Cooking on a Budget

Looking for a gift for both your wallet and your waistline? This weekend, instead of heading to the nearest restaurant, why not fire up the flavor in your own kitchen with friends and family?

“Inviting guests into my home is like sharing a piece of myself. It's a comfortable setting and it allows me to dip into my creative outlet,” says Kelsey Nixon, chef and former contestant on the “The Next Food Network Star” reality TV show. “There is a feeling in a home that you can't recreate in a restaurant.”

If the idea of an elaborate dinner party seems too time intensive and costly, here are a few simpler ways to entertain at home:
Drinks and desserts: Skip the cost of full entrées and limit the menu to all that is decadent. What’s your pleasure: champagne and cupcakes, cocktails and chocolate-dipped fruit? Offer a variety of drinks (be sure to include non-alcoholic options) and sweets for an event sure to delight every attendee.

Recipe exchange: Choose a theme and invite your guests to bring their best dish to share. For example, you could host an appetizer night or one featuring 30-minute meals. Ask each guest to bring enough copies of the recipe to give to everyone in the group.

Theme potluck: A variation on the recipe exchange, you can assign parts of the meal to various friends or family members, all based on a theme. The theme could be as broad as “Cuisines of the World,” for example, with guests bringing appetizers, salad, dessert, drinks and side dishes to represent different countries.

Ready to get started? Here’s a summery recipe that works as an appetizer for nearly any type of gathering.

Fresh Fruit Salsa with Cinnamon Chips

Yield: 10 servings

INGREDIENTS:
2 kiwis, peeled and diced
2 Granny Smith apples — peeled, cored and diced
1 pound strawberries, diced
8 ounces fresh raspberries
3 tablespoons brown sugar
10 (10-inch) flour tortillas
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup cinnamon sugar

DIRECTIONS:
In a large bowl, thoroughly mix kiwis, apples, strawberries, raspberries, brown sugar and fruit preserves. Cover and chill in the refrigerator at least 15 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Spread one side of each flour tortilla with butter. Cut into wedges and arrange in a single layer on a large baking sheet. Sprinkle wedges with desired amount of cinnamon sugar.

Bake in the preheated oven 8 to 10 minutes. Repeat with any remaining tortilla wedges. Allow to cool approximately 15 minutes. Serve with chilled fruit mixture.

—Recipe courtesy Kelsey Nixon

What Should You Say to Your Kids?

April was National Financial Literacy Month, and many parents took the opportunity to speak to their children about being financially savvy before heading to college in today’s economy.

Having those first conversations with children regarding spending on tuition and making out a budget can be challenging.

“Number one is, don’t keep your child in the dark about finances,” says Adam Carroll, chief education officer with National Financial Educators.

“Throw the whole money taboo out the window. It’s okay to discuss what insurance costs. What parents need to arm their children with are realistic costs that they will be faced with when they get out of the house and get out of school,” Carroll says.

Many 18-year-olds have left high school armed with a knowledge of U.S. history and calculus, but no experience with the realities of car loans and college tuition.

Julie Felshaw is the financial education specialist for the Utah State Office of Education. Utah is one of only three states that require a course on personal finance for graduation from high school. The program educates high schools students about financial basics such as checking accounts, investing and risk management.

“The key is making the topic relevant,” Felshaw says. Parents can peak their children’s interest by relating abstract principles to relatable topics, such as saving for a car, creating a budget for prom, or projecting the costs of their first year of college. Many teachers use online stock trading games and in-class investment simulations to let students learn the financial ropes with no risk.

“Kids love to talk about money,” she says, and the more times they discuss it, the better they’ll understand it.

This process can, and should, begin much earlier. Kara Lott, a parent of three young children, is uses trips to the grocery store to teach her three young children basic money principles. While her youngest, Lanie, 5, is eager to spend a dollar as soon as she gets it, 7-year-old Ethan will spend an hour in the toy aisle to make sure he gets the best value for his $5.

“My son will ask me, ‘If I only spend two, do I get to keep three?’” Lott’s oldest, Dane, 10, has started asking her how checks work, and how the ATM knows to whom to give the money. He realized after his last birthday party that if he returned a duplicate gift, he would then have enough cash to buy a video game he wanted.

She encourages her kids to donate a small percentage of their money to their charitable causes, and she plans to open savings accounts for them once they understand the basics of saving and spending.

With the right kind of financial education, both at home and at school, the next generation is bound to be smarter and more secure than its parents. Just think what the housing market might look like right now if we’d all learned the simple lesson Ethan learned with his video game: Don’t buy what you can’t afford.

