Here are the resources I personally use to help manage my finances.
RETIREMENT / INVESTING
Personal Capital
Personal Capital My favorite FREE financial software and tools (including an investment fee analyzer and my favorite retirement planner). This is an affiliate link with a $50 signup bonus.
Personal Capital is sort of the “Mint” of investing. The financial software allows you to pull in all your accounts from all over into one handy dashboard. Watch your financial dreams become reality as you can then chart your overall progress towards your financial goals, such as retirement.
Calculate your NET WORTH. Get your FREE, secure Financial Dashboard. 🙌 (FREE +$50 SIGN-UP BONUS)
You can use the dashboard for free without having to enroll as a client of Personal Capital‘s wealth management services. Upon signup, they will definitely try to recruit you to use their services; however, if you’re not interested, answer their phone call and tell them as much so they will leave you alone. Personally, we use and appreciate their wealth management services. I’ve tried convincing my husband into trying a robo-investor, but he’s been too happy with the results of our portfolio since switching to Personal Capital. PC has been good at making strategic decisions based on our portfolio as a whole and making sure we maximize tax benefits.
Just Getting Started with Investing?
You might be better off with one of the smaller robo-investors such as Betterment (no minimum to start investing). Their fees are extremely low (at the time I’m writing this, 0.25%).
I use both Wealthfront and Betterment, but I recommend Betterment because they offer some a la carte services with a Certified Financial Planner if you decide you need/want to meet with one.
BETTERMENT - Use this link to get $5,000 managed for free
My Favorite Budgeting Tool
Honestly, I’m not a budget tool snob. The best budgeting tool is the ONE YOU’LL ACTUALLY USE–whatever that is. I think a spreadsheet or notebook works fine. But since you asked . . . I’ve used a lot of tools–e.g. Mint, EveryDollar, and Quicken. The budgeting tool I recommend is YNAB (You Need A Budget)–affiliate link. YNAB is not free ($84/yr or $7/month) and has a learning curve (free apps: Mint and Clarity Money); however, in my experience, nothing beats YNAB’s ability to plan for future large purchases (e.g. new car, vacation, home). YNAB also has great customer service (a real human response to all your questions via email and will continue to follow-up until you’re satisfied), so you won’t be on your own. Also, if you’re trying to pay down debt, you can join one of their Facebook communities to help you stay motivated and on track.
Rakuten – Extra Cash-Back While Shopping–
There are several companies that offer cash-back for your online shopping.
Things I love about Rakuten (formerly Ebates):
- They *AUTOMATICALLY MAIL YOU A CHECK* quarterly so it’s hassle-free. My husband and I have been using them since 2010 and have so far received $2,435.50 (for things we were buying anyway–we always get our biggest check post-Christmas).
- They *AUTOMATICALLY REMIND YOU* when you’re on a site that offers cash-back (When you install the web browser app–which you SHOULD). One-click on that reminder and you’re set.
- At check-out, they automatically apply every *COUPON CODE* available so you DON’T MISS A DEAL–it often fides a coupon I didn’t know about that saves me money.
Sign-up bonus:
This affiliate link *GIVES YOU AN EXTRA CASHBACK* for your first quarterly check! Enjoy!
To Stay On Top of My Credit Report / Score:
CreditKarma.com – (Free) They break down your score into the five categories that make up your credit score (payment history, debt usage, credit age, account mix, and credit inquiries). Also, they’ll suggest a plan of attack to help you improve your score.
Check your CREDIT SCORE for FREE with Credit Karma
Taxes
I wrote about my favorite ways to file taxes online (for FREE). Including TaxSlayer.
Rate-Checking
Bankrate.com – This helps me stay on top of the current market rates for mortgages, savings, and money market accounts.
Blogging
Here are all my favorite blogging resources (including the course I took to learn about how to make money blogging).
Those are my favorite resources! I’ll update this page regularly so you can always stay up to date on my favorites tools for keeping your finances in shape. I only recommend my truly favorite products that I actually use, but FYI, some of these links are affiliate links. What does that mean? If you click on affiliate links and then purchase the product, I’ll receive some money to cover the costs of running Money Fit Moms. Thank you in advance for supporting the mission of MFM! – Lisa
