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Zeta Taskforce posted:Same advice I always give. Find a local credit union or community bank. It doesn't matter how small the place is who issued it, if its a Visa or Mastercard, it will still be accepted everywhere. You don't want to fall into the trap of going online, diligently researching which one has the best rate, perks, fee structure, and going with that particular major issuer. thank you this is exactly what I was looking for. By community bank, are you talking about a branch office of something like Bank of America, or an actual independent entity? What is the best place (website?) to look for a bank or credit union in my area?
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Feb 25, 2011 22:26
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Xguard86 posted:thank you this is exactly what I was looking for. By community bank, are you talking about a branch office of something like Bank of America, or an actual independent entity? What is the best place (website?) to look for a bank or credit union in my area? Whatever you do, do NOT use BOA for the love of all that is good in life! Google "credit union (zip code)". Go to the BBB and look at each of those reviews. Do your own independent research by looking for personal complaint website. etc etc.
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Feb 25, 2011 22:47
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Looking into opening a smartypig account because 1% is better than no %. When I setup a "funding source" from my existing bank account, will my bank charge me a transfer fee? I know if I were to use Wachovia's online transfer system to add money to my PNC account they would hit me for $5. Does smartypig charge a transfer fee when I redistribute the money to either of my actual bank accounts? Basically are there any transfer fees either way with smartypig?
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Feb 26, 2011 14:33
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The big banks like Chase, BoA, and Wachovia will charge fees for ACH transfers initiated on their end. ACH fees are only charged by the bank that you start the transfer from -- transferring out is called a "push", and transferring in is a "pull". I don't think anyone charges for an ACH pull, since they're getting more money in the process. The online banks generally don't charge ACH fees at all. tl;dr - Just start the transaction from SmartyPig, and have them take out the money from Wachovia.
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Feb 26, 2011 23:47
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Just a quick question here. I've finally been able to get a credit card after ruining my credit years ago. It's unsecured, if that matters. Anyway, should I be paying it off in full every month or just making the minimum payments and carrying some balance? It's a very small amount and I don't intend on charging any more than I can pay off in one month. What is the best way to go about this in terms of bringing up my credit score?
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Feb 27, 2011 02:09
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The answer is in the title of the thread. You do not need to carry a balance to help your credit score; pay it off in full every time.
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Feb 27, 2011 02:12
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Lyon posted:Looking into opening a smartypig account because 1% is better than no %. When I setup a "funding source" from my existing bank account, will my bank charge me a transfer fee? I know if I were to use Wachovia's online transfer system to add money to my PNC account they would hit me for $5. SmartyPig does not. So long as every transaction is initiated through SmartyPig, you shouldn't have any transfer charges.
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Feb 28, 2011 00:26
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Well I opened a Smarty Pig account and my copy of The Four Pillars of Investing arrived. My savings is back on track, will save over $1k for February and should be able to sustain similar amounts going forward. Opening the Smarty Pig account was actually stupid, I now have PNC, Wachovia, and Smarty Pig. I need to close the Wachovia I guess, but then I need to switch my direct deposits at work... time to call Wachovia and PNC and find out what the minimum balances are for all of my deposit accounts so I don't get hit with any fees etc. Too many accounts.
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Feb 28, 2011 07:31
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I spend a ridiculous amount of money on groceries and I would love some tips for how to get it down. This seemed like a better fit for this post than the budgets thread. I'm in grad school. Budget is 1,500. BoA isn't letting me log in right now, but I'd estimate I spend $550 a month on groceries for only myself. I cook all my own food and eat out maybe once every two weeks. Are there any threads where I could get some ideas on how to cut down on that expense? I'm frequently running very low on money in the last few days of every month and 750 rent +550 groceries + 150 gas = 50 for everything else.
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Mar 1, 2011 00:48
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Omerta posted:I spend a ridiculous amount of money on groceries and I would love some tips for how to get it down. This seemed like a better fit for this post than the budgets thread. That sounds like a lot. What would an average meal consist of? Without knowing too much, a lot of vegetables are just as nutritious, perhaps more so, frozen rather than fresh, and a lot cheaper too. Eggs, chicken, and beans are all cheap sources of protein. A gallon of milk is practically the same amount of fluid as 2 2 litre bottles of soda, no more expensive with way more nutrition. A big bag of rice or sack of potatoes will go far without much money. Onions are cheap and make everything taste better. Cheap and healthy eats might be an interesting thread. BFC meets GSW while driving by W&W. Start a thread and you might get some ideas. I've also heard of people saving money with e-mealz too, but I've never used it myself.
