Money at 30: “Broke Millennial Takes on Investing” Book Review

There's a common belief that, having come of age during the Great Recession, most Millennials have been turned off to investing. Well, until relatively recently, you could count me among those of my generation that were either too afraid, too uninformed,  or just too broke to invest. Perhaps that's why the second entry in Erin Lowry's aptly titled Broke Millennial book series is dedicated to the topic. The result is Broke Millennial Takes On Investing: A Beginner's Guide to Leveling Up Your Money. First, as I've chronicled both here and on my Money@30 site, I have been dabbling in investing more and more over the past year or two. This includes buying a handful of stocks on Robinhood, making an effort to max out our Roth IRA, and most recently, researching index funds. So while I may not exactly be a "broke Millennial," this book seemed right up my alley, leading me to pre-order it when I saw its existence. Keeping in line with one of the unique elements of its predecessor, Broke Millennial Takes on Investing once again presents itself as a "Choose Your Own Adventure" of sorts, with Lowry devoting early chapters to diagnosing readers' needs and prescribing them to chapters to read. In a slight deviation, however, there's also the chance that this might not be for you just yet. That's due to the reality that not everyone is in a financial situation where investing makes sense. Likely pleasing her publisher, Lowry stops short of suggesting those who aren't financially ready to invest should put the book down as it's never too early to learn about investing even if you can't quite participate. Of course Lowry also refers readers looking to get their money on point toward her first book, Broke Millennial: Stop Scraping By and Get Your Financial Life Together. On the other side of coin, Lowry does point out that the word "beginner" is in the title of this book. This is to say that, if you're already actively investing and know your way around a brokerage account and diversified portfolio, you might not get a ton of value from her insight. Speaking of that first book, on the whole, I'd have to say that this follow-up is far denser. Just flipping through the two titles you can see that this book features far fewer bullets and breaks in the page, instead featuring many more blocks of straight text. That said each chapter is still divided into subsections and concludes with a handy checklist, highlighting the biggest takeaways. This represents a slight change in style, but I still think it worked well. Of course it helps that Lowry's humor and anecdotes are still intact, making even the technical talk easy to embrace. Despite Lowry's permission to skip a few chapters, there was only one that left me flipping. The penultimate chapter (not including the conclusion) is titled "Tactics the Wealthy Use to Make and Preserve Wealth." Given the subject matter and the fact that its mostly made up of block quotes from various experts, you'd think this would be a home run. Unfortunately I found that I vastly preferred Lowry's writing style to reading these transcriptions, leaving me to lose interest after a few entries. Instead, I skipped ahead to the checklist at the end for the distilled version. Aside from this, my only other minor critique is that Lowry frequently feels the need to reintroduce a person she quotes throughout and reuses the same quotes a time or two. These are surely symptoms of the "Choose Your Own Adventure" concept and really aren't that big of a deal unless you're reading the book cover to cover over the course of a weekend like yours truly. As I mentioned in my review of her previous title, I was really looking forward to reading Broke Millennial Takes On Investing: A Beginner's Guide to Leveling Up Your Money. Luckily that excitement was not misplaced as I truly enjoyed Lowry's look at different financial options and her insights into investment. Although it may not leave you with an exact idea of what brokerage account to open or what funds to invest in, it will certainly give the resources and knowledge you need to make those important decisions for yourself (or at least start your due diligence). For that reason, whether you're an actual "broke Millennial" or ready to take the next big step in your financial journey, I'd recommend checking out this one out.

This post Money at 30: “Broke Millennial Takes on Investing” Book Review was previously published on http://dyernews.com/

