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Getting a Raise? Here’s How to Manage Your Finances

Written by adminSeptember 12, 2019

Your boss calls you into the office and says he likes what you’re doing and you’re a valuable asset to the team. He tells you that things are so good that he’s offering you a raise. It’s definitely an exciting time! You’ve worked really hard to get to this point and should be proud of yourself!

Now, the big question is, what should you do with that extra money? Let’s take a look at five ways to manage your finances after getting a raise.

1) Figure Out Exactly How Much You’re Getting

Not to dampen your excitement, but a big raise might not equate in as big of a boon as you were expecting. Depending on the size of the raise, it can push you into another tax bracket. Then, Uncle Sam will want a bit more of your money, leaving you in not in a much better spot. This is the first thing you should find out.

Do a bit of research, add up the numbers, and calculate how much more you’ll be paying in taxes. Do this before deciding it’s time to upgrade the car or whatever project you needed to get done around the house. It will give you a realistic picture of what you can expect to be making and how much more you’ll be paying in taxes.

2) Don’t Look to Increase Your Spending

You may be really excited to make some extra money. But the worst thing you can do is use it as an excuse to increase your spending. In reality, most people need to not spend as much money as they do. They think it’s fine to take on more debt and add to their expenses. You’re setting yourself up for failure in the long term.

The best thing you can do is find ways to save money. Put it into a rainy-day fund until you have at least 6 months’ worth of salary saved up. Put it into retirement or your kid’s college fund. If an economic downturn happens and you lose your job, you’ll be prepared and can continue to afford living at your means for a time.

3) Donate the Money

You might be thinking the last thing you want to do when getting a raise is to send it back out and give to someone else. The thing is, charitable giving has plenty of economic and financial benefits. Not only are you helping a great cause, you’re also getting a nice tax break. You can write that money off your taxes and the recent tax cuts signed by President Trump actually doubles the standard deduction.

4) Pay Off Your Debts

Yes, paying off your debts is the best way to get to true financial freedom. If you want excellent financial health, you should have no debts whatsoever. Life is much easier when you fully own the things you’ve been paying off. Then you have hundreds, even thousands, of extra dollars in your pockets. Pay off those debts!

5) Invest

The thing that separates the rich from the poor is their ability to make wise investments with their money. You should do the same! Then, when bad times happen, you still have an investment you can lean on. It will make your future brighter as well.

Written by adminSeptember 12, 2019

Politics

Today’s debate day for many Democratic candidates running for president in the 2020 election. Tonight, we were hear all sorts of different ideas and proposals. Just before the debate is scheduled to take place, Senator Elizabeth Warren decided to unveil her new plan to help Americans save money for retirement and social security.

In her own words: “it’s getting harder to save enough for a decent retirement.” She wants to do something about that by allowing a $200 per month increase for every single person either currently receiving Social Security or for future beneficiaries saving for retirement. According to the Massachusetts Democrat, this is the largest and most progressive increase in the program and almost 50 years. She says it’s about time the government gets serious about the depleting program.

She says that the average payment a person receives on Social Security, about $1,354 per month, is small and nowhere near enough. There are currently 64 million people who receive these benefits and many need these payments to survive. By giving a $200 per month bump, you allow them to live a bit more comfortably.

“And here’s the even scarier part: unless we act now, future retirees are going to be in even worse shape than the current ones,” she stressed. This is due to the fact that Social Security is running out of money. People are paying into it for their retirement, but the government uses what workers are currently paying into to subsidize current retirees.

Paying Back Social Security

Sen. Warren says that if she becomes president, shall expand the solvency of Social Security by 20 years and, of course, shall do that by increasing taxes on the wealthiest Americans. According to Mark Zandi, a chief economist with Moody’s Analytics, Warren’s plan would “immediately lift an estimated 4.9 million seniors out of poverty, cutting the senior poverty rate by 68 percent.”

What also wants employers who are already contributing towards their workers Social Security benefits to contribute even more. She wants to bust his number up by nearly 25%. She believes that the top earners can easily afford to boost contributions to workers by this much. Warns goal is to create a much stronger progressive Social Security system that works for the lower-and-middle class retirees.

Something definitely needs to be done as the average lifespan of Americans continues to expand. Nearly 80 million people are estimated to be drawing on Social Security as we continue to live longer. Social Security was implemented when the lifespan was shorter. Now that were living longer, more money is being drawn from the system and is quickly running out of money. It’s unknown of Warren’s plan will ever be voted into law, but either way, someone needs to help fix the problem before it’s too late.

