Money Management

Gas credit cards offer a discount when you buy gas at certain gas stations. Read on to learn if these cards really stack up to other credit cards. [[{“value”:”

Gas credit cards are cards that earn higher rewards or cash back for gas purchases. Generally, these cards come in two types. The first is a general-use credit card that gives you a fixed percentage back on your gas purchases, like 2%. The second is a branded gas credit card that earns more rewards with whichever gas company has issued the card, like Shell or BP.

I’m not a huge fan of branded gas credit cards. Although they might benefit drivers who are loyal to one brand, they also have several weaknesses. If you’re considering opening a credit card offered by your favorite gas station, here are some drawbacks to consider.

1. The savings aren’t always worth it

Gas branded credit cards often give you instant savings at the pump, instead of cash back or rewards. Typically, the card will reduce the price of the gas you’re buying by a fixed amount, like $0.10 per gallon. These cards may also earn rewards on non-fuel purchases, such as food purchased within the gas station’s convenience store.

When you do the math, the per-gallon reduction isn’t always competitive, especially if you live where gas prices are above the national average ($3.675 as of April 22, 2024). For example, let’s say you live in California, where regular gas prices currently average $5.436 per gallon. If you save $0.10 per gallon on your gas credit card, then you effectively earn about 1.8% back. Considering that many of the best cash back credit cards earn at least 2% back on gas, this gas credit card may not save you the most money.

On the other hand, say you live in Texas, where regular gas prices currently average $3.267 per gallon. For you, saving $0.10 per gallon is like getting 3% back. That’s on par with many rewards credit cards, even those designed to earn more on gas purchases.

2. Welcome bonuses can be weak

Some gas credit cards come with welcome bonuses. The bonus is usually a boost to your per gallon savings. For instance, while the card may normally save you $0.10 per gallon, a bonus might boost this to $0.30 for your card’s first 60 days.

While getting $0.30 off per gallon may sound appealing, in practice it may not save you all that much. For instance, let’s say you fill up twice a month, and you buy 12 gallons of gas per refueling stop. You would save $3.60 per fuel purchase with the discount. If the bonus lasts 60 days, that gives you about $14 in savings. Since many no fee credit cards have welcome bonuses worth $200 or more, this bonus doesn’t stack up well.

But do the math for yourself, because it might make sense if your car has a larger gas tank or you plan to fill up more often within the bonus period.

3. Branded cards can teether you to gas stations

Finally, many gas credit cards are closed-loop, meaning you can only use them at a specific company or brand. Even if the card is open-loop, meaning you can use it wherever the card is accepted, the fuel discount typically only applies at the brand’s chain of gas stations.

Why is this a problem? Well, it might force you to buy gas at a station whose prices aren’t the lowest. For instance, if you have a Shell credit card, you might be inclined to only buy gas at Shell stations, even if its prices aren’t lower than, say, Race Track, Valero, or Costco. Even a price difference of a few cents could start to eat into whatever savings your Shell credit card gives you.

Now, to be fair, gas credit cards might make financial sense for some drivers. For instance, if you live where the price of gas is below the national average and you’re loyal to one gas station, you might earn more on a branded gas credit card than other options. Otherwise check out the best cards for gas and see if one offers rewards that might be more conducive to your spending.

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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 one absolutely vital step to take first if you’re hoping to buy a home. Keep reading to learn why it’s so important. [[{“value”:”

Is becoming a homeowner important to you? You’re not alone — according to data from Statista, 65.7% of Americans owned their own house as of 2023. If you’re hoping to get on the property ladder this year, you might already be dreaming about house hunting.

But wait! Before you start trolling Zillow, showing up at open houses, and bugging a real estate agent to set up private viewings for you, there’s something you should do first: get pre-approved for a mortgage. Here’s why.

Talk to mortgage lenders first

You always want to shop around with mortgage lenders and get them to vet your finances before you start seriously looking for a home to buy. This might sound like a stressful task, and yes, it can be. You’ll be required to provide information about yourself and documents to support your case to be extended a home loan, such as bank statements and W-2s from your employer (or if you’re self-employed like me, tax returns).

Lenders will also check your credit — when I went through this process, I kept getting pinged with emails from the credit-monitoring services I use, informing me of hard inquiries. Getting a mortgage pre-approval is no guarantee you’ll be approved for real, but assuming you’ve been honest about your financial situation and nothing changes before you formally apply for a loan after finding a house, you stand a good chance.

