Money Management

You can celebrate the big day without spending a fortune. 

Valentine’s Day will be here before we know it. And if you haven’t started planning for it already, well, you’d better get moving.

But if money is tight, which is the case for a lot of people right now due to inflation, then you may be dreading Valentine’s Day more than looking forward to it. After all, there’s a lot of pressure to spend money — money you might prefer to keep in your savings account instead.

Plus, a lot of people are still grappling with leftover credit card debt from the holidays. If that’s the boat you’re in, then you may not want to plunk down a chunk of money to go out to an overpriced dinner and spring for another gift when you recently busted your budget on Christmas gifts.

It’s estimated that consumers will spend a whopping $25.9 billion on Valentine’s Day this year, according to the National Retail Federation. And all told, consumers intend to spend an average of $192.80 individually. If that doesn’t work for your budget, here are other ways you can celebrate your loved one — without breaking the bank.

1. Cook a multi-course meal at home

If you make a dinner reservation for Valentine’s Day, you’ll probably be looking at an inflated, pre-set menu that leaves you spending much more than you normally would on a night out. Rather than go that route, cook a fabulous meal at home. Spring for higher-quality ingredients than you’d normally buy and prepare extra courses so it feels like an event more than a regular meal at your dining room table.

And don’t forget the ambiance. Light candles and bust out the nice tablecloth you use for special occasions. Your loved one is apt to appreciate your effort.

2. Make your own candy

It’s common to give out heart-shaped chocolates and other fine sweets on Valentine’s Day. But guess what? For just a few dollars, you can purchase your own heart-shaped silicone candy molds online. From there, it’s a matter of buying some decent chocolate, melting it down, pouring it into those molds, and letting your tray sit in the fridge for a few hours. All told, you could give the gift of heart-shaped chocolate for half the price you’d pay at a fancy chocolate shop.

3. Give a gift from the heart

Springing for jewelry on Valentine’s Day might really be a stretch for you. Instead of going that route, make your partner something they’ll appreciate. Write them a poem or song, or find a great photo from your last vacation and put it in a frame. There are plenty of homemade gifts you can make that won’t cost a fortune while still meaning a lot.

Some people aren’t fans of Valentine’s Day and skip it altogether. But if that won’t fly with your partner, it’s probably not worth the fight. That doesn’t mean you have to resign yourself to spending more money than you’re comfortable with, though. Instead, get creative at home to pull off a Valentine’s Day your loved one will remember for a long time.

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 expert loves 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 expert even uses 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 

If he gets his way, the savings could be huge. 

Has this ever happened to you? You go online to buy concert tickets, thinking you’ll dip into your savings account to pay the $75 per ticket because the band is a favorite of yours. Only by the time you’re done paying for services fees, convenience fees, and other random charges, you’re looking at $110 per ticket instead.

Suddenly, you’re over budget, and you can’t afford to go to the show. Or, you decide to move forward with your purchase, charge it on your credit card, and pay it off when you can — only to rack up interest that costs you even more money along the way.

Excessive service fees for online ticket purchases have been a major sore spot for consumers for a long time. And unfortunately, they’re often unavoidable due to the fact that certain companies, like Ticketmaster, have a virtual monopoly on the ticket-selling industry.

The Biden administration, however, is trying to change that. And if it succeeds, the cost of attending a live event could become increasingly less financially burdensome.

Battling junk fees

The Biden administration is on a mission to reduce or eliminate junk fees — unexpected fees that catch consumers off guard and cost them money. And service fees for online ticket purchases easily fall into this category.

When you go online to buy tickets for an event, you won’t always see the total price you’ll be charged up front. Instead, you’ll see the ticket price, and only once you check out will you realize what your purchase will actually cost you.

In some cases, the fees attached to a ticket purchase might equal or exceed the cost of your ticket itself. And that’s something Biden and his administration want to put an end to. As such, Biden is urging lawmakers to crack down on excessive service fees for tickets.

Just how bad is this problem? A review of 31 different sporting events across five ticket-seller websites found that service fees averaged more than 20% of tickets’ face value. Worse yet, total fees, including processing, delivery, and facility fees, averaged more than 50% of tickets’ face value. Whittling down those fees could make concerts, sporting events, and other such forms of entertainment more affordable to the public.

Be careful when buying tickets online

The upside of using a service like Ticketmaster when buying tickets to an event is that you’re guaranteed entry — you don’t have to worry about ending up with a bogus ticket, which could be the case if you buy one directly through a private seller via a site like Craigslist. But in exchange for that peace of mind, you could wind up spending a boatload of money on fees that add to your costs in a very big way.

For now, those fees may be inevitable. But do yourself a favor and pay attention to the total price of a given event before completing your ticket purchase. You may find that the number you end up paying isn’t the number you expected to pay. And you don’t want to land in a situation where you’re stuck carrying a credit card balance forward because of that.

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 expert loves 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 expert even uses 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 

The IRS will still accept your tax return if you send it in. 

