The Pocono Inne Town, formerly Best Western on Main Street in the center of Stroudsburg has structural problems, forcing two local eateries to close for safety reasons.The restaurants, Jock ‘n Jill’s and Sarah’s Corner Café, were given notice to close two weeks ago. The building is at the corner of Main and Seventh streets in Stroudsburg.Barry Lynch, owner of the two restaurants, was forced to lay off more than 30 people. He said he was told he would [...]
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الجمعة، 12 مايو 2017
You’ve Gotta Read This if Your Kid’s Grandparents Help With Child Care
Some people dream of becoming parents — having a sweet little newborn who’s hopefully the perfect mix of mom and dad in the house.
Others dream of becoming grandparents — forging that awesome bond with a little one who loves you immensely, but being able to give the kid back to their parents when everything becomes too overwhelming.
Yet grandparents are increasingly taking on major caregiver roles in their grandchildren’s lives.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 10% of grandchildren lived with a grandparent in 2012 — up from 7% in 1992. In 2012, 2.7 million Americans were raising their grandkids.
With day care being such a significant cost that many parents aren’t prepared for, some turn to grandparents for a more affordable (or even free!) child care option.
Though grandparents can be wonderful caregivers, recent research presented at the 2017 Pediatric Academic Societies Meeting suggests some may use outdated child-rearing practices, CNN reported.
The study surveyed 636 grandparents about their child care practices and found:
- Nearly a quarter didn’t know they should put babies to sleep on their backs.
- 44% thought ice baths were a good method to bring down a high fever. (Warning: It could cause hypothermia!)
- 68% did not know wounds should be covered.
Andrew Adesman, one of lead researchers, said, “We shouldn’t assume that just because they’ve raised a child before, they’re experts.”
Grandparents did not use old wives’ tales in all cases. Most surveyed knew that putting butter on minor burns is not the way to go, CNN reported.
Though there is a generation gap, it should be noted that grandparents are not the only ones to flub when it comes to recommended child care practices. Raising a child can have a major learning curve for new parents or parents whose children’s births are separated by a significant number of years, even a decade or two.
However, if you’re relying on grandparents to provide child care, even on an occasional or part-time basis, it’s important to make sure they are up to date on modern child-rearing practices.
Start with a simple conversation. If necessary, you could bring them along to a pediatrician appointment or point them to resources like the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Healthy Children site.
Remember, many grandparents raised their children in a different day and age, so it’s valid to bring your concerns to them. It’s also good to be on the same page on other topics like discipline, diet and screen time. Communication is key.
Nicole Dow is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. She is lucky to have a strong support system for raising her daughter — including her mom, who watches her daughter while she works.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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Stocks end mostly lower on Wall Street
NEW YORK — Stocks are ending mostly lower as declines in banks and industrial stocks outweigh gains in other sectors. General Electric dropped 2.1 percent Friday, while Wells Fargo lost 1.3 percent. Nordstrom became the latest department store operator to turn in disappointing results. The company's stock plunged 10.9 percent. The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 3 points, or 0.2 percent, to 2,390. The Dow [...]
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Class of 2017, Here are 5 Genius Ways to Use the Cash You Got at Graduation
This year’s crop of fresh-faced graduates have a lot to look forward to. New job or school opportunities, maybe a party or two and, of course, gifts.
No fibbing, grads. You know one of the only things getting you through that last round of finals was the promise of a good celebration and a few presents for all your hard work.
Whether you’re the giver or the recipient of a gift during this graduation season, listen up.
I have some advice for you.
The Gift Grads Really Want
Gift givers, the graduates in your life are too polite to tell you this, so I’ll say it for them.
Personalized stationery or a new commuter bag makes a cool gift, but sometimes the best present is simply some cold, hard cash.
College Time’s Madison Rutherford sums it up best. “Let’s be real here: What we really want is cold, hard cash so we can buy the crap we really care about, like Chipotle and PBR.”
How Much Graduation Gift Money Should You Give?
First of all, let’s get one thing straight, gift givers: You’re under no obligation to give a present — cash or otherwise — to anyone.
If your budget doesn’t allow for it (or you just flat-out don’t want to), a heartfelt card or note is just fine. (Right, grads? Right?)
If you do want to give the gift of money, though, you’ve got a lot of company.
According to the National Retail Federation, more than half of the people who give graduation gifts prefer to hand out cash.
When you’re deciding how much to give, here’s a good rule of thumb: Based on a 2015 NRF survey, the average cash graduation gift is around $100.
What Should You Do With Your Graduation Gift Money?
Grads, I’m going to go all mom on you before I offer suggestions on what to do with the cash you get.
Before you spend or invest a dime of that money, send thank-you notes to everyone who gave you a present. Do it.
Now, I wouldn’t be a responsible Penny Hoarder if I didn’t suggest that you set aside a portion of the money to start building an emergency fund.
You can also:
- Give a little of your windfall to charity because helping others is good, and you’re cool like that.
- Park it in a free checking account and let it start earning interest. Aspiration is one of our faves and features up to 1% interest, 100 times more than most banks.
- Start your own business. This woman made $700 a week with a $50 investment.
- Invest in the stock market. Stash walks you through the process and lets you get started for only $5. It also gives you $5 to invest when you sign up through this link.
- Begin planning for your retirement because it’s never too soon. Seriously.
Of course, we all need to cut loose a little bit and reward ourselves for a job well done. Take a little bit of the money you got and splurge on something nice for yourself. You deserve it.
But first, write those thank-you notes.
Disclosure: Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links. We’re letting you know because it’s what Honest Abe would do. After all, he is on our favorite coin.
Lisa McGreevy is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. She’s been both a graduation gift giver and recipient. She thinks giving is much more fun.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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What Salary Do Full-Time Moms Deserve? Here’s What 1,000 People Said
I had this conversation with my mom the other day:
“I could never be a stay-at-home mom,” I said. “I’d lose my mind.”
“You do realize you don’t just sit around the house all day, right?” my mom responded.
Yeah, I realize that, especially because my mom was a stay-at-home mom the entirety of my childhood. I meant it more as “I don’t know if I could handle all that stuff you do.”
