Money Management

Costco’s digital experience lacks a lot of functionality. Discover a trick that lets you estimate in-store inventory and prices. 

If you talked to 100 Costco super fans, I think 99 of them would likely agree that as awesome as Costco may be, it does have some flaws. For one thing, the credit card restrictions (Costco only accepts Visa) are annoying. But this isn’t half as annoying as the Costco digital experience.

What do we mean? Costco.com is basically useless for many shoppers. Very little of the warehouse club’s inventory is actually displayed online. This means you can’t see in-store inventory or store prices online or in the mobile app.

While diehard Costco fans are happy to spend their free time in the stores, inventory be darned, us regular folks prefer to know that Costco will have what we’re after before we make the trip. We’d also like some idea of the prices we’re going to pay when we get there.

Well, savvy Costco shoppers have figured out a (moderately successful) workaround for at least part of the problem. All you need is a free Instacart account.

Using Instacart to estimate Costco’s inventory

For those who are unfamiliar, Instacart is a grocery delivery service. You use the app (or website) to digitally shop local stores, then an Instacart shopper will personally shop for and deliver your items.

In addition to a variety of grocery stores and drugstores, Instacart will also let you shop Costco. To do this, Instacart has to provide an inventory of Costco items from the store. This includes the huge range of grocery and frozen items you can’t see on Costco.com.

You don’t need to pay for Instacart to browse items, though you do need to create an Instacart account. On the plus side, that’s free.

So, what’s the catch? According to shoppers, the inventory isn’t 100% accurate. It seems to update about once a day, so you could still wind up seeing something on Instacart that isn’t actually still on the shelf at your local Costco warehouse. Seeing as how Costco.com has zero in-store inventory updating, however, what’s a bit of lag between friends?

Prices vary by an average of around 15%

While Instacart is mostly functional for estimating stock, those who are personal finance-inclined may find it to be less helpful for gauging prices. The price you see on Instacart will rarely be the same as the in-store price — but the difference isn’t consistent.

For one thing, the price you get on Instacart will vary based on whether you’ve given Instacart your Costco membership number or not. If you haven’t, then be prepared to see the typical outrageous Instacart prices with markups averaging around 15% (and peaking around 20%):

If you do provide Instacart with your Costco membership number, you could see prices that are much closer to the in-store price (though you may need to add an item to your cart to see the lower price). In fact, the average markup drops to just 3%, though you could still see hikes approaching 10%:

As you can see, a couple items are actually cheaper on Instacart than at Costco. This will likely vary a lot based on your specific location and the current Instacart sales.

If you see good deals and/or are already an Instacart member, it could be beneficial to place the occasional order. Instacart orders typically code as a grocery store for rewards cards, which could help you earn better rewards than if you shopped directly at Costco.

If all else fails, call your Costco store

We live in a digital world, so many of us default to looking for digital solutions. But, as the Instacart workaround shows, sometimes there simply aren’t high-quality digital solutions to our problems.

That’s when you need to go old school. Yep, I’m talking about the telephone. You see, your smartphone isn’t just for apps — it also makes phone calls!

If you really need to know about the in-stock status or price of a given item, you can always call your local warehouse to ask. In most cases, the folks answering the phone are more than happy to check on an item or price, especially if you’re polite and friendly.

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We’re firm believers in the Golden Rule, which is why editorial opinions are ours alone and have not been previously reviewed, approved, or endorsed by included advertisers.
The Ascent does not cover all offers on the market. Editorial content from The Ascent is separate from The Motley Fool editorial content and is created by a different analyst team.Discover Financial Services is an advertising partner of The Ascent, a Motley Fool company. Brittney Myers has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Costco Wholesale and Visa. The Motley Fool recommends Discover Financial Services. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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You may end up trying to buy a home before yours has sold. Read on to see how to navigate that situation. 

There may come a point when you decide you’re ready to buy a new home. Maybe you purchased a starter home initially and are now looking to upsize. Or maybe you want to move to a different neighborhood now that your kids are old enough to attend public school.

