As much as making a mistake with your hard-earned money can stink, it's nothing to be ashamed about. Through these missteps, we can learn and grow.
But, if you can avoid learning the hard way, why not seize the opportunity? Here are a few of the most common ways that people accidentally hold themselves back financially — and how to avoid these traps.
Get the one budgeting app that truly does it all
Ever look at your bank account and wonder where your paycheck went? *Poof,* it's gone … and you have NO idea how you spent it all so quickly.
A budgeting app like Rocket Money could end this problem for you.
Now, some insider info: They *do* have a free version of the app ... but the real money-saving power is found in their premium subscription.
Select a premium subscription when you sign up, and you’ll unlock features that actually save you the most money possible. Like their “Cancellation Concierge,” which helps to cancel subscriptions for you. (It’s pay-what-you-want for premium, too — as little as $4 a month!)
With your premium subscription, you’ll also be able to create unlimited budgets, see your full credit report, and get automatic “smart savings” that help you grow your savings on autopilot.
Not canceling your car insurance
We’ve got bad news. You could be wasting $500 every year on overpriced, second-rate car insurance. And you should probably cancel your existing insurance right now, because there’s something much better.
This new tool from FinanceBuzz can tell you if you’re overpaying for your car insurance in just a few clicks. We match drivers with companies that report saving drivers up to $500 or more per year when they save! Each driver’s savings will vary by driving history and how many discounts you’re eligible for. And once you try it out, you’ll never have to look for affordable insurance again because we find you the lowest rates that other companies can’t match.
Oh, and it’s also free. And come on — you can’t tell us you don’t want to save up to $500. To find out if you’re losing up to $500 or more a year, just enter your zip code here, answer a few questions and see if you’re overpaying. It takes less than 2 minutes.
Not Pausing interest until July 2026
Imagine getting 21 months from account opening with 0% interest on a balance transfer or a big purchase. Sounds great — right? You could dramatically change your financial picture with this industry-leading card — the Wells Fargo Reflect® Card(Rates and fees).
If you want to kick high-interest credit card debt to the curb, this is one of the leading get-out-of-debt cards available. Transfer your high interest debt to this card with a 0% intro APR for 21 months from account opening on qualifying balance transfers. Your payments can go directly to paying down your balance without incurring a pile of additional charges. That could save you hundreds of dollars in interest!
It doesn't just stop with balance transfers though. Cardholders also get a generous intro APR of 0% for 21 months from account opening on purchases. After the intro period for purchases and balance transfers, the APR is 17.74%, 24.24%, or 29.49% Variable.
The best part? There's no annual fee.
Not getting out of $10,000 or more in debt
If you have a lot of debt, getting out of it can feel stressful (and nearly impossible). Here’s the problem: the longer you put off tackling it, the harder it gets to fix. If you don’t take control of it early on, it can add undue stress to your life for years. But what if there was a way to get out of debt once and for all?
National Debt Relief could help. If you have more than $10,000 in debt from credit cards, medical bills, collections, or personal loans, their representatives might be able to assist you in consolidating your debt into one low monthly payment.
Best of all? There are zero fees until your debt is resolved, and you could be debt-free in 24-48 months. To get started, just answer a few simple questions. It only takes 30 seconds to see if you qualify!1