Over our 10+ years of research, networking, interviews, and finance conferences we’ve collected a TON of great resources to help with various areas of personal finance.
We’ve tried to break these into groups and sections for quick finding. But if there’s something we’ve missed, hit us up here!
**Affiliate disclosure: Some links below are affiliate links and we might receive a small commission for referring people. Don’t worry, we only recommend stuff that we believe in 💯**
401k & 403b 🧾
- Capitalize is a site where you can easily roll over an old 401k or 403b for free. If you’ve left your employer and still have an old retirement plan with them, it’s usually in your best interest to roll that over to an IRA. Don’t let your retirement dollars languish with an inferior (and expensive) provider! (Also check out our full Capitalize Review post, based on Joel’s personal experience!)
- Human Interest helps small and medium businesses set up 401k plans if they don’t offer them currently to employees! (They can also provide Traditional and Roth 401(k)s, 403(b)s, safe harbor plans, and profit-sharing plans). If you are a small business owner, check them out, and if you’re an employee –> forward their info to your bosses and ask them to start giving you retirement benefits! 😉
- If you happen to be employed by a school or non-profit and you have a 403b, then head to 403bwise.org to search their database so you can determine if you have a good one or not.
- It might even be worth checking out 403bcompare and checking out the 403bwise Facebook group if you have specific questions.
529 Savings 👩🎓
- How to Maximize 529 College Savings Plans. (Also check out our list of 529 plan alternatives!)
- Morningstar has ranked and rated the best 529 accounts out there.
- Check out Backer.com if others are looking for an easy and direct way to contribute to your child’s 529.
- Besides a 529, here are all the investing account options for kids.
- Don’t forget, the best way to prepare your kids for a bright financial future is teaching kids about money while they are young, and teaching kids to invest as they get older.
ABLE Accounts 🦽
- The ABLE National Resource Center and Savingforcollege.com both do a great job highlighting fees, allowing you to easily compare plans, and showing which states offer the best ABLE accounts.
Banking (Checking/Savings Accounts) 🏦
Generally, we recommend online banks that are FDIC insured. Without a physical footprint (less overhead), they can offer superior rates than traditional banks and charge customers less – or sometimes nothing at all!
- CIT Bank is what we personally use. No fees, no minimums, and some of the best savings rates for your emergency fund.
- Discover has competitive savings interest rates and no monthly fees (and free checks!)
- Ally has a huge range of banking services. Their ‘buckets’ feature is one of our faves.
- Marcus is backed by Goldman Sachs, offering good interest rates and no fee accounts.
- It’s worth any hassle to switch away from one of the bigs to a solid online bank- plus it’s actually easier than you think.
- Credit Unions: Check out SaveToWin.org to see if there’s a credit union near you that offers sweepstakes savings accounts.
Biking 🚲
- Traffic sucks. And once upon a time we dedicated an entire episode to how commuting to work is killing you.
- We firmly believe that you can bike your way to wealth!
- And we’re big fans of buying bikes used via Craigslist and Facebook Marketplace. But if you want a new one BikesDirect.com and REI often have solid deals as well.
- E-bikes are cool too! Here’s why the RadWagon 4 is the best-value electric cargo bike on the planet.
- Check out this running list of e-bike incentives that Portland State has put together.
Books on Money
There are thousands (maybe even millions?) of books about money and personal finance. Here are some of the ones that we’ve read and think give the most bang for the buck:
- The Psychology of Money, by Morgan Housel
- The Simple Path to Wealth, by JL Collins
- Superabundance, by Gale L. Pooley and Marian L. Tupy
- Basic Economics, by Thomas Sowell
- Quit Like a Millionaire, by Kristy Shen
- Retire Early with Real Estate, by Chad Carson
- Shoe Dog, by Phil Knight
- The Richest Man in Babylon, by George Samuel Clason
- The Little Book of Common Sense Investing, by John Bogle
- The Bogleheads’ Guide to Investing, by Taylor Larimore, Mel Lindauer, Michael LeBoeuf
Budgeting 📝
- MEGAPOST: How to Make a Budget for Beginners
- Things you can try to fix a failing budget
- Apps we love to track your expenses and net worth: Empower, YNAB or Credit Karma. Here are some alternatives to Mint if you used to use that!