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Mar 1, 2011 01:19
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Check out the slow cooker thread in GWS: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=2775050 I'd be interested in an "eating on a budget" thread; I know they used to have one in GWS but search isn't turning anything up.
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Mar 1, 2011 01:25
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$550 purely on groceries from a supermarket? My "food" budget is $200 for groceries, $200 for bars/alcohol, $110 for restaurants, $30 for fast food, and $20 for coffee shops. So far I've been hitting about $160 in actual groceries and maxing out the rest of these categories. So roughly the same as you.
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Mar 1, 2011 01:48
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Omerta posted:I spend a ridiculous amount of money on groceries and I would love some tips for how to get it down. This seemed like a better fit for this post than the budgets thread. Where are you getting your groceries? I know I end up paying almost double if I go to the convenience store next door instead of walking to the real supermarket. Also I'm gonna join in on the 'make a thread' chorus.
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Mar 1, 2011 03:02
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Contra Duck posted:
I will second that! Seems like an easy place to shave 10-20%
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Mar 1, 2011 09:34
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Ok, I'll make a thread about it after I type up my receipts and get more exact numbers.Contra Duck posted:Where are you getting your groceries? I know I end up paying almost double if I go to the convenience store next door instead of walking to the real supermarket. I get 95% of my groceries at a wholesale farmer's market (Your Dekalb Farmer's Market for you ATL residents) and the other 5% from Publix. I don't have an exact list on me, but from memory the usual list is: Bananas, Apples, Pears, Mango/blueberries/strawberries/tomatoes (if in season), organic pork @ 6.59 a pound, chicken @ 5.50 a pound, lots of leafy green veggies, almonds, coffee, greek yogurt, granola, eggs, feta cheese, tomato sauce, sweet potatoes, starkist tuna, premade couscous/black bean salad/hummus. Omerta fucked around with this message at 16:14 on Mar 1, 2011 |
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Mar 1, 2011 16:07
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Omerta posted:I don't have an exact list on me, but from memory the usual list is: What about non-food items that most people buy in the grocery store? Are they included in that bill? Couscous takes like 10 minutes to make and beans are really cheap - try making those yourself rather than buying them in a premade mixture? If you eat a lot of chicken breasts, buy bulk frozen chicken breasts. Where I am, mangos are usually expensive - replace mangos with a non-exotic fruit grown locally if they're pretty expensive relative to other fruit where you live too. You have some expensive things on there - almonds, coffee, granola... those things are all usually pretty pricy. Most of these things can also be bought in bulk if you want to keep them on there and will be cheaper. Also buy brown rice and black beans in bulk to use for carbs. Mostly, it just doesn't sound like you have a whole lot of carbs in your diet and carbs are usually both cheap and filling. Instead of eating an extra serving of organic pork, try serving it with a side of brown rice or black beans that you bought in bulk. Its better for you than most granola anyway.
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Mar 2, 2011 03:42
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Omerta posted:I don't have an exact list on me, but from memory the usual list is: I'm not in the same geographic area as you are (Michigan, but not one of the cheap parts), and I have almost the same diet as you do for two people for ~$300/month, with no eating out. I don't know if your reasons for eating this kind of diet are ethical, health-conscious, or just because you prefer the taste of higher-quality food, so I'm not sure whether what we do would work for you. We go to three places to get our food: Farmer's market: Local, in season fruits and veggies. Meats at the farmer's market are great, but I can get local, organic meat from higher-end grocery stores (e.g. Whole Foods) for $2-3/lb on sale. Higher-end grocery: Bulk grains (see below), coffee, meats. Watch for sales on the last two, where the prices drop comparable to regular grocery stores. Costco: Non-local fruit (e.g. bananas), SPINACH (I've probably saved myself the yearly membership fee at Costco by July just on what I save on their organic spinach), nuts are also decent, tuna is pretty good (nuts and tuna are also great from Trader Joe's), oils. Other things to think about : Do you have any community farms in your area that do farm shares? Split one with a few friends. This can save you big on in season veggies, but you have to deal with whatever you get. You can also go in with friends on a butchered animal. KarmaCandy also pointed out that you're paying a ton of money for other people to mix basic grains. Granola, couscous, bean salads, and hummus are all things you should make yourself; they are incredibly cheap that way and taste better, too. You are also buying a lot of very perishable food. Are you timing your shopping correctly so you aren't throwing anything out? In terms of your food proportions, fruit and meat can get pretty expensive. Veggies can take a bit of preparation but are usually cheaper for snacking, and meat shouldn't be the majority of any meal.