As early as I can remember, my mom woke up before us, ironed our clothes, packed our lunches, tended to our pets, dropped us off at school, stocked the fridge, cleaned the house, paid the bills, did the yard work, picked us up from school, fed us snacks, helped us with homework, made dinner, fed us dinner, did the dishes, dealt with any breakdowns, put us to bed — and did whatever else my young, naive self was unaware of.
Repeat.
You get the point. Moms are busy. Moms are admirable. Moms have arguably one of the toughest jobs.
So if Mom were to earn a salary, how much would it be?
Considering the work involved, it seems like a stay-at-home mom salary should be pretty high.
Credit Sesame, an online platform that provides consumers with free credit scores and tools to improve those scores, surveyed 1,000 people to get to the bottom of this hot-button question.
How Much Should Mom Get Paid? Here’s What 1,000 People Said
The Credit Sesame survey started with a simple question: If being a mom were a full-time job, what would the pay be like?
Here’s what folks said:
- 38% said $0 to $49,000
- 27% said $50,000 to $99,999
- 20% said $100,000 to $149,999
- 9% said $150 to $599,999
- 6% said $600,000 plus
On average, respondents said moms’ salaries should be $70,811.83.
Before gasping in offense (like I did), compare that number to the average household income, which was $58,673 as of April 2017.
The results get more interesting when broken down by demographics.
For example, women were more likely to think moms should get paid more than men. On average, men said moms should get paid $60,163 per year, whereas women said moms should get paid $81,410. That’s a difference of more than $20,000.
Looking at the results by age, those who were 35 to 44 said moms should be paid the most — an average $78,968. The younger ones, like the 18- to 24-year-olds, answered with lower amounts, at an average $60,480.
They just don’t understand.
And by region? Apparently Southerners feel the most generous toward Mom. They thought, on average, mom should be paid $76,406. The West Coast didn’t agree, reporting moms should be paid an average $62,849.
Because We Can’t Afford to Pay Mom a Salary… Here’s How to Celebrate Mother’s Day on a Budget
Credit Sesame has a great point. Just think about what you’d pay for someone to drive you around, cook your meals and clean your house.
Unfortunately many of us children don’t have enough money to pay mom a salary, but we can show her our appreciation on Mother’s Day. (Which, I mean, we should do every day, but that’s another story.)
Here are some ideas that won’t cost you $70,000:
- Buy her flowers. It’s a simple gesture, perhaps overdone, but a fresh pop of brightness in her space will make her smile all week. Plus, it won’t break your bank — and you can even save with these deals.
- Treat her to a meal. There are a ton of Mother’s Day deals out there. Free pie? Yes, please!
- Treat her to a mimosa. If you download cash-back app Ibotta and take mom out for some bubbly, take a picture of your receipt and it’ll deposit up to $5 back into your account. You’ll get $10 for submitting your first receipt, too.
Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms out there! We think you’re worth a zillion bucks!
Disclosure: This post includes affiliate links. We’re letting you know because it’s what our moms would do. After all, they’re our guiding lights.
Carson Kohler (@CarsonKohler) is a junior writer at The Penny Hoarder. Her mom is her mentor, her therapist, her best friend and her roommate. And she’s OK with that.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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Yes, Staying Single Can Actually be a Really Smart Money Move
I am very, very single. And I’m OK with it.
Look, I’m a really nice girl. But I’m young, and men my age absolutely suck just aren’t meeting my standards right now.
A recent article in MarketWatch reminded me of all the financial disparities singles face. But when it included this quote from “Sex and the City’s” Carrie Bradshaw, it really hit me hard, considering I just graduated college:
“If you are single, after graduation, there isn’t one occasion where people celebrate you,” she said.
Carrie Bradshaw was only talking about gift-giving, but the article goes beyond that, claiming that being single can cause you to experience some major financial drawbacks throughout your life.
Is this true? Am I doomed to foot the bill of my adult necessities on my own? Am I going to be single and poor for the rest of my life?
After taking a closer look, I’m not convinced.
Being Single Sucks for Your Wallet — or Does it?
Being married means you’re showered with seemingly endless amounts of free s–t.
Weddings include abundances of perfectly wrapped presents simply because two people made the major life decision our society seems obsessed with.
I recently watched my sister get married and rake in a sofa, pots and pans, plates, wine glasses, a bar cart and more — all for free, thanks to her posh Crate & Barrel wedding registry.
Single people, on the other hand, get the cold shoulder when they hit milestones in perfect stride — all because they’re doing it alone.
As this article in The Atlantic says, “trips are not planned when we’re promoted at work, nor crystal glassware gifted when we buy our first homes. It seems that milestone celebrations are still reserved for couples and families.”
So, yeah — my fellow single peeps and I are left in the cold when it comes to free stuff, all because we aren’t putting a ring on it.
The MarketWatch article also brought up some obvious points, like how people in relationships save money on dating costs and housing.
Couples who live together not only save money on rent, but they also save big on daily expenses, such as groceries and household chores, because they’re splitting it all in half.
Cutting those expenses in half does sound like a dream, but I’m not downloading Tinder anytime soon.
Still, there are even more financial benefits to marriage that single pringles don’t have access to, such as the tax advantages of filing jointly and the ability to lean on someone financially, should something prevent you from working.
(Look, I can’t argue about tax benefits, but I think you should have your own emergency fund whether you’re single or coupled. Just sayin’.)
Married men make nearly $16,000 more per year than single men, according to this American Enterprise Institute study, although the study also found that married men work more hours than their single peers.
And what about women? The study found that despite married women working fewer hours than their single counterparts, the difference in incomes between married and single women is not statistically significant.
Why Being Single Could Save You Money
There are major financial perks to being married, so is it time to bite the bullet and fling yourself into the dating world?
Well, not exactly. There can be some major setbacks.
One thing you don’t have to worry about when you’re single? According to The Knot’s Real Weddings Survey, the average cost of a wedding in the U.S. soared to $35,329 in 2016.
I think my stomach just fell to the floor.
