Want $25 Bucks? Just Open a Savings Account from ING Direct
ING Direct is an awesome bank. They have great customer service, an easy to use website, and a decent interest. Even better, they offer account opening bonuses. If you use one of the links below (and open the account with at least $250 dollars), you will receive $25 dollars deposited directly into your account. I’ll receive $10 dollars, so it’s a win for everybody.
I have 50 referral invites available. I currently have 10 listed below. As they get used up, I’ll replace them with fresh links.
IMPORTANT
*Please do not use the links below if you are not funding your account with at least $250 dollars. You won’t get the bonus ($25) and you’ll waste a link that someone else could use.
IMPORTANT
If you are under 18 you will need to open a joint account with someone who is at least 18 years old. (Your mom or dad would probably be the best choice) This isn’t a big deal, but you’ll need that person’s name, address, and social security number in addition to your own.
ING Direct $25 Savings Account Opening Bonus
ING Direct $25 Savings Account Opening Bonus
ING Direct $25 Savings Account Opening Bonus
ING Direct $25 Savings Account Opening Bonus
ING Direct $25 Savings Account Opening Bonus
ING Direct $25 Savings Account Opening Bonus
ING Direct $25 Savings Account Opening Bonus
ING Direct $25 Savings Account Opening Bonus
ING Direct $25 Savings Account Opening Bonus
ING Direct $25 Savings Account Opening Bonus
Happy Saving!
Just Turned 18? Don’t Forget to Register with the Selective Service System
Are you a male? 18 years of age? Younger than 26 years old?
If you answered yes to all of those questions, then you need to register with the Selective Service System.
What is the SSS
The Selective Service System is the government agency that keeps track of all the people eligible to be called up in the event the military draft is reinstated. Currently, that includes virtually all men between the ages of 18 and 25. By law, these individuals are required to register within 30 days of their 18th birthday.
How Does Registering Benefit Me Financially?
I’m glad you asked. For one, it prevents you from paying a hefty fine (currently $250,000). Yes, not registering is against the law. Specifically, you are violating the Military Selective Service Act. However, being prosecuted for this crime is extremely unlikely. You see, the government has to prove that you knew you were supposed to register, but chose not to. This is very hard for them to do.
But…the government knows this and has figured out other ways to make you register:
- In order to receive federal student aid (grants, student loans, and work study), you must register with the SSS. These benefits alone are worth thousands of dollars.
- If you’d ever like to work for the Executive branch of the federal government or the U.S. Postal Service, you need to register.
- Individual states can also set their own rules regarding registration. Here in Ohio, those who fail to register are charged out of state tuition rates at universities. In fact, I just received a letter from the community college I attend through PSEO alerting me to the fact that I will be charged the out of state rate unless I supply them with my registration number.
“But I’m not going to college and I don’t care about federal employment…”
OK. You got me. Except…
- Most states require you to register to receive a driver’s license! Some states also won’t let you renew your license if you haven’t registered. You can see the list here.
- Also, if you would like to become a U.S. citizen and you arrived in the U.S. before your 26th birthday, you must register with the Selective Service System.
As you can see, there are many reasons why it’s in your best interest to register. You don’t even have to be 18 to submit your information. If you are at least 17 years and 3 months of age, you can actually register right now and your information won’t be processed until you’re 18.
To do so, just head on over to www.sss.gov and click “Register Online”. You’ll be taken to a new page where all you have to type in is your:
- Name
- Address
- Social Security Number
Once that’s done, just click “Submit Registration“. Within a few weeks, you’ll receive a letter in the mail with an identification card that serves as proof you are registered.
Final note: If you forget to register before you turn 26 years old, you are basically screwed. You will never receive federal (and most likely state) student aid or be hired for a job located in the executive branch. If you can show credible evidence that you did not know you were supposed to register, then you may be allowed benefits, but this appears to be extremely unlikely.
Carnival – Week of 3/8/2010
I participated in this week’s Carnival of Personal Finance.
