4 Options to Help Ease Financial Pressure

When you're living paycheck to paycheck or are beginning to feel financially strained, it can be difficult to feel like you have the means to thrive or survive. 

Fortunately, there are several ways to ease financial pressure and have a bit more wiggle room in your budget. Here are a few options to consider to help ease financial pressure and find a bit of relief.

Consider Loan Modification

If you've acquired debt, it can be difficult to feel like you have extra spending money when you're paying high-interest rates on the amount that you owe. 

Loan modifications, which as the name implies means simply changing the terms of your loan, can allow you to spend less on interest after you negotiate the terms as you continue to pay off your balances. 

This means you have more money to put into your debt which can also allow you to pay off credit cards or auto loans faster to have more money in your budget in the near future.

Find Other Ways to Earn More Money

Look for other ways to bring in more money to ensure all of your expenses are covered. Although you may have a full-time job during the week, you can spend your free time tutoring, doing mystery shopping, or delivering fast food through delivery services. 

Working two jobs can be temporary and can make it easier to meet your immediate financial goals. 

If you don't have the time to work another job, renting out a room in your home or selling things you wish to get rid of are also easy and classic ways to earn money.

Cut Out Luxuries

Whether you have a habit of visiting the nail salon every two weeks or have a gym membership, cut out luxuries that aren't essential. You can also cut the cord on your cable television or magazine subscriptions. 

Look for replacements that are free, which can include using working out at home or using a family member's Netflix or Apple TV subscription plan. 

You don’t have to live a completely ascetic lifestyle, but you should try to do without until your financial situation becomes less stressful.

Carpool

Consider finding other ways to get to work or the various places you need to go instead of relying on your vehicle. Riding your bike or taking the bus a few days a week can allow you to save money on fuel. 

You can also carpool with other people you work with as a way of spending less on your transportation each month.

As you learn how to become creative with easing your financial pressure, it can feel good to save money and feel less strained. There are plenty of ways to reduce your spending and increase your income when you're looking for short- or long-term ways to free up your budget.

5 Tips On How To Start Saving For Your Dream Home

The largest purchase you will probably make in your lifetime, buying a home, does not come cheap in today's world. In fact, you will often need 20 percent of a home's asking price to get the mortgage you need for the purchase, which may sound impossible to you at the moment.

However, with a little planning and some ingenuity along the way, you can save the money needed for your dream home. To do so, here are some steps you can take right away.

Pay Off Your Debt

If you have high-interest credit cards or student loan payments each month, the money you are putting towards this debt could be saved up for a down payment on a home. Thus, you should do all you can to get your debt under control. 

This can include refinancing your student loan or transferring credit card balances to cards with lower interest rates. Paying off debt is imperative, as you will often pay much more out of pocket due to accumulated interest.

Get a Second Job

When you look around at homes for sale and what they cost, you may decide on getting a side hustle. This can include working a second job at a retail store, driving for Uber in your spare time, or perhaps making restaurant deliveries. Whatever you select, the money you earn can add up quickly.

Cut Expenses

Once you examine your budget, you will see plenty of things you can cut down on each month. If you eat out quite a bit, start doing more cooking yourself. Over time, the money you save will surprise you and your family.

Don't Worry About Retirement

For now, don't worry about putting money into your retirement accounts. Instead, put that money towards the down payment for your dream home. Once you save up what you need for your home, you can once again start saving for retirement.

Request Gift Money

Finally, once the holidays roll around and your family and friends start asking you what you want for presents, tell them you want cold, hard cash that you can use for your down payment. 

If everyone just gives you the money they would have spent on presents, you may wind up with quite a holiday windfall for your house fund.

If you are not shy about putting these tips into practice, it will not be long until you can leave your worries behind and move into the home of your dreams.

Tips for Growing Your Wealth

Most people aren't very proactive with their finances. They worry about what could go wrong and don't take action to fix what they can control. Growing wealth does not need to be complicated.

Wealthy people don't have a unique formula. They are just willing to make the sacrifices that others don't. 

Here are some tips for growing your wealth.

Stick to a Budget

Financial success depends on the ability to make and stick to a budget. Cash flow will impact your economic life. If you don't control it but let it control you, you will never increase your net wealth.

Track what you earn versus what you spend. It probably feels like a no-brainer that living beyond your means not only gets you nowhere fast, it can get you into serious trouble in no time at all. 