The Pleasures of Saving

When the recession hit, Americans responded quickly by changing their habits. The savings rate grew steadily in 2008, rising to 2.9 percent in the final quarter, and economists are predicting it will continue to grow as much as 6 percent.

Kelly Walters of Gulf Breeze, Fla., is one individual newly converted to the pleasures of saving. “I used to be a real keep-up-with-the-Jones’ guy, especially when it came to electronics and cars,” he says. “But I’m amazed at what a great feeling it is to have some money stashed away. I find there’s even a magic number — as long as my wife and I have a certain amount saved in our saving account at the credit union, I feel a sense of well-being I never had when I was living paycheck-to-paycheck and juggling to make bill payments every month.”

Walters finds that watching his savings grow affects his other financial behaviors. “The more we save, the more cautious I am about big purchases that could erode our savings,” he explains. “Now I feel sorry for my friends when I see them making choices, such as upgrading a car, that are based on status, rather than on what’s best for their families.”

Saving goes hand-in-hand with knowing exactly where and how your money is being spent. So, to help beginning savers launch their savings plan, many financial advisors recommend creating a budget if you don’t already have one. For those who are having particular trouble putting a check on uncontrolled spending, advisors will often recommend a micro-budgeting exercise, where household members track every penny they spend for a week or more, to learn exactly how much every spending habit costs.

These exercises can prove very valuable. But to jump-start your savings plan, the best advice is to simply put some money into savings first before a single bill is paid. Make it the first priority, even if it’s only $5 per pay check. As your savings grow, you’ll find ways to cut spending even more and make the savings grow faster, because you’ll learn the pleasure of saving.

Basic Saving Tips

• Bring lunch to work. If buying lunch at work costs $5, but making lunch at home costs only $2.50, then in a year, you could afford to create a $500 emergency fund and still have money left over.
• Save your loose change. Putting aside fifty cents a day over the course of a year will allow you to save nearly 40 percent of a $500 emergency fund.
• Ask your physician to consider prescribing generic drugs. Generic drugs can cost several hundred dollars less to purchase annually than brand-name drugs. 
• Use only the ATMs of your credit union. Using the ATM of another financial institution once a week could well cost you $3 a withdrawal, or more than $150 over the course of a year. 
• Keep your car engine tuned and its tires inflated to their proper pressure. Doing both can save you up to $100 a year in gas.
• Borrow books rather than purchasing them. Borrowing books and reading magazines at your local library, rather than purchasing reading material, can save you hundreds of dollars a year.

Kids' View: Summer Lovin'

What do you love most about the summertime?

“I like to use the shovel in our garden. And I like picking the tomatoes off of the vine.” —Dillon, 5

“Playing power rangers on the trampoline.” —Nate, 3

“The warm, warm weather. I could stay outside all day.” —Jennifer, 14

“Disneyland, camping, and visiting grandma and grandpa.” —Anna, 6

“I like working out.” —Gentry, 12

“Playing football, definitely.” — Derek, 9

“My favorite thing about summer vacation is horseback riding.” —Kim, 7 

“Swimming and sleeping in and playing.” —Noelle, 5   

From the Grown Up

Tim Hollis, author of Dixie Before Disney, is an expert on old-time tourist attractions. 

Kids recently asked him, “How was vacation when you were a kid different from vacations today?”

“When I was a kid in the 1960s, people did not usually go to just one mega-resort like Disney World or Universal Studios. Instead, we had fun just driving from place to place and maybe seeing eight or ten tourist attractions before the trip was over,” Hollis says.

For a kid-friendly perspective on summer vacations, visit http://www.pbs.org/parents/summer/

Loan Modification Creates Opportunity

Nothing is more crucial to economic recovery than the easy flow of credit, and federal credit unions are doing their part.

“In 2008, our lending grew at 7.5 percent, the highest growth rate in three years,” says Patrick Keefe, vice president of communications for the Credit Union National Association (CUNA). The National Credit Union Association (NCUA) also reported positive numbers, stating that mortgage lending grew at 14.5 percent last year.

In an episode of “Meet the Press,” embattled Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner bluntly said, “Credit is like the blood or oxygen of the economy, and for us to get the economy growing again we need to make sure there’s credit available to business and families so businesses can meet payroll so they can expand, so that people can put their kids through college, so they can purchase a car or a new house.”

In our financial system, typically less than half of lending to business and consumers comes from credit markets outside the banking system. Existing government programs have already had some effect in helping to unfreeze those markets.

Recently the Fed, in conjunction with the U.S. Treasury, announced a new and powerful program leading to the issuance of about $9 billion in loans — more than in the previous four months combined. New loan modification programs are making it easier for people to get access to credit by refinancing and renegotiating lower interest rates.

