Money Management

A full year with an Executive membership can show you its worth with just one number. Here’s how to use it. [[{“value”:”

You should evaluate each subscription or membership service at least once a year to make sure you’re not paying for anything you aren’t using. That includes your Costco membership — especially if you have the costlier Executive membership.

For most people, the primary difference between the $120 Executive membership and the $60 Gold Star membership is the Costco Reward. As a Costco Executive member, you earn 2% back on your in-store purchases in the form of an annual Costco Reward (up to $1,000 back).

That Reward certificate is at the heart of the decision whether or not to renew.

Your Costco Reward should pay for the upgrade

Since your 2% back is why you pay twice as much for an Executive membership, that 2% should at least pay for the $60 difference in membership types. In other words, if your annual Reward isn’t at least $60, you’re probably losing money on the upgrade.

Here’s what 2% back looks like at different spending levels:

So, if you spend at least $250 a month shopping in-person at Costco, you probably break even on your Executive upgrade. (And if you spend at least $500 a month at Costco, you’re breaking even on your entire membership cost.)

If your annual Costco Reward isn’t enough to cover the upgrade cost — and your spending isn’t likely to increase over the next year — it’s time to downgrade back to a Gold Star membership.

You can get a refund if your Reward is low

The nice thing about Costco is that its return policy is tops. This extends even to the membership fees.

For example, if your annual Reward isn’t enough to cover the cost of your Executive membership upgrade, Costco will refund you the difference when you downgrade. You do have to downgrade or cancel, however; you can’t get the refund and keep your Executive membership.

Here’s what Costco’s website says about the policy: “To receive a refund for the current Executive upgrade fee, the membership must be canceled or downgraded to a Gold Star or Business Membership. Any 2% Reward issued or accrued will be subtracted from the refund and forfeited to the extent it exceeds the amount of any refund.”

Your Costco membership should pay for itself

So far, I’ve been focusing on whether you should keep your Executive membership versus downgrade to a Gold Star membership. But I want to stress that those are not the only options: You can also cancel your membership altogether.

Your Costco membership should pay for itself in savings. If you’re not saving at least $60 a year through lower prices, why are you paying Costco just to get through the door? Cancel your membership and put your $60 to better use.

As noted above, Costco’s generous refund policy extends to memberships. So if you realize you’re not happy with your Costco membership, you can get it refunded at any Costco location. (Just keep in mind that this can make it difficult to return previously purchased items.)

A Costco membership can be good for your budget, but that’s hardly a guarantee. And that’s extra true when it comes to an Executive membership upgrade. Make sure you’re getting your money’s worth before you decide to renew this year.

Top credit card to use at Costco (and everywhere else!)

If you’re shopping with a debit card, you could be missing out on hundreds or even thousands of dollars each year. These versatile credit cards offer huge rewards everywhere, including Costco, and are rated the best cards of 2024 by our experts because they offer hefty sign-up bonuses and outstanding cash rewards. Plus, you’ll save on credit card interest because all of these recommendations include a competitive 0% interest period.

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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 Costco Wholesale. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Going it alone isn’t ideal for most business owners. Read on to discover why having a strong partner could help your business grow. [[{“value”:”

Starting a small business is equal parts exciting and intimidating. Many people have a great business idea and jump in head first, figuring things out as they go. While others take a more systematic approach, planning out each step of the process.

No matter which strategy you choose when launching your small business, here’s one thing all small business owners should do before starting.

Get a partner

Starting your own business requires a lot of work, many long hours, and likely a significant financial investment. To be successful, you’ll likely need a good partner to help you.

A good partner can help share the workload, bring in new clients, assist with funding, add their unique expertise, and contribute new ideas to your business. There can be a lot of stress and disagreements about how business partnerships work, so it’s essential to clearly establish who is responsible for what parts of the business.

If you choose to formalize the partnership, consider setting up your business as a limited partnership (LP) or a limited liability partnership (LLP). An LP is when only one general partner has unlimited liability, while other partners have limited liability.

On the other hand, a LLP helps protect all partners from debts against the partnership, according to the Small Business Administration.

How to find the right people to partner with

No two small businesses are alike, so the partnership you need may differ from someone else’s. To determine which partner is best for you, you’ll need to figure out what’s important to you.

