What Is Financial Literacy?

2. What Is Financial Literacy? • Formal Definition: The ability to effectively evaluate and manage one’s finances in order to make prudent decisions toward reaching life’s goals. • More simply: Knowing what you need to know to achieve your financial goals, or common sense with your dollars and cents. • What we will cover: • Money and savings • Budgeting (AKA cash flow) • Debt/risk management • Taxes/basic financial concepts

3. America’s financial literacy American families: • The average American family spends $1.22 for every dollar it earns. • One in five American families with annual household income of less than $50,000 is spending 40% of after-tax income to service its debt. • Only 26% of teens understand how card interest and fees work. (2007 Charles Schwab Teens & Money Survey) • The average college senior will graduate with $4,100 in credit card debt before they even have a job. (Sallie Mae’s 2009 National Study of Usage Rates and Trends)

4. Money and Savings • Time is money • Continuous education • Savings and the power of compounding interest “Make all you can, save all you can, give all you can.”- John Wesley

5. Money and Savings • Time is money • How many hours do you need to work to pay for your rent/mortgage, car insurance, electricity bills, extras, etc? • Paid $10/hr • Rent is $200 • Food is $100 • Electric $50 • If I make $10 hr then I will need to work 35 hours in order to pay out $350 that is due for that week.

6. Money and Savings • Continuing Education • Congratulations! • The other side of the time equation • More knowledge/skills = greater pay • You will either learn to manage money, or the lack of it will always manage you! • "All days are not same. Save for a rainy day. When you don't work, savings will work for you." - M.K. Soni

7. Money and Savings • The power of compounding interest • “Get Rich Quick” never works. You will lose your money. Saving faithfully over time will always build wealth – it just takes a little while (and patience) • The story of Ben and Arthur: • Both save $2,000 per year at 12%. • Ben starts at age 19 and stops at age 26, while Arthur starts at age 27 and stops at age 65. • At age 65, Ben has more than $2.2 million, while Arthur has only $1.5 million.

8. Savings and Investing –8 Simple Strategies • Start small • Contribute to your retirement plan • Save through payroll deduction plans • Round up your mortgage • Bank your raises • Keep paying off a loan • Pay off your credit cards • Keep track of where the money goes • "Money grows on the tree of patience." Proverb

9. Budgeting AKA Cash Flow Management • Budgeting • Prioritizing • “Life is like a coin you can spend it only once. Choosing one thing over all the rest throughout life is a difficult thing to do. This is especially true when the choices are so many and the possibilities are so close.” - Chuck Swindoll • You can only spend what you have if you want to reach your financial goals.

10. Creating a Budget • Your financial plan • Track income and expenses • Unique to you • Budget necessities/priorities first • Communication (with family, spouse, roommate or partner) • Today, there are three kinds of people: the have's, the have-not's, and the have-not-paid-for-what-they-have's. -Earl Wilson

11. Budgeting • Gross monthly income • Net income • Fixed expenses • Flexible expenses • Discretionary expenses • Total it up • Increase your savings • A nickel ain't worth a dime anymore. -Yogi Berra

12. Where Does Your Money Go?

13. Debt Management • Credit Cards • Pay Day Loans • Credit Reports

14. Debt Traps • Pay Day Loans • Title Loans • Six month no interest credit card scams

15. Steps to Getting Out of Debt • Stop using credit cards and other types of credit • Have a cash flow plan • Save $500 - $1000 for emergencies • Sell something to pay off a debt • Use money from a part-time job or overtime to payoff debt • Develop a plan to pay off your debt • It is an unfortunate human failing that a full pocketbook often groans more loudly than an empty stomach. -Franklin Delano Roosevelt

16. Plan for Paying off Debt • List your debts starting with the smallest first • Make the minimum payments each month on each debt except for the smallest one • Pay more than the minimum on the smallest debt until it is paid off • Once the smallest debt is paid off, add that payment amount to the next debt on the list so that you are paying more than the minimum payment • Continue until all debts are paid off