- If you’re completely new to budgeting, check out our blog post on easy budgeting methods that’ll help you create a budget, and stick to it!
- And it can be a really great idea to figure out how little it would take to live on with a bare bones budget, if the proverbial ish hits the fan.
- As we’ve talked about before, here’s a stripped down template of Matt’s family budget in Excel. It’s not for everyone, but I hope it can get most started down the right path! (once you’re in Google Drive, click: File -> download to get the file on your computer)
Career 👨⚕️
- Many instinctively consider certifications or other training in order to increase their value to employers, but don’t forget about the unspoken rules of career success that we discussed with Gorick Ng.
- Learn how you can negotiate more than just your salary with Alex Carter. Black out hours, training, stock options, and severance are just the tip of the iceberg!
- Work doesn’t have to provide some sort of deep existential fulfillment, but it also doesn’t have to simply provide a paycheck. This was the topic of our conversation with Simone Stolzoff and ‘the good enough job.’
- Jobs aren’t just about the money. Make sure you are aware of the total compensation package, all the employee benefits on offer when weighing career decisions.
- Check out Focusmate as a way to inject a little accountability into your workday in order to get more things done.
Cars 🚘
- We’re pretty much always going to point you in the direction of buying a used car, but there are some instances where buying a new car might be worth it.
- And buying a used car from a rental fleet could be a great way for you to snag a newer-used car for less money. Hertz, Avis, and Enterprise all have sites that allow you to potentially score a deal.
- While we think that EVs are the future, they do have their tradeoffs. Don’t forget about the tax incentives to buy an electric vehicle, new and used!
- And of course, the easiest way to not have a car payment (other than paying in cash), is by not getting that car in the first place! Hear our thoughts on cutting a car from your life.
- Here’s the .gov website where you can look up recalls with your VIN as well as the site to get a free CARFAX alternative.
College 👩🏫
- Check out the Dept of Education’s college scorecard in order to help you compare college degrees and fields of study, before you commit to taking out a butt-load of debt!
- Getting as much of your education as possible covered by scholarships is a great way to increase the value proposition of college. Bold.org, Fastweb, and Collegeboard are just a few sites where you can begin your scholarship search.
- Listen as we discuss how college might be overrated!
- And maybe the path to college isn’t for you- instead a high-paying blue collar career might be the best route to take and there are more options available then most might realize!
- But if you’re less interested in the degree and more interested in learning- Peer 2 Peer University, Project Gutenberg, Google Scholar, & Alison.com are all worth looking into.
- Before applying for college, research to determine what you’re likely going to earn your first year out of college- and then limit your total student loans to that first year’s income. And you can research salary at Salary.com or dive into the data over at the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
- CommonApp.org and Niche.com are two sites that are working directly w/ colleges to streamline the process for HS students
- Keep your college costs low by getting used textbooks, or even consider renting them at sites like BookScouter or Chegg!
Cell phones 📲
- Cut your monthly cell phone service down to $15 a month with a provider like Mint Mobile– we’ve been using them for years now!
- Here’s a list and rundown of all the best cheap cell phone plans, as well as details on the 4 best MVNO carriers out there.
- SellCell, Swappa and Gazelle are all cool marketplaces to buy/sell used tech. You might be able to snag a cheaper secondhand phone vs. buying new.
Charity & Giving 🎗️
- We recommend you research and vet non-profits at sites like CharityNavigator.org, CharityWatch.org, & GreatNonProfits.org to ensure that the money that you’re giving away is going to organizations that align with your values.
- We’ve also written a full post on how to give away your money (and why it’ll actually make you richer!)
- If you’re looking for an app like Acorns, but for giving money away, check out the RoundUp App.
- Here’s our post on the pros and cons of donor advised funds. This is like a sinking fund for charity, except you can invest and grow that money!
- Check out Daffy if you’re looking to set up a donor advised fund on the cheap. Joel also wrote a review of Daffy and why they are the best.
Couples & Family 👨👩👦
- When couples get on the same page financially, they can achieve money and life goals faster, together.
- Honeydue is an app that allows you and your significant other to communicate better if you’re wanting to keep your finances separate.
- For those of you who can work well together, check out these side hustle ideas for couples.
- Here’s a great post if you’re wondering whether you should get a prenup or not.