Written by adminSeptember 11, 2019

Credit & Debt

A new survey conducted by Bankrate.com has revealed that as many as 58% of all millennials who have applied for a credit card has been denied. Credit cards can be an important tool if used correctly to help build credit. The problem is, you can’t get one if you don’t at least pass a basic minimum credit score, which is exactly the problem millennials are facing.

These numbers are compared to 53% of Generation X and 27% of all baby boomers that have also been denied. It’s astonishing to see that more millennials are being denied than Gen-Xers, but that discrepancy mostly has to do with very few of that generation out in the working market and applying for credit cards. The number might increase over the next few years.

“An unintended consequence of the CARD Act, which went into effect in 2010, is that it has become much harder for people in their early and mid-twenties to obtain credit,” Bankrate credit card industry analyst Ted Rossman said in the report. “Establishing credit is a lot like getting started in your career. Everyone wants you to have experience, but it’s hard to get that first experience,” Rossman added.

Most Credit Card Rejections

Most people with bad credit are often denied car loans and credit cards. Without a clear history of on-time payments and proper history using credit, no one will trust you. It can take several years to build up your credit to the appropriate levels needed, but if you have lots of debt, that can complicate matters. Then you’re running around trying to make a lot of payments to keep your head above water.

Any small mistakes can really hurt your credit score. This is why knowing the basics behind credit will help prevent you from making those mistakes. The best advice is to get a credit card for beginners. You might have to pre-pay to use it, and the interest rates won’t be that good, but it’s a good way to get started.

One you develop a good history, your credit score will start to rise. Then you will be able to take on other credit cards to continue the process. Having a few credit cards and only using a little bit of them each month so you can pay them off completely is the smart way to do it. Whatever you do, refrain from maxing out your cards to prevent yourself from being able to pay the back reliably each month.

Written by adminSeptember 11, 2019

Politics

Senator Cory Booker is the latest Democrat to jump onto the climate change bandwagon and offer up a plan of his own. We he called the “Environmental Justice Fund,” Booker hopes to pass a $3 trillion plan that he hopes will combat climate change and slow down the earth’s warming.

There are already plenty of critics of this deal. Creating a $3 trillion program when the country is already trillions in debt and there are more pressing spending needs, like trillions needed to upgrade our country’s infrastructure, many opponents feel now is not the time to keep upping the spending. But Booker feels that climate change is our country’s biggest threat and it must be addressed sooner rather than later.

“To end the real and growing threat of climate change and to create a more just country for everyone, we must heal these past mistakes and act boldly to create a green and equitable future. That’s exactly what I’ll do as president,” Booker said in a statement.

Booker also tweeted: “We’re facing a dual crisis of climate change and economic inequality—and without immediate action, the toll is unimaginable. But this is a fight I know we can win.”

The Time is Now

Many on the Democratic side feel there is no time left to combat the problem. Where the Green New Deal was too bold and mostly laughed off, even by Democrats, they still believe the threat is immediate and the cost is too high if we don’t start making changes immediately. Many are even saying we have 12 years to face the problem or we’re doomed.

“The reality is that we can’t afford not to act. We spend more than $100 billion each year solely on the health impacts of burning fossil fuels, and have spent $450 billion on climate-related disasters in the last three years alone. A recent paper in the National Bureau of Economic Research found that the U.S. economy could shrink by more than 10 percent by 2100 if we don’t act decisively on climate change,” writes Booker.

“As we set out to tackle the existential challenge of climate change, we must ensure that all people and all communities, especially the ones that have been traditionally left behind — urban and rural, communities of color, low-income, and indigenous — share in our progress. Acting together, we can and must find our common purpose, and build a sustainable and equitable future for all,” adds the statement.

More details about the plan are set to be released in the coming days, but we should expect more plans like this from the Democrats as they continue to ramp up their 2020 campaigns. Senator Booker is one top Democrats running for president.

Written by adminSeptember 11, 2019

Saving

A new survey from MagnifyMoney has found that plenty of Americans are making a lot of mistakes with their retirement savings. Nearly 50% of all the people they talked to said at one time or another, they pulled money from the employer retirement funds. Nearly a fifth of them aren’t adding nearly enough towards their retirement to maximize what their employer can put in. These are mistakes that will cost them in the end.