Credit union regulatory agencies encourage all federally regulated financial institutions that service or hold residential mortgage loans to participate in the “Making Home Affordable” loan modification program. The Treasury Department requires institutions receiving financial assistance under the Financial Stability Plan (established under the Troubled Assets Relief Program) implement loan modification programs in accordance with the Treasury Department’s guidelines.

Credit union regulatory agencies strongly support the program’s goal of promoting sustainable loan modifications for at-risk homeowners that appropriately balance the interests of homeowners, servicers, and investors. They also worked closely with the Treasury Department to develop guidelines. Credit Unions are more risk averse in nature than banks, and their security is especially attractive in this economic landscape. Given the doom and gloom espoused from the business press these days, it is especially advantageous for credit unions to make their position of fiscal strength and mission of helping highly publicized.

“Credit unions are safe, sound, strong and federally insured up to $250,000. They were not involved in the subprime lending debacle that ruined our economy, and they don’t take on high-risk investments because with credit unions, 70 percent of all mortgages are held in portfolio. There’s no incentive to take risk,” Keefe stated.

NCUA Vice Chairman, Rodney E. Hood, recognizes the challenges posed by our current economy. Hood was able to look beyond the bleak present and strike an optimistic tone for the future of the credit union industry. “There has never been a better opportunity for credit unions to demonstrate our mission of ‘People Helping People.’ This is your time to be bold, be heard and be there,” Hood says.

What is a loan modification? 

Loan modifications allow credit unions to make loan payments more affordable for borrowers. They may change interest rates, loan terms, loan balances, or other parts of the loan agreement.

How do I get a loan modification? 

To get a loan modification, just call your credit union and let them know about your financial situation. Explain whether or not you’ll be able to make your payments. If they agree, you may qualify for a loan modification.

Crossword Puzzle - The 41-Cent Vacation by Matt Gaffney

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ANSWERS:

Is Your Home Mortgage Worth Refinancing?

Given the recent downturn in interest rates, many homeowners are taking advantage of the opportunity to refinance and save, but how do you know when refinancing is worth it for you?

Many home mortgage holders have jumped on the opportunity to save some cash, but there are plenty of ways to invest that money back into your home. Partners Credit Union Member Dave Yoder used the low rates to cut his mortgage term in half by investing his monthly savings back into the term of the loan, cutting 15 years off his loan.

“We moved in to a new home a year and a half ago and put down a sizeable down payment — more than 20 percent,” Yoder says. “We put $100,000 down on a $300,000 home, so we had quite a bit of equity in the home. Our home mortgage with Chase had a 30-year term with a 6.25 percent interest rate.”

When the mortgage crisis happened, Yoder watched the mortgage rates closely, looking for an opportunity to refinance for a lower interest rate.

“When the mortgage rates dropped I went online and did some research on lendingtree.com and I started getting calls from lenders,” Yoder says. “They all claimed their rates were the best, but I told them I was just collecting information. The calls started pouring in and everyone wanted a deposit to get things started. I was telling my story to a colleague when he told me about Partners. I already had a home equity line of credit with Partners, so I thought I would give it a try.

I called Partners Home Mortgage and talked to Natasha. She explained the current rates and gave me some options from the start with no nonrefundable deposit attached to it. Plus, I felt comfortable having Partners on property where I work. In the end, I refinanced with Partners and dropped my interest rate from 6.25 to 4.25 percent, and reduced the term from 30 to 15 years. On top of shaving 15 years off my mortgage term, I was able to keep the home equity line of credit I had with Partners. With another lender, I would have been forced to pay off any lines of credit associated with the loan to refinance.”

Yoder was able to get a great rate and save years on his loan because of smart financial planning. Beginning with the large down payment on the initial loan, to using his savings from the refinance to invest back into the loan, Yoder continually looked for the next best option for his investment.

“I can’t say how it could have turned out any better,” Yoder said. “Having Natasha as my primary contact and her proximity to my work location here was a huge benefit. It was easy to drop off paperwork and Partners even sent someone to have us sign off on the loan at our house.”

This year, home mortgage rates hit the lowest percentile on record since Freddie Mac began tracking mortgage rates in 1971. Find out if it’s worth it for you. If you’re looking to refinance, relocate, buy or sell your home, stop by a branch, visit PartnersFCU.org or contact a Partners Home Mortgage Counselor at (800) 948-6677.

Back to Basics: Budgeting 101

BUDGET – It’s really not a bad word. Unfortunately though, these six little letters can make the toughest among us cower. Resist your instinct, grit your teeth and read on.

