Money Management

Want to buy a cheap hybrid car in 2024? There are good deals out there with just a bit of effort. See how to use car shopping sites and EV tax credits. [[{“value”:”

Are you in the market to buy a car in 2024? It often feels as if cars just keep getting more expensive, but the truth is, prices of used vehicles and electric vehicles have come down in the past year. Right now could be a good time to buy a car — especially if you’re a savvy shopper.

One good car-buying strategy for 2024 is to buy a cheap hybrid car. Fully electric vehicles tend to be more expensive than gas-powered cars, but hybrids are often more price competitive. And not everyone has good access to EV charging stations at home or in their neighborhood — a hybrid car can help you avoid range anxiety.

Let’s look at a few good tips for how to find cheap hybrid cars — and how to unlock extra savings that most Americans might not realize they can get.

1. Cars.com

Cars.com is a leading car-listing website where you can see cars for sale all over America. You can search by ZIP code to see cars close to you, or look farther afield if you’re willing to travel to another city or state to get the right car for the right price.

The Cars.com search tool also lets you sort (and shop by) hybrid vehicle and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) models. So if you want a Honda Accord hybrid or a Chrysler Pacifica Plug-in Hybrid, you can search for those specific cars to see which ones (new or used) might be available near you.

Cars.com is a good place to start your search, because it shows search results for dealerships, online car sales, and private sellers. Even if your preferred dealer isn’t listed on Cars.com, this site can still help you do price comparisons and research, so you can go into your car-buying negotiations with accurate information.

2. Autotrader.com

It’s always a good idea to use more than one search tool when shopping for cars, in case some good vehicles or dealer locations aren’t included in the first site you try. Autotrader (Autotrader.com) is another site for savvy car shoppers. It also offers an easy sort-and-search feature to find hybrid and electric vehicles.

With Autotrader, I quickly found a list of hybrids and plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) cars for sale within 500 miles of my home ZIP code. Some of the good deals I saw (as of April 13, 2024) included a 2017 Toyota Prius Prime Premium (with 50,537 miles) for $21,350, and a 2019 Ford Fusion SE (41,501 miles) for $17,999.

3. Edmunds.com

Edmunds.com is perhaps best known as a site you can use to estimate the value of your car for a sale or trade-in — but did you know that Edmunds can help you shop for cars, too? On Edmunds.com, you can search for hybrid or plug-in hybrid vehicles by specific make and model.

For example, I used the Edmunds car search site to quickly pull up a list of used Toyota Prius Prime PHEVs for sale within 500 miles of my home. Edmunds.com lets you search by online purchase, in-store purchase, or any buying experience; you can also search for cars that are available for home delivery.

In my Edmunds used car search, I saw listings from car dealerships and from Carvana, an online car-buying site. If you’re comfortable with buying a car online, this could be a good strategy to find better deals on cheap hybrid cars — find the right car at the right price, even if it’s a few hundred miles (or more away), and then get it delivered to you.

4. Costco Auto Program

If you’re a Costco member, the Costco Auto Program can help you save about $1,000 on the purchase of a new or used vehicle. You can search for the hybrid car you want, and then you’ll be connected to a nearby Approved Dealer that has agreed to offer special pricing for Costco members.

5. Big surprise discount: Used EV tax credits (up to $4,000)

Many Americans don’t know this one big secret to buying a cheaper hybrid car: EV tax credits. That’s right — EV tax credits are not only for fully electric vehicles. If you choose the right plug-in hybrid, you can get a used EV tax credit of up to $4,000.

That’s like an immediate $4,000 extra discount, right there at the dealership on the day you buy your car. Terms apply; your income must be below a qualifying level, and the used plug-in hybrid vehicle that you choose must be from certain makes, models, and years. The selling price of the vehicle must be $25,000 or less. Check out the full rules and details from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Bottom line

Buying a cheap hybrid car might be getting easier in 2024, with used car prices coming down. Use multiple search tools like Cars.com, Autotrader, and Edmunds.com to find good deals. Use the Costco Auto Program if it will help you save on the car you want. Don’t forget about used EV tax credits — plug-in hybrid cars can qualify for up to $4,000 of extra savings. Want to save money on hybrid car insurance? Lemonade offers special car insurance discounts for hybrids.

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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 positions in and recommends Costco Wholesale. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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Medication prices are determined by several entities. Find out why Americans pay far more than those in other countries. [[{“value”:”

If you happen to be one of the 131 million Americans who take doctor-prescribed medications, you probably already know that drug prices can feel astronomical. And that’s not an illusion: The costs are significantly higher here than elsewhere. For instance, a diabetes medication called Victoza 3-Pak averages $766 here, while the cost averages $472 in comparable countries. So how exactly are these prices set? And who or what determines that number?

Here’s what you need to know about how medication prices are set in the U.S., and how to save.

How medication pricing works in the U.S.

Drug manufacturers are the first layer where pricing for medications come into play. They decide how much to charge distributors for each dose, usually based on a combination of factors like research and development costs. And the more complex the process, the higher the cost.

