What Is a Credit Score?
Your credit score is a number that is calculated by a company and sold to creditors to let them know how you have managed credit in the past. This is how your credit risk is determined (how likely you are to pay your debts on time). FICO (Fair Issac Corporation) is the most commonly used score…
Read MoreWhat Is a Credit Report?
Your credit report is a summary of all of your reported financial history. Keep a close eye on this to make sure that it is accurate because it determines your credit score. Checking your credit report is a first step to achieving some of your financial goals. It’s a good idea to check your credit…
Read MoreWhat Is Interest?
The good, the bad, and the confusing! Interest can be your best friend (if you are earning it) or your worst enemy (if you are paying it). Interest is “the cost of money” you pay when you borrow (debt), or you earn when you lend (deposit money in a bank) money. Of course, our deposits…
Read MoreWhat Is APR?
Your Annual Percentage Rate (APR) is the interest you will pay over the course of a year. This doesn’t tell you how much you will actually pay if your interest is compounded in shorter increments. Our loans are usually compounded monthly, or for most credit cards, daily! YIKES! If you really want to know how…
Read More3 Steps for Recovering from a Financial Setback
What happens when you have a financial setback? You may feel defeated and even hopeless when your efforts to save take a hit. Saving helps prevent financial emergencies Consider this: many of the financial hiccups we face are NOT actual emergencies. For example, we know that if we own a car we are likely to…
Read MoreFour Myths about Personal Finance
There are a lot of financial myths out there that simply aren’t true! Making good financial decisions starts with having the correct information you need to make those decisions. I’m going to go through four common myths about personal finance to get to the bottom of those misconceptions. 1. “Paying rent is throwing away money.”…
Read MoreHow to Get Back on Track After a Financial Emergency
Let’s talk about what to do when the emergency hits. We aren’t trying to bum you out, but the fact is, we are all likely to have a financial shock. What happens when you have to use your emergency fund? First, pat yourself on the back for having the funds, and then strategize. Using your…
Read MoreCut Your Expenses with a Savings Scavenger Hunt!
If you review your spending over the last month, you can almost certainly find one regular expense you can reduce. Then you can put the money toward savings instead. Grab a snack, put on some good music, and get your bank and credit card statements from last month (go ahead, we’ll wait)… Okay, scan through…
Read MoreHow to Pay Down Your Debt
“The ONE aspect of our financial lives that causes the most distress” (cue Jeopardy music) “What is DEBT?” Correct! Yup, you guessed it (or maybe you’ve lived it). Debt is the number one cause of financial stress in the U.S. The “right” way to pay off that debt is a constant source of confusion. Even…
Read MoreAre You On Track? Reevaluating Your Financial Priorities
Crash Course in Financial Flexibility Our lives are complex, and that’s usually a good thing because it keeps life interesting. But when it comes to our money, the more complex our situation, the more challenging it is to manage competing priorities. What’s the Opportunity Cost? We suspect you have more than one thing you want…
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