Budget is perceived to be a word of constraint, but it should rightly be considered a word of empowerment. A budget doesn’t limit the individual or the family, but rather the limitation comes from the amount of household income relative to objectives. A budget is a mechanism that helps you recognize this natural limitation and make better choices in light of it. Take some time this summer, find a quiet place to work and begin developing a budget. You’ll be surprised at just how liberating it can be.

Step 1: Develop a clear understanding of your needs, wants and priorities. Write a list of everything you need and want. Next, think about and prioritize your wants. There are no right answers here. While drinking a $5 latte on a per day basis is not more important than retirement to me, it does not make it wrong if this is a priority for you. Label each want with a number that corresponds to its level desirability. After you have prioritized your wants, calculate the cost of each want. Many of these costs are easy to calculate, but some require a greater level of expertise. Things like college and retirement costs often times require a more detailed calculation and professional help may be in order.

Step 2: Clearly understand your income. This is a fairly easy task. You should consider all sources of income, not just your employment income, but also any rental income, interest or dividend income, pensions, and social security. If you want to develop a monthly budget, make sure you list all income in terms of monthly income (There are 4.33 weeks in the average month).

Step 3: Assess and categorize your expenses. This is a little more difficult, but reviewing bank and credit card statements can make this process easier. For variable expenses, you may want to look back over a period of time to compute your average monthly expense. For annual or quarterly expenses, be sure to adjust them to reflect the monthly cost. You will then use the wants/needs list that you created in step one to categorize these expenses. Once this data is in front of you, take some time and review it. You might be surprised at the amount you are spending on groceries, eating out or filling up your tank. This is what we want to fix and where the fun begins.

Step 4: Create a budget. Obviously, you have to insert your needs first. You may want to take some time to consider each need and its associated cost to ensure that you are getting the best deal.

Step 5: Adhere to your budget. There are many systems out there and you have to find one that works for you. I would recommend taking a look at the envelope system of budgeting or some derivative. If you are more technology savvy, you may want to utilize mint.com or similar personal finance websites. The key is not how you stick to your plan, but that you do stick to your plan.

After assigning a price tag to each need item, subtract the total of those costs from your monthly income. This calculation will leave you with your discretionary income. You will want to parcel this money out to your wants based on your personal prioritization.

A good budget will help you understand where your money is going and help you make better decisions about how to manage your financial life.  Sites like mint.com help you quickly pinpoint weak spots in your spending and see how they add up.  For example ongoing debits like subscriptions and memberships can really start to add up, or extra curricular classes might start to resemble private education when totaled.  Creating, understanding and managing your budget will help you allocate your money towards things you really want and help you make decisions about cutting things that don't fit into your big picture plans.

Go Out and Play! How to Get Deals on Summer Vacations

It’s summer and that means it’s time for a break! Here’s how to plan ahead to get the best deals and stave off “vacationer’s remorse.”

Did You Know?

This year, Americans will give back an average of three vacation days each.

Are you in need of a vacation but think you can’t afford one? You may want to think again.

While Americans are less likely to take their jobs for granted right now, grinding through month after month of work without a break can exact a price not only from your emotional well-being, but from your productivity on the job as well. It is possible to take a break and still be responsible.

“Time away from work is more important now than ever, and it’s unfortunate that one-third of Americans won’t use all of their vacation days this year,” says Tim MacDonald, general manager of Expedia.com. “Even if you can only get away from work for a few days, there are amazing vacation values and opportunities this year, many within your own area.”

Pin the Tail on the State

If your dates and destination are open-ended, you are in luck. Discount travel websites specialize in finding cheap airfare and hotel rates for those travelers able to book at a moment’s notice. Browse their lists of discounted cities and see which one sounds most exciting. If you are willing to adapt your travel plans to sales that pop up, you’ll maximize your vacation dollar.

In honor of Charles Darwin’s 200th birthday we’ll apply one of his maxims to Homo excursus: “It is not the strongest species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the ones most responsive to change.” Learn that. Memorize it. Cross-stitch it into your luggage. It applies to every aspect of your vacation (at least). Budget travelers Laura Williams and Melanie Rogers are turning business travel into vacations, with Laura and Melanie meeting their husbands on business trips. For the price of one plane ticket, they get a long weekend at a free hotel in a big city.

The slowing economy is prompting many tourist destinations to lower their rates. “Cities that have a lot of hotel rooms to fill will have the best deals,” says Expedia spokesman Ian Jeffries. “Las Vegas is always a safe bet, as well as Orlando and San Francisco. Even New York hotel rates have dropped 22 percent since last year.” Jeffries also encourages people to book airfare and accommodations together, because websites like Expedia often negotiate special deals with hotels for travelers who do so. “Expedia travelers save an average of $200 by booking together,” he says.