My post “I’m 18! What Should I Be Doing With My Money?: Grow Up” was included over at Simply Forties.
There’s some great posts in this week’s carnival. I encourage you to check it out.
Should Children Be Paid for Chores?
One of the debates that many parents have is whether or not their children’s allowance should be tied to chores and household duties. The debate can get heated on both sides, but I’ll try to give an objective view of both options along with my own opinion.
Absolutely!
Chores teach children that work is rewarded with money, just like in the real world. Adults aren’t just given money for doing nothing. They have to work and for that work, they are paid a certain wage. Likewise, a child’s weekly/monthly allowance should be based on whether or not they complete their assigned chores.
This could even be taken a step further by grading the kids on how well the chores are completed. (I actually saw a family on the television show Wife Swap where the kids received less money if the floors weren’t quite clean enough or if their bed sheets weren’t straight enough.)
No Way Man!
Chores are just simply an expected duty that children should perform. Children live in the house and should “earn their keep” by completing routine household duties. There are some things in life that are just done, without an expectation of monetary reward. Adults don’t get paid for washing dishes or cleaning the gutters and neither should kids.
My Opinion?
I think that rewarding chores with cash is a bad idea. Sure, this system will probably work just fine until the child is in high school. Then, they can get a regular job at the mall or start their own business. Once that happens, I would expect the amount of chores being completed will drop down to zero, or close to it.
Why?
Because once a teenager is making “real” money (say 10-30 hours a week at minimum wage), they are no longer going to care about their $20 dollar per week allowance. This is especially true if they can work more hours by not taking the time to complete chores.
Now, parents could combat this issue by forcing their kids to do the chores, but that seems to be a bit of a contradiction. If the purpose of tying allowance to chores was to show that you have to work to receive money, then shouldn’t the child be free to decide they don’t want to work, understanding of course that then that they won’t get paid?
I think it makes much more sense for allowance to simply be given to the child, in an effort to teach them smart money management skills. Teach kids from any early age that money should be saved, given, and invested before being spent and those habits are likely to continue on well beyond high school. Chores shouldn’t even be part of the equation. The lesson that there are some things in life that you just do, without payment, is in my eyes much more powerful than learning that work is rewarded with money.
I’m 18! What Should I Be Doing With My Money?: Planning For the Future
Eighteen is a unique time in your life. High school is most likely coming to a close and legally, there isn’t much you can’t do. But yet you’re probably still living with your parents and have to obey many of their “house rules”. Financially, you aren’t independent and must still depend on Mom and Dad for many of life’s necessities.
But don’t let the downsides depress you. This is a great time to figure out what exactly what you want out of life. Start thinking, seriously, about career options and what you want to accomplish with your time on Earth. Think about personal issues. Do you want to get married? Have kids? Stay a bachelor forever? Become a nun?
Think about things about you may want to buy…someday. A nice home? A sport scar? A medical degree? You don’t have to make any concrete decisions right now, but it’ll help tremendously if you have a certain “life plan” you can look at for direction.
Why is this important financially?
The world, as they say, revolves around money. Almost any decision you make will have a monetary consequence, good or bad. Try to figure out what things/people/experiences you enjoy spending money on. This is where your financial priorities lay.
For example, I’m most likely going to a cheaper university than I had originally planned because I’ve decided that I really want to travel during college and after. Instead of spending money at an expensive we-rape-you-because-you-are-out-of-state school, I’d prefer to spend it traveling the globe, or at least parts of it.
Travel is important to me, so I’m OK with not driving the nicest car possible or renting a luxurious apartment when I graduate.
What is important to you? What are you OK with?
Once you’ve figured this out…
Cut costs like it’s your job on things you don’t enjoy, but spend generously on the things you love. Don’t let other people tell you what is worthwhile. Assuming it won’t get you into debt or prevent you from achieving your saving/investing goals, go ahead and buy the Escalade. Go out and party. Hard. If that’s what you want, by all means, go for it. But just know that it’s what you really desire.
