Your checking account is likely your most active financial account. Money flows through your checking account constantly: paychecks, refund checks, meal share cash, etc come in, and payments for credit card bills, rent, services, etc. go out. Continue reading The purpose of a checking account
The purpose of a savings account
A savings account is an instrument of saving. Similar to a checking account, a savings account holds your money in a safe and secure place, Continue reading The purpose of a savings account
Emergency fund – the pillar of your personal finance
I started saving for emergency fund even before having an idea of what it was about. To most people, the concept of an emergency fund is very intuitive. It is the money saved aside for emergency situations. Continue reading Emergency fund – the pillar of your personal finance
Credit card vs debit card
Many young folks, especially those that haven’t been in the US that long, conflate debit cards with credit cards. Debit cards have almost nothing in common with credit cards despite their similar physical appearances.
Anatomy of a credit card: Bank of America BankAmericard Cash Rewards review
My first blog post covers the benefits or credit cards that are often ignored. I have also covered several features of credit cards in a variety of posts. I’ve always wanted to consolidate all these features in one post, and what better way is there than performing a hands-on analysis on a real credit card? Today’s post features Bank of America’s flagship BankAmericard Cash Rewards.
Continue reading Anatomy of a credit card: Bank of America BankAmericard Cash Rewards review
The power of compound interest: why you should start investing today
On Tuesday, February the 5th, I finally opened an investment account at Scottrade, after missing out on a lot of good deals from the stock market recovery from late 2011 through 2012. My 401(k) plan with my employer consists of mostly stock rather than fixed income, and sure enough my annual return in 2012 was almost 20%. But I was particularly confident about the revival of Bank of America when its stock price was around $5 a share, and even now I still believe I would have bought a lot of their shares and would have benefited from the 100% return had I known how to invest and had the determination to step into the investment world. Regrets are my life enemy, and to end this agony, I just had to open an investment account.
I have a personal interest in investing, so investing is just especially exciting to me. But there’s another reason I wanted to start investing sooner rather than later, and this reason applies to everyone. Continue reading The power of compound interest: why you should start investing today
Why Bank of America is awesome for building credit
I have previously covered my experience with Bank of America (or BofA for short).
BofA is the issuer of my first credit card: I opened a secured card with them in early January, 2012; this card graduated into a regular credit card a little over a month ago. This is one of the best secured credit cards in the market, a point I explained in the linked thread. Continue reading Why Bank of America is awesome for building credit
Credit card. What is it?
If you have read my first blog post, you may find it tempting to apply for a credit card if you do not already have one. And you should. But I’d like to give you an overview of what exactly you’re stepping into.
So what is a credit card?
A credit card is a plastic card that … Wrong! This is not the right approach. Continue reading Credit card. What is it?