While traveling in the U.S., remember the following:

• Visiting tourist hotspots in their off season will get you 88 percent of the experience for 50 percent of the cost.
• Make a vacation out of visiting friends or family. Think of the $100 dollars a night you’ll be saving on hotels. Sleep on the floor if you have to. 
• Book a room with a kitchen. Find a grocery store and prepare two of your meals each day. A granola bar and a banana make a perfect touring lunch. Drink water.
• If your destination has good public transportation, don’t rent a car. See the city like a local.

 

Consider Driving, Not Flying

Have you ever been at a dinner party and overheard someone say they’d just moved to the area for the skiing/biking/climbing/sailing/insert-your-state’s-most-amazing-recreation-here, and then realized you’d never gotten around to doing it? It is a special kind of guilt

to realize you’ve taken your own state for granted. If you live in Idaho, go whitewater rafting! If you live in Massachusetts, visit to the Salem Witch Museum. Or if you have a default vacation spot that’s close to home, see the other side of it — the side that you’ve never been to because it means spending 40 more minutes in the car.

While their three kids are young, Seth and Melanie Rogers prefer to go on road trips rather than deal with airports and rental cars. “All we need is a hotel with a pool,” Seth says. “Our kids are as happy swimming for three days as they would be at Disneyland.”
To make the most of your in-state vacation:

• Keep all travelers’ interests in mind. That tour of Washington D.C.’s historic monuments can wait until your kids care.
• Road trip with your family or friends who live in your area to defray hotel and gas costs.
• Look for “locals only” discounts on the websites of popular tourist attractions.

KEY FACT: More than half (58 percent) of Americans plan to travel by car in 2009 while 30 percent plan to travel by plane.

Globetrotting

Though you’ll definitely want to plan ahead for international travel, there are still plenty of deals out there for the diligent researcher. Sign up for weekly e-mails from travel sites and airlines. Travelzoo compiles the top 20 travel deals from hundreds of airlines, hotels, and cruise companies each week so you don’t have to spend hours combing the hundreds of travel websites out there. Sign up for the Southwest Ding! program. Each time Southwest has deeply discounted airfare from your preferred airports, you’ll get a “ding” notification on your desktop.

If you’re really spontaneous you can get a last-minute flight from Boston to Heathrow for $181 (for example). Consider the exchange rate. “London and Paris are having some great deals right now, and airfare has dropped to São Paulo and Sydney as well,” Jeffries says. Remember that while a dollar will get you breakfast in Lima, it will get you one-third of a chocolate square in Geneva. He also recommends cruises for those looking to watch their spending because so much of the cost is paid up front that passengers are less likely to outstrip their budget.

Amy Ochoa of Morris Murdock Travel says that while international travel is slowing with the economy, many people are still willing to pay for humanitarian or religious tours. “Travelers are going to be more likely to spend money traveling to somewhere exotic if they feel it is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” Ochoa says.
Tips for expats:

• Some of the best museums and historical landmarks are free and open to the public.
• Do your homework. Pick the brains of friends who have been where you’re going. Ask them what’s worth the price and learn from their mistakes. 
• Look up facts, advice and travel warnings on the U.S. Travel Bureau website (www.travel.state.gov).
• Apply your adaptability generously to foreign culture. Sleep in hostels. Eat the local cuisine. Fly on cheap regional airlines like Ryanair or LAN. Learn a few phrases in Hmong. Use their weird toilets.

In the end, whether you have $10,000 to spend on your summer vacation or $10, have the courage to go somewhere — anywhere. Vacations are a way of marking time, reminding yourself that you are more than your job, more than your house, more than your daily obligations. Even now —maybe more now than ever — you need to get away to maintain your sanity and keep life from getting the best of you.

Let your vacation be therapeutic. A frenetic, expensive vacation can leave you more riled than when you left, so sit an extra half hour over your picnic lunch while you breathe deeply and enjoy the conversation.

Summer Hobbies

You don’t need to leave town to take a vacation. Picking up a new hobby or reviving an old one can be the trick to refreshing yourself. 

Here are a few ideas:

Scooter craze: High schoolers and 20-somethings may be the drivers most people imagine when they think of scooters, but many riders are cruising toward midlife or beyond, says David Hurtado, owner of The Scooter Lounge in Orem, Utah. Hurtado’s shop sells primarily to men and women between 20 and 40 years old, but also gets a good cross section of buyers.

Kitty Smith, part owner of Scooters of Boise in Boise, Idaho, says most of her patrons are around 40 years old, with sales split evenly between men and women. Her oldest rider is an 86-year-old man.

One reason scooters appeal to people from all demographics is because of the vast range of prices available.

