Money Management

There’s very little competition today, but that could soon change. 

There’s a reason home sellers have had the upper hand in the housing market for the past several years. Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic began, real estate inventory has been low. And any time you have a situation where there’s not enough supply of a given commodity to meet buyer demand, its price tends to soar.

Meanwhile, housing inventory is still sitting at a pretty low level. The National Association of Realtors reports that as of the end of January, there was about a 2.9-month supply of homes available. To put that number in context, it usually takes a 6-month supply of available homes for there to be enough inventory to satisfy buyer demand, and for neither buyers nor sellers to enjoy a notable advantage in the market.

What all of this means is that now is a pretty good time to sell your home. But if you’re serious about doing so, don’t wait to get it listed. Doing so could mean ending up with a lower sale price.

Don’t wait for the competition to increase

Housing inventory may be low right now in general, and to be clear, we’re unlikely to go from a 2.9-month supply of homes to a 6-month supply in a couple of months. But spring tends to be a popular time in general for sellers to list their homes. And, well, spring is almost here.

So if you’re looking to sell your home, now’s a good time to do it. If you list your home at a time when there are only three or four comparable homes in your neighborhood, you’re likely to get a higher offer than at a time when there are 14 or 15 similar homes for buyers to look at.

Plus, we don’t know if mortgage rates will rise this year or not. Consumer borrowing rates are expensive across the board these days due to recent interest rate hikes on the part of the Federal Reserve. If mortgage loans get increasingly expensive to sign, that could result in a drop in buyer demand. And that could lead to a lower sale price for you. So you’re better off listing your home now, before mortgage rates rise above their current level.

How to land on the right listing price

Because housing inventory is still low, you may be able to command a higher sale price for your home than you would’ve four or five years ago. But because mortgages have gotten expensive to sign, buyers aren’t paying the same sky-high prices they were in 2021, when borrowing rates were really low.

If you’re not sure how to price your home, enlist the help of a real estate agent. While working with an agent will mean having to pay them a commission once your home sells, in exchange, you’ll get expert advice and great insight on the local housing market. And your real estate agent can no doubt do all of the legwork associated with selling your home so you don’t have to.

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Why pay up when there’s a less expensive alternative? 

When I first started shopping at Costco many years ago, I stuck to a basic membership for quite some time. Back then, it was just me and my husband, and we only needed so much food and so many household supplies from Costco.

But these days, we have ourselves and three kids to feed. And so between needing extra produce, milk, snacks, toilet paper, cleaning supplies, and just about everything, we maintain a Costco executive membership rather than a basic one.

The cost of an executive membership at Costco is $120 a year as of this writing. There’s a good chance prices will go up fairly soon, since Costco hasn’t had a price increase in quite some time. Meanwhile, a basic Costco membership costs just $60, so there’s quite a bit of a difference between the two.

I can say with certainty that my Costco executive membership is worth paying for. That extra $60 a year earns us 2% back on all Costco purchases, the same way you might get 2% cash back from a credit card. But if the following signs apply to you, then it may be time to downgrade your Costco executive membership to a basic one.

1. You don’t shop at Costco as frequently

Maybe you’ve moved and don’t have such easy access to a Costco store these days. Or maybe you’ve started shopping more at a specialty grocery store due to having certain dietary needs. Either way, if you find that you’re not going to Costco as often as you used to, it may be time to downgrade to a basic membership.

2. Your household has shrunk in size

Perhaps your kids live at college for most of the year and you don’t have as many mouths to feed. Or maybe you went from being married to getting divorced, and so your household size has been cut in half. In either scenario, it may not pay to maintain an executive membership if you don’t expect to be buying as many groceries and supplies as you once did.

3. You’re not spending enough to make the upgraded membership worth it

There’s an easy math formula you can use to determine if a Costco executive membership makes sense for you. You’ll break even on the cost of an executive membership versus a basic one if you snag $60 cash back per year. And to do that, you’ll need to spend $3,000. So if you don’t expect to spend over $3,000 at Costco in a year, downgrade. And if you’re not sure, look at your credit card statements from the past 12 months and see what your total Costco tab comes to. If it’s under $3,000, you basically have your answer.

A Costco executive membership can definitely be worth paying for when you have a larger household, you shop there frequently, and the cash back you get more than makes up for the additional $60 fee. But if not, then you may be throwing your money away by keeping your executive membership.

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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.Maurie Backman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Costco Wholesale. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Anything you can do, I can do — and I can do it in heels. 

