How much can you earn with Touch n Go eWallet GO+ account?

By now, you should be aware that there is a daily return earning account called GO+ inside Touch n Go (TNG) eWallet, which maintains a separate balance from the normal eWallet balance.

Unlike the normal TNG eWallet balance which has zero return, this GO+ balance enables you to earn daily return. Your balance will be seamlessly used to invest in money market fund operated by Principal Asset Management Berhad, which is a joint venture between Principal Financial Group and CIMB Group. 

Touch n Go itself is a wholly-owned subsidiary of CIMB Group, while TNG eWallet is a joint venture with Ant Financial.

You need to go through the eKYC procedure to activate the GO+ feature in TNG eWallet. If you haven't done so, and plan to activate it, you can use this referral code "7shwuw" during your GO+ activation.

You can cash in your GO+ account either directly from your bank account using FPX, or from your eWallet balance. You can cash out your GO+ money, also either directly to your bank account or to your eWallet balance. 

There is minimum and maximum daily limit for the 2 types of cash in and cash out, as should in the table below.

Your GO+ account also has a maximum balance limit of RM9,500 only. When you have reached the limit, you can no longer cash in more money to your GO+ account, but the balance inside your account will still earn daily return and continue to be added to your balance.

The daily return rate of your GO+ account is estimated to be within the range of 1.2% p.a. and 2.4% p.a. Most of the current time, it is between 1.4% p.a. and 1.5% p.a.

The return is daily rest, and the cut-off time is 4pm everyday. The daily return will be credited into your GO+ account around 1am in the next day.

So, how much return can you expect in your GO+ account? You can refer to the table below.

If your GO+ balance is below RM200, your daily return will be negligible. Therefore, it is advisable for you to maintain your GO+ balance above RM200 to have some meaningful return.

 

If your account balance is at RM9,500 and the daily return rate is at 2.4% p.a., you will earn about 62.47 sen each day.

Let's multiply the earning return by 30, you can then estimate how much you can roughly earn per month with an average daily return rate as listed in the table below.

The return amount might not be very impressive, but bear in mind that this rate is actually much better than bank savings account.

How much of your paycheck should you save, and why?

 

Photo by Micheile Henderson on Unsplash

“Save more money!” countless advertisements shout at you. “Put aside part of every paycheck!!” your parents scold. “Save as much as you can, or you’ll regret it later!” your financially savvy friends advise. 

Yeah, saving is important, but the above tips are remarkably unhelpful, aren’t they? You’re always left wondering, “How much of my paycheck should I save?” No one really seems to tell you the answer. 10%? 50%? What’s a good amount that will set you up for the future?

How much of your paycheck you put aside depends on your individual situation. There are no definite savings rules that will guarantee future financial stability, but let's go over a few guidelines that you’d be wise to follow.

How Much of Your Paycheck Should You Save?

So, the big question. When asking what percentage of your paycheck should you save, the general rule of thumb is that you should put aside 20% of each check. More is ideal, but anything is better than nothing if 20% isn’t possible for you. Try to stick to the 50/30/20 rule: 50% of your paycheck is for essential expenses, 30% is discretionary, and the remainder is for savings.

What Should You Save For?

Another big question is what kinds of things you should save for. “Savings” is pretty vague — the point is to have it in case you need to spend it, but what circumstances would require you to do so?

You should save for all sorts of expenses. Do you want to buy a new car but can’t afford one just yet? You’ll have to put a little bit aside every month until you can. However, it’s important not to drain everything you have, so you’ll need to save up enough that you’ll have a financial cushion left over.

A few other examples of expenses you should save for include:

●       Retirement;

●       Emergencies;

●       Education (for your children or yourself);

●       Vacations;

●       Transportation;

●       A home;

And other financial goals. Some of these expenses allow you to pay monthly, but you’ll need to have enough for a sizable downpayment. It may be in your best interest to have separate savings accounts, so you don’t overspend one or the other. You don’t want to be without your emergency savings because you opted for a more luxurious vacation.

What Kind of Savings Account Should You Use?

An important thing to remember is that not all savings accounts are the same. Most grow your money with interest, but some offer significantly higher rates than others.

