| Subscribe Read in Browser |
 |
|
|
|
|
| This Week In Your Wallet |
 |
Welcome to the "Paze craze," aka an "obsessive hunt for free money." Paze is the big banks' answer to Apple Pay and PayPal – a secure online checkout and digital wallet service. A marketing campaign for Paze has turned into a game of sorts for savvy consumers. Here’s how it works: activate Paze on an eligible credit or debit card, spend $10 or more at a partner retailer – think Dunkin', Domino's, StubHub, United Airlines, Sephora – and get $10 back as a statement credit. You can do this up to 10 times per card. As Bloomberg reports, shoppers are stacking the promo across every eligible card they own to squeeze out as much free money (in some cases, over $1,000) as possible before it expires on September 10. "They strive to keep transactions close to $10 so they don’t spend extra money, which is why hunting for $10 gift cards – and not a cent more – has proved popular," Bloomberg notes. Pro-tip: One HerMoney staffer has been taking advantage of the Paze promo to stock up on these $10 Touchland hand sanitizers at Sephora.
4.4 billion. That’s how many pounds of donations Goodwill handles every year, with most of it cleaned, priced and sold in-store, as Business Insider reports. For resellers like Hannah Valentine, who sources vintage finds from Goodwill racks, that flow of donations has turned into a resale business earning her over $80K per year. But her job just got harder: Goodwill is rolling out AI listing tools that pull the best items online before they ever hit the sales floor, cutting off the thrifters who built entire businesses on finding hidden treasures. Here’s a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at how Goodwill sorts and sells millions of items a year – and how resellers are adapting to keep up.
More people are asking for help managing debt – and it’s not because they’re overspending on extras. It’s because everyday essentials, like car repairs and medical bills, are outpacing their budgets, as The New York Times reports. Money Management International, a Texas-based nonprofit credit counseling firm, says it counseled nearly 41,000 clients in the first half of the year – up about 10% from the same period in 2025. Enrollment in its debt management plans, which help borrowers pay down debt (mostly credit cards) at lower interest rates, hit its highest level in nearly a decade. The largest group seeking help? People in their 30s to mid-40s, carrying an average of about $41,000 in unsecured debt. "It tends to be practical stuff — day-to-day things outpacing your budget," notes Ted Rossman, principal consumer finance analyst at Money Management International. |
|
|
|
| You Make Six Figures…So Why Does It Feel Like You’re Falling Behind? |
There was a time when hitting a $100,000 salary meant you’d made it. These days, in some cities, it barely covers groceries – and there’s a real reason that gap feels so wide.
The U.S. poverty line – the benchmark we still use to define who's struggling in this economy – was set back in 1963. The math was simple: take the cost of a minimum food budget, multiply by three, and that's your line. It worked back then, because housing was cheap, healthcare barely cost anything, and childcare wasn't really a paid expense at all. Sixty-plus years later, none of that is true – and we're still using roughly the same formula.
On the HerMoney Podcast, Jean sat down with Mark Hamrick, economic analyst and writer of The Hamrick Brief, to dig into why the economy can look fine on paper but still feel so tight on your wallet in real life, and what you can actually do to keep up.
As Hamrick explains it, the economy isn't in crisis, but it isn't sprinting ahead either. As he put it: "not too hot, not too cold. That's not the worst place to be."
To navigate this in-between phase, he suggests focusing on the fundamentals – starting with building, or rebuilding, your emergency savings. "Prioritize savings and specifically emergency savings," Hamrick says. With many Americans living paycheck to paycheck, an interruption in income is one of the biggest risks in any economy, recession or not. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Things That Save You Money |
|
|
|
|
|
| Ask Jean |
 |
| Q: |
Today’s question comes from Diane. She writes: "I am a 66-year-old woman, single, retired for almost one year and doing consulting work very part-time. Do I need to be concerned about my credit score? I would like to close a credit card or two, and currently have a very good credit score of 802." |
| A: |
If you’re no longer using a particular credit card, there are financial benefits to keeping it open – as long as it’s not costing you anything. But if it’s costing you unnecessary fees (or tempting you to spend), it can be the right move.
Before you cancel a credit card, ask yourself:
How long have you had the card? Your oldest credit accounts can be the most valuable to your credit score, because they show a long history of credit. It may not be a good idea to close your oldest credit card, especially if you have a positive payment history with it.
What is the card costing you? If your card has a high interest rate or hefty annual fee that the issuer won’t waive, it’s likely worth closing the card.
Have you closed other cards recently? It’s better not to close several cards at once because it may look suspicious to potential creditors or lenders. Instead, if you want to close more than one card, gradually pay them down and close the accounts, spacing the closures over time.
Will you still have a few active credit accounts? Many experts recommend keeping four to six credit accounts open to keep your credit score healthy and show a strong debt-to-available-credit ratio. These accounts don’t have to be all credit cards, however; car loans, mortgages, and other credit accounts count too.
Closing a card will cause you to take a small hit, but it won’t hurt your credit forever. That said, it’s worth thinking through the above questions and taking a beat before you make a move – especially if you’re going to be applying for a mortgage, auto loan, or other financing anytime soon. |
|
| Submit your questions to Jean here. |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| We maintain a strict editorial policy and a judgment-free zone for our community. We strive to remain transparent in everything we do. Website posts and newsletters may contain advertisements, links and mentions of products from our partners. Learn more about how we make money. |
| *This is a sponsored post |
|
