Money Management

It could be a big source of savings, but think about what you’ll be giving up. 

When Amazon raised the cost of a Prime membership to $139 last year, it prompted some people to cancel that service and find other outlets for online shopping. But many loyal Prime members kept their memberships despite that price hike.

If money has gotten tight, however, then you may be inclined to cancel your Prime membership this year. Is that a good idea, though? Ask yourself these questions to find out.

1. How often do I order things on Amazon?

If you only make purchases on Amazon once every few months, then a Prime membership probably isn’t worth it — especially since you can actually score free shipping on Amazon without being a Prime member. All you have to do is rack up a $25 shopping cart, and you won’t be charged for shipping. You’ll have to wait a little longer for your orders to arrive, but that may not be a problem. On the other hand, if you can say with confidence that your Prime membership saves you a trip to the store at least once a month, if not more, then it may be worth keeping.

2. How much am I saving on gas?

If you live in an area where the closest retail shop is a long distance away, then a Prime membership may be partially or fully paying for itself in the form of savings on gas purchases. In fact, it’s a good idea to try to estimate how much gas savings you’re reaping. If you figure your credit card bills are a good $10 lower each month due to making fewer trips to the store, then you’re practically paying for a year of Prime right there. And if your membership also happens to make your life easier, then it’s probably worth keeping.

3. Am I taking advantage of free content?

Amazon Prime doesn’t just give you access to free two-day shipping on all orders. It also gives you access to various types of free content, from movies to TV series to books to music. Now, think about the cost of paying for video and music streaming. There’s some savings to be had if you get access to that content for free. So if you currently tend to use that content, it may be worth keeping Amazon for that benefit alone.

What’s the right choice for you?

These days, a lot of people are buckling under the weight of inflation and trying to cut costs to the greatest extent possible. It’s definitely not a bad idea to consider your different expenses carefully and find ways to trim them.

Canceling your Prime membership absolutely makes sense this year if you truly can’t afford it. But if you can afford it and you’re getting good value from it, then you may want to keep it around.

Plus, you never know what added benefits Amazon might end up tacking onto Prime memberships this year. You may find that the $139 you’re paying for 12 months of Prime becomes even more worthwhile in 2023.

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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.John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Maurie Backman has positions in Amazon.com. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Amazon.com. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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T-Mobile announced that a bad actor obtained personal data on approximately 37 million of its postpaid and prepaid customers in a recent SEC filing. The cybercriminal first retrieved data starting on or around Nov. 25, 2022. T-Mobile identified the data breach on Jan. 5, 2023. Stolen customer data includes:NamesBilling addressesEmail addressesDates of birthT-Mobile account numbersPlan information, such as number of lines on accounts and plan featuresMany of the exposed accounts didn’t include full data sets. The data breach also didn’t include any payment card information, Social Security numbers, tax IDs, passwords, or financial account information.T-Mobile said in its filing that “Our investigation is still ongoing, but the malicious activity appears to be fully contained at this time.” It has started notifying customers whose information may be compromised. It’s also working with federal agencies and law enforcement.So whatWith the amount of information companies have on us, data breaches are an ever-present concern for consumers. They also happen alarmingly often. There were 1,862 data breaches in 2021, a five-year high, according to recent identity theft statistics.This latest data breach continues a troubling pattern for T-Mobile. The wireless carrier has now been hacked five times since 2018.Fortunately, the leak didn’t include the most sensitive customer data, like Social Security numbers or credit card numbers. But customers whose information was leaked could receive spam or be the target of scammers.Now whatIf you’re a T-Mobile customer, be on the lookout for scams, like phishing attempts. That’s when a scammer contacts you and pretends to be a legitimate organization to get personal information. Since email addresses and account numbers were part of the data breach, it’s possible that scammers use email and text message phishing to try and steal more of your data.Keep an eye on your credit, as well. It’s unlikely that someone would be able to open a credit account in your name after this T-Mobile data breach. They’d generally need your Social Security number for that. Still, it’s smart to be vigilant, just in case. Several credit card companies offer free identity protection you can use to monitor your credit. In addition, you can get free weekly credit reports for all of 2023.If you want even more protection, there are two things you can set up with the credit bureaus to help prevent identity theft:A credit alert requires creditors to perform additional identity verification, such as calling you at a phone number you provide, before opening an account in your name.A credit freeze prevents anyone from pulling your credit, which stops creditors from opening an account for you. If you want to open a new account, you can unfreeze your credit.It’s up to you how cautious you want to be. The information that was leaked probably isn’t enough for identity theft. Monitoring your credit and watching out for scams should be enough to keep your identity and your finances safe.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 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 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.Lyle Daly has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends T-Mobile US. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 

T-Mobile announced that a bad actor obtained personal data on approximately 37 million of its postpaid and prepaid customers in a recent SEC filing. The cybercriminal first retrieved data starting on or around Nov. 25, 2022. T-Mobile identified the data breach on Jan. 5, 2023. Stolen customer data includes:

NamesBilling addressesEmail addressesDates of birthT-Mobile account numbersPlan information, such as number of lines on accounts and plan features

Many of the exposed accounts didn’t include full data sets. The data breach also didn’t include any payment card information, Social Security numbers, tax IDs, passwords, or financial account information.

