Latest news with #monthlypayments
Daily Mail
14 hours ago
- Automotive
- Daily Mail
Why soaring car prices that are crippling Americans are YOUR fault... and what you can do to stop them
Americans are paying too much for their cars — and one industry insider says consumers deserve blame. In late May, the average price for a fresh-out-of-the-factory car was $49,000. That figure saddled the average new car buyer with monthly payments over $700.
Globe and Mail
18-05-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
3 Stocks That Cut You a Check Each Month
Dividends are great, particularly if you need investment income to cover life's ordinary expenses. Let's face it, though: The typical quarterly cadence of most dividend stocks' payments isn't exactly ideal. Monthly payouts would be much more convenient. Well, there are some stocks making a dividend payment every month rather than every quarter. Here's a closer look at three of them that income-minded investors might want to consider adding to their portfolio. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue » 1. Realty Income You may not have heard of Realty Income (NYSE: O), but there's a good chance you've stepped foot on to at least one of its properties. See, Realty Income is a real estate investment trust -- or REIT -- serving as landlord to many familiar retailers including Walmart, 7-Eleven, Life Time Fitness, and Dollar Tree, just to name a few. All told, the company owns 15,627 different sites, 98.5% of which are currently leased to nearly 1,600 different customers, no single one of which accounts for more than 4% of its revenue. It's a business that's well-suited for supporting monthly dividend payments. After all, Realty Income collects rent payments on a monthly basis, while its own mortgage payments and operating expenses are also paid by the month; shareholders just pocket the bulk of the difference. And, being structured as a real estate investment trust, most of this income isn't taxed before being passed along to investors. But isn't the brick-and-mortar retail industry dying? Not quite. It would be more accurate to say it's being refined, separating the resilient names from the weaker ones. For instance, while Coresight Research reports 7,325 total U.S. retail stores were shuttered last year, 5,970 were opened by outfits with a better shot at surviving the so-called retail apocalypse. It's worth adding that the bulk of Realty Income's tenants are among the strongest retailers with real staying power. Underscoring this claim is the fact that this REIT has not only paid a monthly dividend like clockwork for the past 55 years, but has raised its total annual payment every year for the past 27 years. Newcomers will be plugging into this dividend stock while its forward-looking yield stands at 5.8%. 2. Stag Industrial Stag Industrial 's (NYSE: STAG) forward-looking dividend yield of 4.2% clearly isn't quite as strong as Realty Income's. Still, it's a monthly dividend payer worth a look. Like Realty Income, Stag is a REIT. It's got a measurably different focus, though. Whereas Realty Income's specialty is retail properties, Stag Industrial's core business is (just as the name suggests) buying, developing, and renting out industrial properties like warehouses and distribution centers. It owns 597 different buildings covering 117.6 million square feet, which generates on the order of $200 million in revenue every quarter. As is the case with ownership of any rental real estate, there's risk here. Namely, ever-rising costs and economic headwinds could make it tough to continue doing profitable business. A great deal of this risk is curbed, however, by Stag's typical rental agreement with its tenants. See, Stag Industrial's leases are usually so-called triple net leases, where the renter rather than the landlord is responsible for expenses like utilities, taxes, insurance, and maintenance. While this obviously still leaves Stag on the hook for what are essentially mortgage payments, these payments are fixed and don't rise over time. Rental rates do. That being said, Stag Industrial's current operating occupancy rate of 96.8% indicates that -- like Realty Income -- its renters are among the marketplace's fiscally strongest players, and doing just fine despite the shaky economic backdrop. Stag Industrial doesn't boast the same sort of dividend pedigree that Realty Income does. Stag Industrial has only upped its annualized dividend payout in each of the past 14 years, in fact, and not by much in most of those years. It's still a solid monthly income producer, and worth owning if only as a means diversifying your dividend holdings. 3. AGNC Investment Finally, add AGNC Investment (NASDAQ: AGNC) to your list of dividend stocks to consider buying if monthly payments better suit your needs. It's another real estate investment trust, although a dramatically different one than Stag Industrial or Realty Income. See, AGNC Investment doesn't actually own any real estate; it's a REIT simply because it's a tax-advantaged corporate structure. Rather, it buys, holds, and sells interest-bearing mortgage-backed securities issued by government agencies like Ginnie Mae, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac, capitalizing on the usual difference between long-term interest rates and short-term ones. It can be a tricky business. In a normal environment, the price and payout of mortgage-backed securities are reasonably predictable. When interest rates are abnormally low and/or the yield curve inverts as it did back in 2022 -- pushing long-term interest rates below short-term rates -- the business model's underlying strategy simply ceases to work. That's why this ticker's underperformed since mid-2021, when rates began to crumble. Well, that, and the fact that the REIT lowered its dividend payment in early 2020, and hasn't raised it since. AGNC data by YCharts The market is looking past an important detail here, however, that you arguably shouldn't. That is, the yield curve un inverted late last year, and the spread between short-term interest rates and long-term rates continues to widen. This means AGNC Investment's core strategy for generating net profits is working again. There's still risk here, to be sure. AGNC continues to report the occasional quarterly operating loss, for example, and lingering economic lethargy has strained the balance sheet. There is also no guarantee this REIT will be raising its dividend anytime soon, and no clarity as to how big that bump might be if and when it does (nor how many more increases are in the cards after the next one, whenever it happens). That's why this ticker isn't for everyone, and certainly not well-suited to be your first or only dividend payer. With a forward-looking yield of 16% based on a dividend that's still being reliably dished out, though, that risk might be worth it for some. Should you invest $1,000 in Realty Income right now? Before you buy stock in Realty Income, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Realty Income wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $642,582!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $829,879!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor 's total average return is975% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to172%for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of May 12, 2025
CBS News
09-05-2025
- Business
- CBS News
How do I put all of my debt into one payment?