Why is this so important?

There are a few reasons, actually.

You learn about rates

Mortgage rates are currently higher than what we’ve seen these last few years — 6.88% is the current average rate on a 30-year fixed loan, according to Freddie Mac. But you won’t know what rate you’ll be offered unless you apply for pre-approval. And you might learn about other mortgage options, too — such as adjustable-rate loans.

Your mortgage rate depends on your credit and financial situation, after all. Different lenders will have different deals for you, which is why you want to seek pre-approvals from more than one. (If you do them all within 14 days, the hit to your credit will be minimal.)

You get a full range of mortgage options

When you talk to lenders, you find out about different programs they offer that you might qualify for. Maybe you’re a first-time buyer and can use an FHA loan. If you’re a veteran, surviving spouse, or active-duty service member, a VA loan could help you get into a house. Or maybe a lender can point you toward different down payment assistance programs you qualify for.

You’ll be more competitive

While the housing market is still currently pretty lousy overall, it’s definitely tipped in favor of sellers, not buyers. According to data from the National Association of Realtors, in February 2024, there was a supply of just 2.9 months’ worth of homes for sale — and it takes closer to six months’ worth to satisfy buyer demand and equalize the market.

If you go into house hunting having already had your finances vetted by a mortgage lender, you’re going to have an edge over all those buyers who didn’t bother. You’ll already be in good shape to craft an offer and know that it’s one you should be able to afford. A seller’s agent knows that an offer from a pre-approved buyer has more weight and will tell their clients just that.

A real estate agent may not want to work with you otherwise

Speaking of making offers, a good real estate agent may not even want to work with you if you don’t have pre-approval. If one does, you might fall in love with a house and have the agent put together an offer for you, and just assume you’re in fine financial shape to borrow.

But if your offer is accepted (despite a lack of pre-approval), and it turns out you can’t actually get a mortgage, you’ll have wasted a busy professional’s time — plus your own. Crafting an offer is not a short process, by the way. In my experience, it takes a few hours to put everything together. Plus, it’s nerve-wracking to wait to hear back from the sellers.

You get to feel more confident

Finally, having pre-approval ahead of house hunting gives you confidence. My own history with homeownership is not good, and I swore for years that I’d never buy a house again. Ultimately, I changed my mind, and I am now eating crow as I wait on a mortgage closing. Having a handful of lenders look at my finances helped me feel just a little bit better about the whole process.

I thought my credit score, income, and other financial bona fides were sufficient to qualify me to get a mortgage, but I didn’t know for sure. Learning that yes, I was likely to be approved to borrow more money than I’ve ever borrowed before helped me start looking with more of a spring in my step.

Spring and summer are the most popular times to go house hunting — the weather is good, sellers are putting their homes on the market, and the air feels ripe with possibility. Why not give yourself an edge before you start going to showings?

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

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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 Zillow Group. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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If you want to take advantage of today’s high CD rates, building a CD ladder could be the way to go. Learn why this strategy makes sense for beginners. [[{“value”:”

Today’s high interest rates have many people interested in investing in certificates of deposit (CDs).

If you’re a beginning CD investor, here’s why CD laddering can be a great strategy that can take the guesswork out of investing and ensure you’re guaranteed today’s high rates for a long time to come.

A CD ladder can be an ideal choice for beginning CD investors

A CD ladder is a good option if you want to get started investing in CDs. To understand why, let’s take a look at how it works.

With a CD ladder, you don’t just open one CD. You open a bunch with different term lengths. Each CD is a rung on your ladder. For example, you might open:

A CD from The Ascent’s list of the best 12-month CD rates, which offer rates up to 5.25%.A CD from our list of the best 2-year CD rates, which offer rates up to 4.65%.A CD from our list of the best 3-year CD rates, which offer rates up to 4.45%.A CD from our list of the best 4-year CD rates, which offer rates up to 4.30%.A CD from our list of the best 5-year CD rates, which offer rates up to 4.35%.

You’d typically invest the same amount in each CD, with the amount determined by how much money you have. So, if you wanted to put $5,000 total into CDs, you’d put $1,000 into each one. Then, as each CD matures, you’d then either reclaim your funds for other goals or reinvest them in a new 5-year CD.