T-Mobile said in its filing that “Our investigation is still ongoing, but the malicious activity appears to be fully contained at this time.” It has started notifying customers whose information may be compromised. It’s also working with federal agencies and law enforcement.

So what

With the amount of information companies have on us, data breaches are an ever-present concern for consumers. They also happen alarmingly often. There were 1,862 data breaches in 2021, a five-year high, according to recent identity theft statistics.

This latest data breach continues a troubling pattern for T-Mobile. The wireless carrier has now been hacked five times since 2018.

Fortunately, the leak didn’t include the most sensitive customer data, like Social Security numbers or credit card numbers. But customers whose information was leaked could receive spam or be the target of scammers.

Now what

If you’re a T-Mobile customer, be on the lookout for scams, like phishing attempts. That’s when a scammer contacts you and pretends to be a legitimate organization to get personal information. Since email addresses and account numbers were part of the data breach, it’s possible that scammers use email and text message phishing to try and steal more of your data.

Keep an eye on your credit, as well. It’s unlikely that someone would be able to open a credit account in your name after this T-Mobile data breach. They’d generally need your Social Security number for that. Still, it’s smart to be vigilant, just in case. Several credit card companies offer free identity protection you can use to monitor your credit. In addition, you can get free weekly credit reports for all of 2023.

If you want even more protection, there are two things you can set up with the credit bureaus to help prevent identity theft:

A credit alert requires creditors to perform additional identity verification, such as calling you at a phone number you provide, before opening an account in your name.A credit freeze prevents anyone from pulling your credit, which stops creditors from opening an account for you. If you want to open a new account, you can unfreeze your credit.

It’s up to you how cautious you want to be. The information that was leaked probably isn’t enough for identity theft. Monitoring your credit and watching out for scams should be enough to keep your identity and your finances safe.

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.Lyle Daly has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends T-Mobile US. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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What happenedA whopping 23% of consumers admitted to disputing purchases as fraud, even though they received the item and were satisfied with the purchase, according to Sift’s Q4 2022 Digital Trust & Safety Index. This is commonly known as friendly fraud or first-party fraud, because the cardholder is the one committing fraud. The average value of a chargeback was $192.53 in 2022. Merchant Fraud Journal expects that chargebacks will cost merchants over $100 billion in 2023.So whatCredit cards and debit cards offer a dispute process for cardholders to report issues with transactions. Legitimate reasons to file a dispute include:
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Unauthorized charges: Someone used your credit card without your permission.Billing errors: A merchant mistakenly charged you. For example, you canceled your gym membership, but it was charged anyway the next month.Problems with a purchase: This covers orders that aren’t delivered, quality issues, and other purchase issues.Some consumers take advantage of these protections to get fraudulent refunds. “As the economy cools down from historic highs, consumers are looking to save money however they can, luring many to resort to first-party fraud,” said Sift Trust and Safety Architect Brittany Allen in a press release announcing the survey results.Friendly fraud is a source of frustration for businesses, as they lose money when customers file chargebacks. It also affects shoppers, because merchants need to raise prices to account for fraudulent disputes.Visa has announced it will update its dispute program on April 15, 2023 to help merchants fight friendly fraud. While this is designed to limit fraud, it’s possible that changing the dispute process to help merchants could make it harder on consumers with legitimate card disputes.Now whatThe dispute process that credit cards and debit cards offer is a valuable protection for consumers. If you’re the victim of fraud, or there are problems with your purchase, you could get your money back. But it’s important to know when and how to dispute a charge.If you spot an unauthorized charge on your credit card, first double check to confirm that it’s fraud. Business names on a credit card statement don’t always match store names. Sometimes legitimate purchases look like fraud for this reason. If you’re sure that it isn’t a purchase you made, that’s a valid reason to file a dispute.For billing errors and problems with a product, contact the merchant first to see if you can resolve the issue with them. Some consumers don’t realize this, but unless it’s fraud, you’re supposed to reach out to the merchant before disputing a transaction. If you and the merchant can’t come to an agreement, that’s when you can file a dispute and let your credit card company take the lead.Top credit card wipes out interest until 2024If you have credit card debt, transferring it to this top balance transfer card secures you a 0% intro APR for up to 21 months! Plus, you’ll pay no annual fee. Those are just a few reasons why our experts rate this card as a top pick to help get control of your debt. Read our full review for free and apply in just 2 minutes.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.Lyle Daly has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Visa. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 

What happened

A whopping 23% of consumers admitted to disputing purchases as fraud, even though they received the item and were satisfied with the purchase, according to Sift’s Q4 2022 Digital Trust & Safety Index. This is commonly known as friendly fraud or first-party fraud, because the cardholder is the one committing fraud. The average value of a chargeback was $192.53 in 2022. Merchant Fraud Journal expects that chargebacks will cost merchants over $100 billion in 2023.