“The most damning finding of all is that 27% of those surveyed have never thought about how much they’ll need in retirement,” the survey report states. “And while ‘ignorance is bliss’ may hold true when it comes to some things in life, this expression should not apply to your retirement plans.”

A big retirement mistake is taking money out when in a crunch. Often times, this money isn’t replenished. When you save money for retirement, it shouldn’t be like a regular savings account where you can pull out cash anytime you want. It’s going to force you to work that much harder and longer well past the retirement age.

Why People Are Pulling Money from Retirement Savings

The main reason why someone pulls their retirement savings isn’t for the reasons you would think. They do it to buy a home due to the large down payment that’s often required. Many economic experts still recommend putting up at least 20% of the cost of the home up front. This is during a time when a lot of young adults are starting families and at the same time has a lot of student debt still to pay off.

36% of millennials said there was no issues with taking from their retirement fund to help pay for a house. In contrast, only 17% of baby boomers felt the same. Of course, they are near or in retirement already and understand the stakes of pulling money too soon. The other problem with sapping your retirement is the financial cost of doing so. It often requires other taxes and fees, hurting them even further.

By not maximizing the retirement saving options provided by their employer, they’re losing out on a lot of free money. Let’s say you put in $300 of your own money with each paycheck. Your boss would contribute an additional $120. But that’s only if you put in the necessary 10%. The less you put in, the less your employer will contribute.

The best advice here is to consider your retirement savings untouchable. If you want to buy a house, find other ways to save money for the down payment. You may not understand this now, but many people get to retirement and realize they didn’t save enough. They rely on government programs that are quickly running out of money.

Written by adminSeptember 11, 2019

Politics

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the outspoken congresswoman from New York, says she made a student loan debt payment while sitting in her chair preparing to make a statement on the subject of student loan forgiveness. She claims she now owes $19,000, using the moment to attack Republicans, as if they are responsible for her owing the debt.

Despite a major jump in her pay from a bartender to making $174,000 per year as a member of Congress, AOC lamented her $19,000 and says she feels accomplished bringing down her balance, but the country needs to reset and offer full student loan forgiveness. Even the fairly wealthy apparently want the government to pay their debt for them.

“I literally made a student loan payment while I was sitting here at this chair, and I looked at my balance, and it was $20,237.16,” she said. “I just made a payment that took me down to $19,000 so I feel really accomplished right now.”

Will Student Loan Debt Forgiveness Ever Happen?

It’s understandable that many people want student loan forgiveness. Even AOC is calling for it despite her high salary. Nearly every single Democratic candidate on the 2020 campaign trail has a plan to offer both student loan forgiveness and to make college free moving forward. Whether it will actually happen is another story.

President Trump hasn’t offered too many solutions to the problem. He feels if a person takes out a debt, they should be responsible for paying it back. He doesn’t think it’s fair to put that $1.53 trillion burden on the backs of taxpayers. Yet, the president did step in to help those who truly need it the most: disabled veterans.

It wasn’t too long ago when Trump signed into law a new executive order completely wiping the slate clean for veterans who were classified as 100% disabled. It also means they were free and clear of the tax burden that comes with student loan forgiveness.

“The debt of these disabled veterans will be completely erased,” Trump said. “That’s hundreds of millions of dollars of student loans debt for our disabled veterans that will be completely erased,” he said. “It was my honor to sign a Presidential Memorandum facilitating the cancellation of student loan debt for 25K of our most severely disabled Veterans. With today’s order, we express the everlasting love & loyalty of a truly grateful Nation. God bless our Vets, & God Bless America!” Trump tweeted.

Written by adminSeptember 11, 2019

Business

When it comes to buying and selling video games, really only one business comes to mind. Many gamers have fond memories of standing in line waiting for the latest releases, or taking old games back to get a few dollars in credit toward their next purchase. Okay, maybe these aren’t really fond memories, but it appears as if the digital age is about to claim another victim.

GameStop has announced that they are set to close another 200 underperforming stores by the start of the year. Of course, they don’t want to bypass the busy holiday season, so expect for them to wait until early 2020 before closing down shop. Jim Bell, CFO of GameStop, told this news to investors during an earnings call earlier today.

