New Years Saving Resolutions, and the Tools for Resolving to Keep Them.

This time of year we all like to indulge in self improvement and personal achievement. Clients tell me every year that the goal will be to save.

My question is always “What will you DO differently this year, which will change the habit for you?”

I have compiled a few suggestions for those of you interested in setting this goal for yourself in 2012.

1.       Set an actual Goal

a.       How much every week, month, total at the end of the year

b.      Why? What is the reason or purpose of the saving?

2.       Plan where, when, and how

a.       Where will the money be (bank, piggy bank, envelope, coffee can, etc...)

b.      When will you make the deposits (day, date, tax return, etc...)

c.       Will you deposit cash, defer to a savings account from your direct deposit, will you work and extra job to make the money and that will dictate the other two questions

3.       How often will you review the plan

a.       Daily

b.      Weekly

c.       Monthly

d.      Quarterly

4.       What are the parameters or rules for utilizing that saved money for emergency (no answers are incorrect, it is your money, but knowing what you consider to be valid BEFORE, helps you to make that decision

a.       Car broke down

b.      Friend birthday

c.       Need cigarettes

d.      Everyone else is going and we should go too

e.      Because I want one and it will be more expensive when it is off sale

5.       Tips for saving the money at home

a.       Convert the dollars to Silver Dollars first (or whatever denomination you prefer). Many people would rather not spend these coins. It becomes a collection, and it helps us to stop and think before we spend.

b.      Put the funds directly into a Christmas Club Account with your Credit Union

                                                               i.      This keeps us out of the account PLUS

                                                             ii.      This keeps us from being able to use it in case of emergency MINUS

c.       Keep a clear piggy bank (no offense to other barnyard animals) in plain view, this will remind you that you are saving and people tend to put money it (YES...they DO!)

HAVE A HAPPY, HEALTHY, AND PROPEROUS NEW YEAR!

Alive, But Credit Dead..Credit Report Errors

Credit reports are maintained primarily for the creditors, banks, credit cards, mortgage companies, insurance companies, etc.

The majority of consumer credit reports are erroneous, accounts that belong to someone other then you with the same or similar name, accounts that are paid in full that are not reflected correctly on the report. These entries can be disputed. If you access the Federal Trade Commission's website, here, I have provided the link to download the dispute procedure for you. I have embedded a link to a drastic case of how the credit report can be so wrong that it ruined a persons life. Contact me if you need any further assistance correcting errors.
Christina 1-800-942-9027 Ext. 3306

Alive, But Credit Dead

Are you an indentured servant to your credit card company?

Are you an indentured servant to your credit card company? 

Indentured servitude refers to the historical practice of contracting to work for a fixed period of time, typically three to seven years, in exchange for transportation, food, clothing, lodging and other necessities during the term of indenture.

You use the credit card to fix the car, buy a gift, pay for vacations, or whatever you didn't have the cash for at the time. Did you ever stop to consider that you are now working every day for the next decade or so just to pay off the interest on those cards?

The average minimum payment on a credit card is mostly interest charge. If you look at a credit card with a balance of $6000.00 and you locate "How long if you never charge another thing and make the minimum payment only" Can you believe that the number of years is, generally speaking, over a decade?

Is that fair? Is that what you realized that you signed on for?

Make sure to look at all of your credit card statements this month and decide if you are willing to remain enslaved by the credit card company.

If you have accumulated new cards and new debt, then contact your account manager and get it added into the program.

Refer a friend, a family member, or a friend of a family member today, and help them get debt free too!

Call me with any questions you may have, 800-942-9027 Ext. 3306

What to do after the program?

What to do after the program?                                      

Many of you are nearing the end of your program, with good credit and no debts. What is the next step? Do you continue to use credit cards and then have new balances? What is your plan? You have completed the program because you had a plan and that shouldn't stop. Clients that are already used to budgeting the monthly payment are in a great position to more forward and establish a new plan of action to reach their next goal!

