There are many ways to manage your finances online, but many of them handle only the paying of run-of-the-mill bills. A site starting in beta-test mode on Monday, called Manilla, is aiming for something broader.
Manilla, which is owned by the publishing company Hearst, wants to help people organize four categories of accounts: household bills, like phone and cable; magazine subscriptions; air travel rewards programs; and financial bills like mortgages and credit cards. Once users sign up for Manilla they can link their personal accounts to the service and are supplied with a simple and clean interface to manage them.
Jessica Insalaco, an executive vice president at Manilla, said people the company surveyed said they were constantly baffled by the bills, subscriptions and other programs they have to manage. People also feel overwhelmed by the piles of paper bills they face on a daily basis, she said.
I tested Manilla ahead of its introduction and found that the process of linking and managing a bill was simple. I linked my AT&T phone bill to the service and it took only a few seconds to hook up the two sites and begin managing my account from Manilla.
Manilla isn’t only trying to help people organize their household finances. The company is teaming with businesses, too, hoping to offer a less expensive alternative to paper bills.
According to the United States Postal Service’s 2010 Annual Report, businesses in the United States send 48 billion account notices, statements and bills to customers each year. That’s a lot of paper that ultimately ends up in garbage dumps and paper shredders.
“Right now, some companies can spend up to 75 cents on a single paper bill,” Ms. Insalaco said. “We want to work with these major companies to send us the bill, reducing the cost of the paper version, and we will act as the middleman to the consumer.”
To make this process even more seamless, Manilla plans to create “premier partnerships” with some companies. Manilla said in a company blog post that it was opening with Comcast as its first premier partner, where cable customers who sign up for Manilla will no longer receive a paper bill, but will instead be billed directly through Manilla.
The company plans to add several premier partners when it has its full introduction in coming months.
I’ve told you before about PerkStreet Financial’s online checking before. To remind you, they provide free online checking. That’s rarity in itself these days but they also provide a cash back bonus on the spending you make with their debit card. This tends to to be about 1-2%. Well, every month PerkStreet announces different cash back categories that net you 5% cash back. Here are the March 2011 5% cash back categories:
1) Home Supply Stores – Shop at stores like Home Depot or Lowe’s and you earn 5% cash back when you use your PerkStreet debit card.
2) Sporting Goods and Apparel stores – Shop for your favorite team’s apparel or stock up on sports equipment and earn 5%.
3) Tax Preparation Solutions – H&R Block, Turbo Tax Online, TaxAct, Liberty Tax Services, and Jackson Hewitt will earn you 5% cash back.
Pretty neat, huh?
Here’s some legal mumbo-jumbo I gotta add:
The amount you can earn at the 5% cash back bonus rate is limited to $250 per household annually (starting on the day your account was opened). The total amount of cash back you can earn remains unlimited. Unless specific stores are named, qualifying purchases are determined by MCC codes. Non-PIN debit card purchases will earn 5% cash back in March in the following categories: Home Supply Warehouse Stores (5200), Sports Apparel and Riding Apparel Stores (5655), and at Sporting Goods Stores (5941) PowerPerks are also available through April 30, 2010 at: H & R Block®, Jackson Hewitt®, TaxAct®, Liberty Tax Service® & TurboTax® (online only).
**The Standard Cash Back Rate Still Stands**:
Earn 2% cash back on all non-PIN purchases for the first 3 months (90 days) following account opening. Once the 90 days is up, earn 2% cash back on all non-PIN purchases when your Account Balance is $5k or more. Or, earn 1% cash back on purchases when your Account Balance is less than $5k – either way you won’t find another bank in America that gives you more rewards on debit.
Check out my review of PerkStreet if you want to find out more about them.
And now for some great personal finance articles you should read:
Good Financial Cents | Home Equity Loan vs. a Hone Equity Line of Credit.
Amateur Asset Allocator | What A Financial Advisor Can And Cannot Do For You
Sense To Save | Renting a Rug Doctor vs. buying my own carpet cleaner
Oblivious Investor | Picking Mutual Funds: Don’t Just Look at the Winners
Toilet Paper Entrepreneur | Inexpensive Ways To Prevent Business Disaster
Clariity Blog | Happily Ever After: Money Matters You MUST Discuss Before Marriage
Generation X Finance | The Mortgage Tax Deduction Myth
PF Firewall | 4 Great Things You Could Be Doing Instead Of Gaming
The Wisdom Journal | Recession Lessons Are Fading Fast – Unless You’re Young (like under 29)
Consumerism Commentary | The Power of the Coupon Compels You
Money Smarts Blog | How to Unlock your Ontario LIRA or locked-in Retirement Account
Debt Free Adventure | Commonly Missed Tax Deductions
Five Cent Nickel | The Home Office Tax Deduction
The Dough Roller | Must Use Websites For Your Resume
Wealth Pilgrim | How To Teach Kids About Money And Get Results
The Simple Dollar | Health Insurance and Downgrading Your Job
PT Money | How to Start a Business with No Money | Want it Bad Enough?
My Journey to Millions | What Do I Need to Bring CPA or Accountant Tax Preparation
Smart on Money | Education Tax Credits Can Help Pay For College Costs
Canadian Couch Potato | How to Lower Your Rebalancing Costs
Couple Money | Save Money By Joining a CSA
The Military Wallet | The Case for Automating your Finances
Moolanomy | Is Using a Debt Snowball a Good Idea?
Credit Card Offers IQ | The Rundown on Foreign Transaction Fees
Studenomics | Why Chasing Bank Interest Rates is a Waste
Cash Money Life | Don’t Chase High Dividend Stocks
And these are the carnivals Free From Broke took part in:
Carnival of Traders and Investors – Edition #5
» Carnival of Personal Finance #298 – | Saving to Inve$t
Carnival of Passive Investing # 3 – Random Probability Examples Edition – February 28th, 2011 – My Personal Finance Journey
Festival of Frugality: 21 Ways to Save for a Rainy Day
Tax Carnival #82: The Tax Awards – Don’t Mess With Taxes
Carnival of Financial Planning – Edition #174 – March 4, 2011
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