Unknown charges on debit cards can have a number of causes, including a stolen card, fraud, simple forgetfulness, or a mistake by the bank. If you see an unknown charge on your bank account, there are steps you can take to investigate the unknown charges and limit any further charges. Government protections can limit or remove liability for fraudulent charges, but you must report them quickly.

When investing, it’s important to understand the difference between investment vehicles, their uses, and their correlation with risk. You want to choose a mix of stocks, bonds, and other investments that align with your risk tolerance, whether it is conservative, moderate, or aggressive. This mix will likely change over time, from more aggressive in the early days to more conservative as you near retirement.

Closing a savings account at banks or other financial institutions is usually not difficult. You just need to go in person, call customer service, or request the closure in writing. However, in order to close a bank account properly, you need to make sure you settle all balances beforehand. All of your direct bill pay and subscription services need to switch over to a new bank account or new payment method as well.

You are required to pay taxes on the interest earned on a savings account but not on the principal amount you deposit. A bank will issue a 1099-INT form to calculate and submit any interest earned over $10 to the IRS. You can also opt to save your money in other types of accounts, such as a Roth IRA or 529 plan, that don’t require you to pay taxes on the interest.

There are two main ways to invest in real estate: buy a home to live in and hope it appreciates or purchase real estate in order to obtain rental income or sell at a profit. Real estate can be a great way to build wealth through leverage while hedging against inflation. But it requires proactive management and is notoriously illiquid. It’s a good idea to review the pros and cons before you dive in. If you don’t want to invest in physical real estate, you can pursue other methods of real estate investing, such as home equity investments (aka shared equity agreements), or real estate investment trusts.

Investing in certificates of deposit, or CDs is a way to lock up your money for a period of time, while the money collects interest. When a CD matures, you have a short time frame to withdraw the money before you are hit with possible fees or penalties. Once a CD matures, you have several options for what to do with the money, including rolling it over to a new CD or investing it elsewhere.

CDs are considered a safe and reliable method to store money while earning interest. Since CDs lock money up for a period of time, they can be considered less liquid than other asset classes. However, CDs are backed by the U.S. government, so they are considered among the safest investment vehicles out there.

Index funds and mutual funds are two types of pooled investment vehicles that hold a basket of stocks and securities. Index funds are a type of mutual fund. This article compares index funds and actively managed mutual funds, which is what most people mean when they compare the two. Actively managed funds and index funds do differ in several aspects, such as management structure and fees. Although the managers of mutual funds strive to make better returns than those of index funds that simply track a market, they often don’t.

Black swan events in the stock market are unexpected events that can have catastrophic consequences. At the time, black swan events are considered complete outliers, but they become more clear when people observe them in hindsight. Black swan events, such as the 2008 U.S. financial crisis, come as a surprise, and thus the markets and their respective government regulators are usually wholly unprepared for them.

Investors should choose short-term or long-term CDs depending on their investment goals, their time horizon, and how the rest of their portfolios and savings are structured. Short-term CDs offer lower interest rates, but the time frames make it easy to withdraw the money if you need it. Long-term CDs are better utilized as part of a lengthy investment strategy, such as saving for retirement.