President Trump Says Stocks Should Be 10,000 Points Higher, Blames Fed

Even though consensus suggests that Federal Reserve is unlikely to raise interest rates this year, that doesn't mean that President Trump's battle with the agency is cooling any. In fact the war of words has escalated into political action as the President looks to install supporters of his own on the Board of Governors. On top of that, this weekend Trump suggested that the U.S. stock market could be significantly higher had the Federal Reserve "done its job properly." In a tweet sent on Sunday, President Trump said, "If the Fed had done its job properly, which it has not, the Stock Market would have been up 5,000 to 10,000 additional points, and GDP would have been well over 4% instead of 3%...with almost no inflation." He concluded, "Quantitative tightening was a killer, should have done the exact opposite!" For the record, U.S. gross domestic product grew just under Trump's 3% goal for 2018, coming in at 2.9% — although the year did include impressive quarters with, with Q2 recording a 4.2% expansion and Q3 marking a 3.4% growth before slowing to only 2.6% in Q4. The President's tweet is the just the latest statement he's made to this effect, taking aim at the Fed and his appointee Jerome Powell. Breaking precedent, Trump has repeatedly criticized the agency as they've raised interest rates over the past several months. Among his past barbs, the Commander in Chief has said the Fed was "going loco" and urged them to "Take the Victory!" As mentioned, moving beyond harsh tweets and statements, Trump is now looking to influence future Fed decisions by floating at least one unlikely candidate to join the Board of Governors: former presidential candidate and Godfather's Pizza CEO Herman Cain. Although Cain found some success in his 2012 presidential primary run where he pushed his "9-9-9" tax plan, he later resigned amid accusations of sexual misconduct. Now, upon word that Trump intended to nominate Cain, Senators on both sides of the aisle have openly criticized the choice and several Republicans have stated they wouldn't vote to confirm Cain were he to be formally nominated. As a result ABC News reports that Cain is expected to withdraw his name from consideration. It seems that the first few months of President Trump's vocal critique of the Federal Reserve was just the beginning. Despite the dovish stance coming from the agency these days, the President is making it clear that he willing to do what it takes to impose more of his wishes on the Fed's policy. While tweeting his disapproval is one thing, it remains to be seen if the Senate will allow Trump's Board of Governor's picks to clear. From what we've seen so far, prepare for an even bigger political war to be waged if they don't.

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Bank of America Makes Changes to Small Business Rewards Card

For many entrepreneurs, using small business rewards credit cards can not only help them separate business expenses from personal but can also allow them to earn cash back. Because of this there are now several card companies courting business owners in different ways. This week Bank of America announced a revamped cash back structure for its Business Advantage Cash Rewards Mastercard. However, as NerdWallet notes, these changes come with a few pros and cons. While the reward percentages on the card are staying the same, earning them has been changed significantly. First of all, while the previous iteration of the card offered small business owners 3% cash back on gas and office supply store purchases, now cardholders can choose what spending category they want to earn 3% back on. These options include the original two (gas stations and office supply stores) but add travel, television and telecom, computer services, and business consulting services as options. Luckily entrepreneurs can change their selection as often as once per calendar month in a bid to maximize their rewards. Additionally the card will retain its 2% cash back at restaurants perk plus 1% back on all other purchases. So far it sounds great right? Well, unfortunately, there's a bit of a catch. Although the previous version of the card capped the 3% bonus category spending at $250,000 annually (with cardholders earning a standard 1% back on such purchases thereafter), that cap has been lowered to $50,000. Moreover, while the 2% back on restaurant spending was unlimited, it too is now included in that $50,000 cap. After this threshold is met, all additional purchases will earn the standard 1% rate until a new spending year begins. Despite these big changes, there are some aspects of the card that are staying the same. For example the Bank of America Business Advantage Cash Rewards Mastercard comes with no annual fee. There's also the opportunity for Bank of America business accountholders to increase their cash back thanks to the bank's Relationship Rewards program. This program allows cardholders to increase their cash back reward amount by 25% to 75% depending on your account balance. That means that, if you're at Platinum Honors level, you'd earn 5.25% back on your chosen spending category, 3.5% at restaurants, and 1.75% back on everything else (and on those other categories once you reach the $50,000 spending cap). All in all there are certainly some good and bad elements to BofA's overhaul, which could give prospective cardholders pause. Similarly those who are still under the old structure may want to consider whether it's worth making the switch, with the answer likely depending on their anticipated spending for the year and what category said spending falls into. Ultimately it will be interesting to see how this shakeup impacts the small business rewards credit card market.

Bank of America Makes Changes to Small Business Rewards Card was previously published on http://www.dyernews.com

