Top 10 Personal Finance Articles of the Month — June 2017

Side Hustles, Freelancing, and Making Extra Money

How Much Can You Make in the Freelance Economy? — Kristin Wong, TwoCents

Saying goodbye to your 9 to 5 and setting out on your own? You’re not the only one. In fact new estimates suggest that as many as 40% of workers will freelance by 2020. With this in mind, Kristin takes a look at the differences between freelancers and gig workers and shares some samples of how much these self-employed individuals tend to make.

The Reasons You Need Multiple Streams of Income — Michelle Schroeder-Gardener, Making Sense of Cents

As mentioned, a growing number of Americans are now working their own side hustles to earn extra money. Additionally, turning to freelancing and the gig economy has allowed many to diversify their income and better prepare them for the unexpected. In her piece, Michelle looks at other benefits of having multiple sources of income and why having them is now a necessity. 

Get Started Vlogging: Tips From Someone Doing the Same— Kyle Burbank, Money@30

One outlet that’s proven popular for creative types looking to grow their own brand is YouTube. While the video consumption site has turned out a few megastars over the years, there are plenty of lesser-known creators who still manage to turn their content into profit. For those interested in doing the same, Kyle shares some tips and lessons he’s learned (including a guide on what equipment to buy) while trying to get his own YouTube channel off the ground.

Uber Finally Listens to Its Drivers and Adds a Tipping Feature to Its App — Grace Schweizer, The Penny Hoarder

With the rivalry between ridesharing services Uber and Lyft intensifying in recent years, one major difference (beyond those pink mustaches) that set the latter apart was that they allowed riders to tip their drivers in-app. While some Uber loyalists may have preferred the service for their lack of tipping, it came at the expense of many drivers who could have been earning more. Well, as Grace notes, Uber is finally getting on-board with in-app tipping and enhancing your side hustle earning potential in the process. 

Banking Advice

The Pros and Cons of Keeping All Your Accounts in One Bank— Damian Davila, WiseBread

When you find a bank you like, it might make sense that you’d want to do all of your banking with them. After all, being a loyal customer often has its perks and there’s simplicity in keeping your money under one roof. However, as Damian describes, there are a few disadvantages to keeping all of your accounts with the same bank that you should be aware of.

Best Banks for Earning Interest: These High-Yield Checking and Savings Accounts Really Pay — Gina Ragusa, Mic

Speaking of potentially moving your money, you may want to take a look at how much you’re earning on your current savings account. Often times this rate could be as low as 0.01% — a paltry sum, to be sure. That’s why you may want to consider the alternatives that Gina highlights that could net you 1.25% to 5% interest if you comply with all the terms.

Housing and Mortgages

What if You Can’t Afford to Buy a Home in Your Area? — Miriam Caldwell, The Balance

While owning your own home serves as a major milestone for many Americans, some areas of the country make that goal much harder to achieve. So what are people in inhospitable housing markets to do? Miriam looks at a few possible solutions for would-be buyers who can’t quite afford a mortgage in their area just yet.

Renting vs. Buying: 4 Questions to Ask Yourself — Edwin C, Cash the Checks

On a similar note, although buying might make more sense for some, renting may actually be a better bet for others. But how will you know for sure? Edwin shares a few questions you should ask yourself when trying to determine if you’re better off renting or buying.

4 Tips to Ace Your Mortgage in 2017 — Zack Friedman, Forbes

Like we’ve mentioned time and time again on this site, taking out a mortgage is a huge deal. Because of this, you’ll want to put a lot of research and thought into each decision you make as part of the home buying process. In this article, Zach looks at four tips in particular to help lead you in the right direction when it comes to your mortgage.

Personal Finance Tips

Do Smartphones Make Us More Impulsive Shoppers — Or Less? — Drew Housman, The Simple Dollar

Are smartphones good for society or bad? On the one hand, these powerful tools give us the ability to keep an entire universe of knowledge in our pockets. On the other hand, all too many of us waste this technology by instead letting it consume our time and attention needlessly. In terms of personal finance, the smartphone is once again found to have a split personally, boosting our finances via various apps while also tempting us to spend with just a tap. For this article, Drew dives into this dichotomy (with fascinating data on both sides) to see if smartphones really are friend or foe to your finances.

Thanks for checking out my top 10 personal finance articles published last month and congratulations to all of the bloggers who made the list. To find more of these great articles on a daily basis, be sure to follow me on Twitter @jondyer9 and of course visit DyerNews.com.