SafeAmerica Credit Union

debt management plan

• By Kevin Alvarez

What’s On Your New Year Financial To Do List?

Start the New Year Strong

Most of us stay current with routine weekly and monthly money tasks– like paying bills, monitoring credit card balances and savings accounts – yet some financial wellness tasks lend themselves to the beginning of a New Year.

The following suggestions are not intended as an exhaustive list, but can be considered reminders as part of your New Year financial to-do list:

To Do 1: Know Where You Stand

A healthy financial future begins with understanding your current situation. Start your New Year To Do List with a financial assessment to get a clear picture of your financial health.

An online financial assessment helps you see how mortgage, consumer debt, student loans or other debt might be affecting your budget, how long it will take to pay your debt off, and other personalized information.

This is a useful first step to understand the impact of interest charges to help you effectively manage your debt and reduce your financial stress.

To Do 2: Review Your Credit Report

Taking stock of New Year finances means getting a view of your credit history and credit score – important measures of financial health. If a mortgage, car loan or new line-of-credit is in the New Year plan, note that lenders look to your credit score as an indicator of your creditworthiness. The New Year is a good time to know how your credit score is calculated and understanding how to read your credit report is an important component of your overall financial health. Obtain a free copy of your credit report from annualcreditreport.com or other sources.

To Do 3: Build a Budget

A simple budget is the foundation of financial health. As the year gets underway, make a realistic plan for the money that you earn. Develop a line item in your budget for groceries, gas, savings, and entertainment as well as debt payments. If you haven’t had the chance to get around to a budget, take time to create one and track your expenses so that you can go back, review and adjust as needed.

Financial To Do List

To Do 4: Plan and Build an Emergency Fund

For a financially aware New Year, it is helpful to plan for the unexpected.  Depending on your budget, determine a set amount to put into a savings account from each paycheck. Some people have their employer directly deposit part of their paycheck into a savings account. Over time, you can build a budget buffer to help with unexpected expenses or emergencies.

To Do 5: Get Ready to Manage Student Loan Debt

For the more than 45 million people who carry student loan debt, the New Year is the time to prepare for the end of federal student loan payment relief measures, which paused federal student loan debt collection and reduced interest rates on federal student loans to 0%.

As of December 2022, the Student Loan Repayment Pause has been extended to June 30, 2023. Click here to read the U.S . Department of Education's press release regarding the matter.

This article is brought to you by our partners, GreenPath Financial Wellness

GreenPath Financial Wellness

• By Kevin Alvarez

5 Holiday Spending Tips to bring You Less Stress (and More Joy!) This Holiday Season

Information brought to you by our partner, GreenPath Financial Wellness

After a year full of twists and turns brought on by a global pandemic, many Americans are understandably looking forward to the holiday season.

This year, many Americans may find they are dealing with financial setbacks such as a loss of employment, reduced income, or other unanticipated expenses that may make it more difficult to avoid having holiday debt follow them into the new year.

Here are five tips designed to give you less stress and more joy this COVID holiday season:

Set a Holiday Spending Limit

During the holidays, it can be easy to let spending get out of control. Put a cap on your spending by creating a holiday budget / spending plan.

Be sure to factor in additional non-gift related expenses that can easily add up—things like holiday photos, decorations, food, and if your family gathering is cancelled, shipping of gifts to love ones.

Avoid Putting Holiday Debt on Credit Cards

The number one of financial wellness? Avoid spending money you don’t have. While it’s easy to do, putting holiday spending on credit cards can be risky—
especially if you don’t have the funds to pay it off when the bill comes due.

According to a recent survey, Americans racked up an average of $1,325 in holiday debt. Of those surveyed, 75% said they wouldn’t be able to pay it off in January, with 15% saying they only intended to pay the minimum monthly payment. In case you’re wondering, that translates to over $600 in interest and 5 years of making payments—ouch!

Trade Pricey for Priceless

A great gift doesn’t have to be expensive. Think outside the box and treat your loved ones to a thoughtful gift that generates excitement without the price tag.
Maybe that’s a handmade item, DIY project, a fun experience, a coupon book, or just the gift of your time.

