Money tips they should have taught us in school
If you're anything like me, your high school classes taught you how to find the circumference of a circle, but not how to ask your credit card company for a higher limit. Or how to write a 5-paragraph essay, but not how to find lost money the state might be holding in your name.
I'm in my 30s now and I’ve picked up a fair amount over the years. It also helps that both of my parents cared deeply about financial literacy so were teaching me things like investing and negotiating from a much younger age than average.
If that’s not you, I’m so glad you’re here. I know how few of us actually have access to the financial education we need to thrive (and that’s not even touching on the much larger topic of how it’s gotten so much harder to financially thrive as a normal person because of forces that have nothing to do with how hard you work or how you manage your money). So I’m here to share some of the little money tips that can help you navigate money more confidently.
I can’t cover all financial matters in one blog post, so make sure to check out other articles on this topic for even more, but let’s get you started…
Insider tips on money topics for a 20-something
These aren’t long-term, homework-style financial strategies. These are quick wins—things you can actually knock out in a day or two that may save or even earn you money. So whether you're trying to clean up your finances, stretch your paycheck a little further, or just feel a bit more in control, start here:
1. Negotiate With Debt Collectors
This one came up for me in real time when my little sister told me that she had paid a balance to a debt collector. You don’t have to do this! There’s a key distinction between debt owed directly tot the company and when a company has sold your debt to collectors.
Let’s say you owe an Urgent Care clinic $300. You didn’t pay the bill and eventually they sell it to a debt collector. It’s likely the debt collector bought your debt for under 1/10 (it varies, but just for an idea) of what you actually owe. In other words, the Urgent Care Clinic has decided it’s not worth their time to chase down $300 and they’d rather just take $30 from the debt collector and have it off their plate. The debt collector is now going to bug the hell out of you, threatening your credit score, emailing, calling and texting out the wazoo to get your debt paid because it’s their entire business. But they’re still going to tell you that you owe $300 even though they only paid $30 for it. Because debt collectors often buy your debt for pennies on the dollar, they’re usually open to negotiation.
You can call and offer a lump-sum payment that’s less than the full balance— you could ask for something like 10-15% that way even if they push back, you maybe settle for 20–40% of what you owe. Just make sure to get the agreement in writing before sending any money. By negotiating, you can actually take your debt from $300 down to $100 or less! This one phone call could save you hundreds—or even thousands—of dollars.
This strategy isn’t a reason to let debts go to collections as sometimes you’ve incurred fees or interest along the way and it’s always better to just not incur it to begin with. But if you do get to the point of dealing with a collector, there’s no need to pay a big balance when there’s a better deal on the table.
A few other key caveats: Never give them direct access to your bank account. Use a money order or prepaid card if needed. And if you feel overwhelmed, know that you have rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
2. Check Your State’s Unclaimed Property Website
This one feels like a modern-day treasure hunt. Every U.S. state has an unclaimed property division where businesses send money if they can't locate the rightful owner. Think forgotten security deposits, uncashed checks, old bank balances, insurance payouts—you name it.
It’s totally free to check. Just head to your state’s official unclaimed property site (you can also use MissingMoney.com to search multiple states at once). Type in your name and any states you’ve lived in.
While it’s probably a one time thing, I’ve personally found a couple hundred dollars this way, as have my friends. It only takes five minutes to check, and you might find $50 or $500 waiting with your name on it.
3. Ask for a Credit Limit Increase
A quick way to potentially boost your credit score? Ask for a credit limit increase. It takes about five minutes and you can usually do it right in your credit card’s app or website, or at worst, with a call to the help line
Increasing your credit limit (without increasing your spending) lowers your credit utilization ratio, which is a major factor in your credit score. Let me emphasize that again - this is only a smart financial move if you keep your spending the same with a higher credit limit!
When it comes to credit utilization, the banks want to see that you are not dependent on your credit to survive, which makes you vulnerable to defaulting if something goes wrong. If they see that you’re using 80% of what’s available to you in credit every month, it’s a sign that you might be dependent on the credit to pay bills, etc., which makes you more likely to default. They want to see a lower credit utilization, meaning you have plenty of wiggle room.
Think of it this way: if you eat one chocolate out of two, you’ve had a half of your available chocolate. If you then go get a chocolate bar with four pieces and eat three because you have “more,” you’ve defeated the point because you went from eating half the chocolate to three quarters. On the other hand, if you get the bar with four pieces and still only eat your one piece, your utilization is lower, only eating one quarter compared to one half.
As long as you’ve been making on-time payments and haven’t maxed out your card, many issuers will approve your request—usually without any sort of hard credit inquiry.
I’ve gotten as much as a 10,000 increase from making a call but even a $1,000 bump helps the calculation of your credit utilization and these factors add up over time.
