Jill On Money: Mid-year money moves

Wars Tariffs DOGE The Fed Interest rates We are just six months into the year and if you are feeling overwhelmed by the news flow it s time to address something over which you have particular control your money Related Articles A look at California s new auto-renewal law GoFundMe is refurbishing a little-known financial tool in a bid to supercharge everyday giving How homebuyers are using new device to aid their purchase Jill On Money Social insecurity College graduates face toughest job field in more than a decade as hiring slows Here are six policies to help you make specific smart money moves Step one Find the money Review your spending from the first half of the year If you aren t using an app pull bank statements and credit card bills and you might discover that returning to an office five days a week has meant too multiple lunches out Or that your streaming services now cost more than that cable bundle that you abandoned The goal is to identify selected spending that can be redirected toward saving and or paying down debt Step two Defend against junk fees These nefarious fees are designed either to confuse or deceive consumers Although various rules have been enacted with the near-elimination of the CFPB it s hard to imagine that consumer-facing infractions will garner much attention That means the onus is on all of us to keep up our guard on everything from bank fees credit card late payment fees hotel resort fees airline baggage and change fees organization and cable fees To defend yourself methodically review the categories of spending where they usually pop up Step three Review your insurance coverage Life changes and so should your insurance Got married divorced Had a baby Received a new identification Bought a house A large number of of these milestones impact your medical auto home and life insurance Of particular focus should be home renters coverage as well as car insurance These two categories have skyrocketed since the pandemic with auto insurance up by more than percent since BLS and home insurance premiums soaring by in three years Consumer Federation of America To defray selected of the increase shop around consider bundling coverage educate yourself on means to qualify for a discount shield systems paying for a full year vs monthly take a defensive driving curriculum and consider dropping collision and or comprehensive coverages on older cars Step four Earn more by asking for it It s been three years since interest rates peaked and yet a great number of savers are still sitting in accounts that are earning peanuts Scour the internet and or ask for higher yielding safe money accounts from the institutions with whom you do business In a multitude of instances if you don t ask you don t get Step five Review and rebalance retirement accounts If you have multiple retirement accounts try to combine them to make it easier to monitor manage and rebalance them If you have a good workplace plan you may be able to roll old retirement accounts in otherwise you can exclusively choose the financial institution that has a user-friendly platform Wherever you keep your accounts be sure to rebalance them once or twice a year Rebalancing is the action that keeps your desired allocation in check and it often results in selling specific of what s performed well and buying more of what s lagged essentially buying low and selling high Step six Revisit retirement account contributions If your cash flow allows consider boosting your retirement savings The employer-based plan contribution limit for is plus an additional if you re or older Even a percent increase in your contribution rate can make a important difference over time thanks to compound advancement Bonus step Start or complete estate planning What would a mid-year update be without me nudging you to prepare update your will power of attorney and physical condition care proxy If you don t want to hire a qualified estate attorney there are plenty of online choices Related Articles Will food delivery robots be a success in the U S Sunnyvale moves to preserve commercial space in Village Centers amid housing push Home values soared in East Bay South Bay while plummeting in San Francisco Oakland Only one of Bay Area s three main downtowns has bounced back to nearly prepandemic levels OPEC to boost oil production by barrels per day in August Jill Schlesinger CFP is a CBS News business analyst A former options trader and CIO of an outlay advisory firm she welcomes comments and questions at askjill jillonmoney com Check her website at www jillonmoney com