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Mar 2, 2011 04:26
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Lot of great ideas guys. I'll definitely try some of that stuff this month to try to bring my costs down and report back at the end of March. I don't end up throwing stuff out, but I'll try making more stuff myself and see how much that helps. At least for me, BoA is still doing an online systems upgrade so I can't get into my account. I'll make a separate thread to keep this one on topic. Thanks!
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Mar 2, 2011 06:03
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My brother in law has been looking at unsecured loan to consolidate some credit cards at a lower interest rate and lock in a repayment timeframe. His credit score seems to be pretty good (700+), but I'm assuming debt/income ratio is fairly high. Took a look at LendingClub, but they don't seem to have enough investors to fund loans right now, and most of the other places I've heard of in the past (Discover Personal loans, etc) are all invite only. He's going to chat to a local credit union about a line of credit, but any other suggestions out there? Most of the online unsecured loan sites look shady as gently caress. Maneki Neko fucked around with this message at 20:57 on Mar 2, 2011 |
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Mar 2, 2011 20:52
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Maneki Neko posted:My brother in law has been looking at unsecured loan to consolidate some credit cards at a lower interest rate and lock in a repayment timeframe. P2P lending sounds like a good idea in theory, better rates for borrowers, cut out the middleman, investors can get more money than savings accounts that pay near zero, individuals can fund things near and dear to their hearts instead of an evil banker with rigid parameters. The big promoters thought that people would view the people who funded their loans as people, not institutions, and wouldn’t go out of their way to screw other people. In actuality, lots of stupid loans got funded, borrowers had no qualms about loving over investors, and fraud was rampant. There is a goon group on Prosper that I’m technically a part of, used to be an active thread here, but as far as I know, there has been near zero activity for about the last 2 years. It doesn’t surprise me that there is a dearth of investors on Lending Club. Talking to your local credit union is smart. When it comes to money, desperate and stupid are joined at the hip. Leave the online stuff for them. The only thing I would recommend is to think of a fixed rate loan, not a line of credit. People like your brother-in-law tend to do a great job at managing their debt. Paying off their debt is a different story. Lines of credit tend to have lower payments and variable rates compared to a fixed rate loan with payments high enough that the debt will eventually be paid off. Loans force you to be honest.
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Mar 3, 2011 17:45
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I know this comes up every so often but I thought I would try again and see if anyone had any advice. I've been using mint.com for somewhat over a year now. I have had everything set up really well and it's been useful, but I am getting pretty tired of having accounts randomly stop working for a few days or the current issue, which is that I haven't been able to actually get to the login screen since Tuesday. I don't mind paying for budgeting software, I just haven't seen anything that looks good. I've heard Quicken is buggy and MS stopped making MS Money. Any suggestions?
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Mar 3, 2011 19:53
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Oakey posted:I know this comes up every so often but I thought I would try again and see if anyone had any advice. I've been using mint.com for somewhat over a year now. I have had everything set up really well and it's been useful, but I am getting pretty tired of having accounts randomly stop working for a few days or the current issue, which is that I haven't been able to actually get to the login screen since Tuesday. Mint's shortcomings and data outages become a lot less stressful and frustrating when you stop checking it more than once a week. I check it only about 4 times a month; once for each paycheck, another to make sure my rent check cleared, and again 1 week before the end of the month to see if I'm going to be over budget and adjust my spending accordingly.
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Mar 3, 2011 22:23
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Oakey posted:I know this comes up every so often but I thought I would try again and see if anyone had any advice. I've been using mint.com for somewhat over a year now. I have had everything set up really well and it's been useful, but I am getting pretty tired of having accounts randomly stop working for a few days or the current issue, which is that I haven't been able to actually get to the login screen since Tuesday. I'm using quicken because of the MS Money cancellation, but I must say that I absolutly loved Money better. I've been using it since like 1999. Mint is a fun toy, but I would never use it seriously.