You just need to make sure you have enough to meet the minimum balance requirements of each CD. Fortunately, many of the options on our lists have no minimum deposit requirement, so you don’t necessarily need a lot of money to get started.

Why would you want to create a CD ladder as a beginner?

There are big benefits to using this investing strategy — especially for beginners.

You can take advantage of today’s high rates on short-term CDs and guarantee you’ll keep earning competitive rates for a long time. Rates on all CD term lengths have been higher recently than they’ve been in years. But short-term CDs are offering especially high yields. You can take advantage of those while also locking in today’s unprecedented rates for half a decade.You won’t have to tie up a lot of money for a long time. CDs will start maturing after a year and mature every year thereafter. So if you decide CD investing isn’t for you, you’ll be getting your money back pretty soon and on a regular schedule.You can take the guesswork out of investing. You don’t have to try to guess whether interest rates are going to go up (in which case you’d be better off with a short-term CD) or down (in which case you’d be better off with a long-term one). You get the best of all worlds and hedge your bets.

There’s no reason not to give this proven strategy a try. But before you do, check these moves off your to-do list:

Decide how much money to devote to your CD ladder. This should be money you can afford to tie up for a while, But it should not be money you’re investing for the long term (five or more years). That money belongs in a brokerage account offering higher potential returns.Pick a CD from each of the lists above and open an account online. Then deposit an equal amount of money into each one.

Finally, just sit back and watch your money earn competitive yields with no risk. It’s a simple, straightforward approach any beginner should love.

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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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A Costco Executive membership adds $60 onto your membership cost. Learn why this upgrade may not be worth it. [[{“value”:”

An entry-level Costco membership will cost you $60 a year. An upgraded Executive membership comes at a price of $120 annually.

Paying the extra $60 can make sense, but for many people, the upgrade is not worth it. Here’s why.

1. It encourages you to spend more to make your membership worth it

One of the biggest benefits of Costco’s upgraded membership is that you get 2% back on Costco purchases. However, in order for those rewards to justify the cost of the membership fee, you have to spend at least $3,000 a year at Costco.

Costco’s typical customer spends around $3,018 a year at the warehouse club, which is pretty close to the amount needed to cover the Executive membership fee. But you might spend a lot less than the average customer. Or you might be close to spending $3,000, but not quite there.

If you’re concerned about not getting your money’s worth, it’s really tempting to put some extra items in your cart to get above that $3,000 threshold to break even. But that’s a problem if you’re making purchases you wouldn’t have otherwise.

It may seem silly, but people make these kinds of financial decisions all the time because they don’t like the feeling of “losing out” or “wasting money” on their Costco membership. And the 2% cash back bonus that Costco’s Executive membership offers is set up to tempt you to spend more.

2. You have to be an active member to get your rewards

Unlike cash back credit cards or Sam’s Club rewards, Costco pays out its membership rewards annually. The reward is issued three months before your renewal date, and you’re required to be a current, paid Executive member at the end of the membership year to get the money.

This is a long time to wait for your rewards, when you could be using that bonus money to lower your costs throughout the year. If you buy a $1,000 item at the start of your membership year, you aren’t getting the $20 back you just earned for nearly a year!

Plus, if you want to cancel or downgrade your membership because you decide it’s not working for you, you may keep it just to not lose out on your cash back. This could mean paying extra money for a membership you no longer really want and aren’t using to its best advantage.

3. Many of the perks aren’t services you’ll use often

Costco offers some additional perks to Executive members. But they’re so lackluster, by most standards, that Costco doesn’t even list them on its membership promotions page beyond saying you get “Additional benefits and discounts on many Costco services.”

When you dig into the details, you learn that these extra perks include things like:

Extra savings on bottled water deliveryDiscounts on pet insuranceRoadside and lockout assistance — only if you have auto insurance through CostcoDiscounted checksBusiness payment processingDiscounted new and pre-owned vehicles

When was the last time you had bottled water delivered — or ordered checks, for that matter? Unless you’re planning on buying a car or signing up for pet or auto insurance, you probably won’t benefit enough from these additional perks to justify the extra cost.

Should you sign up for the Costco Executive membership?

The bottom line is this: If you definitely 100% will spend more than $3,000 at Costco and you know you want to remain a Costco Executive member, you should sign up for the upgraded membership.