For instance, your retirement savings should be in a traditional IRA (Individual Retirement Arrangement), a 401(k), or another kind of retirement account. Other plans exist, such as Roth IRAs and SEP plans (Simplified Employee Pension) that provide tax benefits or entail financial contributions from your employer. You want a retirement savings account that turns your regular contributions into a significantly larger sum that supports you when you stop working later in life.

Traditional savings accounts are what you are probably familiar with already. You can open these easily at any bank or credit union. The interest rates will be low, so don’t expect a small deposit to become much bigger in a few decades (maintenance fees may even cancel out any interest earnings), but they’re still safe places to store your money.

Money market accounts, however, offer higher interest rates, so you can earn more money just by depositing. They also allow you to write a limited number of checks per month and use an ATM card like a checking account. However, these kinds of accounts may charge monthly maintenance fees if you are below a certain balance, and they often require you to make substantial initial deposits.

Check out this link for other kinds of savings accounts.

How Long Will Saving Take?

How long it will take for you to reach specific savings goals depends on the size of your regular deposits (and, therefore, your income) and your annual interest rate. Depositing $200 a month into an account with an APY of .10% will get you to your goals much quicker than $50 a month with a rate of .05%. You can use this calculator to determine how long it will take you to save a certain amount of money based on your current balance and other factors.

Another complication is, well, remembering to save. An easy way is to set your online bank account to deposit part of your paycheck automatically. Another is to use financial apps that send you reminders. Earnin, for example, offers an opportunity called WeWin, where you could win major prizes simply for remembering to save a small amount of money every day.

Saving money can seem more complicated than it should be, and you’re not alone if you feel that way. If you don’t know how much of your paycheck you should save every month, start with whatever you can afford (preferably a minimum of 20%), and open your account as soon as possible if you haven’t already.

 

This article originally appeared on Earnin.

 

Please note, the material collected in this blog is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be relied upon as or construed as advice regarding any specific circumstances. Nor is it an endorsement of any organization or Services.

 

8 expenses to factor into your home budget

 

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash

Your home budget, also known as your household budget, is the money you set aside that will go toward essential living expenses. It’s critical to budget your finances to only spend what you can afford and reach your savings goals. 

You can guess what kind of things go into a home budget: rent or mortgage, groceries, savings, debt repayment, utilities, etc. However, people sometimes forget to factor the following expenses into their budgets, which catches them by surprise and forces them to reallocate their spending. Keep these costs in mind when figuring out how to budget your monthly paycheck and savings:

Transportation & Parking

You know you’ll need to pay for your vehicle each month if you own or lease one, but what about gas? Parking? If you don’t own a car, then how much does public transportation cost in your area?

According to Student Loan Hero, the United States' median household income was $61,937 in 2018. Households that earned this amount spend an average of $763 per month on transportation, including gasoline and car payments. Public transportation is cheaper, but again, it depends on where you live — you still might spend as much as $160 per month if you exclusively use Bay Area Rapid Transit in San Francisco.

Insurance Premiums

Insurance premiums are a significant hit on your wallet, but they’re necessary to have. Health and car insurance go without saying, but you may owe mortgage insurance if you put less than 20% down when purchasing your home. There’s also life insurance, personal insurance, contributions to social security, and more.

It’s difficult to calculate how much the average person in the U.S. spends on insurance because people’s situations vary tremendously. You might be lucky and only spend a few hundred dollars a month if you live in an inexpensive state and only need the basics. If you need more, then you could spend well over a thousand. Other factors affect your insurance premiums, too, such as your age, marital status, job, and education level, so combine all kinds of insurance you need to pay for when calculating your monthly household budget.

Out-of-Pocket Costs and Emergencies

Insurance doesn’t cover everything, though. Medical care is notoriously expensive in the U.S., so you should be prepared to pay out-of-pocket costs that exceed the scope of your health plan.

Disasters strike in other ways, too. Hopefully, it’s small — maybe you spilled coffee on your only nice shirt and need to buy a new one for work — but it might be an outright emergency, such as someone robs you or a natural disaster impacts your home. It’s crucial to have emergency money set aside to cover an irregular or unforeseen circumstance.