If you have equity in your current home, you may be relying on it to come up with a down payment on a new home. For example, let’s say the market value of your home is $300,000 and you only owe $150,000 on your mortgage. That means you have $150,000 in equity.

If you’re trying to upgrade to a $750,000 home, you might want to put down $150,000, or 20%, to avoid private mortgage insurance, a costly premium designed to protect mortgage lenders. So if you buy a home before your home sells, you may not have the down payment you need on hand. Also, at that point you’ll have two monthly mortgage payments to cover, which could be a scary thing financially.

It’s pretty common for people to make an offer on a new home before their current home has sold. But you should know that making an offer that’s contingent on your home selling could put you at risk of having your offer rejected.

When your seller takes on added risk

Many people have a lot of their money tied up in their homes. So it’s easy to see why you might need your home to sell before you go through with a new home purchase.

In that situation, it’s common to make an offer with a clause stating that said offer is contingent on your home selling. That way, you don’t run the risk of having to cover payments on two mortgages. And you’re more likely to end up in a situation where you can use the proceeds from the sale of your current home to cover your down payment for your new home.

In a housing market where buyer demand isn’t so strong, that sort of offer might fly with a seller. But in today’s market, you may be more likely to have an offer like that rejected.

As of July, there was only a 3.3-month supply of homes on the real estate market, according to the National Association of Realtors. But it can easily take a six-month supply of homes to meet buyer demand.

Because there are more buyers than available homes right now, sellers can afford to be more picky with regard to the offers they accept. So a seller may not agree to an offer that’s contingent on your home selling.

Other options to consider

From a financial standpoint, you might assume that you can’t buy a new home until your current one sells. But you should know that you may be able to qualify for a bridge loan, which is a short-term loan you take out so you can put money down on a new home if your current home hasn’t yet sold.

The downside of going this route is that bridge loans can be costly from an interest rate perspective. And you might face different fees for putting one in place. But it is an option you can look at if you want to make an offer on a new home that isn’t contingent on your current home selling.

Of course, signing a bridge loan won’t eliminate the risk of having your current home sit on the market for months once you’ve closed on your new home, leaving you to cover two mortgages at once. But given that housing inventory is so low right now, if you price your current home fairly, there’s a good chance it won’t sit for too long provided it’s in reasonable shape.

All told, many people make offers to buy a new home before selling their current one. But you’ll need to be prepared to have your offer rejected if you adopt a similar strategy. Making an offer above asking price could, however, sway a seller to work with you, even if that means taking on the risk of a home sale contingency.

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Your credit report is an important piece of your financial picture. Keep reading to learn when it’s most crucial to know where it stands. 

When it comes to important financial documents, your credit report is definitely at the top of the list. You actually have three of them, one from each of the major consumer credit bureaus (Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax). You also have multiple credit scores that are calculated based on information in your credit report.

What is a credit report?

A credit report is a record of how you’ve managed borrowed money, such as personal loans, credit cards, and mortgages. If you’ve made all your payments on time and paid off, say, an auto loan on time and in full, that’ll be reflected on your credit report. If you defaulted on a credit card balance, that’ll also be documented there.

Information on your credit report isn’t forever, but it does stay for a significant amount of time. In the case of your paid-off car loan, an account that was closed in good standing stays on your report for 10 years. For your credit card default (or late payments and other black marks), it’ll be seven years before the credit bureaus are required to remove it.

It’s a good idea to review your credit reports at least once a year (and if you were so moved, you could actually check them weekly free of charge for the rest of the year). By taking a little time, you can ensure the information is accurate — credit report errors are extremely common. In fact, over one-third of those who participated in a Consumer Reports credit report study found errors on theirs. You don’t want an error to sink your chance of borrowing affordably. There are a few specific situations that should lead you to pull your credit reports and have a look.