I encourage clients to think outside the box and focus on what they want the next few years to look like for them, there are no wrong answers, only choices for them and their family. Some of the goals can be financial or for an even longer term goal.

GOALS:

• Create a substantial savings account for the future
• Pay off the mortgage and be truly debt free
• Save for a second honeymoon vacation to a tropical location
• Buy a great car with cash
• Do some remodeling with cash
• Go back to school and one day be a PhD.
• Share your success with others! Refer a friend so that they can be debt free too!

Your choices are only limited by your own imagination and what you choose to accomplish. Don't stop setting goals. The main catalyst to the hard work you have done by achieving debt freedom is necessary to help you move forward from this point on.

How to find the black holes in your budget

Black holes in your budget are areas where your money goes, but you don't realize it.
We all know how much we spend of the big stuff, housing, utilities, insurance, car payments, etc..
Like the old saying goes "the devil is in the details". When you take your lunch to work or school to save money, but the budget you do at home says you should have money left over at the end of the month, but you don't, then you have a black hole or two.
The best and easiest way to identify a black hole is to keep track of all of ALL of your expenditures. I suggest that you get a small pocket sized notepad and carry it with you everywhere. If you track every cent then you will come to see where the nickels and dimes are going. Remember to count the kids' lunch money, the coffee you grab on the way to work, the snack from the vending machine, the sandwich you bought from the wheel of death (joke), and the dollar you put in the Salvation Army kettle outside of the grocery store.

Those small amounts add up to big dollars at the end of the week and bigger dollars by the end of the month. A good rule of thumb is to track these purchases for a minimum of a week, two weeks or a month will give you a more concrete idea of the trends in your spending habits.

I hope this helps your to find your own black holes!

Call me with questions at 1-800-942-9027 ext 3306
or leave me an email.

Take your money back from the big banks!

Take your money back from the big banks!

A large percentage of Americans are fed up with the banks not lending to people and charging ever increasing fees, interest, and lowering credit lines.

The best way to let them know you are unhappy is to take your money BACK! Open an account in your local Credit Union! They are community based and the "profits" come back to you in the form or dividends. Credit unions historically have lent to their customer far faster than a commercial bank and they encourage saving, investing, and community growth.

The following is taken from the CUNA website:
"New federal laws and regulations are changing the structure and face of the financial services industry. In this time of accelerating change, it is important to truly understand how credit unions are unique and different, and why we remain a necessary and extremely popular financial alternative for 87 million Americans.

• Not-for-profit. Credit unions are not-for-profit financial cooperatives. We exist to serve our members, not to make a profit. Unlike most other financial institutions, credit unions do not issue stock or pay dividends to outside stockholders. Instead, earnings are returned to our members in the form of lower loan rates, higher interest on deposits, and lower fees.
• Taxation. Credit unions do pay taxes - payroll taxes, sales taxes, and property taxes. Congress exempts credit unions from federal income taxes. The exemption was established in 1937, affirmed by statute in 1951, and re-affirmed in 1998 in H.R. 1151, the Credit Union Membership Access Act, which states:

Credit unions, unlike many other participants in the financial services market, are exempt from Federal and most State taxes because credit unions are member-owned, democratically operated, not-for- profit organizations generally managed by volunteer boards of directors and because they have the specified mission of meeting the credit and savings needs of consumers, especially persons of modest means."

• Ownership. Credit unions are economic democracy. Each credit union member has equal ownership and one vote -- regardless of how much money a member has on deposit. At a credit union, every customer is both a member and an owner.
• Volunteer Boards. Each credit union is governed by a board of directors, elected by and from the credit union's membership. Board members serve voluntarily.
• Membership Eligibility. By current federal statute, credit unions cannot serve the general public. People qualify for a credit union membership through their employer, organizational affiliations like churches or social groups, or a community-chartered credit union.
• Financial Education for Members. Credit unions assist members to become better- educated consumers of financial services. Additionally, CUNA is partnering with the National Endowment for Financial Education, a not-for-profit foundation, to expand financial education among high school students. A national study shows that just ten hours of personal finance education can positively affect students' spending and savings habits for a lifetime.
• Social Purpose: People Helping People. Credit unions exist to help people, not make a profit. Our goal is to serve all of our members well, including those of modest means - every member counts. Our members are fiercely loyal for this reason. They know their credit union will be there for them in bad times, as well as good. The same people-first philosophy causes credit unions and our employees to get involved in community charitable activities and worthwhile causes - just ask us."