Keep Your Personal Info Safe

The holiday season is a time when people are more vulnerable to identity theft scams. Not only are they making more purchases than at any other time of year, but they are often distracted when doing so.

According a recent Experian study, as much as 43% of holiday shopping identity theft occurs online. As the current COVID environment drives more people
than ever to online shopping, it’s important to be aware of the best ways to protect yourself from identity theft:

  • Stay up-to-date with online scams
  • Use strong account passwords
  • Monitor your credit report

Stay the Course with Free Financial Counseling from GreenPath

If you are caught up in the holiday frenzy, and you are stressed about overspending, the counselors at GreenPath can help. In fact, 90% of people surveyed report feeling better prepared to handle their finances after speaking with a financial counselor. Get a head of your holiday finances and connect with a counselor today—it’s free, no pressure, and 100% confidential.

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• By Kevin Alvarez

7 Tips to Get Smart About Debt

Information brought to you by our partner, GreenPath Financial Wellness

Our finances are intertwined with our everyday lives and affected, debt can easily become a problem. It's best to stay grounded and identify where the "leak" is coming from, why the "leak" is happening and what to do next to seal the "leak".

1. Get an idea of what you are currently spending.

To know where you’re going, you have to know where you’re coming from. Are you spending more than you make? Do you have excess money each month that you could be putting toward your debts?

2. Take a look at your spending habits.

Once you have a full financial picture of your monthly surplus (or deficit), figure out what your spending habits are and how you might change them to get out of debt. Maybe you’re spending too much on subscription services – or realize you’re spending more than you allotted for groceries each month.

3. Prioritize expenses and identify areas where you may be able to save.

Once you have an idea of where you are spending and why, see if there are areas where you can cut back.

Hold yourself accountable, and check back in on your spending habits.

4. Check the plan.

Plan your paychecks and check back to see how your actual spending compares with your plan. Use a highlighter to compare your paycheck with where your money needs to be distributed to and make any adjustments needed.

5. Automate everything.

Set up direct deposits and automated payments so that you don’t miss due dates and get hit with a late fee. Use alerts and overdraft protection to help you avoid mistakes.

6. Choose a debt payoff strategy that works for your situation.

Many people consider paying the minimum on all debts and focus extra payments on one debt at a time. When you pay one account off, they redirect the monthly payment to the next one in line, adding it to the minimum they were paying already. This way, each time you pay off one debt, your payment on the next one gets bigger. This could be a good approach for you to consider.

7. Look into a debt management plan.

Depending on your situation, there may be options for you to get out of debt more quickly. If you have high-interest credit cards or other unsecured debts, a debt management plan could be just what you need to get out of debt for good.

A debt management plan works with your creditors to bring your accounts current, lower interest rates, and eliminate fees. This means that more of your payment goes toward reducing your account balances. It can help you pay off debts faster and save money on interest.  An added benefit is that once the debt management plan is established, diminishing collection calls and creditor balances help reduce worry and stress about your debt situation.

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• By Kevin Alvarez

What is A Debt Management Plan

Information is brought to you by our partner, GreenPath Financial Wellness

Learn how to pay off your debt with GreenPath! They have built one of the nation’s most trusted debt management programs. With more than 60 years of experience supporting people to eliminate debt.

If you want to get out of debt and reduce financial stress, you may find debt relief through the GreenPath Debt Management Plan. If it makes sense for your situation, we will contact your creditors to propose mutually agreeable debt repayment terms. A Debt Management Plan may:

  • Stop collection calls
  • Lower interest rates
  • Lower monthly payments
  • Waive late fees and over-limit fees

A Debt Management Plan is designed to pay off the entire amount that you owe, usually within three to five years. It can help you pay off credit card debt faster, and save money on interest charges.

The first step is a free debt counseling consultation

When you call, you’ll talk to a NFCC-certified credit and debt counselors.  We’ll review your financial situation together, and make a personalized plan to get your finances back on track. We’ll explain the options and give you the information you need to make a choice that works for you.

