Money Management

Top 10 Personal Finance Articles of the Month — April 2017

It’s time again for one of my favorite features here on Dyer News: a look at my top 10 personal finance articles of the month. With tax season out of the way, April brought a fresh batch of posts offering insight into some the basics of personal finance (budgeting, saving, etc.) as well as a few helpful tips for saving money in specific areas. Additionally, as always, this month’s list includes some Dyer News Top 10 alums as well as a few newbies.

Without further ado, below is my list of the top 10 personal finance articles published in April of 2017, along with their title, author, and the site they originally appeared on.

Thrifty Tips

The Frugal Foreign Traveler’s Survival Guide — Kyle Burbank, Money@30

Depending on your plans, traveling abroad can be exciting, educational, inspiring, or just relaxing. Of course it can also get quite expensive. In his guide based on his own travel adventures, Kyle offers a few tips for not only saving money overseas but also staying safe and enjoying your journey.

How to Avoid Getting Ripped Off at the Rental Car Counter — Tim Ebner, Thrillist

With the summer vacation season now in sight, millions of Americans will soon be in the market for a rental car. Whether you plan to just taking your rental around town or you’re eyeing a road trip, there are different fees and policies you’ll want to watch out for. Luckily Tim is here to help as he shares a few pieces of advice for getting the best deal on your rental vehicle.

10 Things I Refuse to Do to Save Money — Holly Johnson, The Simple Dollar

In most areas of life being thrifty is a great trait that will help you make smart financial decisions. However is it possible to take your money-saving ways too far? As Holly highlights, there are several activities and measures that might not really be worth the savings they offer.

Advice on Building Savings

How to Trick People into Saving Money — Rob Walker, The Atlantic

This article about Walmart’s recent efforts to get their customers to stash away cash for themselves may not be the typical personal finance article I include in my round-ups, but it’s far too interesting not to share. Basically the retail giant found a way to incentivize their MoneyCard users to start saving by tying the activity in with a sweepstakes element. As Rob writes, the results of this pilot test have been very positive and help give us a glimpse into the financial lives of unbanked and underbanked Americans.

5 Retirement Accounts You Don’t Need a Ton of Money to Open — Kat Tretina, Wisebread

By now you probably know the importance of saving for retirement. Unfortunately, in order to get started, you often need to have a pretty sizeable chunk of savings — over $1,000 or more. But, as Kat reports, there are a few Roth IRAs available with low or even no minimum deposit so you can get started saving (and investing) right away.

How Much Money Do You Need to Make to Start Saving? — Miriam Caldwell, The Balance

Similar to the situation mentioned above, it can be difficult for low-income earners to start setting aside savings even though they know they should. Additionally there may be other factors such as cost of living and debt load that may dictate whether or not building savings is actually doable. With that in mind Miriam takes a look at how much income it takes before you can start saving and offers some tips for finding spare cash in your budget.

The Risky Money Step Millennial Parents are Taking — Rebecca Lake, Investopedia

As those of the Millennial generation (and their children) get older a trend seems to be emerging in what their savings priorities are as parents. Presumably in an effort to prevent burdening their kids with the student debt they endured, many young parents are socking away college savings for their offspring now. While that might sound like a good thing, the problem Rebecca details in her article is that these scholarly savings are often coming at the expense of their own retirement funds.

Personal Finance Tips

3 Ways You Can Ask Your Credit Card for Help — Edwin C, Cash the Checks

Like airlines and cable providers, credit card companies are typically not held in very high regard by their customers. In fact, many see them as a foe that’s always trying to get one over on them and cost them money. However, as Edwin notes, there are times when credit card companies can actually be helpful and may even cut you a break when you need it most.

9 Personal Finance Organizational Tips You Need to Learn Now — The Savvy Couple, The Savvy Couple

To many, personal finance really just means cutting back on your spending and trying to save more. While that’s part of it, there’s truly a lot more to it than those basic tenets. Furthermore taking a deeper dive into your finances also means getting organized, as this piece makes a case for.

5 Personal Money Numbers Everyone Should Know to Check Their Financial Health — Christy Rakoczy, Mic

Speaking of being organized, another major part of being well-versed in personal finances is knowing your numbers. From the basics such as your credit score to slightly more advanced concepts like calculating your net worth, there are a few figures that paint an overall picture of your finances. In her article, Christy points out a few of these important numbers and why they matter to your financial health.

Thanks for checking out my top 10 personal finance articles published last month and congratulations to all of the bloggers who made the list. To find more of these great articles on a daily basis, be sure to follow me on Twitter @jondyer9 and of course visit DyerNews.com.

Other Articles by Jonathan Dyer