Don’t forget the ring, either. The same study found the average engagement ring costs $6,163. **gulp**
Also, I hate to be grim, but 40% to 50% of marriages in the U.S. end in divorce. And while there’s no set number on how much one can cost, The Huffington Post reported a divorce could cost between $15,000 and $20,000.
As for me, there’s no amount of money or free things that could convince me to settle down with someone I wasn’t 100% gaga over — even if that means having to buy my own plates (most likely from the dollar store).
That said, I’m going to enjoy my solitude — for now, at least.
Kelly Smith is a junior writer and engagement specialist at The Penny Hoarder. Catch her on Twitter at @keywordkelly.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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Kroger Meal Kits are Cheaper Than Blue Apron, but are They Really Worth It?
America’s favorite grocery store is looking to give Blue Apron a run for its money.
Kroger is rolling out a meal kit program that will give customers pre-portioned ingredients and recipe cards to make dinnertime more convenient, according to Business Insider.
While Kroger’s Prep + Pared kits still require a trip to the grocery store, unlike Blue Apron, there are still some clear reasons why the Kroger kits might be worth your while.
How Does Kroger Compare to Blue Apron
Here are four things to consider when comparing Kroger’s Prep + Pared kits to Blue Apron.
1. The Food
Kroger has been selling dinner ingredients longer, but Blue Apron is the veteran when it comes to meal kits. And when it comes to variety, Blue Apron’s got it.
Blue Apron offers six new options to choose from each week, and there’s no need to worry about repeats. Only the most popular recipes get repeated, and Blue Apron will wait at least a year before repeating a recipe. This means dining with Blue Apron will never get dull.
Kroger will add more options as its Prep + Pared kits catch on, but for now, there are only five meal options, according to Cincinnati local news station WLWT.
The options are a Japanese-inspired beef bowl, a chimichurri steak, Moroccan-inspired spring vegetables, creamy chicken and bacon Alfredo, and chicken enchiladas rojas.
2. Cost and Commitment
At $14 for each two-serving kit, Kroger’s Prep + Pared kits are cheaper than Blue Apron, which will set you back about $20 for a two-serving kit. Blue Apron also sells its meals in packages. So that means you pay about $60 a week for three kits instead of buying one kit at a time from Kroger.
3. Cook Time and Convenience
Both Blue Apron and Kroger kits aim to limit food waste. Both give you only the exact amount of each ingredient you need to make two servings. But there is a big difference. Blue Apron’s ingredients come whole. Any chopping, peeling or other prep work is your job. With Kroger, all your food comes ready for your skillet or oven.
The ready-to-cook Kroger option means faster cook times.
You should also note that all Blue Apron recipes are available on its website. So if you lose track of your recipe card, you’ve got a backup plan. With the Prep + Pared kits, you’ll need to hold on to the card if you’re not confident enough to wing it.
4. Delivery
Of course, Blue Apron is a subscription service. That means the food is delivered to your door, so you can skip the after-work grocery run on Blue Apron nights. Unlike Kroger’s service, Blue Apron’s delivery service does not require you to be near a store.
Kroger’s meal kits are still in the testing phase. So for now, they are only available in select stores, and you have to make a trip there to pick one up. But if this program is a success, Kroger expects the boxes to become more widely available next year. Delivery may also be in the cards.
Don’t Live Near a Kroger? No problem
Several other grocery stores are testing similar programs at different price points. Closer to our office in Florida, Publix and Fresh Market also offer meal kits.
Even if none of the grocery stores near you offer meal kits just yet, Blue Apron is not your only option. We tested four food box services to see how they all stacked up. If you’re on the fence about giving it a try, we suggest starting there.
Desiree Stennett (@desi_stennett) is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. There’s no Kroger here in St. Petersburg, Florida, but she has big plans to try out a Publix meal kit.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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Ugh… Moving Day. At Least We Have 4 Tips to Help You Save Hundreds
Raise your hand if you love moving.
Crickets.
Thought so.
It’s a sweaty, back-achey, lost-boxy and something’s-definitely-gonna-breaky day. Sure, your new home is on the other end of it, but for now? You’re dreaming of teleportation.
And you’re going to pay an arm and a leg for all this headache. (Hopefully not literally, but we can’t be sure. You’ll be surprised what you’re willing to do to get a sofa up six flights of stairs.)
Let’s take the sting out of it.
Here are four tips for moving-day savings from one writer who saved nearly $500 on her last move.
1. Negotiate Your Lease Date
Major life changes don’t adhere to a strict first-of-the-month schedule. You may be ready to move in on the 7th or the 17th. Why pay for a week or more of rent when you’re not living there?
Ask your new landlord to prorate the rent. In a high-demand area, you might not get your choice move-in date, but you could shave off a few days and save a few (hundred) bucks.
2. Sell Your Stuff
Furniture. Sweaters that are so last season. Books, the most impossibly dense things you don’t know why you own.
The big stuff increases your moving expenses. It’s one more thing you pay a mover to lug or one more square foot of space you need in the U-Haul.
List anything you’re willing to part with on Craigslist, Facebook or one of these apps:
- letgo lets you snap a photo of just about any item you want to sell and list it in less than 30 seconds.
- Decluttr buys your old CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays and video games, plus hardware like cell phones, tablets, game consoles and iPods.
- Bookscouter helps you sell old textbooks. Search with the book’s ISBN to find the best price among more than 25 of the best-paying and most reputable buyback companies.
You can always replace your stuff — for free! —when you land at the new digs. But you’ll probably realize you didn’t need it that badly, anyway.
3. Talk to Your Current Landlord
Prepping your apartment for a move out is a minefield.
Does your landlord remember that chip in the front window was there before you? Will they charge you for not spackling nail holes in the wall? Can you leave behind the shelves you installed in the closet?
Don’t leave it to chance. Ask your landlord. Send them an email so you have a record of their response to avoid any takebacks.
4. NEVER Pay for Boxes
Despite the bazillions of cardboard boxes tossed in the trash on the reg from neighbors or shipments at the grocery store down the block, movers shell out cash for new boxes.
Instead, scavenge your building’s recycling bin. Or just ask your neighbors, if you don’t mind the human interaction.
