The Benefits Of A Well Written Budget

Over the past week my car was broken into. Very unfortunate, right?

The criminal event caught me totally off guard. I have never been robbed before and for my first time; the robber whipped me out good. He stole all big ticket items that a college student need and cherish. I was robbed of my book bag, it is not just the fact that he went in my truck and stole my book bag but it was the things in it and the way a robber thinks. When he took it, he took all the books out and left them; including my Gabber book and my Gabber planner that I won at one of the SECU workshops. I made it very convenient for him because my backpack was on wheels. Thank god I took my lap top out that night because that would be gone too...if he would have stolen that, I don't know what I would do. In fact the robber stole all my cds, my GPS, my camcorder which was inside the back pack with my curling iron and other items that I am noticing slowly but surely. He busted out my whole passenger side window and ram sacked my car inside out, on one of the coldest nights in January. In the mist of writing up my police report, I did not cry at all. I am usually emotional but I was strong that night. I was shaken by the events but I was not worried at all about money and how I was going to get my window fixed.

This situation tapped into my savings money which came in handy. Ever paycheck when I am screaming to myself to have control seemed to pay off. For this situation, I used the money that I put aside and refused to spend over the course of many pay periods. I am glad I made a budget! With the money that I saved, I had well over enough to purchase a whole new window for my car and club the weekend away with my friends to dance my pain away. In light of the terrible event that took place with my car, the police caught my robber and retrieved some of my belongings. This situation taught me to clean my car out of valuable thing that I need but am not using and also encouraged me to keep saving money through a well written budget, because you never know when something major will happen and you will need recovery money to get yourself back on track.

Paying back loans

This post is late but I guess better late than never right. I Thought I did a December post but as I was looking I realized I must have forgotten it, finals time was not a good time. Now that were into January and most of us starting off fresh with new classes for the new year why don't we talk about paying back those student loans.... don't run, it has to be done. 

All loans have to be repaid its a sure thing that can't be changed unless you decide to teach and only in some cases will your loans be waived. Some student loans through the government such as Federal or Direct Stafford Loans have a six-month grace period. The grace period is a period of time after you graduate before you have to begin repayment. If you do not have one of these loans or do not have a grace period repayment of the loan usually begins within 60 days after the loan amount is fully disbursed. The good thing about the grace period with a subsidized Stafford loan is it is interest free. So if you pay back the loan within the grace period you will just be paying back the principal. If you wait until after the grace period your payments will be both interest and principal. 

Most people face student loans today and many people have a lot of trouble paying back there loans which can cause a lot of financial trouble in the future. Defaulting on a loan can cause your credit score to drop and you could possibly be sued. It is very important to pay back the loans because we all know what happens when the credit score goes down. 

My main point is that education is important yet very expensive but if you are wise with your money and try to keep up with the payments the loans will be gone before you know it. 

Money Money Money

Hello GABbers!

Thanks to those of you who have been keeping up with your posts and comments.. I get them ALL via email by the way!! And of course we are watching!

Our next face to face meeting is Saturday January 24th starting at 11AM... read your email for location info.

You will all be stars as we tape your fabulous financial education skits.

ALSO, speaking of money, SECU has a special deal for those of you who currently do not have checking acocunts with us for $150 bucks, also there are a few other scholarship opportunities in March and April for $1000 or more.

Of course I am not going to talk about them here, but will on the 24th!

2 Places

Hey Gabbers, how is the New Year treating everyone?

With today’s economy people are very cautious about where they put their money. Turning times like these people tend to take their money out of banks and actually put them into credit unions. Yet you should always have your money in at least two places. The reason is first having your money in two places makes it more difficult to get to your funds, which means easier for you to save.

Also as some of you may know I currently work for Tower Federal Credit Union, but just recently TFCU was doing an end of the year system check and the system, ATMs, and pretty much everything linked to TFCU was shut down for about 36 hours. Now for me not being able to use my debit card for a day was no problem. Yet I had no idea how many people were dependant on their bi-weekly paycheck for funds.

With having at least a small amount of funds in a separate financial institution you can always get to at least a little amount of cash no matter what.

Happy New Year Gen Y

You Can Improve Your Credit this Year

The New Year has started off great, and I’m glad to be moving forward into 2009. It’s a new beginning for us. Change has happened in America when voters took their stand with pride and elected our new president, whom many admire. Change can be hard and challenging. However, it’s all in how we approach it that is key. Some of us may jump right in and others take our time; some don’t face it at all. But I caution you not to take the latter approach in regards to improving your credit.

I did some research and came across some valuable information. Did you know that 60% of people smell their feet? No, just kidding! What I found is that 60% percent of us have a credit score of less than 750. Not having an excellent score is no big deal, but it shows that for most of us there’s room for improvement.

And who doesn’t want to improve? It’s so much fun! (I’m kidding again!) I realize this will not be true for some of us who just want to dig a hole in the ground and hide from our shortcomings. Just remember, think about improving your credit score as a work in progress. You can get to 750, with time.

First, take a look at the positive things in your credit history. Write them down. Next, write down those shoulda, coulda, wouldas, such as if only I had paid my bills on time … yatta, yatta. Now, take it all in (breathe), then let it all out (exhale). - No screaming allowed! - It’s a New Year. Let the New Year bring some welcome change.

This is an intensive process but with change as your goal, start with some small, less stressful, steps. And try to visualize your success. What will it take to get to where you want to be?

Take it a step further. Smell success. It isn’t a sour smell like your big toe, but as fresh as a breeze at the seashore!