Brand-new scooters sell for as low as $1,000 to more than $7,000. Insurance for most scooters is around $100 a year and maintenance costs are similar, Hurtado says. A fill-up costs around $5, with each tank averaging at least 70 miles per gallon.

A mid-priced scooter from a reputable company like Genuine will cost around $3,000, Hurtado says, and should last for several years. Premium brands like Vespa range from $4,200 to $7,000 and are intended to last for 100,000 miles. Unlike some less-expensive scooters, Vespas have an all-metal body, more horsepower, a larger gas tank and higher weight capacity.

“Vespas are the high-class scooters,” Della Corte says. “They’re pretty much the BMWs and Mercedes of the scooter world.”

Fishing: While fishing can turn into an expensive hobby, a simple rod and reel, hooks, sinkers and bobbers can be had for less than $20.

Bass, bluegill, carp and catfish are wonderful at adapting to various environments and can be caught virtually from coast to coast.

Expensive lures are not needed at all and night crawlers (worms) are only $2 or so a dozen. The refrigerator probably holds great baits as well, including cheese, bologna, bread and corn. Also, consider investing in a sturdy raft if you decide to take up fishing seriously.

Your friends may have rafts or fishing boats of their own, but truly avid fishers should have regular access to a boat of their own.
Visit your credit union to find out more about the low rates on RV, boat, real estate, auto or motorcycle loans.

HOW CAN WE HELP?

Setting up a designated savings account for travel can help ease your mind about taking a vacation, and automated transfers from your checking account to your travel account make it easy. Talk to your credit union representative to set up an account that will help you set aside as little as $10 per paycheck so you have money waiting when you want to get away.

Investing Activities for Kids - Motley Fool

By Selena Maranjian

Are you convinced that your kids should start investing? Or that you should be investing for them?

Or maybe you’re considering quietly parking some money in a few stocks or a mutual fund and then forgetting about it.

Think again. 

You can use this opportunity to help your kids learn about investing and the stock market.

Can you really get your kids interested in this stuff? You bet. Here are some activities you and your kids can do together.

Build a mock portfolio

Have your kids make a list of the companies that interest them most. They can get ideas by looking in their closets, in their classrooms, in the mall, on TV, etc.

Look at companies your kids know. Write down the names of 10 to 20 interesting companies, and then record the current stock price of each. Every day, week or month you can check the prices together, see how the stocks are doing, and record the latest prices.

Follow your stocks together

Along with updating the prices periodically, you can scan newspapers, magazines, Fool.com, and other websites for stories about your companies.

Is McDonald’s promoting $0.75 burgers? Will this help the company by bringing in more sales, or will it hurt by decreasing the total profit? And how did the stock market react when it heard of this announcement? Did the stock go up or down?

Consider school subjects other than math as you explore stocks. Investing can relate to most subjects in school and can give kids a bit of a new perspective on their studies. There’s obviously math involved, since they multiply share prices by how many shares they want to buy and perform other calculations with numbers from annual reports. There’s history, too, as they examine how venerable companies like AT&T or Ford got to where they are now.

Start actually investing

Once you’ve become comfortable with the idea of investing in stocks, it’s time to consider buying some shares. You can open a joint brokerage account, with you acting as custodian, but you don’t have to go this far. You can informally “sell” some of your own shares to your child.

For example, if you’re about to buy 100 shares of a particular stock and your child wants to buy a share or two herself, you can just place the order together — and order 101 or 102 shares through your broker. You don’t have to buy round numbers of shares — “odd lots” are okay.

If you do these things, you’ll want to keep a good record of which shares belong to whom. Once your child turns 18, she can open her own account at a brokerage and you can transfer her shares to it.

There’s a lot more to investing, of course, and a lot more that you can do with kids to explore the stock market together. The learning process should prove rewarding — and fun — to both parent and child alike.

Turn Dreams Into Money - Jean Chatzky

Do you ever wish that you could turn your favorite pastime into a full-time job — one that earns you enough money to pay the rent, eat well, maybe even hit J. Crew from time to time? Even though I love what I do, part of me would also love to open a bakery ... or a wine store.

Back when she sat in the cubicle next to mine at “Working Woman” magazine (we were both assistants, answering phones, hoping to land a story in each issue), Laurel Touby simply wanted to throw parties. Fabulous parties for all of her friends in the media industry who — like her — were looking for that next great contact or that next great job. She couldn't afford to buy drinks for all involved, so she told guests to buy their own. Nobody minded. Because that wasn't fabulous enough, she threw on a big pink feather boa.

The venture became mediabistro.com, a popular website where media professionals can find jobs, classes and industry news. Touby just sold the company to Jupitermedia for a whopping $23 million. We caught up recently when I asked her to share a couple of tips to help you forge your own way and turn your interests, whether baking or dancing, into a successful business venture.



