Rob's Favorite Financial Things
We all have our favorite things in life, things that bring us joy, meaning and fulfillment. Sometimes it’s nice to make a list of our favorites. This helps us recognize and appreciate them even more. Rob West recently made a list of his favorite financial things and shares it with us today. 1. Where to keep your emergency fund. Higher yield savings rates are found in online banks, not the brick and mortar types, and within that category he has three favorites: Ally, Marcus and Capital One 360 and of course, all of these are FDIC insured and right now offer around .5% on savings. Of those, Marcus tops the list because of no fees or minimum deposits, linking to other banks for same day transfers, a US based contact center to answer your questions, and a great app. 2. Teen checking accounts. It's great to use them as a tool to teach your kids to manage their money wisely. Proverbs 22:6 says, "Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it." Rob recommends a Capital One teen checking account. It has no fees or minimum balance, it offers a debit card for teens with parental locking and unlocking, and a mobile app that allows you to easily transfer birthday and allowance money into the account. 3. Rob's favorite credit card is the Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature Card. (Warning: Rob always says to pay off the balance in full every month. Otherwise, the interest you pay will easily wipe out any rewards you receive.) The Fidelity Rewards Visa Signature Card has no annual fee and it gives you 2% on every purchase. One catch -- you have to sign up to automatically deposit your cash back into one or more Fidelity accounts (such as a Fidelity 529 plan to save for college) a Roth or traditional IRA or an HSA. So you don’t get to spend the 2% cash you get back; it has to go into savings and that’s a pretty smart idea. 3. Digital Envelope Budgeting Systems. Rob's favorite, of course, is the MoneyWise app. It’s based on the old school, tried-and-true, paper envelope system (only it’s digital). Your envelope balances carry over month to month and you can only use the money in your accounts to fund those envelopes so that you stay on budget! The MoneyWise app easily keeps your transactions organized. You can split transactions between envelopes and can record memos to help you remember what you purchased. You can even run custom reports to see where you're spending the most money. Also, you can manage all of your accounts in one place and connect to over 11,000 institutions. That way, you can easily see all your accounts and have balances and transactions automatically imported. Plus, you get great financial content from a biblical perspective from contributors such as Randy Alcorn, Shaunti Feldhahn, and many more. Best of all, the MoneyWise app is free! You can download it wherever you get your apps. On today’s program we also answer the following listener questions: --I’m newly married and want to start our financial future well. How much should we save after bills and everything else? --We’re considering doing an addition to our paid-for home and are waiting six months to a year to see if construction costs will go down. What should we do? --I’m trying to figure out my finances after being married for 27 years. I’m soon to be divorced. Just trying to stay in my home. What advice can you give? Remember, you can call in to ask your questions 24/7 at (800) 525-7000 or email them to [email protected]. Also, visit our website at MoneyWise.org where you can hear past programs, connect with a MoneyWise Coach, and even download free, helpful resources like the free MoneyWise app. Like and Follow us on Facebook at MoneyWise Media for the latest discussion! And remember that it’s your prayerful and financial support that keeps MoneyWise on the air. Help us continue this outreach by clicking the Donate tab on our website or in our app.