1. Your finances have been compromised

It could happen at any time. You’re out shopping and accidentally drop your credit card somewhere. Or maybe you’re buying gas and the payment machine at the pump had a “skimmer,” meaning your debit card information has been stolen.

Whenever you’ve lost track of a piece of financial information and are concerned that someone might have access to your bank or credit card accounts, you should keep tabs on your credit report (in addition to notifying the financial institutions involved). If someone is opening accounts in your name, you need to know about it so you can take action.

2. You’re about to make a big purchase you’re financing

Ready to get a mortgage loan to buy your dream house? If you’re about to have your finances scrutinized in a major way (and you can bet a mortgage lender will go through everything with a fine-toothed comb), it’s a good idea to get ahead of the situation and check out your credit reports for yourself. If you spot an error, you can ask the credit bureau to remove it. Or if you see a delinquent credit card account that was settled a few years back, you can anticipate being asked about it by your mortgage lender and have an explanation ready to go.

3. You’ve had a big life change

If you’re getting married or divorced, it’s also a good idea to check your credit report. Before you combine finances with someone else, get a read on your own financial standing. It’s not the most romantic conversation in the world, but bringing your financial skeletons out of the closet and getting on the same page can make for a stronger relationship. And if you’re hoping to buy a home or finance another large purchase together, a lender is going to go through your financial information anyway.

Similarly, when you’re ending a relationship, checking your credit report could give you a read on any accounts you might hold jointly with the other person. You likely don’t want to share finances with someone you’re divorcing, so add this task to your to-do list — and make it a point to close those accounts sooner rather than later.

Reviewing your credit reports is a good way to gauge your financial standing, so if you’re facing any of the situations above, take some time and dig into them.

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Participating in a 401(k) plan could do a lot of good for your retirement. But read on to see why you may want to house some of your savings elsewhere. 

If you manage to kick off your senior years with a nice amount of savings, you might set yourself up for a meaningful retirement — one that’s filled with fun experiences and devoid of financial worries. And if you have access to a 401(k) plan through work, then you may be motivated to sign up for it.

The upside of participating in a 401(k) is getting an opportunity to snag free money for your retirement. It’s common for companies that sponsor 401(k)s to match worker contributions to some degree. So if your employer is willing to match 3% of your salary, and you earn $75,000 a year, then by putting $2,250 into your 401(k), you’ll get a free $2,250 courtesy of your employer.

Plus, 401(k)s come with generous annual contribution limits. In 2023, you can put in up to $22,500 if you’re under the age of 50 and up to $30,000 if you’re 50 or over. Granted, many of us can’t afford to max out a 401(k) — but it’s nice to have the option.

But while there are clear benefits to funding a 401(k), you may not want to keep all of your retirement savings in one for a couple of good reasons.

1. IRAs offer more investment options

One downside of 401(k)s is that they generally limit you to investment funds, like index and mutual funds, and do not allow you to invest in individual stocks. But IRAs do let you invest in individual stocks. And that’s a good thing for a couple of reasons.

Some of the funds commonly offered in 401(k)s can come with expensive fees attached to them (notably, mutual and target date funds). Also, when you get to buy individual stocks, you get a truly customized portfolio. You can put together a mix of investments you feel is conducive to meeting your personal goals. So while it’s a good idea to contribute enough to your 401(k) to snag your full employer match, once you’ve done that, you may want to invest some of your money for retirement in an IRA.

2. Taxable brokerage accounts offer more flexibility

While IRAs and 401(k)s offer nice tax breaks that make it worthwhile to fund these accounts, there’s a drawback to them. Both accounts prohibit you from accessing your money prior to age 59 1/2. And if you take a withdrawal before that point, you’ll generally lose 10% of the sum you remove from your account as a penalty.

Now you may be thinking, “I’m not planning to retire before my mid- or late 60s, so that’s not a problem.” But what if you’re forced out of a job at, say, age 57 due to downsizing? Or what if health issues make it so you’re better off working part-time at that point?