Pet Care

You budgeted to feed yourself, but what about your pet? These costs might be low if all you need to buy is food every month and a few toys that last you a year, but vet bills can be expensive if your animal friend has health issues. If you prefer to outsource much of your pet care, you should budget much more to account for sitters, boarding, and walks. Of course, pet care expenses depend on the kind of animal you have, so anticipate how much financial TLC your pet will need.

Subscriptions and Memberships

Subscriptions and membership fees on auto-renewal can sneak up on you. Don’t fall into the trap of thinking you’ve planned your budget for the month perfectly, only to be hit with a $15 Netflix bill you forgot to account for. These costs shouldn’t be out-of-sight, out-of-mind, so keep track of streaming services, subscription boxes, or shopping memberships you pay for.

Fees, Fees, and More Fees

Fees are everywhere. They’re like pests you can’t seem to get rid of, but you forget about them when they’re not in the room. Make a list of all the fees you might need to pay throughout the month, including:

●       Bank account maintenance fees;

●       ATM fees;

●       Overdraft fees;

●       HOA dues;

●       Credit card fees;

●       Late fees;

●       Monthly service fees.

 

And more. There are ways to avoid or reduce many of these, but don’t buy something you don’t need if a fee will hit you later and you’re living paycheck to paycheck.

Home & Vehicle Maintenance

It’s rare for everything to work as it should, especially if you can’t afford high-quality goods that last longer. Expect to pay for vehicle upkeep, appliances that stop functioning, and fixing potential damage. These costs are related to your emergency funds, but paying for regular maintenance will (hopefully) prevent actual emergencies from happening in the first place.

Different Kinds of Savings

Save as much as you can. Don’t forgo leisure entirely — it’s important to your mental health to have fun, and you deserve to — but besides general savings accounts, remember to save to buy a house, pay for college (or someone else’s education), emergencies, retirement, and more. Your monthly contribution to each may vary, but having substantial savings will set you up for major purchases later in life.

Budgeting is an essential skill. You can use a budget finance app if you need assistance, but remember to factor in every possible expense to avoid tight situations.

 

This article originally appeared on Earnin.

 

Please note, the material collected in this blog is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be relied upon as or construed as advice regarding any specific circumstances. Nor is it an endorsement of any organization or Services.

Repaired scratch on touchscreen HVAC surface with Polywatch scratch remover cream

Having a touchscreen HVAC control panel in your car might look cool, but the touchscreen is vulnerable to accidental scratches too.

One day after a car wash, I found an obstructive scratch on my car's touchscreen HVAC control panel.

How to remove the scratch line and restore the touchscreen surface to be as smooth as before? I found the German-made Polywatch scratch remover cream to be a good solution.

The Polywatch cream looks like toothpaste, and comes in tiny 5 grams volume. But that amount of cream is enough for it to be applied multiple times.

I think it is named as Polywatch because it is originally formulated to polish and remove scratches on watch surface. In fact, it can be used to remove fine line scratches on smooth glass, acrylic and plastic surfaces. It works especially well with plastic surface.

It can magically eliminate tiny scratches and restore the surface to be as smooth as before. However, it might not work too well for deep scratches.

Polywatch works by slightly dissolving and grinding down the target surface to smooth the edges of the scratch and fill the gaps with the dissolved material, therefore restoring it to unscratch condition.

Using Polywatch is pretty easy. Just clean the target surface, make it dry and dust free, apply some Polywatch cream on the scratch, and polish it with a piece of microfibre cloth or cotton wool.

If you are facing similar problem of having obstructive scratches on glass, acrylic or plastic surfaces, you might give Polywatch a try.

How to stay calm when dealing with financial stress

 

Photo by JESHOOTS.COM on Unsplash

Have your money problems become so dire that you find yourself searching “I need financial help immediately?” We get it. You’re in a tight spot, and you’re panicking. Hearing that you're not alone doesn’t really help, and you aren’t sure what to do while you’re not thinking clearly.

Take a breath. Financial stress can be overwhelming, but you have more resources and options than you know. However, we need to get you in the right mental space first. Let’s go over some ways to keep yourself calm so you can tackle your financial problems with a clear mind.

Identify the Problems and Make a Plan

One of the reasons why money problems can seem so daunting is the mystery of them. Of course, besides the obvious answer that you don’t make enough money to pay your bills, financial difficulty can have other sources. It might be your spending habits, a past mistake, a misunderstanding of the financial system, or something else. Those you can address right away.

