Monthly Archives: April 2019

Four secrets of people who save more than 20% of their income:

1. 65% avoid high-interest debt
2. 60% stick to a budget
3. 58% invest in the stock market
4. 55% max out their retirement savings

These financial decisions affect your current and future financial outlook. The ability to save in one area means you can invest in another area of your financial life. Remain diligent. Be informed.

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A threat to payday lenders is: Personal finance classes. Requiring high school students to take courses to understand personal finance is the best way to reduce the impact of payday lenders. Persons with the lowest financial literacy will be more likely to use payday lenders. Saving for emergencies and knowing how to manage debt are the cornerstone to financial literacy. High school students are often interested in buying their first car or moped. Knowing how to secure a loan with the best terms and the lowest interest rate is key. Spread the word! Financial Literacy is Power!

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Lenders and credit bureaus say a bold new data push can expand credit to more consumers, but some worry the shift could sting the people it’s meant to help. Currently, lenders and credit reporting agencies review your mortgage, and student loan payment history, in addition to credit cards and car payments. How you pay these bills impacts your credit score. In the near future, credit reporting bureaus will also report payments to your utilities, gas, electric, and water bills. This new approach can be a two-edged sword. One side it gives a full window into the payment history for persons will little credit history especially low-income families. On the other side it captures the payments to utilities where payments may be late or failed to pay a previous landlord. There will be no escape for those who fall under the credit radar. Remember, your payment history is a public record and can either help or hinder you.

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These nine small expenses may be killing your budget. Keep more of your future paychecks by eliminating these budget-busting unnecessary expenses. If you are feeling puzzled that your budget doesn’t work? Here are some small expenses that might be the culprit – and some ideas for cutting down these costs.

1. Food (groceries and takeout meals)
2. Snack and other daily treats (coffee etc.)
3. Lapsed promotional offers (magazines etc.)
4. Gasoline (find the best prices near you)
5. Sales (every ‘sale’ may not be at sale price)
6. Pampering yourself
7. Banking fees ( avoid ATM fees – use your own bank instead or affiliates)
8. Cellphone use (shop for the best deals)
9. All the random extras (and purchases)

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Ministers are in a strong position to teach about money. Church leaders are inviting people to participate in financial education. Financial education classes are held for churchgoers, those recently released from prison, and other at risk populations such as the homeless or financially fragile persons. By promoting financial literacy, African American community leaders may enable the next generation to use money wisely and avoid financial missteps. Efforts to improve financial literacy can help level the playing field in a nation that has been economically unequal for so generations.

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Economic gospel in African-American churches –

Around the country, African American religious leaders have partnered with banks to teach economic gospel through churches. Millions of people hear the Gospel preached and also learn through stewardship biblical principles such as managing debt and reducing debt. Through churches we are teaching our people to watch how they spend their money. A lot are drowning in debt and we much teach them how to get out of debt and not give money away to payday lenders.

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Financial literacy scores among black high school seniors were consistently about 20% lower than those of their white counterparts in a multiyear national study from the Jumpstart Coalition for personal finance. Overspending and student loan debt seems to be more common among African American millennials than white millennials. It appears 28% of young black adults surveyed spend more than they earn and 49% had student loans, compared to 20% of white millennials who outspend their earnings and 32% with student loans.

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Churches and banks preach and teach financial literacy to African American consumers and focus on real-life lessons about managing money in a bid to reduce a longstanding racial gap in financial literacy – and to boost economic development.

African American households generally don’t know as much about money and financial literacy compared to mainstream and upper middle-class white communities. More than 20% of African Americans do not have a bank account compared to 8% of all households.

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Here are 6 tips to help college grads – or anyone else – build credit. Good credit is the cornerstone of sound finances. A top credit score can help you get the best terms on a loan. Here are some key ways college grads or others can build credit.

1. Think before you borrow – can the purchase wait? Is my interest rate the lowest rate possible?
2. Don’t overdo it – limit the amount of debt you have at a given time
3. Know what impacts your score
   • 35 percent: payment history
   • 30 percent: amount owed
   • 15 percent: length of credit history
   • 10 percent: new credit
   • 10 Percent: credit mix (credit cards, loans, etc.)
4. Know your options – to secure credit
5. Be Punctual – always pay on time

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To explore the importance of financial literacy, we turned to financial experts working in colleges, high schools, and credit unions. Together, the populations they serve span a broad range of ages, incomes, and backgrounds. These educators witness first-hand the impact that financial literacy – or the lack of financial literacy – can have on a person’s life.

Research has shown that students are more likely to drop out of school because of “outside pressures” than poor grades. Students success is no longer constrained  to classrooms or defined by academic performance alone. The topic of money often arises and has to be managed. Planning ahead can be helpful. For those who don’t plan ahead resources maybe available but there is no guarantee of success without proper planning.

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