Or, my favorite: Find out when nearby grocery and retail stores receive shipments and stop by later in the day to scoop up empty boxes.
If you’re an extrovert, chat up someone moving into your building and reuse their empty boxes. You know they’re good for moving.
Whatever you do, don’t pay for boxes!
One last thing…
Heading Across the Country?
Consider shipping everything — including yourself — instead of driving. Here’s why it’s the cheapest way to move across the country.
Disclosure: Our friends stopped inviting us over because we were always digging for loose change between their couch cushions. We use affiliate links instead so we still get invited to a few parties.
Dana Sitar (@danasitar) is a senior writer at The Penny Hoarder. She’s written for Huffington Post, Entrepreneur.com, Writer’s Digest and more, attempting humor wherever it’s allowed (and sometimes where it’s not).
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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Spotify Premium Users Can Save 50% for a Year, Get Addicted for Life
Listen.
I’m about to tell you about a Spotify Premium deal that I’m pretty excited about, but you have to understand something first: Under no circumstances should you ever try Spotify Premium unless you intend to pay for it until you die.
Yes. I’m serious.
I’ve had it for about two years now and every time I’m searching for new ways to save money, I look for subscriptions to cut for the sake of a few extra dollars in my savings account that month.
Spotify Premium often ended up on the chopping block. I must have canceled it at least five times in the past year and within a week, I was back.
I mean, did you expect me just to be OK without my commercial-free music? Was I supposed to just accept only having the option to “shuffle play” when I’m listening on my phone? Am I a cavewoman?
The moral: Try Spotify Premium at your own peril.
Already Hooked? There’s a Way To Save 50% on Spotify Premium
Now that my warning is out of the way, I’ve got news for those who already pay for Spotify Premium and the brave souls among us who think they want to try it.
A new partnership between Spotify and Capital One means savings.
If you have either a Capital One Quicksilver card or a QuicksilverOne card and you use it to pay for your monthly subscription, you will automatically get 50% back on your Spotify bill every month for one year.
The cash back deal lasts until April 2018. After that, you’re back to paying full price. (And if you think you will just cancel when it goes back to full price, you are not ready for this deal and you did not take me seriously up above.)
How the Deal Works
No sign-up is necessary if you already have a Spotify Premium account — all you need to do is log in and update your payment information to an eligible Capital One card, and the savings will start rolling in each month.
It could take up to two months to see the first credit. Don’t worry, it’s coming.
This deal applies to individual accounts that cost $9.99 per month, student accounts that cost $4.99 each month and family accounts for $14.99 each month.
Don’t have Spotify Premium but want to “try” it? There is a separate deal for you.
If you’re a new customer who has never tried Spotify Premium, you can sign up with an eligible Capital One card and get three months of Premium for free.
Unfortunately, when your three-month trial is over, you don’t get to join me in the land of half-off milk and honey. You’ll be paying full price until you cancel. (Which you won’t.)
Desiree Stennett (@desi_stennett) is a staff writer at The Penny Hoarder. She is pretty passionate about her Spotify Premium account. Obviously.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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Share This With Any Mom Who Seriously Deserves a Mimosa This Mother’s Day
If you normally swipe over to the Ibotta app when you’re grabbing your keys to head to the grocery store, stop.
Mark your calendar. Plan ahead. You want to log in to Ibotta on Sunday, May 14.
This Sunday only, Ibotta will offer a $5 rebate for a mimosa. Happy Mother’s Day, mom! Let’s celebrate you with some breakfast booze.
Make it ‘Momosa’ Day With This Mother’s Day Deal From Ibotta
Open the “restaurants and bars” category in Ibotta starting at midnight May 14. Unlock the “Mimosa for Mom” rebate. Then scan your receipt with the Ibotta app after brunch. You’ll get $5 cash back on your mimosa purchase.
Since this is a one-day offer, don’t forget to scan your receipt! Too many mimosas could do that to you. (Don’t pretend you’ve never ended up on the couch for six to eight hours after a good brunch.)
A few ideas for using this Ibotta offer:
1. Call your mom. Take your mom to brunch, lunch or just to the bar. We won’t judge.
2. Go to brunch with your mom friends. You could all order mimosas and all get your $5 cash back if you all use Ibotta (which you do, right?).
3. Take yourself out to brunch, lunch, or just to the bar. You deserve it. You don’t even have to be a mom.
Remember, this cash back offer doesn’t cover tips. Tip your servers, y’all.
Disclosure: Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links. We’re letting you know because it’s what Honest Abe would do. After all, he is on our favorite coin.
Lisa Rowan is a writer and producer at The Penny Hoarder.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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4 Simple Strategies to Help You Create Strong Passwords You Won’t Forget
I ran out of pets.
For my passwords. I ran out of pet names. I always relied on my childhood dog’s name.
Back in the day, passwords were simple. One word. No caps. No numbers. No punctuation.
But at some point, rover turned into RoVeR29402@?!.
Then I forget that mess and have to reset it to something totally different — something I haven’t used in like three years.
So I do. Then I forget it and reset again. It’s a vicious cycle.
And I’m not alone.
Nearly 40% of Internet Users are Considered “Password Challenged”
Pew Research Center recently released a report that found 39% of adults struggle to keep track of their passwords. Pew considers us “password challenged.”
At the same time, of those who can’t keep track of passwords, 41% are worried about their online security. And for a good reason: Nearly two-thirds of U.S. adults have been entangled in some sort of data theft or fraud, all according to Pew.
“Passwords are critical because they are still the primary method of authentication used by many people to access a variety of online accounts,” says Steve Weisman, a professor at Bentley University and author of the fraud and identity theft blog Scamicide.
These online accounts store information about your bank accounts, credit card numbers — even social security numbers. If hackers get their dirty cyber hands on this info, you’re liable for unauthorized charges and even vulnerable to identity theft.
4 Strategies to Creating — and Remembering — Strong Passwords
“Password” or “123456” is not a strong password, in case you were wondering.
“Hackers use programs that can guess millions of passwords,” Weisman says. “If you use any word as a password, it is easy for a knowledgeable hacker to guess it using these software programs.”