Keep in mind that debt is the enemy when trying to figure out what you want out of your life. Besides getting an education or buying a house, there aren’t many, if any, good reasons to go into debt. And even for education and housing, there’s a fine line between acceptable and ridiculous.
I know, this topic is intense. But just think how helpful it will be to think it all out. Just remember that nothing is 100 percent yet. You’re just trying to imagine what want out of life.
Eighteen is a wonder opportunity to “start” the game of life. Don’t waste it away!
If you’d like, you can jump back to the previous post in this series: Saving for Retirement.
I’m 18! What Should I Be Doing With My Money?: Saving It For Retirement
Today’s post is a continuation of this week’s series: “I’m 18! What Should I Be Doing With My Money?“
Next up in this series, we’ll tackle what’s probably the last financial issue on your mind. Nonetheless, it’s extremely important:
Retirement!
Yes, I know none of us will be retiring anytime soon. But interestingly, we are the ones who benefit the most by saving. Those who wait to start saving will lose out on THOUSANDS, if not hundreds of thousands, of dollars by not starting as soon as possible.
Just one $2,000 dollar deposit in a Roth IRA (Individual Retirement Account) when you are 18 can grow to over $74,000 dollars by the time you are 65 (assuming an 8% return).
Invest the same amount when you graduate college at 21 and you’ll only have $59,000. Three years of waiting just cost you fourteen-thousand dollars!
Note: You don’t have to deposit $2,000 dollars if you don’t have that much. This is just to illustrate the benefit of starting as soon as possible.
Saving for retirement is easy. You just need to open a Roth IRA (Roth IRAs have numerous tax benefits that make them perfect long-term investing) and contribute money to it. Once it’s there, you can purchase investments like stocks, mutual funds, and index funds. To open the account you just need:
- Your social security number
- Your home address
- Your phone number
- And some money
If it helps, don’t consider this a retirement account. Consider it a freedom or opportunity fund. It’s purpose is to provide you with financial security when you are older and may no longer want to work. It simply gives you options later in life.
If for some reason you desperately need the money in a Roth IRA, you are free to take out whatever you have deposited. You cannot, however, take out your earnings until you are 59 1/2 unless you want to pay a penalty.
You can open a Roth IRA through many different companies and brokerage firms. I chose to open mine at E*TRADE. They don’t have any minimum account balance requirements, which is great for those of us who don’t have a huge cash reserve built up.
Saving for retirement is not something you want to wait around to do. There’s honestly no reason why you can’t open one the day you turn 18. I’m “only” funding my Roth with about $50 bucks, but it’s a start.
If you’d like, you can jump back to the previous post in this series: Learning the Basics of Money Management.
I’m 18! What Should I Be Doing With My Money?: Learning The Basics of Money Management
Today’s post is a continuation of this week’s series: “I’m 18! What Should I Be Doing With My Money?“
Turning 18 is a good time to really get your finances in order. Whether your future plans involve college, trade school, or just simply entering the workforce, it pays to have your financial “house” in order.
Here’s the foundation:
- Savings account
- Checking account
These two accounts will form the basis for your finances. You might even have these already.
The savings account is the place where you will keep your money that you don’t need day-to-day. Your emergency fund should be here along with money you might be saving up for a car or college textbooks.
Your checking account will be used to store money that you need on a daily or weekly basis. You can pay bills out of this account using checks or a debit card. The part of your paycheck that isn’t used for savings should be deposited here.
These accounts can be opened up at your local bank or you can use an online bank like ING Direct. Wherever you decide to do your “foundation” banking, make sure it’s convenient and fee-free. Look for student checking and saving accounts; they don’t usually have high balance requirements, if any, and they rarely charge BS “maintenance” fees.
The purpose of these accounts is to allow you to run your finances with safety and efficiency. Keeping all your money in paper bills under your mattress is not safe. It’s just plain dumb. Writing checks or using a debit card will provide you with an easy to read record of how you’re handling your money.