If you don’t think you’ll hit that spending target, aren’t sure if you’ll renew your membership, don’t like waiting all year for rewards, and won’t use the limited number of extra benefits your membership buys you, then you shouldn’t bother with the extra budget hit of the Executive membership.

The good news is, there are plenty of other ways to save at Costco, even with an entry-level membership. You can buy its Kirkland Signature branded products that come at a steep discount or sign up for a credit card that gives you added bonus rewards for shopping there, like the Costco credit card. Try one of those options out rather than wasting your money on a membership that won’t be worth it.

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.

Click here to read our expert recommendations for free!

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.Christy Bieber 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 above and beyond your customers’ expectations can make a difference to your bottom line. Find out how to surprise your customers and build loyalty. [[{“value”:”

One of the big challenges when you’re running a small business is promoting and selling your product. It takes a huge amount of effort to attract new customers and generate those all-important sales. Once you’ve got them, there’s another hurdle to cross: keeping them.

Per HBR, a 5% increase in customer retention rates can translate into a 25% to 95% increase in profits, according to research done by Bain & Company. Plus, it costs a lot more to keep an existing customer than to attract a new one. Here are some ways to delight customers that could boost retention and help your bottom line.

1. Write a thank-you note

A customer’s experience with your brand can be broken into many individual points of contact. Use top CRM software to help you map out customer journeys and even automate some of the actions involved. Think about how you can go above and beyond with each step they take with you.

There’s no single formula for delighting your customers, but a handwritten thank-you note can go a long way. Be sure to use your customer’s name and explain why their purchase matters. If it’s a regular customer, recognize their continued support and see if you can share any relevant promotions or offers to show your appreciation.

More widely, review all of your communications, including your website and social media. Use language that will draw people in from the get-go. Make it as warm and engaging as possible. People want to feel as if they are dealing with other humans, so don’t be afraid to inject character or even humor into your words. Include your team’s pictures alongside their bios on your website and encourage them to share their favorite movie, ice cream flavor, or color.

2. Give customers a small gift

Gifts don’t have to break the bank, and they can be an excellent way to charm your customers. If it’s an online purchase (and the mailing costs are already covered), think about including an extra little something in the package.

For example, I recently bought some gardening materials online. When I opened the box, I found a small bag of seeds and a thank you note from the company. Now, seeds may not be an appropriate gift if your company, say, creates websites. Perhaps you could instead offer a complimentary follow-up after six months to evaluate the site’s performance.

Brainstorm with your team to find something that’s affordable and appropriate. Or see whether there’s a value-in-kind deal that might be beneficial to both sides. I run a small local newspaper with an extremely limited budget. We wanted to give small Christmas gifts a while back. Since we didn’t have any budget, we negotiated with a new bakery to give us cookies in exchange for advertising in the paper.

3. Offer a lifetime guarantee

Guarantees won’t work for every business, and it’s important to consider the pros and cons before you make a promise you can’t deliver on. Nonetheless, if you’re looking to go the extra mile, a lifetime guarantee is one way of putting your money where your mouth is.

Take Patagonia, an outdoors brand that’s been offering an ironclad guarantee since 1973. The company’s commitment to sustainable clothing is part of their brand. It will repair, replace, or refund items if a product doesn’t do what it should. It is not alone — you’ll find examples of everything from yoga mat manufacturers to teddy bear makers who offer the same promise.

On the downside, people may abuse your warranty. There are also financial and legal implications that could be difficult for a small business to swallow. If a lifetime warranty feels too much, consider a time-related guarantee or a results-based commitment.

4. Remember your customers’ birthdays — and other key events

There are all kinds of cost-effective ways you can put your customer data to work for you, including tailored communications that speak to their needs. Email marketing software makes it easy to target specific groups of people with personalized messages.

But personalized emails won’t be enough to wow your customers. Go further by remembering their birthdays and offering a discount or free gift to celebrate. If it’s a big customer and you can make a phone call or send a card, so much the better. Ben & Jerry gives rewards program members free ice cream on their special day.

Beyond birthdays, other milestones offer great opportunities to surprise your customers and deepen your relationship with them. That might mean celebrating a certain number of purchases or their anniversary with your company. If someone is your top client for that month, recognize it.