Therefore, generate something strong — and save it. (Yeah, I’m totally preaching to the choir right now.)
1. Start with a strong foundation.
Today, many accounts don’t let you create passwords that are deemed weak.
A strong password, Weisman explains, has both capital and lowercase letters, as well as symbols. And they’re not just one singular word.
2. Don’t overthink it.
So you shouldn’t rely on one word. Now what?
Weisman says to start by writing a sentence. He uses the example, “I don’t like passwords.” You can create a strong, memorable password with that sentence.
Here are some suggestions from Weisman:
IDon’tLikePasswords. This phrase has both capital and lowercase letters. There are also two symbols — an apostrophe and a period.
IDon’tLikePasswords!!! is even stronger, he says, with the three exclamation points.
And, wow, I can remember that. So rather than rover, perhaps consider MyDog’sNameIsRover!!!
3. Create a different password for each of your accounts.
Although it might be easier to remember one password for your million online accounts, you really need to use a different one for each.
“If your password security is compromised at one place that you go online, all of your accounts would be threatened if you use the same password,” Weisman says.
However, you don’t need 1 million pets to make this happen. Weisman offers a simpler solution.
“Adapt that base password for each of your online accounts so, for instance, your Amazon password could be, IDon’tLikePasswords!!!Ama,” he says.
Then, for Netflix, use something like IDon’tLikePasswords!!!Net.
Easy.
4. Consider how you’re saving your passwords.
As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, Weisman’s motto is, “Trust me, you can’t trust anyone.”
You can’t even trust services that store your passwords. He says they can be helpful, sure, but he still has concerns about them being hacked.
And don’t save them to your browser. If your phone or computer is hacked, the hacker has easy access to all of that info.
Weisman says it’s not a bad idea to just write down your passwords and store them in a secure, safe place — like a safe. They’ll be available to you at any time, but also available to your loved ones if you, frankly, fall ill or die.
Writer’s note: Please don’t use the passwords I’ve used as an example. I think you know that, but I really can’t afford to be liable for anything that happens to you or your online accounts.
Carson Kohler (@CarsonKohler) is a junior writer at The Penny Hoarder. When she finally adopts a cat, she plans to give it a password-worthy name.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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Savings update: challenger bank rates creep up
New banks continue to edge up their fixed rate deals. Aldermore Bank has increased the rate on its one-year bond to 1.5%, just behind the best deal at 1.55% from Charter Savings Bank.
For two years the top deal comes from Axis Bank UK at 1.70% followed by Paragon Bank at 1.7% and Charter Savings Bank 1.67%.
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Here’s What the Y and Walmart are Doing to Combat Child Hunger This Summer
The Y is pulling in reinforcements to help end child hunger this summer.
(You thought the good old YMCA was just a place for affordable workout options? Nah. There’s way more going on.)
The Y’s Summer Food Program isn’t new — this is its seventh summer partnering with the Walmart Foundation to curb child hunger.
“The free program, estimated to serve over 7.2 million meals and snacks to nearly 300,000 youth this summer, provides nutritious food, as well as activities, to keep kids’ minds and bodies active when the school year ends,” a release said.
A Y infographic notes that more than 22 million kids get free or reduced lunch during the school year — but only 3.8 million have access to similar programs during the summer.
How Kids Can Get Free Meals Through This Summer Lunch Program
This program is available at nearly 1,900 locations across the country. To find a participating Y facility near you, visit the Summer Food Program website. To find dates and details for the Summer Food Program, your best bet it to call or visit your nearest participating Y.
If you’re in the right region, you might get extra help from a cookbook star. Leanne Brown, author of “Good and Cheap: Eat Well on $4/Day,” will help raise awareness for the organization’s seasonal effort to provide kids with healthy meals — and provide some lessons from her book.
Brown and Y-USA spokesperson Stacey McDaniel will visit Y locations in Greater Boston, Greater Rochester, Middle Tennessee and Greater Indianapolis to share tips on shopping for healthy foods, cooking on a limited food budget and using what you have in your pantry to make that budget go further.
“Good and Cheap” was Brown’s master’s thesis project. It went viral on Reddit before Brown raised $144,000 to print hard copies of the book. For every book sold, Brown donates one to nonprofits that distribute them to people in need.
Read our interview with Brown to learn 11 tips for eating healthy on a budget.
Lisa Rowan is a writer and producer at The Penny Hoarder.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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To My Nephew on His High School Graduation
Dear Nephew,
After 13 years spent in school, you’ve finally earned a high school diploma, which is basically a ticket for your first steps into the real world. The choices you’ve made up to this point have mostly been under the shelter of your parents and your school district, which have brought you to the threshold of adulthood. From here, you’re essentially on your own.
I’m going to be the last person to tell you what to do next.
The world isn’t going to give you much of anything. Yes, you probably won’t starve to death, and you’re lucky enough to have a family that will probably ensure you always have a roof over your shoulders. However, the world isn’t going to hand you the stuff you want. You’re not going to be given respect or dignity. You’ve got to go out there and work for those things, and almost anything else you might want.
Look around you at the people who have something in their lives that they’ve built over many years. A good family. A good career. A strong standing in the community. Those things weren’t given to them. They weren’t effortless. Those things were built over a lot of years of consistent effort. People didn’t just get up one morning and find that the world was handing them a career or handing them a leadership role in the community or handing them a great family. Nope, those things were built on the back of making many good choices for many years.
Right now, you’re sitting at the point in your life where you start making those choices for yourself. Are you going to choose things that build a life that you’re happy to be living? You make those choices every single day.
You’re going to fail sometimes. What matters is whether you lay on the ground blaming others or whether you pick yourself up, fix what went wrong with you, and keep trucking forward. The reality is that the world doesn’t really care what you rail about when you fall on the ground. You can blame everyone and everything for those moments of failure and the world does not care. What the world actually cares about is whether you can handle a bad event and keep moving forward, ideally with some sort of self-improvement based on what you learned from that failure.