Once these accounts are setup, you need to start:
- spending less than you earn.
- paying yourself first.
The first one is simple: don’t run up credit card debt. You can use a credit card for purchases if you’d like, as mentioned in the last post, just make sure you don’t swipe more than what you can pay for. Going into some student loan debt is acceptable, but should be avoided if possible. Exhaust financial aid like grants and scholarships before taking out loans.
The second is simple too, yet millions of Americans don’t do it. Pay yourself first means that you automatically save a portion of your income. You set aside this money before you start spending on other things. Think of pay yourself first as a bill you send out to your own savings account. This bill always gets paid. It doesn’t have to be much. Can you find $20 dollars a month to save? $50? $75? $100? Start small. As they say, Rome wasn’t build in a day.
Follow the ideas outlined in this post and you will be miles ahead of where other new adults (and many older ones) are.
If you’d like, you can jump back to the previous post in this series: Open a Credit Card or jump forward to the next post: Saving for Retirement.
I’m 18! What Should I Be Doing With My Money?: Open a Credit Card
Before concerned parents and people whose lives were “destroyed” by credit cards start freaking out, realize that I’m simply advocating that an 18 year old open up ONE credit card, not eight. Also, only people with an income should be opening one.
Why Open an Account?
Having a credit card is beneficial for a variety of reasons. Here are a few:
- You begin building a credit history (something that banks use to decide whether or not to give you a loan)
- They’re convenient; just sign and go.
- Allows you to easy monitor what you spend money on; remembering where you spent cash can be difficult.
- Safe. Card stolen? Call up the bank and tell them. Charges will be reversed.
- Rewards and cash back. (Only applies if you pay off the balance in full every month.)
Why Kind of Card Should I Get?
There are hundreds, if not thousands, of different cards available. 18 year olds should probably stick to a student card or store card, for now.
I’d recommend just getting a simple, no frills student Visa or MasterCard that you can use almost anywhere. Opening up a store credit card (a card that can only be used at a certain store, like a Macy’s or Kohl’s card) can also be a good way to enter the world of credit, but they aren’t super flexible.
A better idea might be to open up a “branded” card. This is a card that’s offered by a certain company as their own card, but it still displays the Visa or Mastercard logo and can be used anywhere those cards are accepted. Gas stations often have these types. For example, I currently have a Mastercard that’s branded by SpeedWay (I’m an authorized user on my dad’s account) that I use to purchase gasoline, but I could also use it somewhere else in an emergency.
These types of credit cards are a good way for young adults to build credit because you can ease into using them. Just charge your gasoline to the card and pay the bill off as soon as possible. You’ll build credit, but won’t pay any interest and you’ll get comfortable paying the bill.
You want the following in any card you open:
- No annual fee.
- Widely accepted. American Express and Discover aren’t quite there yet.
- Cash back, if possible. (Note: DO NOT BUY STUFF TO JUST GET POINTS! Cash back is for things you were going to purchase anyway, even if you didn’t have the card.)
What if I Notice Myself “Shopping Until I Drop?”
STOP USING THE CARD. IMMEDIATELY.
If you’ve rung up a bill that you can’t pay in full within the current billing cycle, cut up the card or literally freeze it by putting it in a zip-loc bag filled with water.
To prevent this from happening in the first place, you might want to let your parents or someone else you trust take a look at your bill. You might not have realized that you started buying iTunes songs like it was your job. A responsible third party will.
After you’ve have time to beat the shopping bug, carefully re-introduce credit into your life. Buy just one, small thing every month and pay the bill as soon as you get home. Self-control can be difficult to master, but it can be done.
Wrap Up
Credit cards can be dangerous, sure. Some people will abuse their lines of credit. But you don’t have to. I look at credit cards as a tool. Hammers can certainly hurt people, but they can also help craft a home. There are good and bad qualities in almost everything. But opening a credit card can be a great step into the adult world. You can become responsible with credit now, without learning the painful lessons of interest charges and late payment fees that so many others faced. You’re an adult. Be responsible.
