In the current digital age, the use of technology continues to infiltrate most aspects of everyday life, from online shopping to dating, making people more vulnerable to internet fraud. Additionally, a large portion of the American work force has recently transitioned to working from home, further increasing the likelihood of falling victim to an internet scam. Even though senior citizens continue to be the most vulnerable group according to a 2020 FBI report, younger generations are also being impacted at higher rates than ever before. According to The Federal Trade Commission’s 2021 data, more than $5.8 billion was lost to fraud, a 70% increase compared to 2020. As technology continuously advances, online fraudsters are constantly developing new and more sophisticated cons. According to some experts, we may be on the verge of a “scampocolapyse”, as online cons are growing at an unprecedented rate. In this environment, it is imperative for internet users to be aware of the high potential of fraud and how to protect themselves against scams. The five internet scams described below have been listed as some of the common scams in 2022.
How to Save Amid Escalating Summer and Fall Travel Costs
After being suspended by the pandemic for the past two years, the travel industry is booming, and the trend looks to continue into early Fall. Eager travelers are understandably excited to take those long-awaited vacations. However, the pandemic has created chaos in the travel industry- increased cancellations and delays due to labor shortages, surging airfares, and record-breaking gas prices. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, air fares are up 33%, fuel prices have increased by 44% and meals are 9% higher compared to a year ago. Needless to say, if you are planning to travel in Summer or Fall of 2022, prepare for it to be expensive. Fortunately, there are plenty of travel-saving tips if you are willing to be flexible and are prepared in advance.
5 Tips to Reduce Financial Stress During Market Volatility
Market volatility. Most investors understand this is a normal occurrence when investing but that doesn’t necessarily make it any easier to stomach the rollercoaster balances in your accounts. Your chest feels constricted, your jaw is tight, at the back of your mind there are nagging worries that frequently send you down a rabbit hole of “what-if” scenarios. Understandably you’re worried: it’s your livelihood, your future, your quality of life, your legacy.
But given that making knee-jerk financial decisions based on emotional reasoning is unlikely to get your investments to where you want them to go, here are a few suggestions of ways to hang tight and stay calm through a period of market volatility. [Read more…]
Spring Cleaning for Your Finances
Spring: the season of growth and revival. After a long, cold winter, nothing feels better than cleaning up and getting organized. It’s the perfect juncture, nestled between the beginning of the year and summertime, to make changes to your current routine and establish new habits that are a better fit for your future by not only refreshing your home, but revamping your finances as well.
The Psychology of Investing
When it comes to investing our hard-earned savings, it’s difficult to remove emotion from our decision making, especially as those savings fluctuate up and down with the market. For most people these assets are grown over decades through saving and hard work – how could we not be emotionally attached? Especially when considering retirement assets, a portfolio can feel like a member of the family; they’ve seen the good times and the bad, from the job we loved to the one we didn’t, from our youngest child’s wedding to our first health scare. However long you’ve been invested, it’s likely that you know the feeling of watching the markets drop and the inevitable sinking stomach feeling. Perhaps that feeling and the corresponding worry stayed with us longer than it took for the market and our portfolios to recover and now informs our current financial decision-making. Why then, can few of us mark the moments in time when our investments grew significantly and we celebrated their success?