Instead, budgeting what you need and want every month with money leftover should help you to put some serious savings away. The wider the gap between what you make and what you pay, the more money you have to invest in your future. 

You shouldn’t deny yourself everything, but you also shouldn’t buy everything the moment you get your paycheck. Living a little below your means ensures that you have money to save.

Invest Your Income

If you want to retire when you're 70 with the expectation of enjoying your golden years in comfort, you can do that if you put away between 10 and 15% of your income. 

However, if you want more, including financial independence, you need to save between 20 and 30% of your monthly income to hit primary wealth goals. 

This means being careful about what you buy now and not spending extravagantly. Wealth management professionals can help to advise you on how to save your income and make the most of what you have.

Increase Your Income

The only that you can save money and invest money is if you have money. There are only so many expenses that you can reduce. YOu must look for ways to earn more money. 

Many people don't look at this side of things because they feel their earning potential is out of control. You have the power to be an active player in how much money you earn. 

Look for a new job, negotiate a higher salary, work more hours, get a side hustle, find things you can sell, and rent out a portion of your home. These are just a few options that can help you increase your income, thereby increasing the money you have to invest.

It can be hard to step outside of your comfort zone and try to grow your wealth. Successful people don't get where they are because they made that one special business deal or hit the lottery. 

It takes a lot of hard work, some good fortune, and persistence. Hiring someone who knows how to work with money can be a great benefit in getting on or keeping on the right track, and just generally being smart about your money can ensure that you have enough to spend at all times.

Is There A Difference From One Credit Union To Another?

If you are unhappy with banks, you may consider having a credit union membership. However, once you start looking around, you may notice there are more credit unions than you imagined. 

If so, you'll be wondering if there are any significant differences from one credit union to another. Are there differences? Let's find out.

Who Can Join?

While many credit unions are open to almost anyone, others offer memberships only to select individuals. For example, some credit unions may be open only to military personnel and their immediate families. 

In contrast, others may be open to students and staff from a certain college or university. Thus, before selecting a credit union, make sure you're eligible for membership.

Federal and State Credit Unions

When you examine credit unions, you will find some are federal credit unions, while others state credit unions. While federal ones are regulated by the National Credit Union Association, state credit unions are often supervised by state regulatory agencies. 

However, whether you choose the Credit Union of Denver or another credit union, be aware that all credit unions insure deposits up to $250,000, just as the FDIC does with banks.

Lower Interest Rates

Even though credit unions are well-known for offering interest rates on loans that are generally lower than those found on bank loans, remember that there will be differences in interest rates among various credit unions. 

Thus, if you are interested in pursuing a loan, it will be smart for you to check out several different credit unions before you pick one to join. By doing so, you'll get a loan at a low-interest rate, meaning more money will remain in your pocket.

Community Involvement

Finally, many local credit unions prioritize giving back to the communities in which they are located. For example, they may help support local food banks, do fundraisers for children's hospitals, or even help out the local animal shelter by donating food and other supplies. 

If this is also important to you, be sure to closely examine many community credit unions to find one that aligns well with your priorities and values.

Once you find a credit union to join, you will reap these and many other great benefits. Whether you are taking a class at the credit union to learn more about debt management or seeking a low-interest loan to buy a home or car, you will soon find belonging to a credit union was one of the best financial decisions you ever made for you and your family.

What Rules Should You Follow When Using a Credit Card?

Photo by Avery Evans on Unsplash

There are over 365 million active credit card accounts, and the average US household has $5,300 in credit card debt. Credit card debt isn't necessarily bad - even any type of debt should be managed carefully - there are several pros to having money on a credit card.

The amount of money a lender is willing to give you - otherwise known as a credit limit - will depend on your credit score. Your credit score is something you build up over time as you begin to take out credit, which is one of the reasons why a credit card is a good investment.

That soon changes if you don't follow the rules of owning a credit card. Below, we'll explore what rules you need to follow when using a credit card.

Rule #1: Pick The Right Card For Your Needs

There isn't a one size fits all credit card. There are different types of credit cards and offers available to people with the right credit score. For example, you can have a credit builder credit card, balance transfer cards, or low-interest cards.

Which card you select will depend on your needs. If you want a credit card to have some fallback money to rely on, a low-interest card or even a credit builder card would be wise. 

People with a poor credit score and looking to improve it should also look for a credit builder card. Chances are, someone with poor credit wouldn't get accepted for any other card.

Rule #2: Don't Miss Your Payments

Missing payments is a big no-go when bearing the responsibility of having and using a credit card. Missing your payments can result in detrimental damage to your credit score. 

