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Entry bubble Are You Financially Literate?

By: Nancy | November 20, 2008 | Category: Money

I used to think it was just a cliché. But in the middle of this financial crisis we're facing together in the U.S. right now, the phrase "Most Americans are just two paychecks away from financial disaster" seems frighteningly true.

You don't have control over when a job or income loss or a serious illness will throw you into financial trouble. But not having a handle on the basics of saving and investing, taxes, mortgages and insurance can leave you even more vulnerable when bad times—or scam artists—hit.tight money

Right now, more than any time in our recent memories, it’s critical to brush up on financial literacy. My office works with a couple organizations that are helping adults and kids do just that.

The U.S. Financial Literacy and Education Commission operates MyMoney.gov, a site to help you make sense of practical money management, financial planning, saving for retirement, and getting familiar with financial scams so you can avoid them. Their online calculators help you estimate college costs, how much mortgage you can afford, what your Social Security benefits will be at retirement time and a lot more.

Through MyMoney.gov and 1 (888) MY MONEY, you can also get the free "My Money Toolkit," a collection of popular booklets that can help you learn to get your spending, saving and investing on track. You can check out the publications online or order copies for yourself, your friends or family.

The Jump $tart Coalition is involved in providing resources to help students kindergarten through college age grow up learning and exercising practical money skills. Whether you're an educator or a parent wondering how to start teaching your kids about money and financial responsibility, Jump $tart lists a terrific collection of fun websites for kids that'll teach them about saving, investing and making smart choices as consumers.

One other financial literacy website that I like a lot is from Visa. PracticalMoneySkills.com takes a comprehensive approach to teaching adults and kids better money management skills. The site is available in English, Spanish and Chinese and features videos and articles covering topics like setting a child's allowance, financially weathering a divorce, reducing your debt and understanding compound interest.

What do you wish you'd learned earlier in your life about managing your finances?

| Post a Comment | View Comments [2] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: divorce   financial_literacy   investing   money   nancy   saving  

 

Entry bubble Banking Safely in Troubling Times

By: Jim | October 08, 2008 | Category: Money

Bank On October 3, the President signed into law the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008. Commonly referred to as the bailout, feedback on Colleen's recent bailout comments indicate that some call it other things. Whether you were for or against the legislation, there are a few details in it to be aware of.

For example, it includes a provision temporarily raising the cap on federally insured deposits from $100,000 to $250,000. This provision will expire at the end of 2009. It's important to remember that there is no indication that the provision will be extended or become a permanent change. This applies both to banks insured by the FDIC and to credit unions insured by the National Credit Union Administration.

Your money is safe if you're using a financial institution insured by the FDIC or NCUA. But I admit that the recent headlines about bank closures made me curious about my bank's soundness and what I'd go through if my bank failed. Although the FDIC never releases its ratings on the safety and soundness of banks and thrift institutions to the public, it does provide information on private companies that provide their own ratings of bank safety, often for a fee. FDIC's information on when a bank fails helped me get an idea of what to expect if that happened.

If you're looking for a new bank or credit union, the Consumer Action website has some helpful tips. Check out MyMoney.gov's Saving and Investing page to learn more about banking, interest rates, how to complain about a financial institution, and more.

Have you experienced the closure of your bank or credit union by the FDIC or NCUA?

| Post a Comment | View Comments [4] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: bank   colleen   credit_union   fdic   jim   money   ncua   saving  

 

Entry bubble How Are You Saving Money These Days?

By: Nancy | July 31, 2008 | Category: Money

Has your credit card been seeing less daylight lately? According to a new study on how Americans are handling their money in the current economic downturn, 37 percent of people surveyed said they're cutting down on how often they use their credit cards. They're either going to a cash or debit card basis or are just plain spending less.blog wallet The same survey says that 57 percent of respondents are being more careful about dining out and 46 percent are shopping more at discount superstores.

Some people I know are even going back to the old fashioned, pre-credit card era practice of envelope budgeting. It's low-tech wonderful. After working out their weekly and monthly budgets to find out exactly what their expenses are (and finding "leaks" in their budget—expenses that they weren't really aware were adding up) they take out cash and divvy it up into envelopes for each expense—insurance, rent or mortgage, food, utilities, etc. And when that money's gone at the end of the month, it's gone. No borrowing from another envelope and going into debt.

