Proud Money

Best Credit Cards RIGHT NOW – May 2023

Below we list some of the best credit cards on the market right now, with an emphasis on cash back and travel rewards cards:

Best Cash Back Credit Cards

card_name – Why We Like It: Maybe the best rewards credit card for grocery purchases with no annual fee, plus a rare 3% reward for general online purchases. EARN: 3% cash back on groceries at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%), 3% cash back on U.S. online retail purchases on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%), 3% cash back on gas at U.S. gas stations on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%), 1% cash back on other purchases. Cash back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed as a statement credit. NEW CARDHOLDER WELCOME BONUS OPPORTUNITY: bonus_miles_full card_name. American Express is a ProudMoney advertiser.

card_name – Why We Like It: No-brainer opportunity to earn 5% cash back in the everyday category you shop most each month, with no annual fee! EARN: 5% cash back on purchases in your top eligible spend category each billing cycle, up to the first $500 spent, 1% cash back thereafter and on all other purchases. The 5% eligible categories are: Restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, select travel, select transit, select streaming services, drugstores, home improvement stores, fitness clubs, live entertainment. NEW CARDHOLDER WELCOME BONUS OPPORTUNITY: bonus_miles_full

card_name – Why We Like It: Offers generous cash back in everyday categories where you are likely to be doing real spending, with no annual fee! Earn 3% cash back on dining, entertainment, popular streaming services and at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart® and Target®), plus 1% on all other purchases. EARLY SPEND BONUS: bonus_miles_full.

How much house can I afford making $40K per year, $80K, $100K, $120K, etc.?

I’m going to give you some satisfaction by giving you some ballpark numbers right off the bat here, but you better read beyond the chart below! Otherwise you’re going to be leaving out some major considerations when it comes to these numbers!

As a very general rule, you can afford a house that is anywhere from 2 times to 2.5 times your yearly gross income (which is income before taxes). If you have two incomes in the soon-to-be household, then of course you’d combine those incomes and multiply by 2 or 2.5 to get a range.

With that in mind:

If you make $40,000, you could afford a house priced between $80,000 and $100,000.
If you make $50,000, you could afford a house priced between $100,000 and $125,000.
If you make $60,000, you could afford a house priced between $120,000 and $150,000.
If you make $70,000, you could afford a house priced between $140,000 and $175,000.
If you make $80,000, you could afford a house priced between $160,000 and $200,000.
If you make $90,000, you could afford a house priced between $180,000 and $225,000.
If you make $100,000, you could afford a house priced between $200,000 and $250,000.
If you make $120,000, you could afford a house priced between $240,000 and $300,000.
If you make $150,000, you could afford a house priced between $300,000 and $375,000.
If you make $200,000, you could afford a house priced between $400,000 and $500,000.
etc….

So those are some rough numbers, but…

Ask Not How Much House, But How Much Mortgage You Can Afford

While a ballpark number is fine to get a rough vision in your head, it is really your monthly mortgage payment that you need to worry about. How much is the monthly mortgage payment you can handle comfortably, and how much will that monthly payment get you when it comes to the price of a house?

This is important, because how much house you can afford doesn’t just depend on how much money you make as a salary. Consider these questions:

How much money do you have for a down payment?
How much are property taxes in your area?
Will you have to pay Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI) if your down payment is small?
How much is home insurance on the property?
How much monthly debt do you have in addition to the mortgage payment?

Once you consider these questions, you can see that your ability to afford a certain house is going to depend on what the monthly mortgage payment will be, and that amount is going to depend on a lot of factors, with the size of your down payment and other debt obligations being the most important things to consider.

For example, if you were to purchase a home for $200,000 and you put down a down payment of 20%, or $40,000, your mortgage would be $160,000. If your down payment was only 5%, or $10,000, your mortgage would be $190,000.

That $30,000 difference in the overall size of your mortgage would obviously affect the size of your monthly mortgage payment. So, the more you can put down as a down payment, the more expensive of a house you can potentially afford.

Best Capital One Credit Cards 2023

Capital One offers a range of consumer credit cards that target different consumer groups based on rewards preferences and credit history. Below we offer our ranking of the five “best” Capital One credit cards:

card_name – Why We Like It Best: Offers generous cash back in everyday categories where you are likely to be doing real spending, with no annual fee! Earn 3% cash back on dining, entertainment, popular streaming services and at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart® and Target®), plus 1% on all other purchases. EARLY SPEND BONUS: bonus_miles_full

card_name – Why We Like It: Offers the desirable features of more expensive travel cards, but strips away the fluff to keep the annual fee reasonable. That annual fee is annual_fees, but you can get up to $300 in travel credits when you book through Capital One Travel, and there is a strong Early Spend Bonus: bonus_miles_full. The Anniversary Miles Bonus kicks in starting on your first anniversary, with 10,000 bonus miles (equal to $100 towards travel).