But the pharmaceutical company’s rate is certainly not the price that you’ll pay. That’s because the distributors who get a hold of those drugs in turn set prices for pharmacies. Then pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) can negotiate the prices on behalf of insurers or employers. And finally, PBMs charge you, the patient, the negotiated price at the till.

Of course, if you have health insurance, your insurer would cover a portion of that cost based on the plan you select, assuming it’s a covered medication. And that’s how you come to pay the price you pay for each medication you take.

Why drugs cost more here than in comparable countries

Although it may be easy to point to insurers as the reason for high drug costs in the U.S., they aren’t the only cause. In fact, both public (84%) and private insurers (85%) here cover a similar share of those costs as those in other countries, according to the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker.

This issue actually originates in the fact that the costs of drugs in the U.S. start out higher before they get to the insurers. In fact, the U.S. pays more for prescribed medications than any of its peers, at about $1,000 per person. That’s compared to $554 when you average the costs in countries like Switzerland, the U.K., and Canada.

So why the stark difference?

In short: Government regulation. Many other developed countries have systems in place to regulate the costs of drugs as a whole, keeping those more suppressed. (However, that doesn’t mean they can’t increase from year to year.) Meanwhile, in the U.S., drug prices as a whole are not regulated. And when states do attempt to enact guardrails, they are met with lawsuits from the pharmaceutical industry. And it’s only been recently that Medicaid was empowered to negotiate some drug prices, which can help those individuals potentially save on 10 specific medications — but those price changes won’t kick in until 2026.

Ways to save on medication costs

Just because your insurance charges you a certain amount for your medication doesn’t mean that you can’t find ways to save.

For example, it’s usually always cheaper to go with generic versions of drugs whenever possible. Those have the same active ingredient as their name-brand counterparts, meaning they’re just as effective. But because they don’t come with the brand name, they don’t cost as much.

You may also want to ask your doctor about getting your medication in a higher dose and then splitting the pills. Be sure to check either the professional label insert or your patient package insert beforehand to make sure your medication can be safely split. In some cases, your insurance may bill that at a lower rate than you would pay for the same amount of medication you’re currently getting.

Mail order and online pharmacies can also provide a cheaper option for getting a drug. For instance, your insurance may charge a lower copay for those options if you also get a 90-day supply, and you wouldn’t have to pay for transportation getting to the pharmacy each time you need a refill.

Finally, some drug manufacturers will offer patient assistance programs for their medications. Often, qualifying for these programs depends on your income. And the assistance can come in the form of discount cards, or access to lower cost or even free medication. You can find these via websites like NeedyMeds and RxAssist.

Medications go through many rounds of pricing that can impact the size of your credit card tab at your local pharmacy. But if you can take the time to research your options, and talk to your doctor about finding ways to save, you may be able to access your medications more easily and with a smaller price tag.

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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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There’s no shortage of places where you can invest your money. Explore some of the best options if you have $1,000 right now. [[{“value”:”

One of the most common questions new investors ask is where they should put their money so it can grow. When you’ve been diligently saving, you don’t want that money to go to waste.

If you have $1,000 ready to invest, that’s a great starting point, and there are lots of ways you can use it. Below, you’ll find seven of the best places you can put that money. No single option is right for everyone — it’s all about choosing what’s right for your current financial situation.

1. Paying off debt

Many people don’t think of paying off debt as an investment, but it can be. It’s an especially good idea to pay down high-interest debt, such as credit card debt. Credit cards currently have an average interest rate of 21.59%, according to the Federal Reserve.

There’s no investment on the planet that consistently returns anywhere near 20%. So if you have credit card debt, you’ll most likely save more money by paying that down than you’d make by investing your money elsewhere.

2. An IRA

Individual retirement accounts (IRAs) help you save for retirement while saving on taxes. There are two types of IRAs:

Traditional IRAs allow you to deduct contributions from your taxable income.Roth IRAs don’t, but they allow you to make tax-free withdrawals in retirement.

You can buy almost any type of investment through an IRA, including stocks, bonds, and index funds. Keep in mind that you need to wait until you’re at least age 59 1/2 to withdraw money from an IRA. Otherwise, you’ll pay an early withdrawal penalty.

There are annual IRA contribution limits. The 2024 limit is $7,000, but if you’re 50 or older, the limit goes up to $8,000. Either way, it’s high enough that you could invest your entire $1,000 in an IRA if you want.

3. A taxable brokerage account

Another popular way to invest money is a taxable brokerage account. It doesn’t have the tax advantages of a retirement account, but it also doesn’t have any early withdrawal penalties.

It’s generally recommended to fund retirement accounts first so you can save on taxes. But if you’d also like an investment account without an early withdrawal penalty, a taxable brokerage account is a good choice. To find one, check out The Ascent’s guide to the best online stock brokers.

4. An index fund

Index funds are a type of investment you can purchase through a retirement account or taxable brokerage account. Each index fund aims to follow the performance of a specific market index — a segment of the financial markets.