It’s going to seem massively unfair sometimes. You’re going to feel utterly disrespected sometimes. You’re going to feel utterly unappreciated sometimes. Sometimes, you’re just going to screw everything up and make some awful choices. The question is, when the bad results of those choices come around, who are you going to blame, and what are you going to do about it? Blaming others is a waste of time. Blaming yourself is much better, but only in the sense of recognizing things you can actually fix about yourself and fixing it. The best thing you can do? Skip the blame entirely. Look at yourself, ask what you can do to keep yourself from falling over that same rock in the future, and make that happen, then keep rolling forward.
Every time you get paid, put some of it aside for a future where you can’t work or your job doesn’t pay enough to help you tackle a major life problem. If you’re lucky, that future never comes and it becomes a future where you don’t have to work. This needs to come off the top. Live on what remains. How much should it be? Take off as much as you possibly can. A fifth of your take-home pay is a good place to start.
What should you do with it? Put it in a savings account until you have about a month’s worth of living expenses in there, then open up a Roth IRA and start putting it in there. You can put $5,500 per year into that Roth. If you manage to put that much into the Roth in a year, put the rest aside for other investments and buy a rental house in a few years with the goal of renting out that house to people. Use the money you make from that rental to keep saving for more rentals. You might figure out a better plan for the money in the future, but that’s a good game plan to start with.
Why? Well, you’re going to get knocked down sometimes by life, as I stated above. If you’re going to pick yourself back up and keep going, you’re going to need some resources – probably money. When times are good, make sure you have money for when times are bad.
Treat every job as your ticket to a better job. If you go to work just to get paid and go home and not do anything else, you’re losing a ton of the financial value from whatever your job happens to be. You have to be at work anyway – get as much value out of that job as you can.
This does not mean that you need to go in there and work yourself to death on things that don’t produce any value for you. You should absolutely do your job responsibilities well, but along the way, you should be using your spare time and energy and whatever resources are available to you to prepare yourself for your next job.
For example, if you have downtime at work, don’t just stand or sit around. Take a peek at the job requirements for whatever job you want to have next – the one that pays you more or is more enjoyable or whatever – and start making sure you have those requirements in the bag. Build strong positive relationships with people who are on that career path.
Any time you spend just twiddling your thumbs at work just guarantees that you’ll be stuck at the same point in your career path for the rest of your life. If you want something more than an entry-level job that doesn’t pay very much, don’t just joke around at the water cooler or check Snapchat and play games on your phone, because someone else will take that promotion or that new job instead of you. Why? That someone else actually did something to get that better job.
If you don’t have a clear reason to go to college and you’re going to be taking out extensive student loans for it, go to trade school. So many people are encouraging you to go to college right now. If you don’t know why you’re going, don’t go. Seriously. Instead, go to a trade school to learn a trade so you can earn some money until you figure out why you would want to go to college.
The argument that you should go to college to “figure yourself out” made sense in an era where the cost of college wasn’t prohibitive and you weren’t completely buried by an avalanche of debt in doing so. If you can’t afford college without a ton of student loans, don’t go unless you have a very clear idea of why you’re going and what you want to do there.
Trade school is a far better alternative. You can go to school for a pretty short period of time and learn to become a plumber or an electrician or a carpenter, trades that will almost always have significant employment value. People will always need to build things, and if you have the skill to take on a specific challenging part of building something, you’ll get paid. It might not be your life’s ambition, but it’s an inexpensive and quick route to a job that pays well and you can use that pay to start off with a decent job and not a lot of debt. If you decide college is right for you later, you can use some of the money you’ve saved to finance it.
I’m not saying college is bad, not at all. I’m simply saying that the financial cost of college is so high that unless you’re walking in there with a clear purpose, you’re probably not getting enough value out of that investment.
If there’s a decent chance you will look back in five years on the thing you’re about to do and regret it, don’t do it. This is the one piece of “keep your nose clean” advice I’ll offer you. It is really, really tempting to do a lot of crazy stuff in your late teens and twenties. I’ll be the last person to tell you not to do any of it.
I will say this, though: if you’re about to do something that has obvious risk, stop for one second and ask yourself whether you might regret this in five years or ten years. If there’s even a little risk that you’re going to look back on this as a moment where you screwed everything up, it’s not worth it. Find something else to do. It’s not as if this world is lacking in interesting and fun things to do.
You have a great life ahead of you. Have fun with it, and good luck.
Related Articles:
- Nine Things I’d Do Differently for My Finances and Career If I Graduated Today
- 10 Smart Graduattion Gifts for College-Bound Seniors
- How to Get a Ton of Extra Value From Your College Degree
The post To My Nephew on His High School Graduation appeared first on The Simple Dollar.
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7 Ways to Use Your Personal Brand to Find More Clients
I’ve used a lot of different digital marketing tactics over the years.
SEO has been the main one.
Content marketing comes a close second.
But I’ve also used social media marketing, influencer marketing, video marketing, pay per click advertising, affiliate marketing, email marketing….
If it’s “digital” and “marketing,” I’ve probably done it.
But there’s one form of marketing that doesn’t fit neatly into the “digital” category.
It’s a mashup of personal, professional, digital, social, content, and whatever else.
It’s personal branding.
Personal branding is huge.
In fact, if you expect to succeed in any way in today’s socially-connected and digitally-driven world, you have to build your personal brand.
Personal branding isn’t just for celebrities.
It’s not just for big-shot entrepreneurs.
It’s not just for wantrepreneurs.
It’s not just for selfie-obsessed egotists.
It’s for everybody!
An article in Elite Daily puts it like this:
We often think about branding as something done only by large corporations, but everyone has a personal brand.
Everyone.
You may fill a back-office role in a massive agency, but you still need personal branding.
You may be an introvert who avoids other humans, but you still need personal branding.
If I were to pick one form of marketing that has been crucial to my personal development, professional success, and level of achievement, I’d have to say it’s personal branding.
In fact, I can point to a number of occasions when my personal brand has provided me with clients.
Over the years, I’ve learned several super helpful tips for cultivating my personal brand to build my client base.
My new audiences have not always grown quickly. It takes years to create credibility and grow your influence.