Look over your financial statements and try to identify where the problem lies. Are you spending too much on unnecessary items? Does your paycheck come in too late? If the former is the case, then make a budget that ensures you can pay off your debts before spending anything on excess leisure items. If it’s the latter, then you have more control over when you receive your income than you may know: apps like Earnin allow you to access up to $500 of your paycheck per pay period, giving you time to pay your bills before incurring late fees.

Improve Your Financial Literacy

Next, make an effort to educate yourself about financial topics. Books about personal finance are a great place to start, such as Personal Finance for Dummies, along with blogs about related subjects. Take advantage of free or inexpensive financial literacy courses online or from your local community college. The more you know about the financial system, the more prepared you will be, and the less scary your money problems will seem.

Talk to a Professional

Consult with a credit or debt expert for practical advice regarding your situation. A professional can help you perform the steps mentioned above and guide you through the remainder of the process, including making a concrete debt management plan. Having someone in your corner will bring you peace of mind.

Besides a financial expert, another kind of professional you should talk to is a therapist. Regular conversations with this kind of expert will help you navigate the emotional aspects of financial stress. If your habits are partly responsible for your situation, then hopefully, a therapist can help you change those, too. You can find free and low-cost therapy resources here.

Avoid Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms

People struggling with financial difficulty sometimes resort to bad habits to deal with stress. Unhealthy coping mechanisms will only exacerbate your situation in more ways than one. Avoid the temptation to spend even more money (this is not the time for retail therapy), eat excessively, drink alcohol, or abuse other substances. Call SAMHSA’s free national helpline at 1-800-622-HELP (4357) if you feel that you are about to engage in harmful or addictive behavior.

Practice Mindfulness Exercises

Instead, practice mindfulness exercises to cope with stress in a healthier way. You can replace bad habits with good ones or start practicing mindfulness immediately to avoid unhealthy coping mechanisms to begin with.

Breathing exercises, yoga, meditation, and other activities can help you center yourself and stay grounded. They don’t alleviate your money problems, but you can use them to change your perspective and attitude toward your situation. Other stress-relieving activities include going for a walk, spending time in nature, creating artwork, hugging someone, playing with pets, and learning how to talk about yourself in a more positive light. Dwelling on your stress isn’t productive, so put your energy into something wholesome if you are unable to relax.

Keep Track of Your Progress

Keep track of your progress as you take steps toward addressing your financial problems. Not only is doing so necessary for the process itself (you should keep a careful record of the money you spend and the debt you pay off) but celebrating small goals is beneficial for your mental health. Take pride in your little victories. Keeping track of your progress puts your entire financial situation in perspective, motivates you to push forward, and makes your circumstances seem less bleak.

Remember: financial difficulty is not a moral failing. The money system is complicated and underserves the under-educated and a vast majority of people. Take advantage of the resources available to you and believe that you have what it takes to turn your situation around.

This article originally appeared on Earnin.

 

Please note, the material collected in this blog is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be relied upon as or construed as advice regarding any specific circumstances. Nor is it an endorsement of any organization or Services.

7 of the most practical ways to save money

 

Photo by Michael Longmire on Unsplash

 

Are you trying to be better about saving money? You’ve heard the same advice, time and time again: spend less. But the question now is, how? “Spend less” is vague, and you have expenses to pay that you can’t just eliminate, as much as you’d like to. Here are seven practical ways to save money, and not all of them entail making sacrifices:

Save in Small Increments

Perhaps you struggle with saving money because you always forget or don’t know how much to put aside. When your paycheck comes in, do you immediately put a certain percentage in a different account that you don’t touch regularly, or do you let it all sit in one account, waiting to be spent? 

Start by saving small increments. $2 to $5 will add up over time if you do it frequently enough. Instead of logging into your online banking account every time you want to add a few dollars into your savings, you can use third-party apps that make small transactions easy. For example, you can use Earnin’s Tip Yourself feature to save a small amount of cash, and assign tipping yourself to a positive behavior (such as working out), so you remember to do it often.

Snowball Your Debt

A significant part of your money-saving plan should be paying off debt. Identifying where to start eliminating debt can be just as tricky as figuring out how to save more money, so experts suggest employing the “snowball” technique. As a snowball rolls down a hill, it grows larger as it accumulates snow and momentum. You can apply the same concept to your debt and begin with the smallest amounts.