FinTech Firm SoFi Introduces Two ETFs

As we've seen time and time again in the FinTech space, a major trend has found companies moving beyond their core product and introducing related but different services. For example this trend has brought a slew of branded debit cards to the market as startups position themselves as lower-cost alternatives to big banks. Now one FinTech is once again branching out, bringing exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to market. This week SoFi introduced two ETFs: SoFi Select 500 ETF and SoFi Next 500 ETF, which will be traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbols SFY and SFYX respectively. While Select 500 ETF includes the 500 largest U.S. stocks, the Next 500 ETF features stocks from the "next" 500 largest U.S. companies — in other words, the 501st through 1000th largest companies). According to SoFi, they partnered with  Tidal ETF Services for "the trust, strategy, administrative and operational aspects of the ETFs." As of this writing, $SFY was priced at $10.07 a share with $SFYX at $10.10. In a press release announcing the company's ETF duo, SoFi Ceo Anthony Noto said, "When it comes to achieving financial independence, investing isn’t a choice — it’s a requirement. We designed these ETFs to make it as simple and easy as possible for anyone to start investing for the future, without any fees dragging on your returns." To that point, each of these funds currently has fee waivers that will bring total fund expenses to zero. The company says that will continue to be the case through at last June 30th, 2020. The introduction of the Select 500 and Next 500 ETFs is just the latest expansion announcement from FinTech lender SoFi in recent months. Previously the company unveiled its SoFi Invest platform that offers users fee-free Active or Automated trading. Additionally their SoFi Money accounts allow customers to earn 2.25% APY on their savings and access funds via a stylish debit card. Both of these features can be accessed through SoFi's app — which, for the record, still offers personal loans, home loans, student loan refinancing, and more. Even with this aggressive rollout of products, it seems SoFi isn't done yet. The company says it now plans to add support for cryptocurrency trading to its SoFi Invest platform "in the coming months." Interestingly, while such an announcement would be the biggest story of the quarter for some companies, it really pales in comparison to what else SoFi has rolled out this year alone. Needless to say the startup is certainly positioning themselves as a FinTech one stop shop and, as they put it, "giv[ing] our more than half a million members fast access to tools to get their money right."

FinTech Firm SoFi Introduces Two ETFs was originally published on http://www.dyernews.com/

H&R Block Data Finds Vast Majority of Taxpayers Didn’t Update W-4s

With the 2019 tax season now in its final stretch, one of the big stories to emerge has been the shrinking refunds Americans have seen. While anecdotes suggested that most refunds were down, new data from tax prep firm H&R Block (reported on by Marketwatch) shows that they actually increased on average — but only by about 1.4%. At the same time, 2018 tax liabilities for individuals fell by a nationwide average of 25%. So why the discrepancy? The main culprit seems to be that that most taxpayers failed to update their W-4s for the new tax year following the passage of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). In fact H&R Block found that 80% of respondents said they didn't make changes to their filings. Because of this many workers likely saw larger paychecks that have now led to lower refund amounts. Looking across the nation, the amount that a taxpayer's liability and/or refund changed in 2018 could depend greatly on what state they were in. Overall residents of New Jersey, Massachusetts, and California were found to see the largest decreases in their tax liabilities, with the average Garden State worker paying $1,972 less in taxes in 2018 than in 2017 — marking a 29.1% decline. Meanwhile the national average was a $1,200 tax liability decrease. Given that information, it may be surprising to note that New Jersey was also the state where refunds shrunk the most, decreasing by an average of $179. Similarly those in Maryland and D.C. say refunds fall by $176 and $172 respectively. As for those in South Dakota, Oklahoma, and New Mexico, they all saw refunds increase between $150 and $200 on average. Since measuring tax refunds and total tax liabilities can tell two very different stories, executive director of The Tax Institute at H&R Block Kathy Pickering warns that taxpayers should actually pay more attention to their W-4s and refile them as needed. As she explained, "All these moving pieces have made it hard for people to understand the TCJA impact on their individual situation. Relying on their refund size to determine what tax reform means to them may not only be misleading, but can also put them further at risk of not getting the tax outcome they want when they file next year." The argument over whether large tax refunds are good or bad is complicated. On the one hand, there are those that argue that large tax refunds mean you're more or less giving the federal government an interest-free loan. However others suggest that receiving these funds throughout the year in your paycheck makes it more likely that you'll spend them whereas refunded cash may be used more responsibly. Regardless of which philosophy you subscribe to, adjusting your W-4 now can help ensure you get the refund you want (or don't want) for next year.

H&R Block Data Finds Vast Majority of Taxpayers Didn’t Update W-4s was originally seen on DyerNews.com

