Most of us freelancers and home business owners are highly goal-oriented. We are always working towards something. We have daily goals, monthly goals, yearly goals. What about Christmas spending goals?
It’s always better to pay cash than charging it. This is especially the case when it comes to holiday spending. Things can easily spin out of control and who wants to be paying off gifts from one day for a year? Not me. SmartyPig is a unique savings program that rewards you for setting cash-only goals and keeping them.
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How Does SmartyPig Work?
When you sign up for SmartyPig you will start setting savings goals. It could be as small as a pair of fancy shoes or as paying for a wedding.
Next you will link up to a bank account where automatic withdrawals come from. SmartyPig will help you calculate a timeline and you can even set up automatic deposits.
If you are saving for college or a wedding or a “shared” goal, SmartyPig also allows friends and family to make contributions to your goals.
Your money will also earn interest at some of the highest rates around.
How Do I Get My Money?
Once you meet your goal, you can take your cash in several ways:
SmartyPig Rewards Card – Load your savings onto a prepaid debit MasterCard. You will then earn cash rewards on your purchases that you can leave on your card or apply towards another goal. You only get one withdrawal per month to your rewards card.
Retailer Gift Card – Take your cash by gift card and SmartyPig will give you up to an 11% boost. That means your $500 savings becomes $555 in gift cards! Or you can put that free $55 towards another goal.
ACH Transfer – You can also opt to have your money transferred to your bank account.
What If I Miss My Goal?
Per the site:
SmartyPig savings goals may be closed as early as 5 business days after your last transaction has posted to your goal. You will have the option of receiving your current savings plus interest on a gift card of a retailer partnering with SmartyPig, placing your funds on a SmartyPig Cash Rewards Card, ACH transfer the funds back to your existing checking or savings account, or a combination of all three.
Is SmartyPig Safe?
SmartyPig is FDIC-insured and your money is held by BBVA Compass Bank.
How Do I Sign Up?
You will need to set a goal when opening your account. They also require the same personal information required by most banks; driver’s license or state ID number, social security number, address, date of birth, contact information. You can also set up a beneficiary.
If you are well-disciplined in your spending and saving, you may have no need for this service. However, for short-term goals SmartyPig could certainly come in handy. And you can’t beat free money if you are saving to spend and can use those gift cards!
Have you tried SmartyPig? Tell us about it in the comments.
The post Have a Cash-Only Christmas with SmartyPig appeared first on The Work at Home Wife.