Search for a credit union in your city.

Open an account in your local credit union!

Imagine a world where the banks are no longer too big to fail.

Give me a call at 800-942-9027 ext 3306

Why savings are so important.

A very wise person made the comment once, "the distance between your children and the streets is the depth of your bank account".
WOW! That is a true statement.
Take a moment and think about that concept.
If you lost your job tomorrow, if there were no other jobs to be found, if you could not get assistance from the state or federal government, how long could you keep the roof over your children's heads?
We have been told that we need to have six months of expensive in reserve. Okay, that seems like a good amount. But the average person in this economy that has suffered a job reduction or loss is on unemployment for a year or longer. What do you do if the rent is due, or the mortgage, or you have a utility shut off in the mail?

A growing number of people are cashing out their 401K plans. It is their money, that is savings they worked to gather. That is good idea! WAIT! No it isn't. The taxes are PUNITIVE, that means intended as a punishment. The tax consequences can be catastrophic and put an individual in a jam with Uncle Sam. Too many of our contemporaries are using those checks from the credit card companies, or pay day loans to fill up the checking account. However, this is not a good option. The interest rates alone on both of these instruments are astronomical and could have been avoided with a savings account.

Many people use their tax return as a savings plan to "pay off" their debts once a year. However, because they used it all to "pay off" the debts, which is generally just a pay down, the cards are at the previous levels or higher before they get to October of the same year; less then six months later.

I firmly believe that if we set up a GOAL, and a MINIMUM, we can reach the point where if the car breaks down or the kids get sick, or you miss hours or have a reduction in hours, all is not lost.

If your expenses are 1600 a month and you KNOW that you are getting a check every two weeks, you can make contributions to yourself and build a savings, thereby taking one step back from the street every payday.

Fire the Cable Company

Hello all!

Let's fire the Cable Company! The loss of business by the cable companies has risen lately due to the free access of much of the cable channel programming available online. YES FREE ONLINE.

You will need an internet connection that will allow for the download, but your average internet (yes through the cable company) is generally sufficient.


Most of the newer televisions have the option of connecting your computer directly to them to act as a large computer monitor. The then allows you to watch shows on site like www.hulu.com, and any other direct source, such are A&E, Disovery Channel, Lifetime Movie Network, Food Network, TruTV, OWN, etc and so on.

Additionally, you may have realized that every News Program you watch announces that they have a "Streaming online" option.

If you have an older TV set then Best Buy and Radio Shack sell the necessary hardware to do the conversion. The last client I had that bought the adapter paid roughly $30.00, and was all set up in under 20 minutes.

If you have an entertainment hankering for Movies, then there are several direct options available, but my personal favorite is Net Flix. They offer instant movies, documentaries, and HBO, Showtime, and other original series that air one week after they air on the pay channel.

Check it out!

FIRE THE CABLE COMPANY!

Call or email me with questions!

Student Loans

GREAT NEWS!
If you work for a nonprofit entity, governmental entity, school district, etc.. You can have your monthly payments reduced for publicly funded student loans and/or have them forgiven in just ten years.

Go to www.ibrinfo.org

They offer Income Based Repayment and Public Service Loan Forgiveness.
Please pass this website on to your friends and family.

You can call me with questions at 1-800-942-9027 ext. 3306

My clients

I am starting this blog to allow my clients, and anyone they give the address to, advice and information on a variety of subjects dealing with lowering the cost of living.
I will post articles that I find, recipes that are good and inexpensive, tips and tricks, and welcome any and all contributions and feedback.


Please feel free to send me suggestions and feedback.
I am here for you, not the other way around.
Together we can "improve the economy one client at a time."