It sounds counterintuitive, but by paying off your $500 credit card debt before tackling your $5,000 loan, you glean a sense of satisfaction and practice better financial habits. If you pay off $500 of your loan, you still have two debts and two interest rates. Knock one out of the way by starting with the smaller debt and build enough momentum to pay off the other.

Audit Your Expenses — Then Trim Them

Conduct a thorough audit of your expenses to see where your problems lie (besides not earning enough money, of course). What are the payments you cannot avoid, and what are the costs you could do without or somehow reduce? We’re not suggesting you cut out leisure entirely — recreational activities and entertainment are important to everyone’s mental health — but if you’re spending money on something you don’t use or that doesn’t bring you happiness, put that money toward your savings instead.

Cancel Monthly Subscriptions

While subscriptions are convenient because you don’t have to think about paying the bill each month, they can be a sneaky expense that drains your account for no reason. If you watch a Netflix show in June and August, why pay $15 for July? Don’t be afraid to cancel subscriptions, even if you know you’ll resume using the service in the future. 

Be wary of year-long subscriptions, too. Don’t bother paying the fee for Amazon Prime if you’re only going to order something a few times per year.

Forsake Brand-Name Goods

The appeal of brand names is enticing, but it’s often manufactured. Generic goods can be just as high-quality as brand-name varieties. Omitting the price difference from your monthly expenses can result in significant savings. If a designer's shirt costs $100 but is hardly better than another of the same style that costs $20, go with the latter and don’t pay for novelty.

However, some brands do use higher-quality materials and put more effort into their products. It’s good to invest in longevity, so you aren’t buying the same product over and over again, so research what companies you buy from and whether the extra cost is worth it.

Call and Negotiate With Your Providers

It might not have crossed your mind to call your various creditors and providers (such as your credit issuer, mortgage lender, health insurance provider, internet provider, etc.) and ask them if they are willing to reduce your bill or interest rates. Why not? What they charge you isn’t fixed, and it never hurts to ask. The worst thing they can do is say no, so pick up the phone (you may have to call around to find the right person) and negotiate lower interest rates and fees. Hopefully, they want to keep you as a customer enough to grant your request.

Convert Money to Time

Saving more and spending less requires thinking about money differently. When you see an item you want to buy but aren’t sure whether you can afford it or not, try thinking about the price in how long it would take to earn that money back. For example, if you make $17 an hour and want to purchase a new coat that costs $65, that’s almost four hours' worth in wages. Changing your perspective will help you align your spending habits with your budget more effectively.

Your financial health will be in a much better place if you know how to save more money. You may have to make some lifestyle changes, but there are other practical ways to reduce your expenses and pocket what you earn.

 

This article originally appeared on Earnin.

 

Please note, the material collected in this blog is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be relied upon as or construed as advice regarding any specific circumstances. Nor is it an endorsement of any organization or Services.

Fixed Google Play services keeps stopping problem in Android device

Recently, my Samsung Galaxy Tab A 6 tablet suddenly hit the infamous "Google Play services keeps stopping" problem.

The following window will pop up almost every few seconds, even after you have chosen to close app or send feedback.

Clearing cache of Google Play services did not solve the problem.

The Google Play services was unable to be forced stop nor disabled.

Unable to uninstall updates to Google Play services too.

Restarting the tablet had no effect to the problem.

Force stop the Google Services Framework, clearing its cache and even clearing its data did not help.

It seems that factory reset the tablet will be the last resort.

Luckily, I managed to fix it before going to the extreme of factory reset option.

What I did was to manually download and install the Google Play services.

You can download the APK file of Google Play services from APKMirror website.

Choose the latest version, which currently is 21.06.13.

You need to download the APK file that matches with the CPU architecture of your Android device. In the case of Samsung Galaxy Tab A 6 (2016 edition), its architecture is arm64-v8a.

The APK file also needs to match with the Android OS version currently running on your device. In my case, it is Android 8.1.

After downloaded and installed the Google Play services APK file, my problem magically solved.

Can You overdraft a credit card, debit card, or savings account?