In terms of rewards on everyday purchases, earn unlimited 10 miles per dollar in purchases on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Travel and 5X miles on flights booked through Capital One Travel, plus unlimited 2X miles on all other purchases. And don’t forget airport lounge access through the Priority Pass network & the new Capital One Lounges, plus quite a bit more.

What to put for desired salary?

One of the toughest things to handle during a job search is the question about your desired salary. My desired salary is $5 billion, but I’m not going to land a new job with that answer. So, what should you put on a job application or say during an in-person interview? Should you offer a number, or should you maneuver to get the employer to make an offer first? There’s no easy answer, but here are some things to consider:

Can you sidestep the question?

In the best of all worlds, you could answer the desired salary question by saying your salary is negotiable and that you’d really like to understand more about the position before answering. In other words, you’d like to be interviewed before talking money. If you have this opportunity, take it.

Unfortunately, many times your first step in the interview process is filling out an online application that forces the desired salary answer out of you. (The dreaded drop-down menu that forces a salary range is the worst.) In that case, think about the following questions:

What is the expected salary range for the position you’re seeking?

If a job listing doesn’t state a salary range and you’re not sure what a reasonable salary might be, do some research. One source for such information is the Bureau of Labor Statistics Wage Data, which is listed by area and occupation. This may not get as specific as you’d like, but it could prevent you from stating a desired salary that is way too high or way too low for the position. (If your desired salary is too low, you may appear to be under-qualified for the job, which could knock you out of the running just as fast as asking for too much money.)

Does the American Express Gold Card really have No Credit Limit?

The card_name has No Preset Spending Limit, but that doesn’t mean it has an unlimited credit line or no credit limit at all. Instead the card_name has a “flexible” spending limit that “adapts based on factors such as your purchase, payment, and credit history.” (That’s how American Express describes it.)

No Preset Spending Limit vs. Unlimited Credit Limit / No Credit Limit

When you are approved for the card_name, you will not be given a “hard” limit on the amount you can charge to the card. However, if you got the card and immediately tried to buy a million dollar watch with it (for example), you’d quickly find out (when your purchase was denied) that the card_name does have a “soft” credit limit.

In other words, while the card_name has no “preset” spending limit, American Express actually has set up a “soft” credit limit for your account based on your income and credit history, and they adjust that “soft” credit limit based on:

the purchases you make
your track record of paying off the card
your ongoing credit score/credit history.

So you don’t have unlimited spending power with the card_name. But the point of having no credit limit is that American Express wants you to feel like you can spend whatever you want on the card without worrying about it. And as long as your card spending doesn’t get completely out of whack in relation to your income or to your past spending, your charges are likely to be approved.

But if you suddenly start charging far beyond what American Express believes you can pay back, they will put the brakes on, at least until they can speak to you personally to decide whether further charges should be OK’d. That’s when you’ll find out that “no preset spending limit” means “no credit limit, but only within reason.”

Best Buy Credit Card Review 2023

Best Buy Credit Card Review TL;DR: If you are a frequent Best Buy shopper, the Best Buy credit card (issued by Citi) offers a fairly generous 5% reward on your Best Buy purchases. This makes it worth adding to your wallet, especially with the ability to control how often you are issued a rewards certificate. But watch out: its high interest rate means you should never carry a balance from month to month, and its special financing offers contain a gotcha!

How the My Best Buy Rewards System Works

The Best Buy credit card points system is unfortunately a little confusing. Points are given in half-point increments, with each half-point being worth 1 cent in rewards and each full point being worth 2 cents in rewards.

Every time you accumulate 250 points in the program, Best Buy automatically sends you a $5 reward certificate. (Remember that each point equals 2 cents, so 250 points equals $5.) Reward certificates can only be used toward future purchases at Best Buy, and they expire in 60 days, so you have a fairly short window in which to use them.

Note, however, that you CAN set the threshold higher before a reward certificate is issued, and it may be a good idea to do so. You can set the threshold to issue a $10 certificate at 500 points, a $20 certificate at 1000 points, etc., or simply “bank” points to use whenever you are ready to redeem them.

