2020 A Year For The Records Books – Part 1

2020 has been a year unlike any other – from job loss / furloughs to pandemics to hurricanes. All of this has signaled changes in our lives, not only in what we do (or don’t do), how we live and how it affects our finances. We must learn to adapt our finances to changing times.

For many this is a year that you started (or continue) to accumulate debt. Not a good thing!

Let’s first talk about all the ways that you may be accumulating debt:

Not having an emergency fund. You have heard me preach over the years about having a savings account for life’s what ifs. This was the year that many of us needed to fall back on our emergency savings as jobs were lost / furloughed and the unemployment system was overwhelmed, and payment were delayed. Your emergency savings was the way to get you through in these uncertain times.

Adapting to change (the new normal). As your life changes, so should your finances. Meaning that if you have job loss / less income coming in, you need to tighten your belt and cutback on your expenses. Answer these two questions. Think what can I get for free that I have been paying for? Think what can I reduce or eliminate in my monthly expenses? Want more information, check out my past newsletter, Budgeting By The Numbers.

Eating out / take out. Food is one of the biggest expenses in a family’s budget. Typically, when I coach a family, it the food that is an issue with their spending. How much is it costing you to eat out, pick up take out, grab a beverage versus bringing and cooking at home? Track this and see where your family stands.

Reimbursable costs. In these uncertain times, you may have more medical than other years. Make sure to utilize all your options such as FSA and HSA accounts, in network providers, etc. I was speaking with someone who hadn’t submitted any expenses to her FSA account. She potentially could be leaving a lot of money on the table by not timely submitting her expenses for reimbursement.

Check out next week’s newsletter for part 2.

Do You Need To Establish / Reestablish Your Credit?

I always get asked how someone should establish credit when I speak. Let me give you the answer. First whether you are establishing credit for the first time or reestablishing credit, this information is for you.

There are two main ways to establish credit:

The first option is to be a joint user with someone else. You would have to open a joint credit card with another person. That means that what you do (and what they do) will appear on both of your credit reports. If you both handle your credit wisely, that will reflect on both your credit reports positively. On the other hand, if one of you abuse your credit, that will reflect on both your credit reports as well. This can be a great way to establish your credit. Take a great thought when determining who the joint user will be. You want to be sure you are a joint user and not an authorized user – trust me there is a big difference.

The second option is to open a secured credit card. A secured credit card is where you give the credit card company a sum of money for them to give you the credit card (without risk or harm to them). Think of this as similar to a renter giving a security deposit to a Landlord. This is what you are doing. You get a credit card that looks and works just like a traditional credit card, but the creditor has minimal risk if you default. Remember, you are doing this to establish or reestablish credit.

When you need to establish or reestablish credit, you are a risky person (from a credit stand point) and you need to minimize the risk to the creditor for them to give you a chance. Once you have proven yourself, you can open a traditional credit card (with more favorable terms) and close the joint or secured credit card. Notice the order, I said in the previous sentence – do it in that order, please.

Keep your credit as best as possible and this will help you in the long run and give you the best possible finance down the road, but first you need to take this step to establish or reestablish your credit.

Credit FAQ’s

Whenever I do a workshop I am always asked about credit. I have taken some of the most frequently asked questions and compiled them into this issue of my newsletter.

Why did the creditor close my credit card? I didn’t own them anything. Creditor will sometimes close your credit card account if you don’t use it. If you want to have this credit card available to you, then make a purchase a few times a year to keep the account active.

My pay date and my credit card payment don’t coincide, what can I do? You can call your credit card company and ask them to move your credit card due date to another date that works with your finances.

How to I get a copy of my credit report? You have three credit reporting agencies – Experian, EquiFax and Trans Union. You are entitled to one credit report from each of the three reporting agencies once every 365 days. My suggestion is to order one credit report every four months to see your credit report three times in a year. If you sign up for this newsletter, you will receive a credit report reminder to order your credit report three times during the year.

How do I see my credit score? Your credit score if not a part of your credit report. You can get a close approximation of your FICO score at Credit Sesame, Credit Karma or Quizzle (the scoring part of the three credit reporting agencies). If you have a major credit card, most of them offer you your free credit score.

How do I know which credit card is right for me? That’s a hard thing to answer without knowing your circumstances, but I will give you some ideas for you to select which one is right for you. First thing to think about is how you will use this credit card. Will you use it and pay the balance in full each and every month. If so, then you want a credit card without any fees, because you won’t be paying any interest. If you are planning on financing purchases with multiple payments, then you want to lowest interest rate credit card possible, to pay less in interest.

My friend was declined for credit and wants me to co-sign for him / her. Should I? You need to think about this carefully. When you co-sign for someone, you are saying that you will be responsible for the payment, if the borrower doesn’t make the payment. In addition, how they pay their credit back will reflect on your credit report. So if they make a late payment, it will appear on your credit too. Make your choice wisely.

What’s the difference between a joint credit card and an authorized user credit card? Joint credit is exactly what it says, all parties apply for the credit card with their individual information are liable for what is charged (regardless of who made the charge). An authorized user is a person that you give a credit card to for them to use, but they are not responsible for the charges on the account.

What credit questions can I answer for you?

Understanding How Credit Works In Your Life

Let’s talk about credit.

First, loans / credit cards are when you use someone’s else’s money (borrowing). You are receiving goods or services now that you have agreed to pay for later (either in full or with a series of payments). This will help you to establish or re-establish your credit. This is different from a debit card, which is using your own money and not building your credit.