Depending on what service you provide, perhaps you could pull together a fun year-end message with highlights of your client’s activities. For example, Spotify sends each user a curated list of their top songs and bands from the year. Duolingo builds personalized year-in-review messages celebrating each person’s language learning achievements.

Brainstorm with your team to find thoughtful ways to celebrate your customers. The key is to think about what your customers might like — it is about them, not you.

Get the basics right

This article is about ways to surprise and delight. But it’s worth pointing out that those wow moments will never replace the fundamentals. You need to meet your clients’ expectations before you can do something special. That means delivering on your promises, taking steps to protect their data, responding to their queries, and offering a quality product. Only then can you put a cherry on top of your already-excellent service.

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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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Feeding my family has become expensive. Read on for a few ways I’ve been able to cut my grocery costs. [[{“value”:”

Whether you’re single, partnered, or have multiple children, food can be one of the most expensive line items in your budget. Or at least that’s the case in my household. Because of this, I’m always trying to do what I can to lower my supermarket spending. And here are five tricks that tend to work well for me.

1. Shopping with a list

Making a list of grocery items helps me stay focused at the supermarket. But I don’t just stick to a list — I make it a rule to not venture into aisles if they don’t contain an item on my list. This helps me avoid impulse buys, which are an easy thing to make at the supermarket.

One tool that I find helpful in list-making is Google Keep. It’s an app on my phone that lets me add items and check them off easily. It’s less clunky than bringing along a physical list and a pen.

Plus, with Keep, once you’ve checked an item off of your list, it doesn’t get deleted — it just gets checked off. This is helpful because if there are staple items you tend to buy weekly, you don’t have to completely reinvent your list every time. You can go through your checked off items and uncheck them.

2. Downloading digital coupons

I know some people who spend hours each week seeking out grocery coupons. As a busy parent with a full-time job, I just can’t sink that much time into couponing. And since I’m self-employed, it doesn’t make financial sense for me to give up income to potentially save an extra $7 or $8 at the supermarket.

But one thing that does make sense is for me to log into my supermarket account online and load all of that week’s digital coupons to my store rewards card. It’s a step that takes under three minutes and has saved me a nice amount of money at times.

3. Shopping kid-free

If you’re a stay-at-home parent with young kids, you may not have the option to shop for food without your children. But since I work from home and my kids are at school during the day, I commonly go grocery shopping without my kids. And it tends to be a major money-saver.

First of all, when you shop with kids and they start getting antsy, it can make you antsy. And when you’re frazzled, you’re less likely to make savvy decisions.

But also, when I shop with my kids, they tend to ask for things that aren’t on my list. And it’s hard to say no because my kids are at an age where they’ll throw out things like, “Well if you don’t want to buy me those $3 chips, I’ll just take the money out of my bank account.”

Take it from me — the money never comes out of their bank accounts. It just adds to my tab because I don’t have the heart to randomly take $2 or $3 from my kids.

But it’s annoying to spend those small amounts, because they add up. And you might have the same experience, which is why shopping without your children might be a better bet. If you can’t pull it off during the day, see if a partner or neighbor can look after them while you do your food shopping in the evening.

4. Loading up on store brands

The fact that I’m not a brand snob has saved me a lot of money on groceries through the years. And for items like rice and pasta, there’s really no reason not to choose the store brand if it’s cheaper, since items like these don’t really have their own taste — they take on the taste of the ingredients you add to them.

Of course, at times, you may find that if a given brand name is on sale, that it’s cheaper than the store brands, so it always pays to look. But don’t write off trying store brands if you’re trying to lower your costs.

5. Using the right credit card

Credit card rewards can vary from one card to the next. But one thing I do is pay for groceries using a credit card that offers more than 1% cash back in that category. So if you don’t have a card in your wallet offering better than 1%, do some research and consider applying for a credit card with better supermarket rewards.

Remember, grocery shopping is something you do regularly. And while it’s not a great thing to open too many new credit card accounts in short order, it could benefit you to apply for one more new card if it gives you extra money back on food.

In March, food costs were up 1.2% from a year prior, according to that month’s Consumer Price Index. So it’s a good time to be mindful of your supermarket spending. If you employ these tips, you may find that you’re able to shave some money off of your bills at a time when groceries remain expensive.

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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.Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool’s board of directors. Maurie Backman has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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