It’s important to have access to at least some of your retirement savings before age 59 1/2. But if you keep all of your money in a 401(k), you’ll be more limited.

A better option may be to fund your 401(k), but also set aside a little bit of money in a taxable brokerage account. That way, you can access some of your money whenever you want.

There are many good reasons to participate in a 401(k) plan when that option is made available to you. But it’s also a good idea to keep some of your retirement savings outside of a 401(k) so you have more investment choices and more flexibility to access your funds when you want to.

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There are several ways to pay off debt. Keep reading to learn why one writer is an advocate of rolling a “debt snowball.” 

As I’ve learned time and time again in my life, the best way out is usually through. This is even the case when it comes to paying off credit card debt. After paying off a big chunk of debt last year, I’m a fan of the “debt snowball” method.

Creating a debt snowball consists of making a list of your debts by amounts owed, smallest to largest. Add the minimum payments owed to each to your list, too. Decide how much money you can spare to pay toward debt every month. To start rolling your “debt snowball,” you make only the minimum payment due on all but the smallest debt amount — you’ll send the bulk of your debt-payoff money to that account every month until it’s paid off.

This sends your “snowball” downhill. Then you start the process over again with your next-smallest debt, pay that off, and so on. Except now you’ve freed up some extra money by paying off one account in full, so you can pay even more to that smallest debt.

As time goes on, you can send more and more money to the debt you’re currently focusing on. By the end, you’re sending all your debt-payoff money to your final (and largest debt) — your “snowball” is huge and you’re almost out of debt. Sounds good, right? Here’s why I like this method.

1. For the motivation

Paying off debt is hard. Whether you’re doing it by cutting back on your fun spending or bringing in extra income (perhaps via a side hustle, as I did), it can be very demoralizing, and when you’re just starting out, it’s easy to feel as if you’re all alone and will never be out from under your debt. The great thing about snowballing it is that you get some motivation right from the start: Seeing your smallest debts fall away quickly. This is especially crucial early in the process.

2. For the faster simplification of your finances

Yes, okay, consolidating your debts into one loan payment will also simplify your finances, and will do so more quickly than snowballing debt — when you take out a debt consolidation loan, you’ll end up with just one payment and a set amount to pay each month. This works for many people (but this method isn’t accessible to everyone; more on that below), but snowballing debt will also result in fewer accounts to manage. And if you start with the smallest debts, you could get there pretty quickly.

3. For the low bar of entry

One potential issue with debt consolidation loans is that you need to have a pretty strong credit score to qualify for a good interest rate on one. If you’re carrying a lot of debt and have a less-than-perfect payment history, you might struggle to be approved for a loan with a lower interest rate than what you’re paying on your various debts. The nice thing about snowballing your debt is that you can start now, from where you currently are, and watch your credit score improve as you pay things off.

4. For the learning experience

Snowballing my debt was a learning experience for me. I got to be up close and personal with my debt, and I had to reckon with the fact that getting into debt is easy — but getting out of it is hard. Along the way, I was able to build new habits, such as paying off credit cards every month (honestly, sometimes I pay them off every week now). And going through this taught me that I never want to end up in the same situation again, if I can help it.

Wait, won’t snowballing my debt cost me more?

Yes, it probably will. For reference, when you pay off debt via the avalanche method, you also pay accounts off one by one, like a snowball. But the order in which you focus on the debts is by highest interest rate first. So by paying off your highest interest rate debt before any others, yes, you’ll save some money on those interest charges.

But what if your higher interest rate debts are also the largest ones? It’ll be quite a while before you can kiss those debts goodbye, and you might struggle to stay motivated. Your mileage may vary, but I was willing to pay a little more interest in exchange for the feeling of gratification I got from paying off my first few debts in short order.

Ultimately, the best debt payoff method is the one you can stick with. For you, that might be committing to make a big loan payment every month until your debt is gone, or it could be focusing on your highest-interest debt first. For me, it was rolling a debt snowball. Consider your own finances and motivation to pay off debt to pick the right method for you — you got this.