Personal branding is hard that way. You can’t simply pull out a few tactics, throw some money at it, and expect it to work.
Thankfully, however, there are some tried-and-true tactics that will give you a real edge. Some of them are really basic, e.g., being honest and authentic.
Others are creative, e.g., investing in strong visuals.
But all of them work. Give them a try. Take some time, and your personal brand can become a source of clients, just as it has with me.
The tips that follow are slanted towards content. Along with your personal brand building, you should also be using content marketing for your growth.
Tip #1: Show you’re an expert
The number one method for demonstrating your expertise is through rock-solid, long-form, super-helpful content.
Content wins the day. It’s just that simple.
You have to set yourself apart in an online space, where you are competing with other brands for the attention of your new customers.
To do this, show you are an expert in your field.
You can do this by establishing your credibility through talking about the clients you have worked with and the years you have been in the industry.
But you can also communicate this more creatively through tip sheets and Buzzfeed-like lists, which can give your audience information that matters in their lives.
Obviously, showing you’re an expert means two things:
- Choosing an area of expertise.
- Being an actual expert.
Don’t let number two trip you up.
Have you ever heard the phrase “fake it till you make it?”
There’s some truth to that. If you don’t feel like an expert, don’t sweat it. Just act like one.
Pretty soon, you’ll become one (even if you don’t feel it). Then, you can show you’re one.
Tip #2: Appeal to Millennials
You can’t leave Millennials out of the mix when you are building your personal brand to leverage a new audience.
Want to know why?
Millennials will be the number one demographic that sees and responds to your personal brand.
One of the most important changes you can make in your branding communication is the social platforms you use and the kinds of content you create.
Why? Because Millennials are the socially connected generation.
Use popular social networks such as Instagram and Snapchat to market your personal brand.
In addition, create content such as videos to grab the attention of your audience and market your expertise.
Tip #3: Be authentic and transparent
One of the most important things you can do as you market your personal brand is to remain authentic and transparent.
Case in point is entrepreneur and coach Leigh Louey-Gung, who created a strong business for himself through a process of radical honesty.
Leigh was passionate about helping other entrepreneurs and created Secure Thoughts to help educate them about maintaining privacy on the web.
We are marketers at the end of the day, and you are crafting a specific narrative about yourself.
Remember, you always have to come through on your promises and back up what you say to your audience.
If you don’t, they will have no problem walking away.
Many of the clients I serve today came to me because they were scammed by some other agency.
I was able to maintain my integrity, keep my promises, and give them results.
Tip #4: Invest in strong visuals
I hate to say it, but if someone sees low quality photos on your site, they will subconsciously perceive you as not trustworthy or as unprofessional.
Get ahead of the game by having professional photos of yourself taken for your website.
Your photos and website may be your new customer’s first impression of you!
When I’m looking for a new hire, I can’t help but base my impression of them on their LinkedIn photo.
I’m trying very hard not to be biased against a blurry or drunken party profile pic, but it’s hard!
One of the best ways to get clients through your personal branding is simply to look the part!
Tip #5: Incentivize your target audience
One of the fastest ways you can use your personal brand to build your target audience is by giving something away.
And I don’t mean just anything. If you can give away a great product related to your personal brand, you have a greater chance of attracting a new audience.
Entrepreneur Magazine, for example, highlights the case study of a women’s boutique that gave away a kimono in order to attract new customers.
This strategy works really well for building a personal brand.
Let’s say you’re building a personal brand as a copywriter.
Attract customers by asking them to enter a contest by submitting their email addresses. The prize could be free copywriting for a week or copywriting for a special project.
Simple? Sure. But effective? Absolutely.
Tip #6: Be known for something different
Have you noticed a lot of people’s Twitter bios sound the same?
Social marketing guru. Coffee aficionado. Cat lover.
If you’re not intentional, your effort at personal branding might not be making you known.
Sounds familiar, right?
There are ways to set yourself apart, but it might feel uncomfortable.
For example, I learned (by accident) that wearing sunglasses (even at night) allowed me to build my personal brand.
(You can read more about why I wear them here.)
The people who do really well at personal branding, always have one thing they’re well known for.
It might be weird. It might be uncomfortable. But it makes them memorable!
What about face-to-face networking and personal brand building?
You need to have a business card on hand that sets you apart. Think creatively, but make sure your card is simple and provides the information a new client needs.
Try a card, for example, that’s made of a smooth paper, has a non-standard shape, or is a die-cut. These cards are more interesting and can leave a bigger impression.
Tip #7: Form strong online relationships with influencers who can help
Even though we call it personal branding, it’s really not 100% personal.
Basically, you can’t do this on your own. And you shouldn’t even try.
Personal branding is all about connecting with others, serving others, helping others, getting to know others, learning from others, adding value to others.
If you view personal branding as a form of marketing (which it is), you have to remember what the heart of marketing is.
What’s the heart of marketing?
No, it’s not shouting your message to the masses.
It’s giving value to the right people!
Some of my best clients started out as friends of friends.
For example, early in my career, I met an individual at a conference. To be honest, his personal demeanor and \grooming left a lot to be desired.
Most people ignored the guy. I spent some time with him and helped him out, doing what I could.
Eventually, he introduced me to more clients!
I didn’t realize it when I helped him the first time, but this guy was connected! And through him, I earned many more clients.
Over time, your relationships will help boost your personal brand and lead to a growing audience.
You may not be able to become BFFs with Tim Ferriss in your first few days of personal branding. Over time, however, you’ll build the right connections with the right audience and get the right clients.
Conclusion
Experiment with these seven pro tips for leveraging your personal brand to find a larger, more committed target audience.
As marketers, we have to be willing to take a few risks and to be creative in our approach.
You can use these tips to cultivate and attract your audience, but you’ll need to deliver on your content promises.
Your customers won’t be pleased in the long run if you’re not giving them new valuable information applicable to their lives or products that can make a difference for them personally.
If you’re ready to start building your audience and to attract new customers, use the tips in this article—they’ve worked for me as I’ve built my personal brand.
You’ll be on your way to charting a new path for your company and creating energy around your products and services.