Here are a few factors to consider:

Shared vision: Does your potential partner share the same vision for your small business? The path to your business’ success may take a lot of twists and turns, but all partners must want the same eventual outcome for the business. Responsibility: An enthusiastic partner is great, but you also want to work alongside people who will work hard and take ownership of their responsibilities.Team focus: Some conflicts are normal in business, so you’ll need people willing to work past disagreements. Look for people willing to collaborate and work toward long-term business goals.

There’s no perfect formula for choosing a partner, but it may be wise to work on a few projects with a potential partner first. This way, you can test drive the partnership before you make a significant time and financial commitment with them.

What happens if you don’t find a good partner?

A recent survey by The Zebra found that if there was one thing business owners say they would change about their business, “different partners” was one of the top three responses. Ouch.

Partnerships take a lot of work and are challenging to get right. That may be why nearly 70% of business partnerships fail. The common reasons are disagreements over money, uncommitted partners, differing views on how the business should be run, and a lack of business success.

This is why finding the right people to come alongside your small business from the beginning is so important. You might be tempted to breeze through this step and get on with the real work of building your business, but if you overlook the importance of having a strong partner, it could be detrimental to your business and its finances.

Alert: highest cash back card we’ve seen now has 0% intro APR until 2025

This credit card is not just good – it’s so exceptional that our experts use it personally. It features a 0% intro APR for 15 months, a cash back rate of up to 5%, and all somehow for no annual fee!

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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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Balance transfers can be a great financial tool if they make sense. Here’s how to know for sure. [[{“value”:”

Although credit card interest rates have risen considerably over the past couple of years, it’s still possible to find 0% intro APR balance transfer offers lasting as long as 21 months.

Balance transfers can be an excellent financial tool in many cases. They can help you consolidate credit card debt and ensure that every penny you pay is applied to the principal, not toward putting interest income in your bank’s pocket. But they don’t make sense in every situation.

With that in mind, here are three important questions to ask yourself before applying for a new balance transfer credit card.

1. Is the balance transfer fee worth paying?

If you’ve never transferred a credit card balance before, you might not have realized that it isn’t free. At least, not usually.

Balance transfers typically come with a fee that ranges from 3% to 5% of the amount you transfer, and this is true whether you are taking advantage of a 0% intro APR balance transfer offer or not. In other words, if you transfer $5,000 worth of credit card balances, you can expect $150 to $250 to be added to the new balance once the transfer is completed.

So, one of the biggest questions to ask yourself is whether the fee is worth paying or not. In some cases, the answer can certainly be yes. For example, if your credit card debt has a 25% APR and you can get a 0% APR balance transfer for 18 months, the long-term interest savings can justify paying the fee. But if you could leave the debt where it is and knock out your balance in just a few months, it might not be worth paying.

2. How fast can you pay off your debt?

Before you use a 0% intro APR balance transfer offer, you need to be sure that you can reasonably afford to pay off the entire balance before the introductory period runs out. You can do this by taking the balance you plan to transfer (including the balance transfer fee) and dividing it by the number of months your card is offering a 0% intro APR.

For example, let’s say that your card offers an 18-month 0% intro APR on balance transfers and a 3% balance transfer fee. If you have $5,000 to transfer, you’ll have a $5,150 balance on the new card. Dividing this by 18 months shows that you’ll need to pay about $286 per month to get the balance to zero before the promotional period expires.

3. Could a personal loan be the better choice?

Depending on the answer to the last question, one thing to ask yourself is whether you might be better off using a personal loan to help get out of credit card debt. To be sure, personal loans don’t have 0% intro APR deals (at least not any we’ve heard of!).

However, personal loan interest rates can be significantly lower than your credit card’s APR. Plus, you can get repayment terms of as long as 72 months (six years) or even more in some cases, which can help keep your monthly payment more affordable.

Personal loans also have significantly higher borrowing limits than most balance transfer credit cards, and also tend to be better for your credit score. Installment debt is generally considered more favorably in the FICO® Score formula, and that’s especially true if your balance transfer essentially results in a maxed-out credit card.

The bottom line

Every financial situation is different, so there’s no perfect answer for everyone. In some cases, a balance transfer can be a great financial tool. However, for some consumers, a personal loan is the better way to go, and in other cases it could make sense to simply leave your debt where it is and pay it down as aggressively as possible.

Alert: highest cash back card we’ve seen now has 0% intro APR until 2025

This credit card is not just good – it’s so exceptional that our experts use it personally. It features a 0% intro APR for 15 months, a cash back rate of up to 5%, and all somehow for no annual fee!

Click here to 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.The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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