So what

Credit cards and debit cards offer a dispute process for cardholders to report issues with transactions. Legitimate reasons to file a dispute include:

Unauthorized charges: Someone used your credit card without your permission.Billing errors: A merchant mistakenly charged you. For example, you canceled your gym membership, but it was charged anyway the next month.Problems with a purchase: This covers orders that aren’t delivered, quality issues, and other purchase issues.

Some consumers take advantage of these protections to get fraudulent refunds. “As the economy cools down from historic highs, consumers are looking to save money however they can, luring many to resort to first-party fraud,” said Sift Trust and Safety Architect Brittany Allen in a press release announcing the survey results.

Friendly fraud is a source of frustration for businesses, as they lose money when customers file chargebacks. It also affects shoppers, because merchants need to raise prices to account for fraudulent disputes.

Visa has announced it will update its dispute program on April 15, 2023 to help merchants fight friendly fraud. While this is designed to limit fraud, it’s possible that changing the dispute process to help merchants could make it harder on consumers with legitimate card disputes.

Now what

The dispute process that credit cards and debit cards offer is a valuable protection for consumers. If you’re the victim of fraud, or there are problems with your purchase, you could get your money back. But it’s important to know when and how to dispute a charge.

If you spot an unauthorized charge on your credit card, first double check to confirm that it’s fraud. Business names on a credit card statement don’t always match store names. Sometimes legitimate purchases look like fraud for this reason. If you’re sure that it isn’t a purchase you made, that’s a valid reason to file a dispute.

For billing errors and problems with a product, contact the merchant first to see if you can resolve the issue with them. Some consumers don’t realize this, but unless it’s fraud, you’re supposed to reach out to the merchant before disputing a transaction. If you and the merchant can’t come to an agreement, that’s when you can file a dispute and let your credit card company take the lead.

Top credit card wipes out interest until 2024

If you have credit card debt, transferring it to this top balance transfer card secures you a 0% intro APR for up to 21 months! Plus, you’ll pay no annual fee. Those are just a few reasons why our experts rate this card as a top pick to help get control of your debt. Read our full review for free and apply in just 2 minutes.

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.Lyle Daly has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Visa. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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It’s a decision you may want to rethink, despite the potential savings. 

The great thing about hiring a real estate agent to sell your home is getting the help of an expert to oversee the process from start to finish. A real estate agent can help you market your home, land on the right listing price, and negotiate with buyers and their real estate agents on your behalf.

Plus, there’s something to be said for not having to go through the process of selling a home alone. If you hire a real estate agent, you’ll have someone to walk you through what could end up being a stressful endeavor (even a smooth home sale process can result in some amount of disruption to your everyday life).

But there’s a clear downside to hiring a real estate agent — having to pay them a commission. Real estate agents don’t work for free, and often, you’ll pay a fee that amounts to 5% or 6% of your home’s sale price.

This means that if you sell your home for $400,000, you could easily lose $20,000 to $24,000 due to having to pay a real estate agent. That’s money you won’t be able to put into your savings account or use for the purchase of a new home.

Meanwhile, many home sellers made the decision to forgo a real estate agent in 2021 and even during the first half of 2022, since the housing market gave them a clear upper hand. But is that a good bet in 2023? It may not be.

The housing market isn’t as hot

There’s still not enough inventory on the housing market to fully meet buyer demand, and that gives sellers today a general upper hand. But let’s be clear — sellers do not have the same glaring advantage over buyers they did in 2021, and even at the beginning of 2022. And it’s important to consider that when deciding whether to hire a real estate agent.

Over the past number of months, home price gains have slowed substantially. And while buyer demand hasn’t disappeared, it’s waned. We can thank higher mortgage rates for that.

Meanwhile, we could see an additional decrease in buyer demand this year as recession fears get into people’s heads. And given all of this, it could pay to hire a real estate agent this year — even if housing inventory doesn’t pick up all that much.

A fee that could pay for itself

The only real downside to hiring a real estate agent is the fee you’ll have to pay. And that fee could be substantial. But if you hire a real estate agent who’s really great at what they do, that fee might pay for itself.

Going back to our example, let’s say you end up losing $20,000 to a real estate agent fee in the course of a home sale. But let’s say that by using an agent, you end up getting $30,000 more for your home than you would’ve gotten had you sold it yourself. All told, you’re coming out ahead financially — and you’ll have potentially spared yourself some stress along the way.

Remember, selling a home can not only be a tough process, but it can also be a time-consuming one. And if you have a job and other responsibilities, you might need help to see it through. While it may have made sense to skip the real estate agent in 2021, when mortgage rates and housing inventory were so low that buyers were practically begging for homes, today’s market conditions are very different. So hiring a real estate agent could really work to your benefit.

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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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