- If you’re looking to create a prenuptial agreement on the cheap, check out RocketLawyer. But if you don’t know where to begin, Hello Prenup would be a great place to start.
- And check out these podcast episodes where we talk about money with our wives: Ep 023, Ep 230, Ep 398 and Ep 533!
Credit Cards 💳
- Before using credit cards you should always follow these credit card best practices!
- Keep things simple with our “proprietary” HTM super chill credit card strategy! Way less work but still reaping 95% of benefits and rewards opportunities!
- Here are all the credit cards we use personally.
- If you’ve got low or no income currently, check out these best credit cards for unemployed peeps.
- Renters rejoice!!! The new BILT Mastercard lets you earn points when paying for rent!
- Always check the secondary perks of your cards, because there are so many benefits that you may not be using!
Credit Score ⭕️
- Here is our full post on ways to boost your credit score.
- We also should note the fact that you don’t need a “perfect” credit score to get the best financing and live a wealthy life.
- You are entitled to a free credit report every week from each of the three credit bureaus at AnnualCreditReport.com
- And if you’re attempting to correct an error on your credit report and the bureaus are dropping the ball, file a complaint over at ConsumerFinance.gov/complaint
- Make it harder to lose money to scammers by freezing your credit.
- It doesn’t cost you any money, but you will have to snail mail some forms to all three credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, & Transunion) in order to ensure your child’s credit is frozen.
Debt Management 🤷♀️
- Use Undebt.it to help you figure out a get-outta-debt plan
- And check out this detailed post about debt snowball vs debt avalanche methods, including differences and examples.
- One way to figure out if you have too much debt in your life is to figure out your personal debt to income ratio. Traditional lenders won’t consider you if you’re above 43% but hopefully you’re sitting way below that… right?!
- And then make sure you have a plan to stay out of debt once you’ve arrived in the promised land!
- For help with overwhelming debt, check out free services offered by the NFCC (National Foundation for Credit Counseling) and Money Management International.
- If you need to refinance your debts, then be sure to check out Credible where you can easily compare the best loan options that are available to you.
- Sometimes, using a 0% balance transfer credit card to help pay off credit card debt is a good idea. Just make sure to run the numbers and pay everything off before the 0% period expires!
- Not all debt is dumb, we recently talked using debt to catapult your finances. Also check out our post on good debt vs. bad debt which explains the major differences.
DIY Pest Control 🐜
- Learn how you can take on some DIY pest control that will give you professional results at a fraction of the cost.
- And a Bug-A-Salt gun is fun and actually works- especially on house flies!
Entrepreneurship 🧑💼
- Check out ep 247 when we discussed how you can start a business with no money.
- We also had a great convo with with Shannon Weinstein if you’d like to hear about the phenomenal tax benefits of starting your own business.
- SCORE, Service Core Of Retired Executives, has over 250 local chapters across the nation and they offer free mentorship and other resources as well.
- For a business checking account check out American Express, Bluevine, and Lili.
- Best credit cards for side hustles: this includes both personal and business cards, depending on how you want to set up the account.
Financial Literacy 🔢
- Next Gen Personal Finance (NGPF)… If you’re a teacher looking for free resources, or someone who is just interested in helping to promote financial literacy in schools within your state, check this site out and get involved
Financial Planning & Advisors 👨💼
- Here is a rundown of what financial advisors do, and whether you need one.
- Also, check out our 7 Money Gears. It’s important to know what your next financial moves should be before you hire a pro.
- Check out the worksheet we created to help you create your own Money Mission Statement. Download it, and give it a solid 30 minutes one evening to really begin some soul searching that will help you determine what you want your life to look like.
- If you need an advisor, HTM has partnered with Wealthramp to help you find one that meets our high standards. Wealthramp works with a network of independent, fee-only fiduciary advisors you can trust. If you need a professional who can help you keep your financial goals on track, start here.
FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early) 🔥
- What is FIRE and all the types? Here’s our post and episode on that.
- How to tap into your retirement funds early, via our friend the Mad Fientist. This is a great post on exactly how to do it and get the most bang for your buck!
- The FIRE movement has pros and cons, so tread lightly and forge your own journey.
