Make Money on Your Cash Flow Automatically - Free (Diagram)
Here is a dead simple, automatic way to make money on every dollar you take in and even on every dollar you spend just by harnessing the free financial vehicles at everyone’s disposal. Here is the diagram (click on it to enlarge it) I put together in Gliffy and a quick three step (optional 4th) process:
1. Set up your paycheck to be directly deposited into a high yield savings account like ING Direct or HSBC. These will allow you to make 4.5% or more in interest while your money is in the account. If you already have a bank account with a regular bank like US Bank or Wells Fargo, set ING Direct to automatically transfer the amount of your paycheck from your regular bank account to the high yield account.
2. Get a cash back or rewards credit card, Tad recommends a BP Chase Card with 1-2% cash back on purchases and 5% on gas. Try to route as much of your spending through this as possible from bills with auto bill pay to everyday purchases. This helps not only with getting that cash back but for tracking your money.
3. Set up your credit card to automatically pay itself off from your ING Direct account.
4. (Optional) Transfer yor monthly ING Direct surplus into ING Direct CDs or other investment vehicles for long term gain.
It seems simple but, many people neglect to put this together saying “It’s only a few percent” or “I am used to my old bank”, just do it! You will continue to make more of your money back as you salary increases throughout life, just add up your monthly ING Direct interest earned and your credit card cash back and you’ll really start to see your benefits. Also, with this online transaction framework you can easily track your spending with a tool such as Yodlee or Mint.
Cautions:
1 . Pay off your credit card in full every month or you will quickly lose the benefits you are gaining.
2. Leave a small cushion in your high yield savings account in case you overspend or for emergencies. You don’t want to overdraw your savings account.
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Tags: Finance, Investing, Work
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September 27th, 2007 at 9:22 am
Brandon: Thanks for using Gliffy as an example of why pictures make concepts easier to understand. If you have any feedback through your use of Gliffy we’d love to hear it,
Thanks again~ debik(at)gliffy(dot)com
September 27th, 2007 at 6:13 pm
Regarding #2, I recommend the Citi Diamond Preferred Rewards card. The points scheme is great and they are one of the few cards that still offers price protection. So when that iPhone price dropped $200, you could get a refund from Citi. I also recommend checking http://www.bensbargains.net, as they frequently list the best (most generous) credit cards.
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