There are so many other ways you can save by auditing your lifestyle:

  • What are your phone habits? Are there cheaper plans that meet your calling needs better?
  • When you go grocery shopping, are you making a list before you go, sticking to it and shopping on a full stomach or do all the displays and smells get you to fill your cart with things you hadn't planned to buy?
  • Once you've paid off your car, are you setting aside some money every month to help pay for your next vehicle so your car loan will be smaller? If you're shopping for a car right now, are you armed with the info you need to get the best deal?

I could write a 10,000 word blog entry on all the ways to save. But my bosses nudge me nicely when I go over Gov Gab's 300ish word limit. And I'm over it now. We don't have any limits on blog comments though. So please help me out and share what you're doing differently these days to save more and spend less.

| Post a Comment | View Comments [10] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: cars   credit   nancy   phone   saving   shopping  

 

Entry bubble Keeping Your Cool on the Cheap

By: Nancy | July 17, 2008 | Category: Money

Go into a supermarket or office this time of year and you either freeze or swelter. There never seems to be a happy medium!

In a Cornell University study, office workers tended to be more productive at warmer temperatures than cooler. But when you're too warm, it's sure hard to function too. I hunted around on USA.gov, curious about whether the government had recommendations on specific workplace temperatures. But the US Department of Labor's Office of Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has no specific temperature guidelines. Office temperatures are left up to individuals.

Well boy, do we individuals have individual takes on what's comfortable. In some offices, a person at one desk is breaking out the box fan while their coworker in the next cubicle is sporting a parka. In my office here at Gov Gab headquarters, somebody always seems to be a little too hot or a little too cold. But we play nicely and it's been years since anybody's been tempted to run both the air conditioner and a space heater simultaneously. We've learned to rely on strategic placement of an oscillating fan near our window air conditioner and we dress in layers.

red fan

At home, when you're the one paying the energy bill, knowing you can save three to eight percent a month for every degree warmer you set your thermostat is a real incentive for cooling creatively. Consider planting shade trees, painting your house a lighter color inside and out, using an attic fan and trading out those traditional, heat-creating light bulbs for energy saving and cooler-to-the-touch fluorescents. And if you can afford it, consider replacing any central or room air conditioner over 10 years old with a newer, energy-efficient model.

At work or home, covering large windows—especially those facing the south or west—with shades, awnings or reflective film can cut down tremendously on the temperature. And I know it sounds obvious, but even if you have a/c, electric fans can make a big difference. When I'm going to be in a room for awhile at home, I turn the air conditioner about as warm as I can stand it and put an oscillating fan in front of the a/c vent in that room to give the cooled air an extra boost. Oh, and I love my programmable thermostat. No more forgetting to adjust the temperature before I leave for work or returning to a house that's too hot or too cool. Seven days a week, it's set for my schedule.

What's it like where you live and work—how do you keep peace and save on the energy bill?

| Post a Comment | View Comments [8] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: a/c   energy   nancy   saving  

 

Entry bubble DOE Website for Energy-Saving Tips

By: Colleen | April 30, 2008 | Category: General

To continue on Joanne's "everyday is Earth Day" theme...gas pump

Anyone currently residing on planet Earth knows the cost of gas is soaring sky-high. Because prices at the pump are following the same trajectory as a spaceshuttle, it's important to find other ways to cut costs and reduce energy consumption.

Last week the U.S. Department of Energy launched a new website. The interactive page gives you a virtual tour of a typical home. Just click your mouse on different areas of the house and you're given tips and ideas about saving energy and costs.

One of the more interesting tips I found by clicking on the car in the driveway. It told me to "Get the junk out of the trunk and properly inflate your tires! An extra 100 pounds in your vehicle could reduce your fuel efficiency by up to 2%."

Off the top of my head, if someone were to break open my trunk right now, they'd find: a pair of roller blades, a wool winter coat, my old non-functional laptop, my sister's semi-functional laptop from college, a garbage bag of old clothes I've been meaning to donate, and a heavy-duty ice scraper. And that's just the stuff of which I am AWARE. It's time for a vehicular spring cleaning.

Check out other suggestions for getting the most energy efficient appliances, and using mother nature herself as a natural means of heating and lighting. Little changes can add up to BIG savings, for both our wallets and environment.

What tricks do you have for saving money and energy? Any good tips?

| View Comments [4] | envelope E-mail This Entry | Tags: colleen   consumption   doe   energy   gas   money   saving   tips  

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