 

Photo by Timeo Buehrer on Unsplash

Overdraft protection is a banking service consumers can opt into to overdraw their chequing accounts for a fee. For instance, if your account only has $10 in it and you forgot about your upcoming $15 Netflix subscription, your payment will still go through because 1) your bank can loan you $5, or 2) you have a backup account linked. Your bank will charge you an overdraft fee either way, and Bankrate reports that the average fee is $33.47.

“Can I overdraft my debit card?” you ask yourself. “What about my credit card? Or my savings?” You know it’s possible to overdraw your account with online payments, and you’ve heard of people doing it with cheques, so it’s understandable to wonder what other kinds of accounts allow you to make transactions without sufficient funds. If we’re going to use the term “overdraft” as a verb, let’s dive into the possibilities.

Can You Overdraft a Debit Card?

Yes, you absolutely can overdraft a debit card.

Let’s say you had $5 in your account this morning, but today is payday, so you should have plenty of money by the afternoon. Unfortunately, your employer’s payroll system takes longer to deposit your paycheck, so you won’t have the funds you expect some time until the next business day. You use your debit card to buy a $7 slushie from the convenience store without knowing your real balance. The transaction goes through because you have overdraft protection, but now you owe the bank $35.47 — $2 for what it loaned you and $33.47 for the service.

You can call the bank and try to explain, but you just purchased a really expensive slushie if they decide not to waive the fee. It was such a small difference, too, but overdraft fees are fixed. Your debit card is connected to your chequing account, so debit card overdrafts are a common way to incur such fees.

In addition, banks will often set overdraft limits. Even if you have overdraft protection, this means you cannot borrow more than your bank will allow if you overdraw your account (such as $500 or $1,000).

Can You Overdraft a Credit Card?

No, a credit card overdraft is not a thing — at least, not exactly. Because using your credit card entails borrowing money from your credit issuer, there is technically no finite amount of money in an account to withdraw from.

However, it is possible to reach and exceed your credit limit. Your credit limit is the maximum amount of money your issuer is willing to let you borrow. This number varies between different cards, institutions, and individuals, so it could be as little as $200 (such as putting down a deposit on a secured card) or as much as $500,000. Your card will decline if you attempt to make a purchase that pushes you over your credit limit.

Unless you have over-limit coverage, that is. Similar to overdraft protection, over-limit coverage is a service you must opt into with your credit issuer that enables you to exceed your credit limit in exchange for a fee. Your bank cannot charge you fees for reaching your limit, only if you agree to surpass it.

Keep in mind, though, that using too much of your available credit could negatively impact your credit score. Experts suggest using approximately 30% of your credit limit. For instance, if you have $15,000 in available credit, then making more than $4,500 worth in purchases or expenses could make you seem like a risky borrower.

Can You Overdraft a Savings Account?

Fortunately, a savings account can only be emptied, not overdrafted. That said, different rules influence your ability to withdraw from your savings.

US law dictates that you cannot make more than six convenient withdrawals from your savings account per month (“convenient” includes transfers made via phone, online, cheque, etc.). Your bank may charge you a fee if you exceed this number of withdrawals or refuse the transaction. However, it’s possible to exceed the six-withdrawal limit if you use “inconvenient” methods, such as visiting a bank branch in person, taking out cash from an ATM, or requesting a cheque.

How Can You Avoid Overdraft Fees?

Though you cannot overdraft savings accounts or credit cards, it’s beneficial to be careful with your checking account, so you avoid overdraft fees. A few ways you can elude overdraft fees include:

●       Opting out of overdraft protection;

●       Enabling low-balance alerts, so you know when you are at risk of overdrawing your account;

●       Linking your checking account to your savings as a backup.

 

You can also use financial apps to manage your various accounts and keep a watchful eye on your financial situation. If you have a low balance with no choice but to pay a necessary expense, then Earnin allows you to access up to $100 per day from your paycheck before the typically scheduled date without taking out a loan. Likewise, Mint is helpful for budgeting, and Peak can help you visualize your financial goals.

You’re not alone if you’re worried about overdrafting, but rest assured, you cannot overdraft a credit card or savings account.

 

This article originally appeared on Earnin.

 

Please note, the material collected in this blog is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be relied upon as or construed as advice regarding any specific circumstances. Nor is it an endorsement of any organization or Services.