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Mar 3, 2011 22:36
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Oakey posted:I know this comes up every so often but I thought I would try again and see if anyone had any advice. I've been using mint.com for somewhat over a year now. I have had everything set up really well and it's been useful, but I am getting pretty tired of having accounts randomly stop working for a few days or the current issue, which is that I haven't been able to actually get to the login screen since Tuesday. I’m still using MS Money 1998. It stopped updating stock quotes back in 2004 and its been years since it could download a statement from anywhere. In 2006 I upgraded to MS Money 2005 and it was a disaster. It was programmed to automatically enter reoccurring transfers and payments, and when I upgraded it started downloading everything from everywhere and look for reoccurring events, and then before I knew it, it was automatically doubling up on the transfers and renaming payees and putting them in all sorts of categories. It didn’t think I needed to look at the reports in the way I was used to, and instead put out these garbage reports with all the categories it though was important. Fortunately I had saved an old file before I upgraded and I reinstalled the old version. It would have been fine if I started with that version, but at this point there is no way I could convert 13 years of data into anything else. I don’t mind though. When I manually key everything in, it is a chance to reflect and slow down.
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Mar 3, 2011 23:07
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I'm wanting to open a Roth IRA account with my bank, they offer mutual funds, brokerage (stocks, bonds and more mutual funds), Annuities and Certificates of Deposit. I'm wondering which would be the best, I can contribute close to the full 5k a year to it. Mostly wanting the lowest risk of losing money option.
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Mar 3, 2011 23:26
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Thanks for the advice guys, it started working again today so I guess I'm not annoyed enough yet to try to move to Quicken. I guess I could get by with checking it less, but I always tend to check it after reading BFC so that I can reassure myself I'm doing things well  .I also used the old MS Money and really liked it as well. I don't know how you guys handle manually entering every transaction, that would take me forever. I like how I can tell Mint to categorize things and it's very easy to change categories if it gets it wrong.
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Mar 4, 2011 00:16
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Mint.com has never been down for me and I check it fairly obsessively, just adding my two cents to the conversation.
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Mar 4, 2011 01:24
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I have pretty lovely credit. I have a few debts that are on my report that I need to clean up, but some are about to expire in a year or so. Also...there are a few things on my report that are my Dad's that are some how mistakenly on my report. For example: His bankruptcy was on there but I had disputed it and it was removed, but there are other judgement's and stuff on my record that are his. I'm working on getting these removed as well. My wife recently added me as an authorized user on a card she has had for 2 years. It looks like credit karma picked it up as a positive new account, but my credit score hasn't changed at all. (only has been a few days). My question is, along with paying these old debts that are not about to fall off soon, and removing the erroneous stuff... would opening a secured credit card to rebuild some credit history help? My wife seems to think the authorized user thing will be enough... any thoughts? I should say that my goal is to purchase a house in the next year or so and am an expectant father. I plan to pay off old debt on my credit report (even though no one is calling or sending letters), pay off the 3k or so in student loans that I have (current), and save around $40k for a down payment to avoid paying PMI.
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Mar 4, 2011 03:26
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Oakey posted:I know this comes up every so often but I thought I would try again and see if anyone had any advice. I've been using mint.com for somewhat over a year now. I have had everything set up really well and it's been useful, but I am getting pretty tired of having accounts randomly stop working for a few days or the current issue, which is that I haven't been able to actually get to the login screen since Tuesday. If you revisit this issue, take a look at YNAB. It's primarily a budgeting and register software, but it handles both very well. It doesn't do direct connections to your account, you have to download it from the bank's website, but if that's not a dealbreaker, it's good software built on solid budgeting fundamentals. I've been using it since last summer and it's been a huge boon for me, more than Quicken ever was.
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Mar 4, 2011 17:04
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Oakey posted:Thanks for the advice guys, it started working again today so I guess I'm not annoyed enough yet to try to move to Quicken. I guess I could get by with checking it less, but I always tend to check it after reading BFC so that I can reassure myself I'm doing things well I have everything BUT my main checking account sync. I try not to have too much stuff hitting my checking account anyway because I get pretty paranoid about it. Everything I possibly can goes on credit and then there are only like a few transactions that actually hit my checking account (Mortgage, Taxes, etc.)
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Mar 4, 2011 18:12
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Oakey posted:Thanks for the advice guys, it started working again today so I guess I'm not annoyed enough yet to try to move to Quicken. I guess I could get by with checking it less, but I always tend to check it after reading BFC so that I can reassure myself I'm doing things well I use Mint every day and also check is obsessively. I will say that since they updated their iPhone app, they've been having some issues. Bank of America has been having a hard time lately but I think that's BoA's fault more than anything else. I admit it's annoying when poo poo isn't synced but the longest I've had to wait for Mint to get it together is a week. Despite that, Mint is hardly ever had issues.