17. Danger of Credit Cards – What You Don’t Know Can Hurt You Report a lost or stolen card immediately Protect personal information Pay on time Avoid cash advances Protect your credit history • Be aware of teaser rates • Stick with one credit card • Pay in full every month • Stay within the limit • Review your statements • If you think nobody cares if you're alive, try missing a couple of car payments. -Earl Wilson

18. Pay Day Loans • A Pay Day Loan is a small advance, usually $300 - $500 • The borrower gives the lender a postdated check or other authorization to repay the loan on payday • On payday, the borrower must repay the loan, plus pay a fee, but is also given the option to renew the loan

19. Pay Day Loans (cont.) • The borrower is led to believe that he is receiving more money and the new fees applied are not explained until the debt amount is unmanageable and the borrower is trapped Pay Day lenders target low-income workers living paycheck to paycheck • 91% of Pay Day loans are renewed 5 times or more • The average interest rate on a Pay Day loan is 400%

20. Pay Day Loan Example Rule No. 1: Never lose money. Rule No. 2: Never forget rule No. 1.- Warren Buffet

21. Pay Day Loan Alternatives • Many Credit Unions now offer an alternative to pay day loans • A $35 one-time fee is charged for a $500 line of credit. • An annual interest rate of 18% applies ($7.40 per month maximum interest charge) • For each withdrawal made, 5% is withheld in a restricted savings account until the restricted savings is enough to payoff the loan

22. A Pay Day Loan Alternative Example

23. Credit Reports • You are eligible to receive one free credit report a year at www.annualcreditreport.com • There are other offers such as www.freecreditreport.com that charge a fee to get the same level of detailed information on your report, such as your score • It is important to check your credit report at least annually to protect yourself from identity theft or incorrect reporting • Incorrect reporting or bad credit could cause you to be denied a loan, to be required to provide more information to get a loan, or to be turned down for a job  Money talks; the secret is to hold it long enough to hear what is says.- W. G. P.

24. Credit Reports • Credit scores are usually between 300 – 900 • The higher the score the better • Higher credit scores mean that you are able to save money by getting lower interest rates on mortgages and loans • A credit score above 720 is considered very good • A credit score above 650 is considered good • With a credit score between 620 and 650 you will probably need to provide more information to get a loan • A credit score below 620 means that you may have trouble qualifying for a loan

25. Risk Management Is about building the walls around your financial plan so that you protect your assets and your money as you build wealth. • Emergency Fund • Insurance • Understanding and monitoring your credit score • Will and/or Estate Plan • Power of Attorney (Durable & Health Care) Money is only a tool. It will take you wherever you wish, but it will not replace you as the driver. - Ayn Rand

26. Risk Management • Insurance • Health insurance (If nothing else, high deductible plan) • Life insurance (If married & have kids) • Long-term disability insurance • Auto insurance • Home owners insurance • Identity theft protection

27. Taxes: RALs • RALs (Rapid Anticipation Loans) • Provide a check for tax payers with in 24 to 48 hrs. • However some portion of the checks are not available for 10 to 15 days. • Charges for RALs can range from ($250 -$500) • $25 Bank Fee • 36% Interest • $110 to $160 • Does not include the cost to cash the check for those who do not have a checking account.

28. Alternative Programs • VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program) • LITCs (Low Income Taxpayer Clinics) Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a poverty of ambition. It asks too little of yourself. And it will leave you unfulfilled.- Barack Obama

29. VITA • Volunteer program provided by the IRS and SCDOR • The program is intended for anyone with income under $49,000 a year that is unable to prepare their own return. • Only basic returns; complicated returns, such as those with business are not eligible for this program. • Can receive money into a bank account in 10-15 days.

30. LITCs • Provided by non-profit organizations with partial funding from the IRS. • Represent low income taxpayers before the Internal Revenue Service and assist taxpayers in audits appeals and collections. • Also assist provide tax assistance for people who speak English as a second language. • Assistance is free or nominal cost.

31. Financial literacy education • Lifelong learning courses • Financial media • Internet resources • Your CPA Can anybody remember when the times were not hard and money not scarce? - Ralph Waldo Emerson

32. For more information • www.360financialliteracy.org features financial education to help consumers make more informed financial decisions through every stage of life.

33. Questions?