We’re “on track to close between 180 and 200 underperforming stores globally by the end of this fiscal year,” he said during that call. It would appear as if physical game copies are becoming a thing of the past. More gamers are digitally downloading games directly to their computer or game system.

This news comes after the company has already closed 195 stores globally after slumping sales hit their bottom line. These additional 200 stores really show the shape the company as a whole. There’s absolutely no way for them to compete and they’re going out the same way Blockbuster did. Soon, there will barely be a few GameStop in a few select locations.

Slumping Sales

Sales for GameStop have already slid down 13.3% in the first quarter alone. They’ve also laid off hundreds of workers throughout the organization. They’ve even let go nearly 14% of all their corporate sales associates at their headquarters in Texas. And if you like their magazine Game Informer, then that is probably next in line to get axed. They’ve let go nearly half of the people they had working to publish that magazine.

All of these moves lay out the obvious for GameStop. They can’t keep up with digital downloads and can offer nothing to get their share of the market back. It won’t be too much longer before GameStop is yet another relic of a previous time when games were at their peak. But we may be wrong here. The gaming companies like Sony and Microsoft are expected to release their next-gen consoles in the next few years. Could the PS5 and latest XBox save GameStop?

Maybe for a time, but these consoles can be purchased online via Amazon and other department stores like Walmart. Without the regular game sales to go with the consoles, they will have no other way to make money.

Written by adminSeptember 11, 2019

Technology

If you look at all of human history, the rise of computing technology is only a modern concept. Governments have used it for longer, but the birth of the personal computer happened only about 30 years ago. Even then, it didn’t really rise to quite the same popularity until the late 90s.

As we cruised through the 2000’s in 2010’s, we see technology taking on the even larger prominent role in our everyday life. Nearly everything we do today revolves around a computer.

Whether were at school, at work, at home, or even the way we shop, research, eat, entertain ourselves, pay our bills, find love, buy groceries, and so much more, our modern technological advances have impacted our lives unlike anything else in history.

While we consider this a good thing and realize the full potential of where our technology is taking us, a perfect digital storm is brewing.

As these new devices, browsers, brands, and operating systems hit the market, along with all the software needed to run the devices, and the coding that goes into building the over 1 billion websites in existence today, there might be some trouble ahead for the tech industry.

Keeping Up with will Demand

As the tech industry continues to grow at a rapid pace, it’s creating a void amongst firms being able to fill the demand. When you add that to the shortage of software developers and testers, there’s a lot of tech that’s being pushed into the market that hasn’t been adequately tested yet.

When you have a business or an industry that experiences extreme growth in a new age of development, it often breeds uncertainty. New challenges are created instantaneously.

For example, if you’re a gamer, the common advice is to not buy a game at release. They’re eager to get the game out into the hands of public and bring in the cash flow. Because of that, the game requires multiple patches and fixes throughout the first days or even months after its release.

You’d think that the developer would do a better job of testing before releasing a game and causing frustration to their core fans. When you charge customers $60 for a game that doesn’t work very well and has many bugs, you’ll probably get a lot of bad reviews and lose a lot of trust in the market.

Dangerous Implications

The implications of rushing software and all other forms of tech for the sake of getting ahead can spell disaster, not just for the company who makes the tech, but for the people whose lives very well may rely on it.

We’re not just talking about your computer’s operating system, but all the new gadgets that will take up an even bigger role in our lives. What if bugs and malfunctions actually put your safety, your financial status, your job, or even your life at risk?

Recently there was a virus outbreak called Wannacry, which was the largest cyber-attack in history, infecting over 230,000 computers in over 150 countries. Computers at hospitals, schools, and banks were compromised, as well as personal computers.

This ransomware attack, which only happened on Windows computers, was successful because of a vulnerability found in the SMB protocol. There’s no doubt that this sort of attack will happen again, as they are becoming more frequent.

When there is a risk of an attack or just faulty tech that hasn’t been properly tested for release, it can be quite worrisome for the advancement of technology in our lives. If you bought a self-driving car, are you safe knowing there was adequate testing done in the coding and programming?

In most cases, the answer is no. When you buy a product, you expect the details to be worked out already. But, more times than not, they aren’t. We’ve already seen what happens when a company like General Motors knows about a problem, but pushes their unsafe vehicles out anyway.

This is where technology meets greed and demand.

