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| Stat Of The Day |
| $68 Million |
That’s the approximate value of coins thrown away by people every year. Where does all that loose change end up? Click here to find out. |
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| It’s Time To Save On Airfare With A Travel Backpack. Here Are The Best. |
While the cost of airfare is expected to decrease as 2024 continues, one part of the travel experience is unfortunately headed in the other direction: Baggage fees. Already this year, United Airlines, American Airlines and JetBlue Airways have raised the prices of checked bags. Today, fees to check a bag can range anywhere from $0 (shoutout Southwest Airlines!) to $99. The added expense for a checked bag can feel demoralizing after we’ve already spent so much to plan the perfect adventure, but thankfully, a good travel backpack can be just the ticket we need to save more.
How? For starters, more than a weekend’s worth of stuff can fit inside — and the best ones fit under the airplane seat in front of you, which means your handy backpack suddenly becomes a free "personal item," rather than a bag they can charge for.
Here’s a look at some of the best — and most affordable — travel backpacks on the market, so you can start those summer voyages in style. |
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| This Week In Your Wallet |
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Ouch. One of the Fed’s favored inflation gauges came in hotter than expected for the month of March. "The Fed's preferred inflation measure — the "core" Personal Consumption Expenditures index that excludes volatile food and energy prices — clocked in at 2.8% year over year for the month of March. That was the same level as February, but a tenth of a percent higher than expected," reports Yahoo! Finance.
So what does this mean for consumers? For starters, we’ll likely be waiting longer for the Fed’s highly-anticipated rate cuts. "Today’s data means that it will take a longer string of months of good inflation data before the Fed will be comfortable with cutting," said Preston Caldwell, chief US economist at Morningstar.
When it comes to finding and paying for childcare, parents in Nevada are the worst off. While the average household in the U.S. spends $325 per week for care, Nevadians fork over roughly $493 per week (an average of 32.3% of their weekly income) for someone to watch their kiddos, according to a new analysis from LendingTree. A number of factors have pushed the cost of care up, including inflation and the "child care cliff." "There’s so much that goes into proper child care, whether it’s wages or rent or insurance or 500 other things," Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree, told USA TODAY. "When the cost of everything is rising, it makes all the sense in the world that the cost of child care would, too." Despite these challenges, there are states where costs are much lower. For example, Iowa boasts the cheapest average weekly cost of $182, about 10% of the average family’s income.
Traveling the friendly skies is about to get, well, friendlier. Thanks to new federal rules set to go into effect as early as this fall, if your flight plans go awry, instead of receiving a voucher or credit, airlines will now be required to "automatically issue refunds without passengers having to explicitly request them or jump through hoops," the Transportation Department says. There will also be better protections in place for situations when passengers pay for certain services and the airline doesn’t deliver. "Refunds will also be given if passengers pay for a service such as WiFi, seat selection or in-flight entertainment and the airline fails to provide," reports The Washington Post. |
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| Things That Save You Money |
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Calling all members of the Tortured Poets Department: Cosmo’s sharing how to recreate some of Taylor’s favorite styles, for those in their budget-conscious era. |
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For the over-55 crowd looking to dial up a discount on their cell phone plans, here’s a roundup of providers who offer deals for seniors. For example, AT&T offers a special plan for those with a billing address in Florida. It’s just $60 per month for unlimited data, calls and text. |
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HerMoney reader Trudy says Groupon is her go-to for a budget-friendly night out. "I live near a concert venue and check Groupon a lot to see if tickets are heavily discounted, which they can be for some groups. I am not a huge fan of Barry Manilow, but I WAS for a $20 ticket!" |
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| Protecting Women’s Healthcare With Kate Ryder |
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| It’s no secret that women’s healthcare needs are unique. At all life stages: puberty, conception, fertility journeys, and onto menopause, we need easy access to specialized care for a lifetime. Sadly though, there are major gaps in women’s healthcare that still need to be closed. |
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That’s why Kate Ryder created Maven Clinic, a comprehensive virtual platform that offers support and referrals related to everything from family planning to menopause. "I was sitting inside a venture capital firm in London looking at a bunch of early-stage digital health businesses, and what really seemed to be missing is the fact that the healthcare industry is so fundamentally dominated by the female consumer," Ryder tells host Karen Finerman on the How She Does It podcast. "So I thought there’s no problem I care more about than creating a better system of health care and better access than in women’s and family health, because not only does it affect me, it’s also the bedrock of our entire society and the entire healthcare system."
Listen in to hear how Maven Clinic became the first "unicorn" in women's and family health. |
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| Ask Jean |
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| Q: |
Today’s question comes from Moorea. She writes: I have a checking account at a credit union and I have my IRAs, as well as another checking account at a brokerage firm. I want to close the checking account at the credit union in order to simplify my life. If you were me, would you close it? Or is it dangerous to put all my eggs in one basket? |
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Hi Moorea — I’m all for simplification. I like being able to sign onto one account and see as much as possible, so I very much understand the desire to do this. The advantage to having a checking account at your brokerage firm is that it makes it easier to transfer money in order to purchase investments. The main disadvantage is that the brokerage won’t have its own ATMs. If you use them frequently, ATM fee reimbursement from the brokerage is going to be an important benefit. (Individual credit unions don’t have as many as big banks, but many belong to a network that allows fee-free usage of ATMs to make up the difference.) Finally, before you close the account, I’d ask yourself if there are other things you could/should be using that credit union for that you aren’t getting from the brokerage. For example, should you be taking advantage of a high-yield savings account? Are there any other in-branch services you like to use? If not, I’d say go ahead. We can all use a little more administrative ease. |
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| Submit your questions to Jean here. |
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