The U.S. — and, let’s be honest, a good chunk of the rest of the world — has a serious problem with inequality. And one place it’s felt particularly strongly is in the world of finance.

We’ve talked for decades now about the gender pay gap. For as long as women have been a part of the U.S. workforce, they have been paid less than men for the same jobs and skills.

But that’s not the only place gender makes an impact on finances. It turns out there’s also a massive gender gap when it comes to investing. And it’s costing U.S. women billions.

Yet another side-effect of the pay gap

There are a variety of factors that may be contributing to the gender gap in investing. The most obvious, of course, is the pay gap itself.

Women, on average, simply don’t bring home as much money as their male counterparts. As a result, they have less discretionary income to use for saving and investing. While there has been infinitesimal improvement in certain fields and age brackets, on the whole, the pay gap has remained nearly the same for the last 20 years.

And that income gap makes a big difference. A study by investing research company Morningstar found that, when it accounted for income, the investment gap narrowed considerably. There are simply more men than women in the higher income brackets, giving them an investment advantage.

Lack of time and confidence aren’t helping

However, while significant, the pay gap isn’t the only problem. No, there are also systemic and cultural issues that leave women with less time to invest, less confidence in their investing skills, and a much lower tolerance for risk.

For one thing, women are significantly more likely to be the caregiver in the home. This means they’re also more likely to need to sacrifice their careers — and, thus, their incomes — to deal with familial responsibilities.

Those responsibilities also mean women have much less free time to spend on things like investing, or learning about finance in general. Less knowledge means less confidence.

For example, a study by BNY Mellon showed that nearly a third of women are turned off from investing more due to the overly complicated language used by financial professionals. And as many as 45% of surveyed women believe the stock market is simply too risky (an opinion that tends to diminish as investing know-how increases).

Inclusion is also a big problem

Another potentially major factor in the investment gap is that the investing industry simply isn’t that open to women. The majority of stock brokers and financial advisors are men — only 35% of financial advisors in the U.S. are women.

What’s more, those men are more often than not looking to help other men. According to one survey of asset managers, 86% said they specifically target men, not women.

While the obvious answer, to this part of the problem at least, is to encourage more women to enter into financial roles, well, that issue is…complicated. Women entering male-dominated fields are often subject to, let’s say, less-than-favorable conditions. But that’s not the half of it.

No, the unfortunate reality is that it starts all the way back in grade school. Countless studies have shown that there exist systemic issues with how we teach math and science — coupled with our cultural biases on gender and logic-based skills — that push women away from these fields in the first place.

Bridging the gap

In the end, there are no easy answers to filling these gender-based gaps. It’s obvious the problems are widespread and deeply rooted. But something needs to be done. Women, who already live longer than men on average, are struggling in retirement.

At the very least, we need to properly educate and encourage women to be involved in their workplace retirement accounts. Most full-time employers offer tax-friendly retirement plans, be it a 401(k) or IRA account, that can be automatically funded through paycheck withdrawals.

What’s more, many companies will match your own contributions to a certain point. For instance, if your company offers a 5% match, that typically means it’ll match your retirement contributions up to 5% of your salary. This is essentially free money going to waste if you aren’t using it.

I also personally encourage all women readers to find a few strong financial role models. Maybe this means picking up a Suze Orman or Jean Chatzky book. Maybe it means listening to weekly podcasts like So Money, hosted by Farnoosh Torabi, or Afford Anything, with Paula Pant. Maybe it’s even someone in your own life with skills they’re happy to share, such as a coworker or friend.

Whatever the case, make the choice to take charge of your financial future. Close your own investment gap by gaining the knowledge to succeed.

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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.Brittney Myers has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Target. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Travel insurance may soon come at a higher price.  

Many people invest in travel insurance to protect money spent on prepaid travel costs. With the right policy, you can be reimbursed for prepaid non-refundable travel expenses when a vacation doesn’t go as planned. Travel insurance brokerage Insuremytrip noted that the average cost of a travel insurance policy was $278 in 2022 — which was $33 more than the average cost in 2021.

Travelers could see another increase in insurance premiums this year, which could result in you needing to adjust your vacation budget.

Airline cancellations are making travelers nervous

In 2022, many U.S. airlines experienced significant operational disruptions. At The Ascent, we’ve previously written about the record number of holiday flight delays and cancellations travelers experienced in December 2022. Airline disruptions continued to be a substantial issue at the start of 2023, which resulted in travelers having to change or cancel their vacation plans.