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Mar 4, 2011 19:09
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wil posted:I have pretty lovely credit. I have a few debts that are on my report that I need to clean up, but some are about to expire in a year or so. Also...there are a few things on my report that are my Dad's that are some how mistakenly on my report. For example: His bankruptcy was on there but I had disputed it and it was removed, but there are other judgement's and stuff on my record that are his. I'm working on getting these removed as well. Is your credit lovely mostly due to your Dad’s stuff, or do you have some of your own stuff on there too? For his stuff, I would keep working at getting them off like you did for his bankruptcy. For yours, I don’t know what the debt collections thread is saying these days, but even though they are old, if they are legitimate debts, I would ask them for settlements in writing and after, and only after they give you something in writing, overnight them bank checks. DON’T GIVE THEM ELECTONIC ACCESS TO YOUR BANK ACCOUNT! When they send you a letter saying that the account is legally settled, save that letter for the rest of your life. Laminate it if you have to. Waiting 7 years for things to fall off is a poor strategy to improve your credit, I would pay the 6 year old stuff too. It is 7 years from last reporting, and there are bottom feeding debt collectors who can buy them and if they do, the clock starts fresh. They have a way of popping on at the worst possible times, like when you are trying to get a mortgage. There is nothing that says that after 7 years debt is forgiven. You don’t have to open tons of accounts, but it would be smart to open a secured card so you have something in your name. Being an authorized user is nice, and I don’t know how it factors in the algorithm Fair Isaac uses, but you are not responsible for the debt and it counts only as some fraction compared to a debt you actually signed for. But you don’t need to open 2 of them. If you will have $40K for a down payment, that will soften what ever credit sins you have done too.
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Mar 4, 2011 20:19
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KarmaCandy posted:carbs are usually ... filling. I've usually found the opposite.
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Mar 5, 2011 01:06
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Fuschia tude posted:I've usually found the opposite. Not sure what to tell you? Most fiberous, complex carbohydrates are filling and are digested slowly. Brown rice, whole wheat pasta and beans, for example, are very filling and pretty cheap (esp. the rice and beans). Plenty of cultures use the rice & beans as a base and go lighter on the meat because it's filling and inexpensive. Oatmeal is cheap too if you buy it in bulk and makes for a really hearty breakfast. Protein is filling too but it's more expensive. It's much cheaper to have a filling carb as a staple and throw in fresh veggies and meat on top than to have a dinner of pure meat and fresh veggies.
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Mar 5, 2011 01:29
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I am really bummed that Mint has stopped working for me as far as connecting to my Schwab accounts. That's my checking account, my regular investment account, and my Roth. Still good for recording what I'm spending on junk but it no longer sees my paycheck or my rent check.
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Mar 6, 2011 00:35
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It stopped working for me for Vanguard but now it's working again. Said they were switching over to a new system so that's why it stopped working for a while. Maybe just give it a bit of time and try to reenter the info?
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Mar 6, 2011 00:50
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So how horrible is it to cancel a credit card actually? I have two cards right now, a citi one with no real rewards system and super high APR for some reason(I don't think I've ever made a late payment but its 29.9% so maybe I did a long time ago?), but it has a credit limit of like 8,200. My other card is an amazon rewards card with a APR of like 18.25% and limit of 2,000 that I use for most my purchases. Should I just keep the citi card and continue making small purchases with it, or am I ok to cancel it and apply for a card with a better reward system?
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Mar 6, 2011 17:01
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Mr Tweeze posted:Should I just keep the citi card and continue making small purchases with it, or am I ok to cancel it and apply for a card with a better reward system? You can keep it open AND apply for a new card. I would suggest applying for the new card before you cancel your old card anyway. Closing an account doesn't hurt that badly if you're not looking to do anything credit-related in the near future like buying a house but if there's no annual fee then there's no real reason to cancel it.
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Mar 6, 2011 17:14
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Yeah, I have a couple of cards that I never use, but it's good to have to boost your available credit and lower your debt:credit ratio as well as giving you a longer history credit line. Definitely don't cancel it before you get a new one, and if you're planning on needing credit for something within the next few years, I'd just keep it open. There's no real reason to cancel a no-fee card other than I guess if you're worried it'll get stolen.
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Mar 6, 2011 18:28
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KarmaCandy posted:I am really bummed that Mint has stopped working for me as far as connecting to my Schwab accounts. That's my checking account, my regular investment account, and my Roth. Still good for recording what I'm spending on junk but it no longer sees my paycheck or my rent check. FYI - I've had intermittent issues with Mint over the past month as well, but most have worked themselves out. Those that didn't I just re-entered my information and all works now.
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Mar 6, 2011 20:16
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