Money Management

There are so many reasons to give yours your ongoing attention. 

If you have a nice pile of money set aside in a savings account for emergencies, give yourself a pat on the back. Many people don’t have any money in savings to fall back on, and they risk racking up costly credit card debt when unexpected bills arise.

Now as a general rule, you should aim to have an emergency fund with enough cash to cover at least three full months of living expenses. And if you’re already at that point, you may be thinking you’re all set.

But it’s important to keep track of your emergency fund and reassess it on a regular basis. Here’s why.

Your expenses can change over time

There may be certain expenses you pay for that stay the same for many years. If you have a fixed-rate mortgage loan, for example, your monthly housing payment isn’t going to change from one year to the next (unless you refinance your home loan).

But many of your other expenses have the potential to change over time. You might see the cost of utilities rise, or gas for your car might get more expensive. You might also find that the cost of the medications you take increases from one year to the next.

That’s why it’s important to reassess your emergency fund at least once a year. And you may want to do so every six months to make sure your numbers are accurate.

You might initially calculate your emergency fund and find that you spend $2,400 a month on essential bills, requiring a $7,200 balance to pay for three months of expenses. But if your costs rise to $2,600 a month, a $7,200 balance won’t quite cut it.

Also, do remember that even if you don’t take on new expenses, factors like inflation might cause your monthly spending to rise. Case in point: As of February, grocery costs were up a little over 10%, as per that month’s Consumer Price Index. And that’s the sort of change that could leave you short on emergency savings if you were to lose your job and need to raid your cash reserves to cover three months of bills while looking for work.

Be sure to account for withdrawals, too

The whole purpose of having an emergency fund is to be able to dip in when you need to. But it’s also important to keep track of your withdrawals and aim to put that money back as soon as you can.

So, let’s say you have a $7,200 emergency fund and take a $500 withdrawal for an unexpected car repair. If you don’t keep reminding yourself to put back that $500, you might run into a crunch if you lose your job a few months down the line and it takes you a while to find a new one.

All told, it’s a great thing to have an emergency fund. And if you have enough cash in the bank to pay for three months of bills, that’s something to be very proud of. At the same time, don’t just dump that cash in the bank and call it a day. Instead, keep reevaluating your expenses, and definitely make it a point to track the money you’re forced to remove from your savings so you can work on putting it back.

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The consequences could be quite unfavorable. 

When you have a need to borrow money, there are different options you can explore. You might, for example, look into taking out a personal loan, which lets you borrow money for any purpose. But if your credit score isn’t the best, a home equity loan could be a better choice.

A home equity loan lets you borrow against the equity you’ve built up in your home. And if you’re not sure what that term means, worry not — it’s simply the difference between what your home could sell for and the balance you owe on your mortgage. So if the market value of your home is $300,000 and you owe $200,000 on your mortgage, you’re left with $100,000 of home equity, which you can borrow against via a loan or line of credit.

It’s often more advantageous to take out a home equity loan than a HELOC (home equity line of credit) because with the former, you’ll get the benefit of a fixed interest rate on the sum you borrow. That could make your loan payments easier to manage.

But you might still reach the point where you’re unable to repay your home equity loan. And that’s where things could get really dicey.

A dangerous situation to land in

Any time you fail to repay a debt, it gets reported as delinquent to the credit bureaus. And once that information hits your credit report, your credit score has the potential to plummet. That could, in turn, make it more difficult to borrow money (or borrow affordably) when you need to.

But the consequences of not paying a home equity loan have the potential to be much more severe than that. Because that loan is secured by your home, if you don’t repay it, your lender could technically force the sale of your home via foreclosure, thereby causing you to lose your home entirely.

To be clear, this generally will not happen after a couple of missed payments. But if you stop paying your home equity loan altogether, it’s a possibility.

Be careful when taking out a home equity loan

A home equity loan might seem like an affordable way to borrow. But these days, borrowing rates are up across the board on the heels of recent Federal Reserve rate hikes. Between higher interest rates and closing costs, you may find that a home equity loan is more expensive than you bargained for. So be sure to proceed with caution if you’re thinking of taking one out.

At the same time, if you have an existing home equity loan that you’re struggling to repay, don’t just ignore the problem. Instead, reach out to your lender, explain the situation, and see what options you have. You may be able to hit pause on your loan payments for a period of time or lower your monthly payments by stretching your repayment window.

Ultimately, your lender would most likely prefer to get repaid on its loan than to deal with the process of forcing your home into foreclosure. So there’s a good chance your lender will work with you to come to a reasonable solution.