Fraud Reporting 🙅
- If you ever are the victim of a scam, let the Federal Trade Commission know by heading to ReportFraud.ftc.gov or file a complaint with the BBB’s scam tracker.
- File a complaint with the CFPB if a credit bureau refuses to correct an error on your credit report.
FSA & HSA ⛑️
- I’m not sure who needs to hear this but Health Savings Accounts, or HSAs, are underrated, yet incredible, retirement accounts.
- Learn all about the HSA Triple Tax Advantage!
- Flexible Spending Accounts are use-it or lose-it, so be sure to make qualifying purchases over at the Amazon FSA Store or the FSAstore.com
- Fidelity is an awesome HSA provider. If you leave your employer you can “roll over” your HSA funds to Fidelity for free, with no account fees!
Gift Cards 💳
- Federal law mandates that gift cards can’t expire before 5 years, but state laws might provide you with even more protection.
- If you’re looking to make sure that you don’t lose the money you have stored on a gift card, go ahead and exchange it for actual dollars at a site like CardCash.com
Groceries 🛒
- Leanne Brown had some fantastic tips on how to keep your grocery budget in check. Her free cookbook is incredibly helpful and nerdy as she breaks down the cost- not only to the price per meal, but the price per serving as well!
- SuperCook is the site where you can input what you have on hand to get ingredient-specific recipes!
- Here’s our full post on how to save money on grocery shopping.
- We’re huge fans of Costco because of the great quality and discounts. Here’s a rundown of all the Best Costco Membership Perks as well as Secret Costco Hacks you should be aware of.
- And check out Flipp. This is the site that compiles all of your local grocery flyers that way all of your deals are in one place.
- You can also get discounts on ugly food that’s still perfectly fine to eat- check out BuySalvageFood.com and Misfits Market. And Flashfood is an app to help you find discounted groceries that are nearing their expiration date.
Healthcare 👩⚕️
- If you’re looking for an affordable healthcare alternative (like by a factor of 6x) that isn’t technically insurance, then you should at least consider Medishare. Joel and Matt have both used this service for many years now!
- Sedera is also another health sharing option that doesn’t have any religious affiliation, if that’s not your thing.
- And Healthcare Bluebook is the site where you can compare standard prices of medical procedures to ensure that you’re not getting ripped off!
- When it comes to finding ways to reduce your healthcare costs, Marshall Allen had some really incredible advice back during our convo with him: Fight and Win Against Insane Healthcare Costs
Insurance 🚗🏡
- PolicyGenius is an insurance marketplace that compares all the best companies and rates for you. No need to gather 10 different quotes and fill out multiple forms.
- Trusted Choice is a great resource to help you find (relatively) local independent agents who can also shop for the best rates. Added bonus: if they focus on a specific state, they’ll also know all the nuances since insurance requirements vary by state, which can help you save and get the best coverage for you!
- Here are our specific posts about saving money on car insurance and choosing the best life insurance policies.
Investing 📈
- For beginners, first check out our post on investing basics. We cover everything from simple investing terms, accounts, and what to invest in.
- Check out the basics of buying broad, low-cost index funds. (that’s how we invest!)
- We love low-cost brokerages like Fidelity and Vanguard.
- Here’s a quick look at the differences between Roth and Traditional IRAs (Pssst… Roth’s work out better for most folks over the long haul.
- If you’re not sure what your risk tolerance might be, then check out this quiz over at Vanguard to help get you started.
- Whisky, art, and farmland – we broke down our thoughts on all the different alternative investment options out there. (TLDR: we’re not big fans)
- Learn from other people’s mistakes… These are the most common ways people lose money in the stock market.
Military 🎖️
- We talked through many of the different financial benefits that are available to those who serve in the military with Doug Nordman.
- And for individual help with your money, check out the Office of Financial Readiness or your local base family services office as it should have at least one financial counselor.
- FinRed is a great resource for financial readiness for military personnel.
- OneOp is another free information source to help military families navigate finances!
Real Estate / Housing 🏡
- If you’re stuck on the financials as you’re trying to decide, then a rent vs buy calculator that takes into account your specific location can be helpful.
- MEGAPOSTS:
- How to Start House Hacking. This strategy combines buying a house to live in with kicking off your real estate investing journey!
- How to Buy a Rental Property. This overview guide explains the steps involved and some gotcha’s to watch out for when picking up your first rental!