To classify as a late or missed payment in the US, it has to be 30 days after the due date, which differs from countries like the UK, France, and Spain. In the UK, a late payment is recorded as soon as the day after someone misses a payment.

In the US, however, people have 30 days to try and find the money to pay the fee. The minimum payment is calculated based on the amount of money you've spent on the card and your annual interest rates - it's the minimum amount you must pay each month to avoid fees. 

If you're struggling to meet the minimum payment because you have multiple ones due at once, its easy to consolidate your credit card debt and bring everything into one payment. Follow the link for more advice.

Rule #3: Don't Exceed Your Credit Card Limit

Exceeding your credit card limit is a no-go if you want to keep your credit score looking healthy. Your credit card limit is given to you based on the amount companies think is safe to lend you. 

The first thing that's likely to happen if you exceed your credit card limit but pay it back straight away is a fee. A credit card balance in arrears for a prolonged period could lead to increased interest rates and or even rejection from future credit card applications.

The most common cause of an exceeded credit limit is failing to pay the minimum payment, which results in late payment fees, and then interest rates taking money from the account that isn't there. 

People that have reached their credit limit should take care to ensure there is enough money there to cover the monthly interest rate charges and the minimum payment.

Rule #4: Keep Your Credit Utilization Rate Low

Your credit utilization ratio is simply the amount of credit you're using. For example, if you have three different credit cards and two store cards equal to $10,000, and you've spent $1,000 across them all, you're only utilizing 10% of the available credit. As a general rule, lenders like people to use 50% or less of their available credit.

Credit scoring models favor people with a low credit utilization rate because they think they're doing an excellent job at not overspending and have better money management skills than someone close to or has exceeded their credit utilization. 

The lower your credit utilization and the higher your credit score, the more likely you'll be accepted for loans and credit cards with lower interest rates, and the more lenders will be willing to give you.

Rule #5: Only Spend What You Can Afford

A simple and conclusive rule - only spend what you can afford. Just because a credit card company gives you a specific amount; doesn't mean you need to splurge it. Any expert will advise that credit cards should either be for building credit by carefully spending small amounts and paying them off or as a last resort if money is short. 

The less you use, the less you'll pay in interest, and the smaller the minimum payments will be. Be wise with your spending and only spend what you can afford to pay back.

Credit cards are a lifeline. They're also not to be underestimated by not following the credit card rules. Careful spending and repayment are essential, as is understanding how credit cards work and the specific terms and conditions of your credit card agreement. 

How you use your credit cards will influence your credit score, and your credit score determines purchases like houses, cell phones, and cars.

How a Loan Can Get Your Business Off the Ground

If you need a bit of financing to start your business, a loan can be a great option. A business loan is one of the quickest ways that you can help an entrepreneur like yourself get the upfront cash to start operating a business while it’s still in the initial stages. The right business loan for you can help your startup company differently.

A Quick Cash Source

As soon as you’re approved for a loan, you’ll have access to money that can be used to pay for different business expenses. Most loans have short turnaround times for approval, and securing one of these loans can be especially helpful if you need fast cash to pay vendors, inspectors, or other individuals who are trying to help you launch your business. 

You can also use the money that you receive from your loan to pay for office supplies and other important items that are essential to running your company. 

Whether you need a few hundred or several thousand dollars to get your business going, you can apply for as much cash as needed and get the entire amount upon approval.

Helps You Establish Credit

Even though you likely already have personal credit that’s in good standing, you’ll still want to establish credit for your business that’s separate from your own financial history. 

A business loan can help you establish credit for your company so that you’ll have an easier time getting approved for future business loans if needed. Business loans that are paid off in full without any outstanding balances left over can help companies like you earn even higher credit scores.

No Immediate Need to Repay

In most cases, you won’t be required to pay off an entire business loan right away, and you can carry a balance and make only the required minimum payments until your company becomes more financially stable. 

Even though it’s best to pay off the entire loan quickly to avoid finance charges, you’ll have more time to repay the loan and ease some of your financial burdens if you cannot acquire all the money to pay off the entire loan amount immediately.

Starting a business often involves some major financial investments, and you’ll have an easier time paying the expected and unexpected expenses that come with getting a new business off the ground if you can get a business loan for financing. 

A lender can offer you one of these loans and explain the financing terms so that you’ll have a clear understanding of your rights and responsibilities with the loan.