Now that we have that straight, credit is an extremely important part of your finances. It gives you that ability to purchase goods or services when you need it and pay for it later. Sometimes life requires you to make a purchase now (even when you don’t have the funds of your own to do it now). Last month, I came home from work to find our smoke and carbon monoxide detectors beeping – not a good thing. It wasn’t the batteries, which meant it had been 10 years since we replaced them. Ugh! There was an immediate need to have the electrician come and replace all 11 smokes and carbon monoxide detectors now. It wasn’t something we planned on in our July budget, but it needed to be done now. That’s where credit comes in. They were replaced and we will pay the bill in August.

Credit is something you will find you need in your life, whether it be for emergencies or planned purchases. Having good credit will be an asset to you in your time of need. Having good credit will give you more favorable terms (lower interest rate) for your repayment terms. The higher your credit, score the better chances of getting credit at the best terms. Putting it a different way, your credit score is as important to your finances as your GPA is to getting into college – both numbers are an important in your life.

To have the best credit, you need to use it but not abuse it. It’s easier said than done. You need to use your credit and make purchases as needed, but only purchase what you can afford. You need to make your payments on time and not max out your debt.

In my next newsletter, I’ll talk about credit and some frequently asked questions.

Simplifying Our Finances

We simplified our accounts. First, we transferred accounts so that we have less organizations to keep track of. We not have rolled over retirement accounts to once institution. One statement with all the accounts on it for each of us. Simple! Less to keep track of monthly and at tax time.

We have consolidated some debt to zero percent credit cards to get the balances paid off faster with all the payment going to the principle. We carefully chose the zero balance offor the longest time frame and no fees. Once it was done, we divided the balance by the number of months at zero percent interest and that is our monthly payment. Each and every month that payment will be made to have the total balance paid in full without any interest.

Okay, this did take sometime to research, but it will be well worth it in the long run. Now that it’s done, it simple to make one payment each month.

How many institutions do you have accounts with?

Credit Report Reminder From Jill Russo Foster

Time To Order Your Second Credit Report Of The Year

For your 2nd report of the year, use Equifax

Hello, it’s Jill again, reminding you to get your finances in order so you can relax this summer.

How to Order Your Credit Report

The only authorized source for your report is AnnualCreditReport.com. You won’t be charged and they won’t force you to sign up for “credit monitoring

”. It’s yours to review by law for free!

To Learn More, Visit www.AnnualCreditReport.com:

Select your state, then click Request Report.
Fill out your information, then click Continue.
When it asks you to select a service, select Equifax.

Not comfortable ordering online? There are other ways to order your report:

Mail your postal order by downloading the form at AnnualCreditReport.com
Call in your order at 1-877-322-8228 FREE

What should you do with your report?

Review it for accuracy!
Follow the instructions to correct any errors.
And, always remember to keep copies for your records.

Were you hoping for your credit score instead? One option is to take a look at CreditKarma.com, Quizzle.com or CreditSesame.com. They won’t give you a FICO score, but they come close by providing a close approximation of your score. And, there’s no charge for you.

May you have a relaxing and successful summer!

Financial Literacy Month – Tip #19

Lower Rates

Here’s the tip from August 20 – Debt Reduction month:

If you find that you can’t open a new credit card, call your credit card company and discuss your options. Can they offer you better terms? Mention how long you have been a customer and that you have always paid your bills on time. If the first person says no, then ask to speak with a supervisor. This is not scary, they are people too.

To purchase a copy of either of my books Thrive In Five: Take Charge of Your Finances in 5 Minutes a Day or 111 Ways To Save

#JillRussoFoster #30WaysToSave

Financial Literacy Month – Tip #18

Your List

Here’s the tip from August 13 – Debt Reduction month:

What came up on your list? Did you think you need to generate more income? Do you think you need to spend less? Either way, you need to take action. Start to put your plan in motion. When you get extra money, pay it towards your debt. Don’t let it sit in your pocket. Money will find a way to be spent. Make a payment as soon as you get the money. Yes, you can make multiple credit card payments in one month to pay the balance off faster.

To purchase a copy of either of my books Thrive In Five: Take Charge of Your Finances in 5 Minutes a Day or 111 Ways To Save

#JillRussoFoster #30WaysToSave

Financial Literacy Month – Tip #17

Game Plan

Here’s the tip from August 12 – Debt Reduction month:

Let’s start to payoff this debt. Since you have been working on trimming your expenses and generating more money, can you use that money to pay down this debt? If you still don’t have the money to pay down this debt, you need to have a plan.

How are you going to get more money? Do you need to cut back more? Do you need to sell more? Write down twenty ways to get more money to pay down this debt. Write down anything that comes into your mind (don’t worry that it’s not possible). See what your mind is thinking. Write you lis ton the Appendix.

To purchase a copy of either of my books Thrive In Five: Take Charge of Your Finances in 5 Minutes a Day or 111 Ways To Save

#JillRussoFoster #30WaysToSave

Financial Literacy Month – Tip #16

Making A Choice

Here’s the tip from August 8 – Debt Reduction month:

Yes, everyone needs a plan. You can’t get from point A to point B without a map.

There are two schools of thought out there on paying off your debt. Option 1 is to pay off your debt starting with the smallest balance and working your way towards the bigger debts. In my experience, people who want a sense of accomplishment, who like to see things crossed off as they are completed, do well with this method. Option 2 is to pay off the debt with the highest interest rate and work your way down to the lowest interest rate. This works well for the person who is bothered by seeing their money go out the door.

The choice is yours, but you must make a choice today.

To purchase a copy of either of my books Thrive In Five: Take Charge of Your Finances in 5 Minutes a Day or 111 Ways To Save

#JillRussoFoster #30WaysToSave