With mobile apps for everything from games, to ghostbusting, to watermelon ripeness testing, anyone with a smartphone can do anything with it. Managing finances used to mean sitting at a desk in a home office surrounded by filing cabinets. Now the tech-savvy (and the rest of us) can manage financial matters anywhere and access financial data from the devices in our pockets.
Track your Investments
The Bloomberg app (free for current subscribers!) gives real time quotes, analyst opinions and stock trends on the go. CNBC Real Time is free for all users and gives the same info.
SigFig actually syncs to your investments to track the relevant info for your own stocks, funds, 401(k) and IRA.
A Financial Advisor in Your Pocket
Got a burning personal finance question? The free Ask Dave Ramsey app gives you access to audio clips searchable by topic, broadcast summaries and answers to consumer questions, all at your fingertips. A similar app called Pay Off Debt offers help for a problem ailing most Americans today. The app can prioritize debts by lowest balance, highest interest or other parameters, view upcoming payments and payment history, set payment reminders, make a plan to pay off debt and adjust the plan at any time. It can be a great starting point and give direction for those overwhelmed by debt who simply don’t know where to start.
For those preparing to take a new debt such as a car loan or home mortgage, the Loan Calculator app can generate a complete amortization table, bookmark your current payment in the table, save your information and export it via email. A similar app for iPhone, the RoadLoans.com Car Loan Calculator allows you to adjust loan amount, APR, term and down payment, plus apply for financing through the app.
Managing your Money
Mint.com has been a popular choice for anyone hoping to organize finances because it automatically downloads transactions for every linked account, including bank accounts and credit cards and keeps all the data in one place, even sending alerts to changes in your accounts like high withdrawals or finance charges. Now Mint has an app for the iPhone and Android markets. You can now check balances on all accounts in real time from your phone.
Although you can’t transfer money using Mint, the ever-popular PayPal has gone mobile. You can send and receive PayPal account payments on the go. Running a small business? Now you can receive credit card payments using Square. You can download the app for free, fill out a brief application, and Squareup.com will send you a free card reader that plugs into the 3.5mm audio jack. Complete the setup steps and you can accept credit cards anywhere at any time.
Ready to get organized and feel secure about your finances? Try a few of these apps, and in no time you’ll be confident in your finances and back to playing Angry Birds.
{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
Two many apps can be confusing as well. I like the mint.com and the idea of squareup. You can also use apps that allow you to keep notes the old fashion way. People who have bank, credit card and other financial information on their phone should ensure that their phone is password protected and safe from hacking.
Joe recently posted..Various Auto Insurance Fees and Charges to Watch Out