Reuters recently discussed how an increase in airline cancellations has made travelers feel nervous about potential disruptions to their travel plans. It turns out more people are purchasing insurance policies to protect themselves.

According to insurance comparison provider Squaremouth, travel insurance policy purchases increased by 16% between Dec. 26, 2022, and Jan. 8, 2023 — likely due to increased fears of continued airline disruptions. Travel insurer World Nomads saw a 56% increase in policy sales from December 2022 to January 2023 compared to the same period the year prior.

With more travelers buying coverage, claims could increase — leading to higher premiums. Inflation may also impact premium prices. It seems everything costs more each day, including insurance. However, some insurers may revise policy benefits rather than raise rates.

What to consider before buying a travel insurance policy

Travel is an investment — so it’s a smart idea to consider purchasing a travel insurance policy. After all, you probably saved up a long time to afford your upcoming trip. Before buying coverage, review the policy terms to ensure you understand what’s covered and what’s not.

Not all policies are created equal, and you want to ensure you choose a policy that meets your needs. You should also compare coverage details and policy costs between multiple insurers to find the best policy and get the best deal.

Many factors influence premium prices, such as age, total trip cost, length of trip, and the type of coverage chosen. Travelers should expect to pay anywhere from 4% to 10% of their total prepaid non-refundable trip costs for a travel insurance policy.

Travel credit cards may offer protection

While travel insurance can be a good investment, you can protect yourself in other ways. Many travel credit cards include travel protections like trip interruption and trip cancellation coverage. While there are some limitations, these credit card perks can provide value.

If you have a credit card with these benefits, check to see if the included coverage will offer enough protection for your next trip. You may be able to keep more money in your pocket by skipping a travel insurance policy and instead using your credit card benefits. You can review our list of the best travel rewards credit cards to learn more about the many perks offered.

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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.Natasha Gabrielle has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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That’s clearly a pretty big problem. 

If you don’t save for retirement, you might really end up struggling financially later in life. That’s because Social Security can’t be expected to come close to replacing your former paycheck. And with benefit cuts on the table, it’s more important than ever to build a nest egg on your own.

But if you’ve been struggling to do that, you’re in good company. A recent Primerica survey of middle-income Americans found that among respondents without an IRA or a retirement

savings plan through work, 51% say they can’t afford to save for retirement.

If that’s the boat you’re in, it’s understandable. Not only has inflation been making life more expensive for most people, but even without an uptick in living costs, you may have a lot of bills to grapple with, from your mortgage to your car payments. And carving out extra money for retirement savings can be difficult when you’re struggling to meet your near-term needs.

But if you don’t find a way to start building some long-term savings, you might struggle once retirement rolls around. So if you can’t remember the last time you put money into an IRA account, you may want to consider making one key change.

It may be time for a second job

When you work hard, and full-time, at a main job, the idea of having to take on a second one may be unappealing. But if your paycheck doesn’t allow for regular retirement plan contributions, then the best way to make those happen may be to boost your income with another job you work on the side.

The good news, though, is that you don’t necessarily need to commit to a rigid schedule in the course of getting a second job. There’s plenty of gig work you can do at your own pace.

If you have a car, for example, you can sign up to drive for a ride-hailing service and shuttle passengers around at times you can make that work. And if you take a job doing online data entry, chances are, you’ll be able to choose your own hours as long as you meet the deadlines you’re given.

If the idea of driving passengers around or doing possibly boring data entry doesn’t appeal to you, then it pays to find a hobby you can potentially monetize. Maybe you play the guitar. You could see about getting hired to perform at events and children’s parties.

Or maybe you love animals. People are constantly going away and needing others to care for their pets. Signing up with a service like Rover could help you connect with those people — and earn money for doing things like hanging out with puppies.

Don’t neglect your IRA

When it’s a struggle to keep your checking account balance above $0, the idea of putting money into an IRA might seem like a joke. But it’s so important to contribute money toward your retirement, so if your regular paycheck doesn’t allow for that, it may be time to supplement it.

Working a side job might not only make it possible to fund your IRA, but also, to buy yourself more wiggle room with your current bills. And at a time when inflation continues to surge, that’s an important thing.

Our best stock brokers

We pored over the data and user reviews to find the select rare picks that landed a spot on our list of the best stock brokers. Some of these best-in-class picks pack in valuable perks, including $0 stock and ETF commissions. Get started and review our best stock brokers.

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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