Written by adminSeptember 11, 2019

Credit & Debt

As you may know, debt can take on more than one form. You have to deal with current debts you’re paying off and sometimes, that debt can be considered expired. Yes, even debt comes with a statute of limitations. A debtor may not be able to sue you or take any action against you for the debt, but that doesn’t mean they won’t try.

Expired debt can remain on your credit report long after it has expired and since debt collectors can still come after you and make attempts to collect it, there are several options you have in dealing with it. Let’s talk about expired debt and how to handle it.

1) Just Ignore the Debt

If the debt remains on your credit report, that can hurt you in the long run. But if you no longer have a concern that requires credit, then you can just ignore it. Decide you won’t need to borrow money in the future and everything will be great. The debt has expired, so you no longer have any legal requirement to pay it off. There’s nothing they can do legally to come at you to collect on it, so you’re in the clear that way. Just throw up your hands and walk away!

2) Just Get Rid of It

On the flip side of point number one, even though it’s expired, you might want to get that debt off your credit report. It will still haunt you later on if you need a loan. You may no longer be required to pay it back and you might be tempted to shrug your shoulders and walk away from it, but the only real way to be absolutely done and to get the debt collectors off your back is to pay it off.

3) Take Other Actions to Counter It

An old, lingering debt will remain on your credit report, sure, but you can take other actions to improve your credit score. If you still have other loans and credit cards, make regular, on-time payments. Show that you’ve learned from your earlier mistakes and improve your on-time payment record. This is really the best way to get through the situation if you’re ready to walk away from the previous debt. You can still improve your credit score in other ways.

4) File for Bankruptcy

This is not a decision you should take lightly. It’s really the nuclear option when you have no other choice but to wipe the slate clean and start over. You won’t be able to get any more credit for seven years and most likely no one will touch you with a ten-foot pole. Understand the consequences before declaring bankruptcy, but if the debt is just way too much to handle, it might be your only chance to deal with it once and for all. And once you’ve declared bankruptcy and the slate is wiped clean, the debt collectors can no longer come after you legally.

Written by adminSeptember 11, 2019

Business

Wendy’s doesn’t think that the breakfast wars should be between McDonald’s and Burger King alone. They no longer want to sit on the side and let these other companies rake in extra profits. Instead, they’ve decided that they would like a piece of the pie and are now putting out a few breakfast items in a few stores to see exactly the kind of demand they would have.

It’s been 33 years since Wendy’s last sold breakfast. Only recently have they released their new menu to about 300 restaurants, but now they expect to be expanding it to all of their 5,810 establishments all over the country. Some of the items include the Breakfast Baconator, Honey Butter Chicken Biscuit, and even the Frosty-ccino, as well as the main breakfast staples of coffee.

In order to roll out the new breakfast menu, Wendy’s has to hire an additional 20,000 employees over the next few months to help work the breakfast shift. This breakfast expansion is set to take place in 2020. The last time they made this move was in 1985. There breakfast menu only lasted nine months before the company decided to pull it as McDonald’s took over the scene. The company says this time will be completely different.

“Launching breakfast into our U.S. restaurants nationwide provides incredible growth opportunities,” Wendy’s President and Chief Executive Officer Todd Penegor said in a statement. He added: “We are well-positioned to pursue it. We believe we have the right team and structure in place, and we put Wendy’s fan favorites on our breakfast menu to set us apart from the competition.”

Breakfast Competition is Heating Up

As more Americans are eating breakfast at a fast food place than ever, many of these fast food companies are looking to make a dent by offering options to meet the demand. Burger King and White Castle have up their breakfast game in recent years. Taco Bell has even jumped into the mix by offering a breakfast CrunchWrap and other breakfast taco/burrito items.

Breakfast was so popular that McDonald started offering an all-day breakfast menu, but has recently decided to start scaling it back. Offering an all-day breakfast menu is difficult on the workers and not too many people want breakfast items in the middle of the day. Still, NPD Group, a market research team, has staid that morning breakfast traffic across the country is growing.

More Americans are looking for cheap and quick meal on their way to work. They released the data that shows less people are eating breakfast at home. “In-home breakfast declined eight meals per capita between 2015 and 2018 and foodservice gained two breakfast meals per capita during the period,” the report noted.

When these plans to release more information about their updated breakfast menu on October 11 during a board meeting with investors. Here’s to hoping that their breakfast expansion last longer than nine months, especially considering that more people are looking for fast food breakfast options than ever before.

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