Be Confident

Maybe you've never owned a business before and have a lot to learn about foreign concepts like capital and marketing, but the process will be a lot easier because the focus is something you're passionate about.
 

“The big mistake a lot of people make is psyching themselves out and thinking they need more education to get somewhere. Just fake it till you make it. I've seen so many successful entrepreneurs who did a really great job because they winged it, not because they were the most knowledgeable person,” Touby says.

Now that's not to say you don't need a strong, well-thought-out business plan, because you do, but having the confidence to follow your instincts and take a few risks is almost as important. 



Make Like a Sponge

The concept here is pretty simple: Your business is going to be supported by customers, so it makes sense to listen to what they want. Touby says some of the most popular features of mediabistro.com, like the jobs and classes, were spawned from requests made early on by the site's users. As the owner, it's hard to look at your business — your baby — objectively, so suggestions from outside parties are priceless. Soak them up. You can't make everyone happy, but you can sure try. 



Get Some Help

You can launch your business in your bedroom, solo, like Touby did, but once it starts to grow, do yourself a favor and bring in some reinforcements.
 

“There is sometimes a real reluctance to reach out for help, and people tend to wait too long — often until there is a crisis,” explains Mark LeBlanc, author of “Growing Your Business!” 

Face up to the fact that you're not going to be good at everything, and even if you are, you won't have time to do it all well once success sets in. The sooner you surround yourself with a team that can tackle things like the bookkeeping and legal issues, the better off you'll be. 

Consider it an investment instead of just another expense.



Jean Chatzky serves as AOL's official Money Coach. She is the personal finance editor for NBC's “Today Show” and the author of four books. With reporting by Arielle McGowen. 

10 Things You Need to Know About Credit

1. Your Credit Score. Know your credit score but also know what it means. The score is relative, but it is based on a point system where 850 is perfect, 720-749 is good, 660-719 is fair, and 659 and below means there is some repair to do.
   
2. Review your credit score once a year. There are several Web sites that will give you your credit score for free. You are eligible to receive your credit score and history once a year by law.
3. How to use it. Make sure you are using your accounts, but continually paying them down. When you use more than 70 percent of your credit account’s limit, this shows that you need the credit and can be interpreted negatively. When you use your credit often and pay it off, it shows lenders you are responsibly paying back your debts. 
4. What your score means to lenders. Whether or not a lender is going to give you a loan is based on your credit score and history; however, there’s no way of telling how the lender is going to interpret your score and history. They may use several different reports from different credit agencies, or they may base their decision on one alone. In some cases, some lenders have their own rules and qualifications for interpreting credit histories.
5. You have to build credit. No credit is sometimes just as bad as having bad credit. When you’re credit history has nothing on it, lenders have nothing to base their decision on. You’ll need to establish some sort of credit and begin building a responsible history. 
6. Different types of debt. There are two kinds of debt — secured and unsecured. Secured debt is loans you have for items that have collateral like cars, houses and property. If you were to default on your loan the issuer would want to collect the collateral to pay off the debt. Unsecured debt is when you used credit for intangible items like student loans or credit cards. 
7. Pay your bills on time. Roughly 35 percent of your credit score is based on payment history, so paying bills on time creates a strong history. Items such as overdue accounts, collection agencies, charge-offs or bankruptcies can damage your history.
8. Employers often check credit. Banks and lenders aren’t the only ones reviewing your credit history. Many employers will review your credit history as part of your background check when applying for a job. 
9. What to do with unused accounts. When a lender reviews your account they are going to look at account balances in relation to how much credit is available. Closing accounts you do not use removes those available balances from the equation and can actually lower a credit score. 
10. Check for errors on your credit history. Go through your credit report at least once a year and review each item line by line. Some credit report information could be wrong and it could negatively impact your ability to borrow money. Check for errors and if you find any, contact the credit bureau that supplied the information immediately.

Series premiered Tuesday July 7, at 8/7c.

Get an eyeful of Padua High, where the Stratford sisters are new, and life is very different. Meet Kat, Bianca, their over-protective dad and some of the kids they’ll be dealing with this summer, when “10 Things I Hate About You” debuts on ABC Family.

Getting the Home Loan You Need

The downturn of the housing market has at least one silver lining for aspiring home buyers. A market that only a few years ago was tilted firmly in favor of home sellers has now undergone a reversal. In this market, home buyers are definitely in the driver’s seat, and that means that buyers with the credit and down payment they need can negotiate some excellent prices. Savvy home buyers can land some bargains that would have been undreamed of only a few short years ago.