Filing a tax return can be a time-consuming process. And it’s one you may not have had time for last year.

If that’s the case, you might still be sitting on a 2021 tax return that hasn’t been submitted (remember, in 2022, people were filing 2021 returns). And that means you may be missing out on a tax refund you’re owed.

The good news, though, is that it’s not too late to file your 2021 tax return if you didn’t get around to it last year. But you should also know that if you owe money on that year’s tax return, you could be in for some pretty steep penalties.

When your tax return is overdue

If you didn’t file your 2021 tax return and are owed money from the IRS, guess what? There’s no penalty for being late.

That might seem counterintuitive, but think about it this way. If you were due a refund last year for your 2021 taxes and you didn’t submit your return, it means the IRS got to keep your money for longer. So why would it penalize you in that situation?

That said, you get three years to file a tax return past its original deadline and claim a refund. So since we’re still within three years of April of 2022, which is when 2021 taxes were due, you can file your return and arrange for your refund to hit your bank account.

In fact, the average tax refund for the 2021 tax year was $3,121. And you may be in line for a similar amount of money, so the sooner you get your taxes done, the sooner you can collect that cash.

Prepare to pay more if you owe the IRS money

You won’t face a penalty if you file your 2021 taxes this year and are due a refund. But if you owe the IRS money from 2021, you’ll be penalized in a few different ways.

First, you’ll owe 5% of your tax debt for each month or partial month your return is late past the original deadline, up to a total of 25%. Plus, you’ll owe interest and penalties on your actual bill.

That’s why you should really do your best to get your 2021 return filed as soon as possible if you think you owe money. If you sit on that return, the IRS could still come after you for the money it’s owed. So you’re better off getting your taxes filed and working out how to pay your tax bill.

If you don’t have enough money in your savings account to cover your full tax bill, the IRS will generally let you sign up for an installment plan. That way, you pay off your tax bill over time.

Being late with a tax return isn’t ideal in any scenario. If you’re owed money, being late means delaying your refund. If you owe the IRS money, being late means incurring added penalties. But it’s also not too late to file your 2021 taxes, and the sooner you do, the better.

Our picks for best tax software

Our independent analysts pored over the perks and user reviews for the most popular tax provider services to land on the best-in-class picks to file your taxes. Get started by reviewing our list of the best tax software.

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 

There are many creative ways to save for a home. 

You’ll likely need to save up for a down payment if you want to buy a home. This is a significant expense for many people and can be a hurdle that keeps them from buying sooner. Are you looking for ideas to help you save up for this necessary expense faster? Here are a few ways to save up for a down payment for a home.

1. Get a part-time job or side hustle

If you’re feeling stuck because of the financial limitations with your current salary, you may want to consider getting a part-time job or side hustle. By doing this, you may be able to boost your income potential so you can reach your savings goals faster. Some buyers choose to put in extra hours at another job or gig to afford to make a bigger down payment, so they can take out a smaller mortgage.

2. Consider a different living situation

If you’re currently renting while you save up to buy a home, a good portion of your income is likely going toward your current housing costs. In many cities, rental prices are incredibly high. If you’re feeling limited in how much you can set aside for your future home down payment, you may want to consider an alternative living situation that is more affordable.

If you have extra space in your rental, you may want to get a roommate and charge them rent. Another idea is to see if you can move in with a close friend or family member for a short time while you save aggressively for your down payment. Both of these options can help you free up more income to put towards your home-buying costs.

3. Simplify your life for the time being

If you know that your additional comforts are adding up and impacting how much you can save, you might consider making some adjustments. By simplifying your life and cutting out extra discretionary costs, you can free up more income to save more.

Budgeting apps are an excellent tool that can help you reduce spending in some areas of your life. Once you cut out unnecessary costs, put the money you save in a high-yield savings account so you’re not tempted to spend it elsewhere on unnecessary expenses.

4. Ask for a raise or earn a promotion

If you love where you currently work but don’t love how much money you make, it may be worthwhile to see if you can increase your income without leaving your employer. One way to do this is to ask for a raise. If you do this, come prepared to show what you bring to the company and research wage data for your job so you can negotiate a fair raise.

Another option is to earn a promotion. If you want to take on new responsibilities and expand your skill set, you can apply for a higher position or request a promotion at your current job.

5. Research down payment assistance programs

In some parts of the country, down payment assistance programs are available for eligible home buyers. These programs may be income-based or may require applicants to be first-time buyers, but these programs can help to make buying a home more accessible to more people. Check to see if you qualify for any such programs in your area.

The above methods may help you reach your down payment savings goals sooner. Are you ready to begin researching the mortgage lending process? Look at our list of the best mortgage lenders to learn more.

Our picks for the best credit cards

Our experts vetted the most popular offers to land on the select picks that are worthy of a spot in your wallet. These best-in-class cards pack in rich perks, such as big sign-up bonuses, long 0% intro APR offers, and robust rewards. Get started today with our recommended credit cards.

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