Money Girl

1042. Laura Adams interviews Mark Notarainni, an 18-year veteran at Intuit, to explore how integrated platforms and artificial intelligence (AI) are revolutionizing personal finance. Find out how combining tax data, credit histories, and everyday spending can help you take control of your financial life.Key Takeaways:Connecting your tax, credit, and spending data into a single ecosystem gives you a complete picture of your financial health and can improve decision-making.Credit Spark allows you to build credit history through routine payments, such as utility and cell phone bills, that typically don’t get added to your credit reports.Using a tool like Card Optimizer can help you identify and claim credit card perks, such as cash back and travel rewards. Don't wait until January or April to think about your taxes. Mid-year is the perfect time to audit your bookkeeping, organize expenses, and avoid costly year-end tax surprises.Use AI as an assistant to synthesize complex financial data, find savings opportunities, and present actionable choices, but you should always maintain control over your money decisions.Discover more from Money Girl!FacebookMoney Girl NewsletterThe Money Stack NewsletterTranscripts available at QuickandDirtyTips.com.Email: Laura@LauraDAdams.com or leave a voicemail: (302) 364-0308.

On a road trip, tackling a summer cleanup, or just catching up on podcasts? QDT has you covered with Summer Saturday encores from your favorite shows. See the full Summer Saturday lineup on Spotify and enjoy this episode, which first aired in July 2025.Laura provides tips for using money as a tool for getting more joy from life.Transcript: https://money-girl.simplecast.com/episodes/8-ways-to-spend-money-for-a-happier-life/transcriptHave a money question? Send an email to money@quickanddirtytips.com or leave a voicemail at (302) 364-0308.Find Money Girl on Facebook and Twitter, or subscribe to the newsletter for more personal finance tips.Money Girl is a part of Quick and Dirty Tips.Links:https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/money-girl-newsletterhttps://www.facebook.com/MoneyGirlQDT

1041. If you have extra cash, should you pay off a low-interest mortgage or invest it? Laura answers a listener’s question about balancing financial math with the emotional peace of mind that comes from being mortgage-free.Key Takeaways:Paying off a debt yields a guaranteed return equal to your loan’s interest rate.Make sure you have a healthy emergency fund before making extra debt payments.Consistently investing 10% to 15% of your income for retirement and capturing any employer matching should take priority over prepaying a low-interest debt.Eliminate high-interest debt, like credit cards, as soon as possible. Low-interest, tax-deductible debt, such as a mortgage should be your lowest payoff priority.Younger investors benefit from decades of compounding market returns, while pre-retirees should focus on preserving wealth and reducing living expenses.Discover more from Money Girl!FacebookNewsletterTranscripts available at QuickandDirtyTips.com.Email: Laura@LauraDAdams.com or leave a voicemail: (302) 364-0308.

1040. Laura explains the hidden risks of canceling credit card accounts. You’ll learn how credit utilization works, when closing an account is and isn’t worth it, and how to protect your credit if you do decide to close a credit card.  Key takeaways:Closing a credit card shrinks your available credit, which causes your credit utilization ratio to spike, resulting in an immediate reduction in your credit scores.Canceling a card you’ve owned for a while lowers your average age of credit, which can lower your scores. Before canceling a high-fee card, consider applying for a replacement so you maintain your total available credit and won’t see your credit scores go down.If you don’t want a card or its annual fee outweighs the perks, closing it can be worth a temporary credit score dip–unless you plan to make a significant purchase, like a car or home, within the next six months.If you’re not disciplined with credit cards, closing them can be worthwhile to prevent overspending and future financial problems.Discover more from Money Girl!FacebookMoney Girl NewsletterThe Money Stack NewsletterTranscripts available at QuickandDirtyTips.com.Email: Laura@LauraDAdams.com or leave a voicemail: (302) 364-0308.

