If You Have More Than $1,000 in Your Checking Account, Make These 8 Moves
You’ve done it. You’ve built up a little cushion in your bank account — $1,000! It feels good, right? Those days of checking your account balance in a panic are behind you.
Congrats! You’re on the right path. Now it’s time to think about some longer-term goals. What do you want to accomplish next with your money? Do you need to save more? Do you want to buy a home someday? Invest?
What’s the next step you should take? What are some specific things you can do to take your finances to the next level?
We’ve got some ideas for you:
1. Invest in Real Estate Without the Volatility — You Only Need $500
You’re not the only one who daydreams about making money in your sleep. Investing in real estate is one of the best ways to earn passive income. The only problem? You need to have lots of money.
Well, you used to…
With a company called Connect Invest, you can get your foot in the door for just $500, investing in what are called short notes. And, if you make your first investment within 40 days of signing up, you can earn a $50 bonus.
Basically, you’re buying the debt that wealthy developers take on to fund their real estate projects — and they have to pay you back, with up to 9% (annualized rate) in interest… while you sleep.
With Connect Invest, you’ll invest for terms of 6, 12, or 24 months, during which you’ll receive monthly fixed-interest payments between 7.5% and 9% (annualized rate). You could earn a legit passive income with those rates — and it’s way higher than what you’d earn with your savings account!
Connect Invest carefully vets each real estate project and borrower. And don’t worry, all loans are backed by real estate collateral. In the rare event of a default, Connect Invest’s sister company will foreclose on the property with the investors’ approval and sell it to recover your investment.
It’s super easy to set up your free account and start investing. To earn your $50 bonus, select “Penny Hoarder” as a referral source and apply promo code “PH50.”
2. Cancel Your Car Insurance
You might not even realize it, but your car insurance company is probably overcharging you. In fact, they’re kind of counting on you not noticing. Luckily, this problem is easy to fix.
Don’t waste your time browsing insurance sites for a better deal. A company called Insurify shows you all your options at once — people who do this save up to $996 per year.
If you tell them a bit about yourself and your vehicle, they’ll send you personalized quotes so you can compare them 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.
3. Get 4.50% APY and a $30 Bonus With This High-Yield Cash Account
It’s hard not to cringe when you see a bank statement full of fees. And let’s be real: When every dollar matters, why are we paying to keep money in our accounts in the first place?
It’s time for something better.
With Wealthfront, you can forget those annoying bank fees and earn a whopping 4.50% APY through partner banks on your cash — about 10x the national average savings rate. Enjoy unlimited transfers, same-day withdrawals, zero account fees, and no minimum balance requirements to earn 4.50% APY¹. You can use Wealthfront with your favorite payment apps like Apple Pay, Venmo, and Google Pay.
They’ll also give you access to a customizable investment portal so you can start building wealth while focusing on your short- and long-term goals.
Wealthfront isn’t quite a bank, but it works with several FDIC-insured partner banks to give you the convenience and flexibility you expect, minus the sneaky fees and account requirements. The best part? You can get started with Wealthfront with only a $1 opening deposit or snag a $30 bonus² when you deposit $500 or more (terms and conditions apply).³
Join Wealthfront today and make your money work for you— not your bank.
4. Get Paid 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.
5. Score $200 Cash Back When You Spend $500
Sick of credit cards that make you jump through 800 hoops to access the cash rewards they promise? You deserve better.
This card makes it simple to score big right from the start. Earn a $200 cash rewards bonus after spending just $500 — that’s an incredible 40% back! You can also rack up unlimited rewards all year long, so every purchase keeps adding to your total. And with an amazing low intro APR on balance transfers and new purchases, you’ll get extra breathing room to manage your finances without added interest.
Here’s the breakdown:
- $200 cash bonus after your first $500 in purchases
- Unlimited cash rewards on purchases
- Low intro APR on qualifying balance transfers and purchases
This card is designed to put more cash in your wallet with every tap or swipe.
Make your spending work for you. Start earning better cash rewards today.
6. Earn 4.00% Interest on Your Savings and Still Access Your Money Any Time
You’ve been with the same bank for years, and how do they repay your loyalty? With a measly 65 cents in earned interest every year.
And you’re not alone. The national average interest rate for savings accounts is just 0.46%.
But there’s a way to grow your money 9 times faster than the national average—completely risk-free.
When you sign up for a Capital One 360 Performance Savings Account, you’ll earn 4.00% APY on your account balance. Just to be clear, that’s almost 10 times the national average for a regular savings account.
There is no minimum deposit to open and maintain your account, and you’ll never pay monthly or maintenance fees.
You also don’t need to worry about accessing your savings—you can withdraw your money at any time with no penalties. Plus, all your money is FDIC-insured, which basically just means it’s super safe.
Signing up for your Capital One 360 Performance Savings Account only takes a few minutes. After that, you can sit back and watch your savings grow.
7. Let Your Family Inherit $250k or Much More
We never seem to have enough savings or investments. But there’s one particular way to make up for that shortfall: life insurance.
None of us like to think about what happens to your family if you pass, but this is a smart way to free them from a burden – and give you peace of mind.
With NerdWallet, you can get multiple life insurance quotes all in one place and find a plan that’s probably far more affordable than you think.
You can choose whole life plans if you want to do it once, forget about it and have coverage for the rest of your life. Or you can pick from term life plans to get even lower rates with coverage that can last a few decades.*
Is it finally time to get covered? It’s easy to get life insurance quotes from NerdWallet to see just how affordable a good policy could be for you.
*Users must meet certain suitability standards pursuant to the Connect Invest II Offering Circular, users must complete their first investment within 40 days of signing up in order to be eligible for the incentive will receive their $50 bonus with their first interest earnings. Past performance does not guarantee future results or success. The material contained herein does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of any offer to purchase these securities, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.
1. Based on the national average interest rate for savings accounts as posted on FDIC.gov, as of July 15, 2024.
2. Client must maintain $500 by the 30 day mark. See website for details.
3. Checking features for the Cash Account are subject to identity verification by Green Dot Bank, Member FDIC. Cash account is offered by Wealthfront Brokerage LLC (“Wealthfront Brokerage”;), a Member of FINRA/SIPC. Wealthfront Brokerage is not a bank. We convey funds to partner banks who accept and maintain deposits, provide the interest rate, and provide FDIC insurance. The APY rate listed is as of 09/19/2024 and is subject to change at any time. Fees and Eligibility requirements may apply to certain checking features, please see the Deposit Account Agreement for details. Limits, fees, and exclusions apply. All investing involves risk, including the possible loss of money you invest.
Apple, the Apple logo, and iPhone are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries. App Store is a service mark of Apple Inc. Google, Android and Google Play are trademarks of Google Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.
Please note, Real-Time Payments (RTP) transfers may be limited by destination institutions,daily transaction caps, and by participating entities such as Wells Fargo and the RTP® Network. New Cash Account deposits are subject to a 2-4 day holding period before becoming available for transfer. Wealthfront doesn’t charge for transfers, but receiving institutions may impose an RTP fee.
The Penny Hoarder receives compensation when a reader clicks on the referral link that redirects them to Wealthfront, which creates a conflict of interest. Penny Hoarder’s opinions in this article are their own and are not tied directly to such compensation. The Penny Hoarder and Wealthfront Brokerage, LLC are not associated with one another and have no formal relationship outside of this arrangement.