Index funds are popular for a few reasons:

They make it easy to build a diversified portfolio. An index fund can invest your money across hundreds of stocks for you. For example, there are index funds that aim to track the performance of the whole U.S. stock market.They have low fees. Some investment funds have hefty management fees. Because index funds simply track an index, their fees tend to be very low — sometimes under 0.1%.They save time. Picking stocks yourself is time-consuming. When you put your money in an index fund, there’s no work required on your part.

5. A high-yield savings account

A savings account doesn’t exactly scream “exciting investment opportunity!” But rates are high right now. Some of the top high-yield savings accounts are offering 5% or more.

This could be the best place for your money if you don’t have much saved yet, and especially if you don’t have an emergency fund. Everyone needs money for emergencies. If you get hit with a surprise expense, and all your money is invested, you’ll need to find a way to get money out of that investment so you can deal with the bill. When you have an emergency fund, you can leave your investments alone.

6. Treasury securities

Treasury securities are fixed-income investments backed by the U.S. government. You purchase them for the length of time you want and earn a set interest rate. There are three types of Treasury securities:

Treasury bills (T-bills): Ranging from four to 52 weeks.Treasury notes (T-notes): Available with terms of two, three, four, five, seven, or 10 years.Treasury bonds (T-bonds): Available with terms of 20 or 30 years.

Since interest rates are high at the moment, you can earn a solid return on Treasury securities. It’s not as much as you could get by investing in the stock market, but Treasury securities don’t carry any risk of losing money.

7. A CD

Certificates of deposit (CDs) are another safe option. You can get them through banks or credit unions. The best CDs offer similar rates (and sometimes a little more) than savings accounts.

What makes CDs different from savings accounts is that you can’t withdraw your money any time. Each CD has a term, which is the amount of time you need to keep your money deposited to avoid an early withdrawal penalty. In exchange for doing that, the money you deposit earns a fixed interest rate. Even if interest rates drop on other banking products, your CD’s rate won’t.

Now that you know more about your options, you can decide on the best place to put your money. If you’re young and don’t have any debt, investing in an index fund is likely a smart move, either through an IRA or a taxable brokerage account. If you have credit card debt, it makes sense to pay that down first. And if eliminating your risk is most important, then savings accounts, Treasury securities, and CDs are all smart choices.

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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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Your net worth is something you should try to grow over time. Read on for ways to pull that off. [[{“value”:”

You may not sit there contemplating your net worth every day. And frankly, your net worth isn’t something to worry or stress about from one week to the next. Rather, a healthier approach to net worth is to have the goal of seeing yours rise gradually over time.

If you’re not sure what your net worth is, it’s a measure of your total assets minus your debts. As a very simple example, if you have a balance of $10,000 in your savings account and owe $4,000 on your credit cards, you’re left with a net worth of $6,000.

Meanwhile, data from Empower finds that 73% of Americans expect to boost their net worth in 2024. And that’s a good thing.

But remember, an optimal approach to raising net worth is to do so over your lifetime. With that in mind, here are some steps you can take to grow your net worth.

1. Minimize your debt

Since your debts are factored into your net worth, the less debt you have, the higher your net worth can be. But just as importantly, when you take on debt, you lose money to interest. That’s money that could instead be added to your asset column.

One way to steer clear of debt — particularly of the credit card variety — is to stick to a budget and track your spending. And if you’ve struggled to do that in the past because it can be tedious and even time-consuming, then you might have a lot more success with a budgeting app. These apps can sync to your various bank and credit card accounts so your spending is categorized and tracked automatically.

2. Invest money you don’t need for emergencies or near-term goals

Funds you’ve put aside for unplanned expenses, like home repairs, should always stay tucked away in your savings account. But if you have money you don’t expect to need or use for many years, then investing it could raise your net worth substantially over time.

The stock market’s average annual return over the past 50 years has been 10%. If you have $10,000 you don’t have a near-term need for, and you invest it for that same return over a 30-year period, it’ll be worth $174,000.

3. Buy a home — but only if that’s something you want to do

Real estate has a tendency to gain value over time. So if you purchase a home for $300,000 today, by the time you’re done paying off your mortgage, it may be worth $600,000.

However, you really should not buy a home for the express goal of increasing your net worth. Owning a home is a lot of work, and there are many expenses involved.

If you buy a home for $300,000, sure, it might double in value over 30 years. But you might end up spending $300,000 beyond your home’s purchase price on bills like property taxes, insurance, maintenance, and repairs during those three decades.

As such, only buy a home if that’s something you feel you want to do. If you’re not eager to commit to the work and prefer to rent, take the money you would’ve put toward a down payment and invest it in stocks instead. We just saw that doing so is a great way to raise your net worth without having to do things like constantly mow the lawn or fix leaky faucets.

It’s encouraging to see that most Americans anticipate their net worth increasing in 2024. But don’t fixate so much about raising your net worth this year. Instead, map out a plan to slowly but surely increase your net worth over time.

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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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