On a road trip, tackling a summer cleanup, or just catching up on podcasts? QDT has you covered with Summer Saturday encores from your favorite shows. See the full Summer Saturday lineup on Spotify and enjoy this episode, which first aired in July 2024.Take stock of your finances with Laura’s mid-year checklist for more money success.Money Girl is hosted by Laura Adams. A transcript is available at QuickandDirtyTips.comHave a money question? Send an email to money@quickanddirtytips.com or leave a voicemail at 302-365-0308.Find Money Girl on Facebook and Twitter, or subscribe to the newsletter for more personal finance tips.Money Girl is a part of Quick and Dirty Tips.Links: https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/money-girl-newsletterhttps://www.facebook.com/MoneyGirlQDThttps://twitter.com/LauraAdamshttps://lauradadams.com/

1039. Laura answers a listener’s question about managing multiple 401(k)s with her current and previous employers. Find out the pros and cons of holding old retirement plans, how to streamline your strategy, and simultaneously reach other financial goals, like homeownership.Key takeawaysConsolidating old retirement plans into one low-cost IRA or your current employer’s plan simplifies your asset allocation and protects your retirement growth from redundant account fees.Always request a direct trustee-to-trustee rollover when moving funds between retirement accounts to eliminate the risk of missing the strict 60-day deadline.Workplace retirement plans offer federal protection against creditors with no dollar limit. IRAs are protected by state-specific laws, making plan-to-plan rollovers an attractive choice for those prioritizing maximum creditor protection. First-time homebuyers can withdraw up to $10,000 penalty-free (but not tax-free) from an IRA ($20,000 for qualifying married couples) for a primary residence.Early retirement withdrawals for a home down payment should generally be secondary to building a dedicated home down payment savings fund.Discover more from Money Girl!FacebookMoney Girl NewsletterThe Money Stack NewsletterTranscripts available at QuickandDirtyTips.com.Email: Laura@LauraDAdams.com or leave a voicemail: (302) 364-0308.

1038. Are you thinking about buying your first home but feeling overwhelmed by interest rates, upfront costs, and hiring a real estate agent? Host Laura Adams walks you through 9 tips every first-time homebuyer must know to protect their finances and land the right deal.Key Takeaways:How subtle changes in your credit score can save (or cost) you tens of thousands in today's rate environment.Most mortgage underwriters look for a maximum debt-to-income ratio of 45% to 50%, which includes your existing debts plus the new estimated housing payment.Hidden homeownership expenses—from surging insurance premiums to HOA fees.You should budget 2% to 5% extra for closing costs beyond your down payment to cover loan origination, appraisals, taxes, insurance reserves, and title fees.Why you need an additional 5% of a home’s purchase price saved on top of your down payment.A prequalification provides a loose baseline for house hunting, but you need a verified preapproval before making official offers on properties.Contract contingencies, such as financing, appraisal, and home inspections, safeguard your earnest money deposit if unmanageable structural defects arise.Discover more from Money Girl!FacebookNewsletterTranscripts available at QuickandDirtyTips.com.Email: Laura@LauraDAdams.com or leave a voicemail: (302) 364-0308.

On a road trip, tackling a summer cleanup, or just catching up on podcasts? QDT has you covered with Summer Saturday encores from your favorite shows. See the full Summer Saturday lineup on Spotify and enjoy this episode, which first aired in June 2022.Find out five ways to save and invest for your child's future and how it should fit into your big financial picture.Money Girl is hosted by Laura Adams. A transcript is available at Simplecast.Find Money Girl on Facebook and Twitter, or subscribe to the newsletter for more personal finance tips.Money Girl is a part of Quick and Dirty Tips.Links:https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/https://www.quickanddirtytips.com/money-girl-newsletterhttps://www.facebook.com/MoneyGirlQDThttps://lauradadams.com/ 

795. Laura answers a listener question about how to invest in a brokerage account, including the rules you need to know and the best strategy for diversification.Discover more from Money Girl!FacebookNewsletterTranscripts available at QuickandDirtyTips.com.Email: Laura@LauraDAdams.com or leave a voicemail: (302) 364-0308.