7 Super Useful Social Money Management Communities

photo credit: moreofavideoguy

Many financial experts recommend automating your finances, and finding new ways to manage your money online. As the power of social media continues to grow, and new secure technologies develop, you can now use a number of money management communities to keep track of your funds and transfer money. Here are seven of the most useful social money management communities online that you may want to consider joining.

1. SmartyPig

SmartyPig acts as an online piggy bank for you to save for your most important financial goals. Their service is free to use, and even allows you to take advantage of an extremely competitive 1.75%APY interest rate. Your account is secured by the FDIC, and allows you to save for specific items rather than using credit to purchase them before you really have the money. One of the greatest benefits of SmartyPig is its integration with your existing social communities. Your friends and family can add money to your SmartyPig account as a gift, in order to help you reach your savings goals – completely transforming the idea of sending cash for a birthday or special occasion.

2. Kiva

Kiva is a truly unique website that connects people who want to lend money with budding entrepreneurs across the world in need of assistance. Kiva allows the less fortunate to be given an opportunity to achieve their dreams in the form of a loan, which they can later repay when their business is more successful. Kiva is one of the top ways to engage in the global community around the world, and has facilitated the exchange of well over $100 million in loans.

3. GreenNote

GreenNote allows students to receive financial assistance to pursue higher education, by pursuing individual fundraising campaigns. When a student sets up their account with GreenNote, they can ask for donations from family, friends, their social networks, and the larger community based on their character references and personal goals. Many students benefit from the donations they receive through GreenNote, as these enable them to avoid high interest student loans and excessive debt.

4. Prosper

Prosper connects people who are looking to invest with people who are in need of a loan, and has built a community around the system of mutual connections. People who are in need of loans are able to receive a personal loan at a fixed rate, which start as low as 7.5%APR. For those looking to invest, they can offer a loan to an individual borrower and receive an estimated return of 10.4%, which is higher than other investment alternatives. With their innovative peer-to-peer lending system, borrowers can end up taking small loans from multiple lenders, in amounts as small as $25. Borrowers must have good credit history with a score of at least 640, and lenders have access to each borrower’s credit history and reason for wanting the loan.

5. Geezeo

Geezeo is dedicated to reinventing how their users bank online, and is focused on integrating finances, community, and technology in a new way to improve all financial management experiences. Geezeo works primarily with established organizations, and strives to help these businesses engage directly with their customer bases and to attract new customers. They also work to increase earnings for their customers, and to develop new markets for them to work in.

6. NetworthIQ

NetworthIQ is an online finance management system for people to track their spending, saving, earning, and investments. Their system ties into the larger community as you are able to compare your status with others in the community, in order to track and share your net worth. This tool helps you to gain a sense of not only your own finances, but also where others around you are situated.

7. Buxfer

Buxfer is an extensive money management tool that allows you to track and monitor all of your accounts from one place. Their system automatically downloads and then categorizes your spending and deposits in each of your checking, savings, and credit accounts. This information allows you to track where your money is going, and to analyze how to improve your individual financial situation.

With so many easy to use online money management tools available, it’s a great time to check out one of these popular systems to see how it can improve your financial standing. As more companies work to integrate their products with social media, even more of these social money management communities will be born so that the larger world can engage with great financial habits and sharing.

Recommended reading: 7 Ways to Get Organized to Save Money

David Boyd is a personal finance writer with a passion to help people compare credit cards through his comparison website www.creditcardcompare.com.au.
Check out his other articles at The Credit Letter