Tagged With "credit and debt"

Photo by Clem Onojeghuo on Unsplash.com Eric Dunker, Associate for Business Strategies, Associate Vice President and Dean: Business, Technology, and Workforce Partnerships, Arapahoe Community College As our society becomes more diverse, businesses and communities have moral and economic reasons to create systems with talent equity outcomes across the educational and labor market continuum. Higher education is rightly focused on educational equity, but this pandemic has demonstrated large...

Extension educators are content creators. Whether they prepare PowerPoint slides for a webinar, write a blog or social media post, prepare for an interview, or assemble a newsletter, they are constantly striving to create content that is current, relevant, and actionable. At a recent online conference, the Plutus™ Impact Summit, the following eight tips for personal finance content creation were shared: Address “Pain Points” and Goals – Help people by addressing topics that are causing them...

Like a medical exam, a review of clients’ finances can identify strategies to improve their “financial fitness” and screen for potential problems, such as a high debt-to-income ratio. This article features 10 diagnostic tools to assess the strengths and weaknesses of a client’s financial situation that can be reviewed in a one-hour appointment.

Families often have leftover holiday debt hanging over their heads like a big dark cloud. What can you do to help these clients? Below are 5 time-tested debt repayment steps to consider using.

Medicaid, the single largest source of health coverage in the United States, is a joint federal and state program that provides health coverage to children, pregnant women, parents, seniors, and individuals with disabilities. Join the Military Families Learning network at 11:00 a.m. ET on February 23, 2022, as Christopher Plein, Ph.D., Eberly Family Professor for Outstanding Public Service at West Virginia University, discusses Medicaid, new program developments and possibilities for the...

Keeping up with the latest financial products and services offered to consumers can be a challenge. This month, we look at Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) products, a type of small dollar installment loan that is typically interest-free for consumers. This unsecured loan is often offered to consumers at the point of sale online or in-store, allowing them to pay in four or less equal installments, with typically 25 percent of the total due at the time of sale. When payments are made on time, a BNPL...

Finding the balance between paying off debt and saving more money can be overwhelming. While it may be tempting to focus on one or the other, it may be possible to both save money and pay off debt at the same time with the right plan. Paying Off Debt The first step to paying off debt is knowing what is owed. Clients should make a list of their debts including the lender’s name, the total amount owed, the monthly payment, and the interest rate. Before attempting to save any income, they...

University of Illinois Extension is providing a series of six free online workshops to help families learn about personal finances as well as strategies for talking about money. The workshops are held each Thursday evening beginning May 5. The one-hour sessions start at 6:30 p.m. Registration is required at go.illinois.edu/TalkMoney to receive Zoom connecting information. If a reasonable accommodation is needed to participate, contact Camaya Wallace Bechard , Extension consumer economics...

Interested in learning more about TRICARE health care programs for service members, retirees, and their families around the world? OneOp will be partnering with the Defense Health Agency to provide a free professional development webinar on May 25, 2022 at 11:00 AM ET focusing on basic information and resources for military service providers and community support professionals. We recommend that military families with an individual with disabilities attend this webinar to better understand...

Eye-opening study, thank you for sharing. What is the best source of material for teaching each of the 8 categories measured if one wishes to tailor an educational program to address these points? According to the study the areas are: Earning—determinants of wages and take-home pay. Consuming—budgets and managing spending. Saving—factors that maximize accumulations. Investing—investment types, risk and return. Borrowing/managing debt—relationship between loan features and repayments.

Good morning, John. Great question. I am sure there are a lot of resources available that would cater to each one of these areas in depth, but there are a few resources that I personally have experience with that I think would be a good place to start, depending on your needs. Free resources: For those working with military families, the Department of Defense Office of Financial Readiness and OneOp Personal Finance are both a wealth of research-based information. University of Florida/IFAS...

Extension educators are in a position to help consumers build financial health. This post describes what financial health is, how to assess it, and twelve steps to achieve it. What Is Financial Health? Financial health is the current state of someone’s finances. It includes both daily financial functioning (e.g., paying bills) and long-term resilience and opportunity. Like physical health, financial health can change over time and needs to be assessed regularly. According to the Financial...