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Your 30s can be an extremely formative decade for your finances. Read on to learn one writer’s best money moves in the last decade. 

Now that I have just a few months left in my 30s (gulp), I’ve been looking back at all I’ve seen and accomplished in this decade. This includes reviewing my financial decisions, which have had major impacts on my entire life. Here are four smart money moves I made in my 30s, along with how they improved my finances.

1. Driving the same car for over a decade

I bought my current vehicle when I was 25 and used a 60-month auto loan to finance it, so I made the last payment at age 30. That car payment is money I no longer have to withdraw from my checking account each month, and not having this regular bill during most of my 30s helped me get through some less-than-ideal financial circumstances. I still pay for maintenance on my geriatric car, and I keep it insured, gassed up, and registered with my state.

2. Always paying my creditors on time

The worst financial decision of my 20s was buying a home I couldn’t afford. So I spent the first part of my 30s getting out from under that via a short sale. While a foreclosure would have been worse, a short sale is still a big credit score hit. Knowing this, I vowed to pay every bill on time in hopes that it would mitigate some of the damage. Payment history represents 35% of your FICO® Score, and thanks to my diligent bill paying, I managed to get my credit score back to the “good” range after the blow of the short sale. This was followed by an additional big boost after I got out of debt in 2022.

3. Changing careers

As much as I loved my old career, once it wasn’t good for me mentally or financially anymore, I knew I had to make a change. It wasn’t easy to go from museums to writing and editing, but with the help of a career counselor and relentlessly applying and interviewing for jobs, I made it happen. Thanks to breaking into a new field, I’m hopeful that my 40s will come with more financial security than I had in my 20s and 30s, as well as more opportunities to become a well-rounded professional. I also became a full-time freelancer, which has come with its own set of challenges, but I absolutely love the flexibility and freedom I’ve gained in the process.

4. Getting money help from a financial planner

Finally, I’m happy that I signed on to work with a financial planner in my 30s, in the wake of changing careers. I felt a bit lost as far as what I should be focusing on, and I knew I wanted to buy a house again, but I also knew my finances were not in the right shape to do that.

Meeting with a finance professional is a great way to get an impartial third-party opinion on your budget and money concerns. I think everyone should talk to one, but it’s even more crucial if you’ve been through a big financial change (like a new career, a marriage, a divorce, or another life event that involves money). A finance professional can be the best friend you never knew you needed.

Are you ready for your next decade?

If you’re also approaching a milestone birthday, take the time to sit down and evaluate your own financial situation (and celebrate your wins). Here’s what to consider.

Is your budget still working for you?

Budgeting is personal finance 101, and if it’s been a while since you’ve taken a close look at your spending versus what you’ve planned to spend, this exercise might unearth information you wish you’d left buried. But remember, knowledge is power — and knowing that you’re overspending in a budget category or two gives you the chance to fix it by cutting that spending or budgeting a higher number.

Are you on track with your savings?

Do you have an emergency fund? If not, I recommend making that a major goal for yourself. Having savings to draw on for an unplanned expense can save you from going into debt and greatly improve your peace of mind. Beyond that, are you saving enough (or at all) for retirement? It’s worth doing some math to decide how much you’d like to retire on, and figure out how much you’d need to save and invest in a retirement account every month or every year to make that happen. If you have another big goal you’re saving for (in my case, it’s buying a house), see if you’re saving enough for that too.

Do you need help managing your finances?

If you’re struggling with some aspect of money management (such as paying off debt or finding the right investments for your goals and risk tolerance), now is a good time to seek help. I always thought financial planners and advisors were just for rich people, but I was wrong. And if you’re in real trouble with debt, meeting with a credit counselor might be just the ticket.

I’m ready for my next decade, and thanks to making the moves above, I’m feeling more confident than I ever have about my finances. What about you?

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