You've done it. You've built up a little cushion in your bank account â€" $1,000! It feels good, right? Those days of checking your account balance in a panic are behind you.
Congrats! You're on the right path. Now it's time to think about some longer-term goals. What do you want to accomplish next with your money? Do you need to save more? Do you want to buy a home someday? Invest?
What's the next step you should take? What are some specific things you can do to take your finances to the next level?
We've got some ideas for you:
1. Invest in Real Estate (Even if You're Not a Millionaire)
The stock market can be a scary place. Stock prices shoot up and down like a roller coaster ride, and who knows when the whole thing might crash?
It would be nice to diversify and invest some of your money in real estate, but don't you have to be wealthy to do that?
Now you can invest like the 1% does, and all you need to get started is $500. A company called DiversyFund will invest your money in private real estate â€" specifically, in apartment buildings it co-owns with its investors â€" and you only need $500.
You can see exactly which properties are included in your portfolio through their online dashboard â€" like a 54-unit apartment complex in Salt Lake City, Utah, or a 30-unit waterfront property in Stuart, Florida. And you don't have to experience the headaches that come with being a landlord â€" DiversyFund does all the heavy lifting for you.
Real estate has historically been very stable compared to the stock market. Over the long term, investing in the stock market will earn you an average annual return of 7%, adjusted for inflation, according to a number of studies. DiversyFund can't guarantee how its investments will perform in the future â€" no one can â€" but historically, real estate has outperformed the stock market for the past 30 years.
So you don't need a fortune to invest in real estate. All you need to get started is $500. Sign up here to start investing today.
2. See if You Can Get More Money From This Company
Here's the deal: If you're not using Aspiration's debit card, you're missing out on extra cash. And who doesn't want extra cash?
Yep. A debit card called Aspiration gives you up to a 10% back every time you swipe.
Need to buy groceries? Extra cash.
Need to fill up the tank? Bam. Even more extra cash.
You were going to buy these things anyway â€" why not get this extra money in the process?
Enter your email address here, and link your bank account to see how much extra cash you can get with your free Aspiration account. And don't worry. Your money is FDIC insured and under a military-grade encryption. That's nerd talk for 'this is totally safe.'
3. Cancel Your Car Insurance
When was the last time you compared car insurance rates? Chances are you're seriously overpaying with your current policy.
If it's been more than six months since your last car insurance quote, you should look again.
And if you look through a digital marketplace called SmartFinancial, you could be getting rates as low as $22 a month â€" and saving yourself more than $700 a year.
It takes one minute to get quotes from multiple insurers, so you can see all the best rates side-by-side. Yep â€" in just one minute you could save yourself $715 this year. That's some major cash back in your pocket.
So if you haven't checked car insurance rates in a while, see how much you can save with a new policy.
4. Stop Wasting Thousands Because of Your Bad Credit Score
Do you know how much money your bad credit score has cost you? Between higher interest rates on car loans or interest fees on your credit card balance, it could be thousands of dollars each year.
You know you need to fix it, but you don't have the time, money or energy. But there's a debit card called Extra that can help raise your credit without any of the hassle. And you could get rewards, too.
The Extra debit card is the first debit card that can positively impact your credit score without any of the risks from a regular credit card â€" there's no credit check, no interest rates and no deposit required to use it. Plus, you get to keep your money in the bank account you've always used.
Sign up for an Extra debit card by securely connecting your bank account. You'll get a credit limit based on your real-time cash balance. Every time you make a purchase with your Extra card, they'll spot you the cash now and pay themselves back the next day.
At the end of the month, all of your purchases are reported to the credit bureaus as credit-worthy payments â€" just like a credit card company would. But you won't be paying any interest fees since it's your money you're spending. You will earn rewards though!
It takes just a few minutes to sign up for an Extra debit card, and you can get all the perks of a credit card without the risks of a credit card. You can save thousands of dollars in interest, build your credit score and quite literally reap the rewards.
5. Let This Company Pay Your Credit Card Bill This Month
No, like… the whole bill. All of it.
While you're stressing out over your debt, your credit card company is getting rich off those insane interest rates. But a website called Payoff could help you pay off that bill as soon as tomorrow.
Here's how it works: Payoff can match you with a low-interest loan you can use to pay off every credit card balance you have. The benefit? You're left with just one bill to pay every month, and because the interest rate is so much lower, you can get out of debt so much faster. Plus, no credit card payment this month.
Payoff can help you borrow up to $40,000.
Payoff won't make you stand in line or call a bank. And if you're worried you won't qualify, it's free to check online. It takes just a few minutes, and it could save you thousands of dollars â€" and raise your FICO score by up to 40 points. Totally worth it.
All that credit card debt â€" and the anxiety that comes with it â€" could be gone by tomorrow.
6. Get Up to $1,000 to Become a Better Investor
Are you tired of trying to game the stock market and want to actually become a smarter investor?
An app called Tornado â€" created by Wall Street veterans â€" will give you up to $1,000 just to better understand the different ways to grow your money and help you become a more educated investor.
Yep â€" just by focusing on understanding the why behind the stock market, making smarter trades and investments and growing your net worth, you can get anywhere from $10 to $1,000. Plus, you'll also get a first-deposit bonus.
With your subscription, you can get expert-level insight and ask leading investors your burning questions. Plus, the Tornado newsfeed is tailored to cover your investments and your interests â€" think of it like a personalized replacement for your Wall Street Journal ticker (but for a quarter of the cost).
Subscriptions are $4.99 a month, but that's it. No skimming a little off the top of your account's growth like some of those other 'free' apps. Plus, when you participate in their Learn and Earn program â€" which serves up professionally vetted educational content tailored to your experience level â€" you can earn up to $50, easily offsetting your monthly subscription cost.
So if you're ready to become a better investor, create your Tornado account now and start improving your net worth right away with up to $1,000.
This was originally published on The Penny Hoarder, which helps millions of readers worldwide earn and save money by sharing unique job opportunities, personal stories, freebies and more. The Inc. 5000 ranked The Penny Hoarder as the fastest-growing private media company in the U.S. in 2017.
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