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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.The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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While some retailers accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits as payment for online grocery orders, not all do. If you like to shop at Wegmans, you’ll be happy to know the grocer now accepts SNAP payments for online grocery orders. This will give program recipients more ways to use their benefits and add convenience to their lives.What you need to know about this newsOn Feb. 15, 2023, Wegmans announced that it now accepts Electronic Benefits Transfers (EBT) and SNAP payments for online orders. Shoppers who place online orders through Wegmans.com and the Wegmans mobile app can use their benefits as payment.Additionally, shoppers using their SNAP benefits for payment can take advantage of a $0 delivery fee on their first three orders. Wegmans processes its online orders through Instacart. When using Instacart to shop at Wegmans, delivery fees begin at $3.99 per order. There is also a 7% service fee per transaction for delivery orders. However, no delivery or service fees are charged to place an order online when using curbside pickup.Only eligible items can be purchased using SNAP benefits. In addition to linking their EBT SNAP card to their online account, shoppers will be asked to add a secondary form of payment, like a debit card or credit card. This secondary form of payment will be used to pay for non-SNAP-eligible items.Purchasing eligible items with Wegmans is easy thanks to a new search filter. While browsing the website or mobile app, shoppers can apply the EBT filter to display qualifying items. This filter can help you avoid surprises at checkout.How to stretch your SNAP benefitsIf you’re a SNAP recipient, you’re likely looking for tips to stretch your benefits further. Food prices have been higher than in years thanks to inflation, but you can take steps to maximize your SNAP benefits even when food costs more. The following tips may be helpful:Never shop without a list: It can be easy to overspend beyond your budget if you don’t have a list to guide you. While it takes time to outline a grocery list, having one could save you money and help you do your shopping faster.Shop sale items: You could get a better deal by purchasing sale items. Before adding items to your virtual or physical grocery cart, review the weekly sales flier. If you add items to your cart without paying attention to the price tag, you may break your budget.Don’t forget about generic items: Buying store-brand items may help you save money. It’s worth noting that generic items aren’t always cheaper. Sometimes name-brand items cost less when they’re on sale. As you shop, compare each item’s size and price so you get the best bargain.Compare prices for items you buy regularly: If you shop at several stores, comparing prices for the products you buy most frequently may be worthwhile. You may find that purchasing certain items at one retailer is the best move for your wallet.We’re all looking for ways to save money and spend less in today’s expensive world. For additional tips, check out these free personal finance resources to learn more.Alert: highest cash back card we’ve seen now has 0% intro APR until 2024If you’re using the wrong credit or debit card, it could be costing you serious money. Our experts love this top pick, which features a 0% intro APR until 2024, an insane cash back rate of up to 5%, and all somehow for no annual fee. In fact, this card is so good that our experts even use it personally. Click here to read our full review for free and apply in just 2 minutes. Read our free reviewWe’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.The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 

While some retailers accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits as payment for online grocery orders, not all do. If you like to shop at Wegmans, you’ll be happy to know the grocer now accepts SNAP payments for online grocery orders. This will give program recipients more ways to use their benefits and add convenience to their lives.

What you need to know about this news

On Feb. 15, 2023, Wegmans announced that it now accepts Electronic Benefits Transfers (EBT) and SNAP payments for online orders. Shoppers who place online orders through Wegmans.com and the Wegmans mobile app can use their benefits as payment.

Additionally, shoppers using their SNAP benefits for payment can take advantage of a $0 delivery fee on their first three orders. Wegmans processes its online orders through Instacart. When using Instacart to shop at Wegmans, delivery fees begin at $3.99 per order. There is also a 7% service fee per transaction for delivery orders. However, no delivery or service fees are charged to place an order online when using curbside pickup.

Only eligible items can be purchased using SNAP benefits. In addition to linking their EBT SNAP card to their online account, shoppers will be asked to add a secondary form of payment, like a debit card or credit card. This secondary form of payment will be used to pay for non-SNAP-eligible items.

Purchasing eligible items with Wegmans is easy thanks to a new search filter. While browsing the website or mobile app, shoppers can apply the EBT filter to display qualifying items. This filter can help you avoid surprises at checkout.

How to stretch your SNAP benefits

If you’re a SNAP recipient, you’re likely looking for tips to stretch your benefits further. Food prices have been higher than in years thanks to inflation, but you can take steps to maximize your SNAP benefits even when food costs more. The following tips may be helpful:

Never shop without a list: It can be easy to overspend beyond your budget if you don’t have a list to guide you. While it takes time to outline a grocery list, having one could save you money and help you do your shopping faster.Shop sale items: You could get a better deal by purchasing sale items. Before adding items to your virtual or physical grocery cart, review the weekly sales flier. If you add items to your cart without paying attention to the price tag, you may break your budget.Don’t forget about generic items: Buying store-brand items may help you save money. It’s worth noting that generic items aren’t always cheaper. Sometimes name-brand items cost less when they’re on sale. As you shop, compare each item’s size and price so you get the best bargain.Compare prices for items you buy regularly: If you shop at several stores, comparing prices for the products you buy most frequently may be worthwhile. You may find that purchasing certain items at one retailer is the best move for your wallet.

We’re all looking for ways to save money and spend less in today’s expensive world. For additional tips, check out these free personal finance resources to learn more.

Alert: highest cash back card we’ve seen now has 0% intro APR until 2024

If you’re using the wrong credit or debit card, it could be costing you serious money. Our experts love this top pick, which features a 0% intro APR until 2024, an insane cash back rate of up to 5%, and all somehow for no annual fee.

In fact, this card is so good that our experts even use it personally. Click here to read our full review for free and apply in just 2 minutes.

Read our free review

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.The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

 Read More