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    Hi, I'm Phillip Crocker and I'm your "One Resource" for financial education and questions.

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    Phillip Crocker - Member Service Advocate, Resource One Credit Union
  • Topical Links

Retirement Plans Anyone?

Some of you might be in retirement, while others are close, and still others are far away.  I found an article that discusses how well Americans are prepared for retirement.  Not that I was totally surprised or anything, but to see those numbers in print.  It kind of took me back for a moment.

The article cites that 43% of Americans have less than $10,000 saved up for retirement.  I understand that the folks who took this survey are at different ages and stages of their earning cycles, but it still is a worrisome figure. The research director in the article also points out the main theme to why so many people are in this condition. “Everybody thinks they’re too young to think about it, until suddenly they’re too old to do anything about it.”

 

- Phillip

From the Pen of Charles Dickens

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way – in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.”

Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities
English novelist (1812 – 1870)

This is the beginning of a well-known novel that countless people have either read or how have at least heard about it.  I find these words to hold true today just as they did in 1859.  Those words tried to describe the tale of two cities back in 1775, the time leading up to the French Revolution. 

So why is this being brought up on a financial education website?  Well, it is not a political stand or anything…however one could argue for that case as well.  I wanted to remind everyone out there that whatever you are facing now…has been faced before.  I know that March 5, 2010 for some folks might be the best of times or the worst of times financially. 

For those experiencing the best of times…savour this moment and make the right choices for your future financial well-being.  For those experiencing the worst of times…be patient and steadfast because this too will pass.

My hope for you is that this entry really makes you stop for a moment and “think”.

- Phillip

New Credit Cards Laws Are Here!!!

I am sure there are hundreds of articles out there in cyberspace on this topic today.  So, I have felt the need to join the bandwagon.  Now there are 100’s + 1.

So what does it mean to you and your pocketbook?

Hopefully, you will have more money to spend on the things that matter most to you in life!!!

I don’t declare to be an expert, but I do know that the changes are a positive one for consumers.  Perhaps one of the best features of the new legislation, in my opinion, come from the banning of the Universal Default Clause.  The only thing is that there are already exceptions to the ban.  Hum, I guess that some banning is better than none.  What is a Universal Default Clause in the first place, you might ask?  In short, it was a way for Credit Card issuers to automatically raise your rates on your credit card based upon your payment history with another, unrelated creditor.  Even though you were in good standing with them, they could raise your interest rate when you were late making payments with another issuer of credit.  Pretty sneaky – huh?  Perhaps not, it was buried in your Terms & Condition Statements of you Credit Card contract, but who ever reads all that blah-blah stuff.  It can give you a headache…

However, the ban applies only to existing card balances.  Isn’t it annoying that there always seems to be a “however” attached to conditions?  Issuers can still use universal default on future card purchases if they give consumers at least 45 days’ advance notice and allow them to opt out if they chose.  Wow, still a loop hole…but at least there is ample notice and there is a way out.

Here is a good article talking about most of the changes. New Credit Card Laws

And…an offering of information from the Federal Reserve.  Summary of Main Provisions 

So here’s hoping you do some good things with all that extra cash you’re going to have laying around!!!

- Phillip

Financial Education Seminar

Just in case you have not clicked on the classes tab…there is a seminar coming up this Saturday.  The seminar will cover “How to Repair Your Credit Score” and it hopes to be a great event. 

  • FICO Score Broken Down
  • How to Dispute with Credit Bureau
  • Guidance for Settlement with Collection Agencies
  • Tips on How to Raise Your Credit Score
  • Look at Behavior Changes

Who would benefit from this seminar?  Anyone who is thinking about – or wants to:

–        Address Financial Issues

–        Take Control of Your Finances

–        Pay Bills on Time

–        Save Money

–        Avoid Living Paycheck-to-Paycheck

–        Stop Adding “Bad Debt”

Click-on the Classes Tab and Sign-up Today!!!

- Phillip

National Deficit & Debt – What’s it to you?

Before we jump into what the national deficit and debt mean to you, let’s start by defining or drawing out the differences.  There are many folks out there who think that these mean one in the same, however there is a difference.  Once we get our arms around those concepts, we will talk about their impact upon your wallet or purse.

Deficit -  basically it is the difference in the amount of money in a given fiscal year that the U.S. Government spends versus what it takes in.  In this case, by the word deficit, we are talking about the Government taking-in an amount of  taxes & revenue that does not cover the amount it spends. 

Debt – (or total debt) would then be the running tallies of each fiscal year and the result would make the “account” go into the negative. 

Let’s use the above as our assumptions or definitions.  I imagine the whole  debt and deficit thing is a little more complex than that, but I did not want to lose anyone before I began.

So if our government is running a deficit and in-turn causes for “us” to go into debt, how does this happen?  Well, the U.S. Government does the same thing that you or I do when we don’t have the money to pay for something – they borrow it.  The government has to borrow money and they pull this off by issuing things called Bonds and/or Treasuries.  Think of it as an IOU from the U.S. Government to folks who invest their money by purchasing these bonds and treasuries.  When I say folks, I mean entities like people from this country, companies, people from foreign countries and foreign governments.  Yep, a large amount of our IOU’s are held by foriegn countries.  Eventually, folks redeem their IOU’s and the Government coughs up the money.  An ever flowing cycle…as long as there is money to cough up!!!

So we hear about the country going into further debt by these yearly budget “deficits”, why should you or me worry about it all?  Some folks say they cannot feel all this pain that is going on in the current economy.  They say, “I have not been laid-off and I am doing great financially.”  However, they probably do not even really realize what is taking place all around them.

What’s it to you?

Click Here

So did you click on it yet? You better or your not going to “really” get the rest of the blog.

Is that not the coolest thing you have ever seen?  Better yet, is that not the most frightening thing you have ever seen?  If you did not get or understand “what’s it to you?” from that example, then I will break it down to what you may see happening in the months or years to come. (Inflation)

Inflation is the rise in prices of just about all goods and services and the value of the dollar or purchasing power of your money slowly fades.  In other words, things are going to start getting more expensive and your income had better follow suite.  In short, you will be able to buy less in the future than you can today with inflation.

If you want to act responsibly with your money and make good financial decisions, then you need to realize that the National Debt has a lot to do with you.

 - Phillip