Rolling multiple debts into one can have big benefits for your finances, and there are multiple ways to achieve easy to feel you're juggling too many monthly bills right now, especially if you've successfully managed your obligations in the past and are now struggling to keep up with the payments. And, while your spending habits may have something to do with it, that's likely not the only issue at play. Between today's elevated interest rates, inflation-driven living costs and the other economic challenges that are looming, a lot of people are finding it difficult to fit their debt obligations into their budgets now. The more accounts you have open, after all, the more interest you're paying, the harder it becomes to stay organized and the easier it is to fall behind. That's a big reason why the idea of consolidating your debts into a single monthly payment has become so appealing recently. Rolling multiple debts into one can make it a lot easier to stay on top of what's owed. But with credit card interest rates hovering near record highs — averaging around 22% currently — and the average cardholder carrying about $8,000 in revolving debt, streamlining your payments can be more than just a convenience. It can also be a great strategy for reducing financial stress, avoiding missed payments and lowering the overall cost of your debt over time. Turning five or six debts into just one manageable payment isn't something that happens automatically, however. You'll need to explore your options and make sure you're choosing the right approach for your financial situation. Below, we'll examine what to know about how to consolidate your debt and which strategies can help you make it work. Chat with a debt relief expert about how to tackle your debt today. How do I put all of my debt into one payment? The process of turning multiple debts into a single monthly payment is called debt consolidation. At its core, it means combining several balances (usually high-rate debts) into one new loan so that you only have to manage one due date, one interest rate and one payment. There are several ways to achieve this goal, including: Personal consolidation loans: Banks, credit unions and online lenders offer personal loans specifically designed for debt consolidation. These loans typically have fixed interest rates, fixed repayment terms and a single monthly payment. If you have good to excellent credit, you might qualify for an interest rate that's significantly lower than what you're currently paying, especially on your credit card debt. Start the process of tackling your high-rate debt today. Balance transfers: Many credit card companies offer promotional 0% APR periods on balance transfers, typically lasting up to 21 months. By transferring high-rate credit card balances to a new card with a promotional rate, you can save on interest and focus on paying down the principal balance. These cards usually charge a balance transfer fee (typically 3% to 5% of the transferred amount), however, and the regular rate sets in after the promotional period ends. So, if you haven't paid it off at that point, you could be paying as much or more in interest as you currently are. Home equity options: If you own a home with plenty of equity, you might consider borrowing against it with a home equity loan or a home equity line of credit (HELOC). These secured borrowing options often offer lower interest rates than unsecured options because your home serves as collateral, and you can use the funds to pay off multiple debts, essentially rolling them into one monthly payment. However, this approach puts your home at risk if you can't make payments, so proceed with caution. Debt management: Credit counseling agencies offer debt management plans where they negotiate with creditors on your behalf, potentially securing lower interest rates and waived fees. You then make one monthly payment to the agency each month, which distributes the funds to your creditors. This approach essentially allows you to consolidate your debt without borrowing again, which can be a big positive for some, but it may not offer enough relief for others. Debt consolidation programs: Enrolling in a debt consolidation program allows you to consolidate your debt in much the same way that traditional debt consolidation does. The main difference is that rather than taking out a loan from a bank or credit union, you work with a debt relief company's third-party partner lenders to secure the loan. While rates can be higher with this option, it does allow for more flexible borrowing parameters, as the partner lenders are accustomed to working with borrowers who may have higher debt-to-income ratios or other credit issues. The bottom line Debt consolidation can be a powerful tool for simplifying your financial life and potentially saving money through lower interest rates. Before proceeding with any consolidation option, though, it's important to carefully evaluate the total cost over the life of the loan, not just the monthly payment. A lower payment stretched over a longer term might feel more manageable — but it could result in paying more interest over time. And, it's also important to remember that successful debt consolidation requires discipline and patience. The journey to financial freedom doesn't happen overnight and requires consistent effort and a solid plan. Still, the peace of mind that comes from having a single, manageable payment and a clear timeline for becoming debt-free is often worth the effort that debt consolidation requires.