 How debt management plans work

The debt management plan consolidates your debt into a single payment. Each payday, you automatically deposit money into your GreenPath account, and we use that money to pay on your behalf. We may be able to arrange lower interest rates and monthly payments with your creditors, so you can pay off debt faster and save money. Once creditors agree to the program, collection calls stop and you see your balances start to go down.

When you sign up for a debt management plan, you have an entire team of GreenPath people behind you. You’ll get information and support when you need it. We’re here for you at every step of the journey.

You can call them anytime during business hours to reach a debt counselor if you need advice, or to talk to your Client Success Team about your account. You also have instant access to account information through their online debt management portal.

You also have access to a community of others who are paying off their debt in a private online group. This positive community of support is a great place to ask questions, share tips, and get friendly moral support to make your journey easier.

GreenPath believes in their clients 1000%, and we love nothing more than seeing you succeed.

Help is here

Last year, GreenPath helped more than 65,000 households pay off over $200 million in debt. We do this by putting people — you! — at the center of our work. Our counselors receive training in compassion and empathy. It’s our job to listen without judgment, and to treat our clients with respect.

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• By Kevin Alvarez

5 Tips for Managing Your Finances Through COVID-19 and Beyond

Information brought to you by our partner, Greenpath Financial Wellness

There’s a lot to get used to in these challenging times. As the pandemic crisis continues, and many are dealing with financial uncertainty—from an income reduction to total job loss— it can be hard to know how to move forward.

Having a defined set of options and a clear understanding of your finances not only helps to better prepare you for the future, but can also make you feel more confident and less stressed about factors outside of your control.

To help you navigate these difficult times, we’ve partnered with trusted non-profit GreenPath Financial Wellness to provide you with some guidelines for managing your finances in times of uncertainty:

1. Prioritize your bills

Changes to our financial lives can often result in stress and mental fatigue, making decisions even more challenging. We have a natural tendency to avoid choices that feel like we are giving something up. Instead, we may try our best to take each day as it comes without a plan.

Getting the most important bills paid first is the most important thing in a time of crisis.

If you are one of the millions of Americans who have enrolled in a forbearance program (programs placing a temporary pause on payments toward credit cards, mortgages and other loans), it’s important to think about how (and when) you will pay these bills as these programs come to an end.

2. Start a Budget

Many people find that the journey to financial wellness is smoother when they take the time to create a budget. It might sound complicated, but there is a way to break down the process.

The number one key to setting your budget? Creating a spending plan. A spending plan can help you to:

  • Figure out how much money you have
  • Understand how much money you need to set aside each month for bills and expenses
  • Setup a plan to meet your financial goals

3. If you’re having trouble paying off credit card debt, consider a Debt Management Plan

Credit cards are important tools for the majority of people, especially in times of financial challenge—but it can be all too easy to spend over your means, and if you have high interest rates on your credit cards, debt can add up quickly.

If you want to get out of debt and get your finances on track, you may find debt relief through GreenPath’s Debt Management Plan (DMP). A DMP is designed to pay off the entire amount that you owe, usually within three to five years. It can help you pay off credit card debt faster and save money on interest charges.

4. Build up an emergency fund (no matter now small)

Never in a million years would you have made a specific financial plan expecting a new virus to disrupt the global economy or your paycheck. Unfortunately, our savings accounts do feel the ripple effect of larger-than-life forces and events across the globe. Preparing yourself for a financial setback, such as an unexpected loss of income, can set you up to handle it with less stress and bounce back more quickly. It is especially helpful to think about these plans at a time when things feel “normal,” so that we get the full advantage of perspective on a potentially frightening and stressful event.

5. Connect with the Financial Counselors at GreenPath

If your finances have been affected by COVID-19, our partners at GreenPath offer free consultations and guidance to help people manage debt, save money, and meet their financial goals.

As a SafeAmerica member, you have access to GreenPath Financial Wellness that offers:

  • Free Financial Counseling
  • Debt Management Programs
  • Housing Services
  • Credit Report Review
  • Student Loan Counseling

We invite you to explore your options and begin your journey towards a financially healthy life with the help of GreenPath Financial Wellness—just one of the many benefits of being a member of SafeAmerica Credit Union.

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