Breakups Hurt but Overpaying Hurts More 💔

Welcome Back, Fellow Parent

Happy Early Valentine’s Day!

This year, let’s talk about a different kind of breakup—the kind that makes your wallet feel loved.

While everyone else is swooning over roses and chocolates, maybe it’s time to break up with something that isn’t serving you: bad financial decisions.

Take car insurance, for example.

Last year, I realized I was paying way too much. Loyalty discounts? Please. Turns out, switching insurers saved me $500 a year! And yes, a year later the savings are still stacking up.

While Progressive has raised their rates (as most if not all insurers have), it was nothing compared to the hot nonsense over at Geico.

Sometimes, the best relationships are the ones you find after you let go of what isn’t working.

Breaking up with your current provider might feel scary (or like a lot of work), but it’s extremely simple and may take you an hour or so.

Here’s how to do it:

• Shop Around: Use comparison sites or call competitors directly. A 15-minute chat can lead to huge savings.

• Negotiate: Even if you love your current provider, see if they’ll match a lower rate you’ve found elsewhere.

• Consider Bundling: Pairing insurance products (like home and auto) often leads to discounts.

But it’s not just car insurance.

Think of all the money you could save by breaking up with other unnecessary expenses—whether it’s your overpriced cell phone plan, underutilized subscriptions, or that gym membership you keep “meaning to use.”

After a bit of research, here are three more quick breakup ideas to consider. Perfect cross between cost savings and time it takes to make the switch:

• Your Cable Package: If you haven’t done so already, I’d highly recommend cutting the chord. The average cable bill is over $200 per month which is insane to me. With all of the great options out there, you can easily cut this bill. For example, the most expensive Disney+ bundle costs $17 per month (with ads) and also includes Hulu and ESPN+. Fun for the whole family at a fraction of the cost. You can also swap out subscriptions throughout the year so you aren’t paying for one to just sit there.

• Unused Subscriptions: Do you really need five apps to track your steps? A recent survey confirmed 85% of paid subscriptions go unused, with an average value of ~$33 per month. Do a quick dive into what you’re paying and cancel anything you’re not using.

• Bank Fees: EY advised that on average, US consumers are spending over $300 per year on bank fees. This is a hefty sum just to have someone hold your cash for you (which they then use to invest, but that’s a topic for another day). There are a ton of options out there for accounts with no fees. A quick Google search brought me to this helpful read by NerdWallet.

Breaking up is hard, but falling in love with your budget is worth it.

And unlike that bouquet of roses, these savings will last far longer than a week.

Meta Can Read Minds with AI  

Typically I would pull together five personal finance news headlines for our community, but for this week, I want to focus on one study which recently came out.

Meta (aka Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, etc.) partnered with neuroscientists to read brain waves.

Essentially the Meta AI team built a system which can decode brain signals into text using external sensors. This allowed the AI to decode what the test subjects were typing out.

With an 80% accuracy rate.

No big deal.

It’s both impressive and alarming, depending on your viewpoint on AI and the longterm use cases for the technology.

From what I can find, the main goal is to help people who can’t speak or type communicate again. Which is an awesome use case.

But there’s one big limitation: the machine is expensive and massive, so it’s stuck in the lab for now.

If it ever becomes accessible to the public, imagine the productivity boost—you could “mentally” write your budget while making dinner or brainstorm side hustle ideas during your toddler’s nap.

Still, it’s exciting to think about where this could go—and how future tech could make managing money a little easier and multitasking a breeze.

Curious to see it in action?

Meta’s blog includes a video featuring real participants.

P.S. If you’re looking for additional interesting things to read, below are a few free newsletters I recommend, from one parent to another. Make sure to confirm your subscription to give them a try.

Outro

Have you recently broken up with a bad financial habit or made a money-saving switch?

Hit reply and share your story!

I’d love to hear what’s worked for you—and who knows, your tip might inspire another parent to take the leap.

See you next week,

The Dollar Dad

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