When it comes to money advice, everyone wants to throw in their two cents.
Oh, you should definitely buy and not rent. Stay away from credit cards; they’re evil. Why are you so worried about your credit score? It doesn’t matter.
There’s a lot of — quite frankly — dumb financial advice floating around out there, and it can be hard to figure out what’s up and what’s down.
Well, we’re here to set the record straight. Here’s some of the dumbest money advice out there — and what you should do instead.
Dumb Advice No. 1: ‘You Have to Pay Your Credit Card Bill Every Month’
How could that be bad advice? Of course you have to pay your credit card bill every month, right?
Well, not exactly. A website calledFiona could help you pay off your entire bill as soon as tomorrow. Yep. No credit card payment this month.
Here’s how it works: Fiona 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.
If your credit score is at least 620, Fiona can help you borrow up to $250,000 (no collateral needed) with fixed rates starting at 2.49% and terms from 6 to 144 months.
Fiona 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 two minutes, and it could save you thousands of dollars. Totally worth it.
All that credit card debt — and the anxiety that comes with it — could be gone by tomorrow.
Dumb Advice No. 2: AI Will Steal Your Job and Won’t Help You Make Money
AI is everywhere these days. Some of it is pure fun; some of it’s concerning. But this AI tech is the first one that can actually help you invest.
A company called Magnifi has packaged a financial advisor into a friendly AI chatbot. It’s essentially the ChatGPT of investing apps. It can hold your hand if you’re new to investing or help up your game if you’ve been investing for years.
Magnifi guides new investors to build personalized plans, learn as they go and buy investments that are optimized for your goals.
Ask it how you can invest $100. $500. $5000. Ask it what you should do to diversify or how to retire early. Ask what a stock is. Ask it whatever, whenever — it won’t judge you for “dumb” questions or charge you a commission. It will just help you invest and grow your money wisely.
See for yourself. You can try Magnifi for free and start putting your money to work investing today.
Dumb Advice No. 3: ‘Keep Your Opinions to Yourself.’ This Site Pays Up to $140/Month Just for Sharing Your Honest Opinion
It sounds strange, but brands want to hear your opinion. It helps them make business decisions, so they’re willing to pay you for it — up to $140 a month.
A free site called Branded Surveys will pay you up to $5 per survey for sharing your thoughts with their brand partners. Taking three quick surveys a day could earn up to $140 each month.
It takes just a minute to create a free account and start getting paid to speak your mind. Most surveys take five to 15 minutes, and you can check how long they’ll take ahead of time.
And you don’t need to build up tons of money to cash out, either — once you earn $5, you can cash out via PayPal, your bank account, a gift card or Amazon. You’ll get paid within 48 hours of your payout being processed, just for sharing your opinions.
They’ve already paid users more than $20 million since 2012, and the most active users can earn a few hundred dollars a month. Plus, they’ve got an “excellent” rating on Trustpilot.
It takes just a minute to set up your account and start getting paid to take surveys. Plus, right now, you’ll get a free 100-point welcome bonus just for becoming part of the community.
Dumb Advice No. 4: ‘You Don’t Need Any Help.’ Ask This Company to Reduce a Big Chunk of Your Credit Card Debt
Not trying to be dramatic, but card debt is like a dark, suffocating abyss that swallows your finances and leaves you feeling trapped and helpless.
So, what if you could just… get rid of credit card debt that’s weighing you down?
A company called Freedom Debt Relief could help you do just that. Its negotiators could work directly with your credit card companies to reduce your overall credit card debt.
It’s free to talk with a Freedom Debt Relief debt consultant to determine the best strategy for your situation. You’ll need to show why you’re struggling to make your payments and tell them a little bit about your finances.
Then, Freedom Debt Relief will work out just how much of your debt they could reduce — they’ve already helped over 850,000 people settle over $15 billion in debt.
Once enrolled in the program, Freedom Debt Relief will negotiate a settlement with your creditor, and if you approve the offer they come back with, you’ll pay off that reduced balance through a monthly program deposit.
It’s free to see just how much of your debt you can get rid of.
Dumb Advice No. 5: Your Phone is a Waste of Time. But You Can Earn Up to $425 Wining 2-Minute Bingo Games on Your Phone
Want to get paid to decompress from your long, overworked day?
An app called Blackout Bingo lets you do just that. This free app lets you play a game you already know and love, plus it matches you with players in your skill level, so you can go head-to-head in tournaments where you can win up to $425 per game. Plus, the games are quick — about two minutes each, and you can play them on the go.
Here’s how it works: Download the free app and create an account, then play some practice games to get the hang of it. Then, when you’re ready, play for money if you want — up to $425 per win.
You can get paid instantly via PayPal, credit card or Apple Pay.The Blackout Bingo app has an App Store rating of 4.5 out of 5, and it takes just a few minutes to download the app and play your first game. The more you play, the more big stakes you will unlock – you can even unlock events to win over $12,000.
Dumb Advice No. 6: ‘You Need to Get a Second Job to Make Extra Money’
It’s been a historic year in the news, and we’re all constantly refreshing for the latest updates. You probably know more than one news junkie who fancies themselves a constitutional scholar or a foreign policy expert.
That might not be the best news for your dinner conversations, but it’s great news for your wallet. By signing up for a free account with InboxDollars, you could add up to $225 a month to your pocket. They’ll present you with short surveys to choose from every day, which you can fill out while you watch tonight’s broadcast.
You just have to answer honestly, and InboxDollars will continue to pay you every month. This might sound too good to be true, but it’s already paid its users more than $56 million.
It takes about one minute to sign up and start getting paid while you watch the news.
Dumb Advice No. 7: ‘You Should Get 3 Auto Insurance Quotes’
Sure, this sounds like good advice. Here’s why it’s wrong: Comparing only three companies isn’t nearly enough. We suggest comparing hundreds. But who has time for that?
A company called Insurify shows you all your options at once — people who do this save up to $996 per year.
Just tell them a bit about yourself and your vehicle, and they’ll show you personalized quotes so you can compare them all and find the best one for you.
Tired of overpaying for car insurance? It takes just five minutes to compare your options with Insurify and see how much you could save on car insurance.