If you’d like, you can jump forward to the next post in this series: Learning the Basics of Money Management or jump back to the previous post: Grow Up.
I’m 18! What Should I Be Doing With My Money?: Grow Up
The title isn’t meant to insult anybody, but more to just wake everybody up to the fact you are in fact a legal adult. Your parents no longer have to provide you with anything. Legally, you’re held accountable for any crimes you commit. When it comes to planning your future, it’s your decisions that count.
Turning 18 is about taking responsibilty for the choices you make. Run up $20,000 dollars are your new, shiny Visa card? You are paying it off. Agree to a $400 dollar per month car payment? You are responsible for sending in the payment every month. Decide to take out students loans to go to a pricy private school instead of your public state school? You will be paying for it.
The point of this isn’t to scare you, but to inform you. While you are free to do all of the above, you are also free to do things differently. You can start saving for retirement at a young age, building credit wisely, and creating a better future.
So I ask of you to wake up and realize the world is yours for the taking. By not getting into debt, you can pursue opportunities you wouldn’t otherwise have. You can put yourself before payments to a bank. You can get a jump start on success by doing the things your elders wish they would have done sooner. It’s time to plan for the future and make decisions that you think are best, not ones based on what other people think.
As an example of my last point, I’ll explain why I opened a savings account at ING Direct even when my dad said I shouldn’t. My father, while an awesome guy, does not get technology. Sure, he uses the computer for email and Google Maps and well…that’s about it. So when I told him I wanted to open up a savings account at an online bank, our conversation went a little something like this:
Dad: “An online bank? With no branches? All done using the Internet? Haha! It’s probably a scam. They’re going to steal your money!”
Me: “Yes, Dad, an online bank. They have some branches…four or five in major U.S. cities. But yeah, day to day banking is done through their website. It’s not a scam. They can offer higher interest rates because they don’t have to build branches or employ tellers. They aren’t going to steal anything…”
Dad: “Still sounds like an Internet scam.”
Me: “Whatever.”
But I didn’t just throw my hands up in the air after that. I researched ING Direct more. I found tons of bloggers who had accounts there and they loved it. No con had been pulled off. Then, I found out that ING Direct had been around since the year 2000 and their parent company had been around for even longer. They were one of the 1st online banks and they seemed to be doing it right.
My dad still wasn’t completely swayed, but he nonetheless allowed me to sign up for the account (I was 16 at the time and had to open a joint account with someone 18 or over).
My dad wasn’t lying to me, but he just isn’t a huge fan of online banking. To him, banking is something you do at a physical office. Everybody, including parents, has their own set of experiences and views. These might not always align with the best option for you.
Financially, remember that you no longer need your parents permission to do anything. You are free to open up a savings, checking, and credit card account. This is an important realization to make because it appears that so many adults still rely on their parents for financial advice and are afraid to figure out things for themselves. Ask your mom or dad for advice sure, but don’t accept it blindly.
Take home message: You’re an adult now and can finally live your life according to how you see fit. Don’t mess it up.
If you’d like, you can jump forward to the next post in this series: Open a Credit Card.
Introducing the “I’m 18, What Should I Be Doing with Money?” Series
Today is my 18th birthday. This birthday is arguably the most important one yet. I’ll finally be an adult! But as Spider-Man’s Uncle Ben cautions: “With great power, comes great responsibility.” When finances are concerned, this adage is especially important.
Eighteen is the age where you’re allowed to smoke, chew tobacco, buy pornography, and make financial decisions on your own. The 1st three were tempting choices, but I’ve decided to focus on the last one. When you turn 18, you have the freedom to make almost any decision relating to money that you choose. These choices can be good, bad, and downright ugly. I thought a series explaining the best money moves to make when you’re 18 would be really beneficial to a lot of people.
Check back later today for the first post: Grow Up