Best Credit Card Bonus Offers – May 2023

Credit card issuers are often VERY generous with bonus offers for new cardholders. Here are the best credit card bonus offers right now:

Best Bonus Opportunities on No Annual Fee Credit Cards:

card_name – NEW CARDHOLDER WELCOME BONUS OPPORTUNITY: bonus_miles_full

Other Reasons To Like This Card: No-brainer opportunity to earn 5% cash back in the everyday category you shop most each month, with no annual fee! EARN: 5% cash back on purchases in your top eligible spend category each billing cycle, up to the first $500 spent, 1% cash back thereafter and on all other purchases. The 5% eligible categories are: Restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, select travel, select transit, select streaming services, drugstores, home improvement stores, fitness clubs, live entertainment.

card_name – EARLY SPEND BONUS: bonus_miles_full

Other Reasons To Like This Card: Offers generous cash back in everyday categories where you are likely to be doing real spending, with no annual fee! EARN: 3% cash back on dining PLUS 3% at grocery stores (excluding superstores like Walmart® and Target®) PLUS 3% on entertainment PLUS 3% on popular streaming services, plus 1% on all other purchases.

TSA Travel – How Big Is A Quart Size Bag (and what is a Quart Sized Ziploc Bag vs. Gallon Bag)

By Adam Jusko, ProudMoney.com, adam@proudmoney.com

Everyone knows you are limited in how much liquid and other toiletries you can bring in your carry-on baggage, and TSA airport security is going to make you separate that quart size bag from the rest of your luggage for screening. But exactly how big is a quart size bag? Are there strict rules about dimensions? Is a Ziploc bag the only type of bag you can use?

Here’s What TSA Says About Quart Size Bags

Let’s get one thing out of the way immediately: TSA does NOT spell out what a quart size bag actually means.

On the official TSA website, you’ll find the following message:

“You are allowed to bring a quart-sized bag of liquids, aerosols, gels, creams and pastes in your carry-on bag and through the checkpoint. These are limited to travel-sized containers that are 3.4 ounces (100 milliliters) or less per item.”

TSA also has a video about what you can carry on an airplane, and the video calls it a “quart size zip top bag.”

And then there is the illustration on the TSA page of what looks a lot like a Ziploc type bag:

So if you absolutely want to be safe, you could buy quart-size Ziploc bags and use one of those. It says “quart” right on the box so you’ll feel confident it’s the right one:

That said, there is no official standard on what a “quart size zip top” bag is. The Ziploc bag above measures 7 inches by 7 and 7/16 inches. But Target has a quart size bag that measure 7 inches by 8 inches. And Hefty makes a quart sized bag that measures 8 inches by 5 and 11/16 inches. So, the quart size bag dimension controversy rages on. (Not to be dramatic.)

Best 0% APR Credit Cards on Purchases – May 2023

These cards offer a 0% APR on new purchases for as long as 18 months. Check the card details if you want cash back or travel rewards as well, because not every card listed has them! (Also see our Best Balance Transfer Credit Cards List if you want to transfer a balance with zero interest.)

card_name – 0% APR Offer: intro_apr_rate,intro_apr_duration. After the introductory period ends, an APR of reg_apr,reg_apr_type, based on your creditworthiness.

AND MUCH MORE: No-brainer opportunity to earn 5% cash back in the everyday category you shop most each month, with no annual fee! EARN: 5% cash back on purchases in your top eligible spend category each billing cycle, up to the first $500 spent, 1% cash back thereafter and on all other purchases. The 5% eligible categories are: Restaurants, gas stations, grocery stores, select travel, select transit, select streaming services, drugstores, home improvement stores, fitness clubs, live entertainment.

NEW CARDHOLDER WELCOME BONUS OPPORTUNITY: bonus_miles_full

card_name – 0% APR Offer: intro_apr_rate,intro_apr_duration. After that, your APR will be reg_apr,reg_apr_type, based on your creditworthiness and other factors as determined at the time of account opening.

AND MUCH MORE: Earn 3% cash back on groceries at U.S. supermarkets on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%), 3% cash back on U.S. online retail purchases on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%), 3% cash back on gas at U.S. gas stations on up to $6,000 per year in purchases (then 1%), 1% cash back on other purchases. Cash back is received in the form of Reward Dollars that can be redeemed as a statement credit. No annual fee.

NEW CARDHOLDER WELCOME BONUS OPPORTUNITY: bonus_miles_full card_name. American Express is a ProudMoney advertiser.

Afterpay Stores Alphabetical List – Who Accepts Afterpay?

Below is a list of stores that accept Afterpay for “buy now, pay later” financing, listed in alphabetical order. NOTE: In some cases, you’ll need to use the Afterpay app to purchase at these retailers: