Good morning. It's Wednesday, March. 20 and we're covering ways to spring clean your finances, increasing revenue, becoming a real estate agent, and much more. | First time reading? Sign up here. | Stock Market Update | | | | | Market Performance: March 19, 2024. | Wall Street closed the trading session on a high note Tuesday, as investors braced for the results of a crucial Federal Reserve policy meeting.
The S&P 500 (^GSPC) rose close to 0.6%, beating back earlier losses to close at a fresh record high of 5,178.51. Meanwhile, the Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) rose 0.8%, or more than 300 points. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) increased almost 0.4% as Nvidia (NVDA) shares gained ground in the wake of AI updates from its annual developer conference. The gains capped a second-straight winning day for the major gauges.
Attention is firmly on the Fed's two-day meeting that began Tuesday morning, seen as a test for stocks bruised by recent inflation surprises that undermined bets on interest-rate cuts coming soon. |
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| | Financial Maverick Insights | | | | | Ways to "Spring Clean" Your Finances | March 19 is the first day of spring, and you know what that means — time to get started on your home's annual "spring cleaning." As you deep clean your home, however, there's another thing that also needs tidying — your finances.
Organizing and cleaning up your accounts can help you save money throughout the rest of the year, so it's important to set aside some time to "spring clean" your finances in the coming weeks.
Check your credit report
A good starting point to organize your finances this spring is by checking your credit report. It's important to check for any errors on your report that could be negatively affecting your credit score, such as incorrect personal information, balance errors, incorrect accounts resulting from identity theft or incorrect balances. And errors on your credit report are more common than you may think.
Get a better savings rate
If you haven't been saving your hard-earned cash in a high yield savings account, what are you waiting for! Now's a great time to open one of the best high-yield savings accounts in order to maximize your savings throughout the rest of the year. By not taking advantage of the high APYs on these accounts — in many cases, over 5% — you're leaving free money on the table.
Get rid of unwanted subscriptions
Unless you're watching TV literally ALL day, you probably don't need a subscription for more than one or two streaming services, like Netflix. And if you subscribed to a streaming service in order to watch a specific show, you've likely forgotten to cancel now that you're caught up. There's a whole number of other subscriptions that could be eating away at income each month, from meal-prep services to dating apps to music streaming. Download an app that can track your monthly subscriptions and easily let you cancel them, like Rocket Money or PocketGuard. Many of these apps come with additional features that can help you manage your finances as well.
Turn your old stuff into cash
When you spring clean your attic or basement this year, you may want to think twice about throwing everything away. Some of the old items you have collecting dust might actually be worth money — a lot of money. Certain old school video games, vintage toys and boy scout memorabilia, to give a few examples, can all go for thousands of dollars on eBay.
Deal with debt
It's time to spring clean your finances, which means it's time to declutter your debt. It can be tricky to keep up with multiple loans from multiple lenders, all with different payments and interest rates. If this has caused you a great deal of financial stress, you could benefit from consolidating that debt into a single loan with a competitive interest rate. This can help you get a clearer picture of your overall finances, helping you pay down debt and save where you can. |
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| | | | | | Ways for Small Businesses to Increase Revenue in 2024 | As 2024 begins, goals and resolutions are top of mind. According to a recent report by Intuit QuickBooks, the top priority among business owners is to increase revenue, above getting financing or launching new products or services.
Increasing revenue is no easy feat, but entrepreneurs can employ a variety of strategies to help achieve growth in 2024. Even if some macroeconomic pressures like inflation and interest rates may ease this year, they are likely a continued concern for businesses.
By looking for new ways to modernize and improve business processes, entrepreneurs can be better positioned to power momentum in 2024 and beyond, even in ever-changing economic conditions.
Hire skilled workers
Having good employees is key to business growth, and in 2024 business owners say it's a top priority, even ahead of cash flow. Entrepreneurs believe hiring skilled employees will help them meet increased customer demand, and most employers (89%) want to hire more employees or contractors this year. But hiring can also be costly and according to one study, the average cost per hire was almost $4,700 when you take into account onboarding, training and the ramp up to productivity.
Optimize inventory management to enhance omnichannel sales
As business owners embrace omnichannel sales, selling across multiple online and in-person channels can maximize revenue but can also add new complexities to running your business. Have you ever ordered a product from a business, big or small, only to find out it's actually sold out? Optimizing inventory management so you can deliver the best customer experience is key for success and continued consumer loyalty.
Dynamic management of cash flow and credit card debt
To make money, you have to have money on hand. Access to cash and maintaining healthy cash flow is essential to small business survival. Whether it's earmarking enough cash to cover overhead costs if payments are late to paying for unexpected expenses and emergencies, business owners have to be ready for the inevitable curveball that will come their way.
Set your financial goals
Whether it is setting an intention for the day or creating a workback timeline to hit a big business milestone, goals are an important part of a business owner's journey. As we kick off 2024, business owners should evaluate what financial goals will make them feel successful. These financial goals can help provide a clear sense of direction, serve as a benchmark for progress and success or unearth areas that need improvement. They can also serve as a road map of your longer-term mission or vision for the business and can ultimately help fuel overall growth. |
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| Real Estate News |  | Real estate agent commission rules are about to change, shifting costs between buyers and sellers | "We're going to either see prices are going up for buyers, or the market is going to correct itself." |
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|  | Becoming a Real Estate Agent | Real estate agents help clients buy or sell properties. Learn what it takes to become a real estate agent, what real estate agents do and more. |
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|  | The $52 Trillion Housing Market Just Changed Forever | An agreement to change how real estate brokers are paid will change housing for everyone. |
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| | Personal Finance Tips |  | Master Your Money: 7 Personal Finance TIPS for wealth | Master Your Money: 7 Personal Finance TIPS for wealth |
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|  | Identity Theft: What It Is, How to Prevent It, Warning Signs and Tips - NerdWallet | Simple steps can help protect you from identity theft, including freezing your credit, monitoring accounts and storing personal information securely. |
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|  | 19 Side Gigs That Will Pay You $100 in a Single Day | Depending on the type of work you do, it's very possible to earn $100 for just a day's work. Design-related and digital marketing jobs tend to pay the most for taking a job on a quick turnaround, but... |
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| | Alternative Investing |  | Elon Musk's X Is The Ideal 'Big-Tech' Company | X's transparency, open-source algorithm, and shift to a subscription-driven model demonstrate a commitment to trust and transparency. |
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|  | 'We're back!': Inside NYC's bullish crypto party scene, after Bitcoin hit new all-time $70K high | It was a celebratory "told-you-so" moment last week for Strobel and her ilk, as Bitcoin blew past $70,000 for the first time — making a remarkable recovery from the deep plunge of just a year ago. |
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|  | My Top-5 Disruptive AI Stock Picks For Intelligent Investing | About a year ago, NVIDIA's (NVDA) CEO, Jensen Huang called the emergence of ChatGPT "the iPhone moment" for the whole AI industry. |
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