajamas may now be the norm in whatever job you’re doing!

In addition to these four main ideas, there are many different ways you can boost your savings. Thorough research can give you several comprehensive options. 

No matter what choices you make, living a frugal life will always give you more savings. Saving slowly and consistently will ensure a steady increase in your fund. 

However, you can also bolster your savings faster by looking at some options in the more aggressive plans.