Financial education courses notwithstanding, children’s strongest financial influence is most likely their parents. Below are tips for Extension educators to share with parents interested in teaching their children about money:

Between a four-decade record high for inflation and rising interest rates, many Americans are being squeezed financially.

Extension Educators can change their clients’ lives dramatically by sharing information and tools to build wealth. One of the most valuable financial resources is time for compound interest to work its magic on regular savings deposits such as Roth IRA contributions.

In December, many Extension educators field questions about holiday shopping and subsequent debt repayment. Check out these tips to share with clients.

Extension educators are always looking for ways to increase participation and engagement in their financial education classes. Here are a dozen interactive teaching methods to consider: Case Study Analyses, Current Events, Financial Calculator Debriefs, Gallery Walks, Documentary Debriefs, Guest Speakers, and more!

Since launching in November 2022, ChatGPT has become the fastest technology tool to reach 100 million users…ever. Some are calling it “the next transformational platform.” Extension Educators may field questions about ChatGPT or consider its use in their work. Below are five key things to know about this ground-breaking artificial intelligence (AI) tool: ChatGPT Description - ChatGPT is “a very smart text-based robot” that can answer questions and have conversations with users. GPT stands...

Below are five smart uses for tax refunds for Extension professionals: Debt Repayment- There is probably no better “investment” than repaying consumer debt (e.g., outstanding credit card bills). Paying off an 18% credit card is equivalent to earning a 20.5% return for taxpayers in the 12% tax bracket

U.S. consumers haven’t just experienced a “perfect storm” of financial challenges…they have experienced a “perfect tornado!” Challenging financial events include sustained high inflation (and increased costs for food, utilities, rent, gas, insurance, housing, etc.), recession fears, increased interest rates, bank failures and government bank take-overs, volatile stock prices, lower savings rates, and increasing household debt. Extension professionals routinely answer questions from clients...

As we approach the Christmas season, be mindful of excessive holiday spending. While Christmas is the season of giving, excessive spending can lead to much regret, depression, and even added financial struggles in the new year. According to Berden and Haws (2012), spending can quickly get out of hand when it is driven by emotions rather than a plan. Have you ever gone to the store to grab a few items, but as you stroll next to the; buy one get one free, the rollbacks, the manager's special,...

Unlike impulsive buying, emotional spending is frequently heightened by stress, grief, or moments of happiness or sadness. Regardless of these triggers, they can impact your finances negatively. For example, you shop to make yourself feel better after a bad day at work. As a result, compulsive shopping and spending stems from an impulse disorder habit that can be addictive for many. The relationship between money and happiness is now seen as complete. Aknin, Wiwad, and Hannibal (2018)...

You can now earn 2.0 free continuing professional education (CPE) credits for reading the Introduction and Chapter 1 of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025 ! Credits are provided by the Commission on Dietetic Registration (CDR), the credentialing body for Registered Dietitians and Dietetic Technicians, Registered. The self-study module will equip professionals with knowledge of the scientific underpinnings that makes the  Dietary Guidelines  relevant across all life stages.

The Extension Foundation has added five new titles to its publications library. The brief publications - written as magazine-style feature stories - share project work funded through the New Technologies for Ag Extension (NTAE) program , a cooperative agreement between USDA NIFA, Oklahoma State University, and the Extension Foundation. NATE's goal is to incubate, accelerate, and expand promising work that will increase the impact of the Cooperative Extension System (CES) in the communities...

Stay current with trending financial topics in order to effectively serve clients. Here is a brief description of five trending financial topics related to current events, economics, legislation, and consumer behavior. Implications for military families are described.

Transitioning into 2024 marked a new year. Many of us saw the new year as an opportunity to start fresh, but financial hardships and losses can have a lasting impact on our mental health. This type of impact leads to unforeseen trauma. Often, we make resolutions to hit the ground running in the new year, but old habits die hard, mainly when these habits are deeply rooted in our psyche. Let us be realistic: We all plan to go to the gym on January first; we even go shopping over the holiday...

Inflation continues to be a global economic challenge, impacting everything from food costs to housing affordability. Explore the difference between objective and subjective financial stress, identify questions to ask your clients, and connect with additional learning opportunities, including an on-demand webinar to learn more.