My Money Blog has partnered with CardRatings and may receive a commission from card issuers. Some or all of the card offers that appear on this site are from advertisers and may impact how and where card products appear on the site. MyMoneyBlog.com does not include all card companies or all available card offers. All opinions expressed are the author’s alone.

Safe Deposit Boxes: A Perfect Place to Store Copies Of Important Documents

The NY Times recently published an article stating Safe Deposit Boxes Aren’t Safe. I was a little disappointed in the article because it was a bit sensational, but I suppose the takeaway is important for folks that made other assumptions. A more … [Read the rest]

Refinance Watch: Mortgage Rates May Drop Even Further

If you have a mortgage rate above 4%, you should keep an eye on mortgage rates during August to see if there is an opportunity to refinance and save money. (Potential buyers should obviously also take notice, but they were probably paying attention … [Read the rest]

Best Interest Rates on Cash – August 2019

Here's my monthly roundup of the best interest rates on cash for August 2019, roughly sorted from shortest to longest maturities. The target for the Fed Funds Rate was just cut by 0.25% as of 8/1/19, so look out for small rate drops this month … [Read the rest]

Betterment Everyday Cash Reserve Review: 0.40% APY (Tied to Fed Funds Rate)

Betterment, best known for their automated portfolio management software, has added a high-yield savings product called Betterment Everyday Cash Reserve. An additional checking product is "coming soon". This product has several unique features that … [Read the rest]

Equifax Data Breach Settlement: Free Credit Monitoring vs. Reduced Claim

Update. As many of you correctly pointed out, only $31 million was allotted to the $125 alternative payment if you opted out of the free credit monitoring. The FTC has provided an update encouraging people to pick the free monitoring: I thought I … [Read the rest]

The Status Spending Test: Two Simple Questions About Your Car and Home

I feel like I've been reading a lot of backlash against the "latte factor". I agree buying a Starbucks latte every day will not directly lead to poverty, and forgoing it will not make you independently wealthy. However, sometimes a concrete example … [Read the rest]

Vanguard Personal Advisor Services Portfolio Rebalancing Rules

If you read about investing in stocks and bonds, there is a lot of discussion about rebalancing your portfolio. Should you rebalance? When? How often? How much? Carl Ozeck contributes his thoughts on the Vanguard Blog article Capital gains are … [Read the rest]

Which Households Spend More, Less, or Exactly What They Earn? Breakdown by Income Level

In the post How Well Do Americans Balance Income and Spending? by the St. Louis Fed, they examine the breakdown of household spending as compared to income. In terms of the big picture, 55% of US households were net savers (earned more than they … [Read the rest]

Worthy Bonds Review: 5% Interest, Backed By Small Business Inventory Loans

Worthy Bonds are a fintech startup that offers you 5% interest by "supporting your fellow humans". You can invest a little bit at a time, even doing "round-ups" of your purchases. However, whenever you see an interest rate well above FDIC-insured … [Read the rest]

Peerstreet Case Study #1: 90-Day Late Condo Near-Foreclosure Recovery

I've invested over $50,000 of my "alternative" money into PeerStreet real estate notes because of the ability to diversify into 50+ different high-interest loans backed by physical real estate. Here is a case study from one of my first loans where I … [Read the rest]

Marcus Bank Promotion: 1% Additional Cash Bonus up to $500 (~6% APY 3-month CD)

Online bank Marcus (formerly Goldman Sachs Bank) has a new Cash Bonus Offer which includes 1% cash bonus (up to $500) on new deposits on top of their existing interest rate (currently 2.15% APY). Valid for both new and existing customers. Given … [Read the rest]

Amazon Prime Day 2019: Big List of Deals and Discounts (Updated)

Last call for deals + good stacking offer: Up to $60 Amazon credit for buying through the app. Amazon Prime Day 2019 is July 15th and 16th. I'll try to keep this post updated with the most recent offers (and remove the expired ones). There are … [Read the rest]