Are you ready for an overhaul of your personal brand?
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New energy supplier Engie bids to shake-up sector with tracker tariff
A new challenger has entered the UK energy market, promising more transparency for consumers over bills and pricing.
French utility firm Engie has this week launched into the UK consumer market for the first time, with a range of fixed and green tariffs.
It also plans to release a tariff which tracks the wholesale cost of energy, called the Engie Tracker, this summer.
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Financial Planning Week: Two in five Moneywise users wouldn’t pay for advice at retirement
Almost two in five (39%) Moneywise.co.uk users wouldn’t pay or haven’t paid for financial advice at retirement, according to the results of our recent poll.
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This Household Inventory System Will Save One Family $430 This Year
The way we shop for products and services continues to get faster and more convenient. Whether it’s calling an Uber or Lyft, using Instacart to get groceries delivered right to our doorsteps, or booking a restaurant reservation through OpenTable, nearly everything is now available instantaneously at the literal touch of a button.
This shift has dramatically changed the way I shop. As an avid Amazon customer, I ordered 162 items in 2016 — an average of more than three products a week.
My wife and I made the vast majority of our Amazon purchases from the mobile app as we noticed we were running out of items like shampoo and dish soap. In business terms, we were using a just-in-time inventory strategy for household items, where things arrived just as we needed them.
As working parents with two small children and a packed schedule, we loved Amazon as a quick and easy way to shop. But was this strategy cost-effective?
The Costs of Convenience
While Amazon certainly helped us save time, during my annual family budget review, I started wondering whether that came at a cost. To find out, I downloaded a spreadsheet of all the purchases we made last year from our Amazon account.
I quickly realized that in our quest for convenience, we had stopped paying attention to prices or comparison shopping and often put the first item in Amazon search results into our shopping cart. And because we usually waited until we had several items in our cart before placing orders, it was easy to overlook the price of individual items, which can fluctuate wildly day to day.
Most notably, I saw we sometimes overpaid by nearly 100% on common items. For example, on two occasions we paid $21 for a two-pack of mouthwash that costs $10.99 at Costco.
Because Amazon accounted for about two-thirds of the $1,200 we spent on household items in 2016, I figured I could cut these expenses.
To take control of our spending, I decided to start treating our household items like a business’s inventory. So over a long weekend, I created a new household inventory system that relies on planning instead of impulse buying. (Go to File and click Make a Copy to try it for yourself.)
While my inventory system is still a work in progress, here are the six steps I took to get it up and running.
1. Review All Annual Purchases
From my Amazon order history and my Mint account, which tracked credit card charges at places like Target and Walmart, I estimated we spent around $1,200 on household items in 2016. These goods fall into two broad categories: personal care items (toiletries, health and makeup) and supplies (kitchen, cleaning and miscellaneous).
Amazon accounted for more than $800 of those purchases, so my detailed online order history gave me a head start on creating an inventory spreadsheet with details of what we purchased, when we bought it and how much it cost.
I didn’t keep receipts from other stores, so some items were missing.
2. Audit Current Inventory
To ensure I accounted for those non-Amazon purchases in my master list of household items, I conducted an inventory audit of every cabinet in our kitchen, bathroom and laundry room. I added those items to the spreadsheet, along with my best guess at where we purchased them.
I also noted the size and quantity remaining for each item so I could plan what we needed to purchase in the first quarter.
3. Compare Prices and Quantities
Once I had our master inventory, I compared prices on each of the more than 60 items at Amazon, Target, Walmart, Aldi and Costco. I did this through a combination of web searches and in-store visits.
4. Estimate How Long Products Will Last
It was easy to accurately estimate how quickly we went through items we purchased multiple times on Amazon; I just had to look at the date when we ordered the next one.
Determining the inventory turnover for other items will take more tracking. But by the end of the year, I should have a ballpark estimate for how long each product lasts so I can better plan purchases in advance every quarter.
5. Plan Purchases Quarterly and Record Everything
Armed with quantity on hand and inventory-turnover estimates, I planned our purchases for the first quarter based on which items we were likely to need in the first three months of 2017. For each of those items, I did a quick price check at multiple retailer websites to see where I could get the best deal.
I entered each new item we bought into the spreadsheet with its purchase date, quantity, size, cost and store.
6. Revisit the Inventory Plan Every Quarter
We spent $236 in the first quarter. About 75% of that went toward bulk items at Costco, and we only spent $44 at Amazon. That put us $64 ahead of our budget compared to last year, and savings will likely accelerate each quarter.
I’m sure we’ll have a few unplanned purchases along the way, but we’ll use the inventory spreadsheet to plan most of our spending at the start of every quarter, filling in the details for future reference. Over time, we’ll perfect this household inventory system, eventually including almost every product we regularly use.
Based on my second-quarter inventory check, I estimate we will spend less than $150 between April and June. If the second half of the year mirrors the first, the total annual spend will be around $770, meaning my new system will save us about $430 in its first year.
Based on last year’s spending, I budgeted about $100 a month for household items this year, but I can already see we’re going to come in well under that number. Our pantry is now stocked, and we have more money in our pockets — and our Amazon shopping cart is empty.
Dave Parro is a writer and public relations executive who works with B2B technology clients that specialize in e-commerce, so he knows a lot how Amazon has changed consumer behavior. He’s on Twitter as @daveparro.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, one of the largest personal finance websites. We help millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. In 2016, Inc. 500 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the No. 1 fastest-growing private media company in the U.S.
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Three extends free mobile roaming to 60 countries worldwide
Three has added Brazil and Singapore to its ‘Feel at Home’ network, which means customers can now roam for free in 60 countries worldwide.
The provider says it’s made the move in response to “emerging and growing travel trends”.
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Deal of the week: get £1,000 cashback on Halifax mortgages
Halifax has launched a £1,000 cashback offer to those taking out a qualifying mortgage. Buying a home is an expensive business, so cashback deals can assist with the cost of moving.
What’s the deal exactly?
First-time buyers and home movers can earn £1,000 in cashback when buying a home using a qualifying Halifax mortgage.
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