4. Cancel Unused Subscriptions
You’ve heard this one before. Raise your hand if you’ve signed up for a free trial and forgotten to cancel. Or if you’ve been paying for a streaming service you haven’t used since that one show ended.
Yeah, been there. This can feel like not a big deal when we’re talking $15 dollars here and there but if I were to ask you, “do you want to spend $1,000 on things you don’t use this year?” I bet the answer will still be no!
That’s why it’s important to have good habits of setting reminders with free trials to cancel before the renewal and every once and a while, go through your bank or credit card statements from the last month and look for recurring charges. You might find subscriptions to apps, services, or memberships you no longer use.
You can also use tools like Rocket Money or Trim, which connect to your accounts and show you all your subscriptions—plus they’ll cancel them for you with one click.
Cutting out just $20–$50/month in unused subs adds up fast.
5. Open a High-Yield Savings Account
If your current savings account is paying you 0.01% interest (and most traditional banks still are), it might be worth exploring moving your money.
Online banks like Ally, SoFi, or Marcus offer high-yield savings accounts with interest rates over 4% (but this number fluctuates, so please research current rates when you’re reading this article!). That means your emergency fund or vacation savings could actually grow a little just by sitting there. It takes about 10 minutes to sign up and transfer your money. No fees, no hoops to jump through—just better interest and a smarter home for your cash.
Savings accounts should be for things like emergency funds and short term savings so important to note that the bigger portion of your net worth should be invested, whether in your 401K or a traditional brokerage account where it can be earning more than the savings account - historical data shows that the stock market typically grows by ~4-8% annually (and it’s been far higher in recent years).
All that being said, whatever amount you’re comfortable keeping in cash for emergencies and needs for the next year or so don’t have to sit there earning nothing, which is where a High-Yield Savings Account might be good for you!
6. Shop Around for Insurance
Not going to lie, this one can be kind of a pain. But when you’re looking at those not-so-fun expenses like insurance that can still end up being pretty pricey, it’s always good to make sure you’re overpaying.
Car insurance, renters insurance, even pet insurance—rates vary wildly between companies, and loyalty doesn’t always pay. Use comparison tools like Policygenius, The Zebra, or Gabi to get quotes from multiple providers at once and you can even negotiate with the individual companies to see if they can match a competitors rate.
It’s worth it to dig into what it is they policies cover to understand if you might be paying for something you don’t need - when I did my renters insurance policy for my apartment in Austin, they had a feature in the policy that I already had on one of my other policies that I was able to remove to avoid duplication, saving me $50 annually.
Insurance is a historically complicated, opaque and annoying industry but spending an hour a year to make sure you're not over-insured, under-insured, or just flat-out overpaying adds up overtime.
7. Sell Unused Items
This one’s a win-win: declutter your space and make some fast cash. Go through your closet, kitchen, tech drawer, or garage and pull out anything you haven’t used in the last year.
Old phones, laptops, headphones, small appliances, clothes, shoes—list them on Facebook Marketplace, TheRealReal, eBay, or Poshmark. I’ve sold countless shoes and bags that were collecting dust in my closet and while the money wasn’t life changing, it was some nice pocket money. You’d be surprised what people are willing to buy.
Balance this suggestion with the amount of time it takes. If you’re spending hours every weekend to only make $10 on Poshmark, it’s not worth your time. But around big moves or spring cleaning, this can be a valuable activity, especially because it’s more efficient if you do it all at once!
8. Redeem Credit Card Points or Rewards
If you use a rewards card, there's a good chance you’re sitting on points or cashback you haven’t touched. Log into your credit card portal and check and then spend a few hours on sites like ThePointsGuy to learn about how best to redeem your points.
Depending on the card, you might be able to turn points into statement credits, gift cards, travel, or even a direct deposit to your bank account.
I spent two months in Europe last year and my round trip business class seats, plus at least 10 nights of hotels were paid for on credit card points. Don’t sleep on the opportunity.
9. Call to Lower Your Bills
This one’s easy to overlook but can pay off big. Call your internet, phone, or even cable provider and ask if there are any current promotions or loyalty discounts available.
Seriously—just ask. They want to keep your business, and many reps are allowed to apply discounts or reduced rates if you sound like you might cancel. Mentioning a competitor’s pricing doesn’t hurt either.
I’ve had my internet bill lowered twice just by calling and saying, "I'm a loyal customer —do you have any deals available right now?"
Final Thoughts
Look, I get it. Money stuff can feel overwhelming—especially when you were never taught how to manage it in the first place. It’s easy to fall into the trap of thinking you need to read a finance book or take a class just to get started.
But the truth is, you don’t need to have everything figured out to start making progress. Small steps count. Even picking one thing from this list and checking it off today is a win. And those little wins add up to real change.
So take a breath, pick something simple to tackle this week, and remember—you’re not behind. You’re just getting started. And now you’ve got a few more tools in your back pocket to help along the way.