- And if you want to minimize the stress that accompanies a rental property, you’ll want to prioritize effectively screening and managing tenants.
- Help protesting your property tax: Check out Ownwell! They do all the work for you, and get paid a small cut of whatever amount they reduce your tax by. On average, they’ve saved clients ~$1,150 in property taxes each year!
- Investing your money for the purchase of a house is a tricky proposition- you want to see it grow but you also don’t want to risk seeing it decline right before you need it for a down payment. But if you’re looking at a time frame of at least 2 years then we’d recommend a conservative target date fund that has already reached it’s date, like Vanguard’s 2020 fund.
- Maybe you know that you’re going to purchase a home- be sure to get multiple quotes. Reach out to your local credit union, and check out a site like Credible in order to find the best mortgage for you. A little extra shopping on the front end could save you thousands.
- Listen to this if you think that now is a terrible time to buy a home. It might not be as bad as you think.
- Some of the best platforms to manage your rentals and collect rent are: avail, innago, & RentRedi.
- Buying a home isn’t all rainbows and butterflies- don’t overlook the dirty truth of homeownership!
- Here are all the pros and cons of homeowner associations. Lots to consider when your dream home is governed by an HOA!
Saving Money 🤑
- Here’s a full post on all the ways to save money.
- Get good at asking for a discount everywhere you go. You can negotiate WAY more than you think in life.
- Best deal sites for shopping online and getting coupons or product comparisons
- Here are some fun challenges: 7 Ways to save money this week.
- SOLAR: We’re big fans of the site EnergySage which allows you to easily see how much you could save every month by installing solar panels. They also allow you to compare quotes and find the best price as companies are bidding for your business. And of course, don’t forget about the massive federal tax credit you can snag!
SECURE 2.0 ⚖️
- And if you want to look for yourself, here’s a link to the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, which contains the SECURE 2.0 Act (it starts on page 2,046). But you might find the Senate Finance Committee’s summary to be more helpful!
- We also covered the major ways this new law affects retirement accounts.
Student Loans 🧑🎓
- TuitionFit.org is a great way to compare your financial aid package to that of other students.
- A list of a ton of different employers that offer student loan assistance as a benefit.
- Refinancing your student loans isn’t a slam dunk decision that everyone should automatically do- luckily we have an article up on the site that walks you through when you should consider refinancing your student loans.
- If refinancing makes sense for you, Splash Financial is a great place to shop around. There you can compare rates and listeners of How to Money get a $300 bonus!
- You have until the end of the year to fill out the application for student loan forgiveness, but you only have until October 31st to fill out the PSLF waiver in order to get credit for previous payments!
- Full review on Student Loan Planner (best for those with over $20k in student loan debt!)
Taxes ⚖️
- DIY Tax filing: IRS FreeFile is one of the best resources for folks earning less than $73k AGI. If you make more than that, Cash App Taxes is completely free for federal and state filing, no matter how much you make!
- The IRS now has an Interactive Tax Assistant Search feature for all the most asked questions about your income taxes.
- Property Tax: Ownwell is a company that can help you fight unfair property tax assessments (only available in some states).
Travel/Vacation ✈️
- First, check out our master list of tips to save money on travel!
- And here is our Ultimate guide to travel using credit card rewards
- If you happen to have a timeshare that you’re looking to unload, then head over to TUG or Vacatia, but don’t be surprised if you have to literally give that thing away.
- Even though the cost of travel is up a bit, that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to find a deal on your airfare. Listen to our convo with Scott Keyes as we talked about how to navigate the new era of affordable travel.
- Airfare hack – Skiplagged is how you can find ‘hidden city fares’ where you basically abandon your ticket during a layover bc you’ve already arrived!
- Selina is a cool site if you’re looking for a way to travel abroad indefinitely, while still maintaining the ability to work and make a living.
Utilities ⚡️
- If you or someone you know is having trouble paying their heating bills, assistance is available through the low-income energy assistance program. Reach out to your state’s program manager or directly to your energy provider.
- Water: Ways to save money on water
- Electricity: How to reduce your electricity bill
- Gas: Ways to reduce your gas bill
That’s it for now. We’ll keep adding to this list of resources over time and please let us know if you’ve found a great resource that’ll help others out there.
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