Bitfinex Drops $10,000 Minimum Equity Requirement

Even as cryptocurrencies have grown in popularity, there are still questions about the accessibility of those assets. From volatile values to confusion over buying and trading, those wanting to invest in crypto have often had to jump through a few hoops. However one platform is now attempting to open its doors by significantly lowering its capital requirements. This week, Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency exchange Bitfinex announced it was doing away with its $10,000 minimum equity requirement. In a Medium post the company explained that the decision was made in response to trader demand. As a result Bitfinex says that everyone will have access to "the world’s most advanced trading platform." In a statement, Bitfinex CEO Jean-Louis van der Veld said, "We simply could not ignore the increasing level of requests for access to trade on Bitfinex from a wider cohort than our traditional customer base." He went on to note, "For the last six months we have been working hard to ready our platform for a new wave of customer accounts and are now in a position to open Bitfinex to a wider audience. By dropping our minimum equity requirement, the only limits are now set by the traders themselves.” As for what recent improvements van der Veld is referring to, the company says its upgraded its support center with more answers to common questions coupled with faster issue response and resolution times. Similarly the platform will now provide education on every token it lists. Bitfinex has also enhanced its Know Your Client (KYC) portal to create a "more frictionless" process in the "near future." Despite doing away with its minimum equity requirement, Binfinex users may still incur fees if their deposits are below a certain threshold. For example Bitcoin deposits of less than $1,000 USD will be subjected to a 0.0004 BTC fee. Other fees may also apply for withdrawals, order execution, margin funding, and more. Bitfinex's decision to lower its minimum equity requirement puts them in a position for real growth. As it stands the platform has an average daily Bitcoin trade volume of $38 million, putting it in second place (albeit a distant second) behind Binance according to a recent Bitwise report. By opening their platform to many more traders, it stands to reason that they can easily gain ground and help close that gap. Of course this success will only come if the upgrades the company boasts make its infrastructure as stable and capable as they claim. In either case Binfinex is proving to be one crypto platform worth watching.

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Money at 30: “Broke Millennial” Book Review

A few weeks ago, I was scrolling through Twitter when I saw a tweet from @BrokeMillennial (AKA Erin Lowry) about her upcoming book Broke Millennial Takes On Investing. Considering the recent interest I've taken in learning more about investing and building a portfolio, I immediately pre-ordered the book — which is being released today. However, before diving into that title when it arrives on my doorstep, I figured I should take a look back to Lowry's previous book, Broke Millennial: Stop Scraping By and Get Your Financial Life Together to see what the series was all about. To my delight, I was pleasantly impressed by what I found. Broke Millennial is a bit of a rarity in that it's a book that encourages you to skip chapters and read ahead — almost like a "Choose Your Own Adventure" for financial advice. In fact, chapters two and three are more or less dedicated to identifying what category of financial knowledge and situation you fall into, with Lowry then suggesting which chapters of the book you should likely focus on. You may be surprised to find that, even if you do ascend to the top of the class in terms of savviness and savings, the book still has something to offer that's new and interesting or at least entertaining. To this point, one of my favorite chapters in the book wasn't about any massive money topic such as retirement or debt but, instead, offered a few tips for navigating awkward social situations where your frugality or inability to afford something can cause tension. This is the type of advice that other authors might have worked into a larger chapter but the fact that Lowry chose to elevate its billing shows that she definitely knows her audience and was intent on crafting a different kind of personal finance book for them. Another aspect of Broke Millennial I really enjoy is the way the book is organized and laid out. Each chapter is frequently punctuated with subsections, bullet points, checklists, the occasional chart, additional quotes, and more. All of these elements add to Lowry's "read what applies" approach and also made the book one of the fastest reads I've encountered in some time. As for criticisms, there really isn't much to say. While there were elements I disagreed with, each instance of this was merely one example presented alongside other options and insights. Therefore objection to some of these proposals is practically the point. In fact, the exploration of different ideas and their judgment-free presentation is actually what I liked most about the book. One thing I will say though is that, while I'm familiar with Lowry's "Broke Millennial" brand and just see this book's title as nothing more than a name, I have heard from some who took it more as a label they would need to identify with if they were going to get value from its pages. That's pretty understandable and could do Lowry a disservice considering the lengths she went to widen her work's appeal. Of course I have no solution to this problem but thought it was interesting nonetheless. Honestly, when I first picked up Broke Millennial: Stop Scraping By and Get Your Financial Life Together, I assumed that most of it wouldn't apply to me and was more or less previewing it in anticipation for the follow-up. That's why I was so taken aback to find an acknowledgment of said dilemma upfront, accompanied by a humbling reminder that I certainly don't know everything when it comes to personal finance. More than anything, however, I really enjoyed Lowry's writing style, ability to make tough topics digestible, and sense of humor that all made her book a quick and enjoyable read. So even though I easily could have skipped a number of chapters, I found I didn't really want to. In all, reading this entry only made me more excited for the just-released sequel Broke Millennial Takes On Investing: A Beginner's Guide to Leveling Up Your Money — which I'll be reviewing next week.

Money at 30: “Broke Millennial” Book Review was first seen on www.dyernews.com