Of course, one of the reasons the housing market is in such disarray is the fact that mortgages have suddenly become more difficult to obtain. At the height of the housing boom, it seemed that any buyer who could sign his name to a loan document was instantly eligible for a huge mortgage, and it was these overly generous lending standards that ultimately led to the collapse we are now living through.

Even though mortgages are now more difficult to come by it is important to keep in mind that home buyers across the country are still buying homes — and still getting the mortgages they need to purchase the homes of their dreams. Many would-be home buyers have been discouraged by the doom and gloom being reported, erroneously believing that it will be impossible to find a mortgage. The truth is that while lending standards are indeed more stringent, qualified home buyers can still expect to get the funding they need to purchase a great home.

The key to getting that mortgage is to be prepared. The days of no money down loans, no income verification loans and other excesses are largely gone. Home buyers these days will need to provide solid information regarding how much they earn, the assets they have and other financial information. Having this information readily available will make the process to secure financing quicker and much less stressful.

Additionally, a good down payment can be very valuable both in terms of landing a mortgage and in terms of providing financial stability. One of the most common scenarios today is the homeowner who owes more than the home is worth. Putting at least 20 percent down can help home buyers avoid this dangerous predicament while enhancing the chances for an affordable mortgage loan at a great rate.

Finally, make sure to develop a good relationship with your lender. Buying a home will most likely be the biggest and most complicated purchase you will ever make, so finding a lender that you trust and that will consider the best financing programs for your circumstances is essential to securing the mortgage for the house of your dreams.

5 Myths About Reverse Mortgages

A Popular Option for Seniors Age 62 and Older

Reverse mortgages, also known as home equity conversion mortgages, are becoming a popular option for seniors age 62 and older who are dealing with shrinking retirement accounts and higher health care costs. Here are some commonly held misconceptions about these FHA-insured loans:

Myth #1: I’ll lose some of my Social Security benefits due to the extra income.
Because the money you receive from your reverse mortgage is not considered income, you are not taxed on the proceeds. Your Social Security and Medicaid benefits remain the same as long as the money you receive from the loan is used within the same month you receive it. You can choose to take out the equity in your home as a lump sum, opt for recurring monthly payments, or use it as a line of credit that can be accessed in emergencies or as needed. Additionally, because the loan is secured by the equity in your home, you don’t need to meet the income and credit qualifications that are required in traditional mortgages.

Myth #2: If I am unable to repay the loan, I’ll lose my home.
Unlike many deferred payment loans that allow a defined grace period before payments become due, a reverse mortgage has no established time limit that triggers repayment of the loan. As long as your home is your principal residence, you are not required to make any repayments toward the loan, though you are still responsible to continue making payments on your property taxes and insurance. You also retain the title to your property as long as you are living there.

Myth #3: I will only qualify if I own my house outright.
While you do need to have a significant equity stake in your home to qualify for a reverse mortgage, you do not have to own it outright. If your home is still being financed through a traditional mortgage, you will need to use part of the proceeds from your reverse mortgage to pay off your remaining balance. In fact, many seniors who choose this type of financing do so to eliminate their monthly mortgage payment.


Myth #4: I won’t be able to pass my home to my family through my estate.
 In the event of your death, your heirs will still be able to make the final decision on the disposition of your home. If they choose to sell it, the remaining equity in your home after the reverse mortgage is repaid will go to your estate. If they would prefer to keep the home instead, they can refinance the home with a traditional mortgage and pay off the balance due on the loan.

Myth #5: I could end up owing more than what my house is worth.
The reverse mortgage loan amount that you qualify for depends on a variety of factors including your age, the amount of equity present in your home and the current interest rates. After considering these factors, the loan is structured with the intent to keep you from owing more than the current value of your home. If, at the time of sale, your house is worth less than your loan balance, the FHA will cover the difference.

Want more help?
Numerica has partnered with Security Reverse Mortgage to educate our members on all aspects of reverse mortgages. To find out if you are in the right position for this type of loan, call us at (800) 455-4265.

An Offer You Should Refuse

BBB Warns that Cash Gifting is Not Legitimate

Online promotions promising easy wealth by joining a cash gifting program or gifting club are flourishing on the Internet. With many families struggling to make ends meet in the current economy, the Better Business Bureau warns that cash gifting is not a legitimate way to make a few extra dollars, and in fact, is nothing more than a pyramid scheme.

Like most pyramid schemes of the past, cash gifting operations are targeting people with some form of an affinity — such as women’s clubs, community groups, church congregations, social clubs and special interest groups. But in keeping with the digital age, schemers have moved operations to the Internet and are now marketing their programs as easy ways to make money in a tough economy through videos on YouTube, paid ads on Google and attractive websites that engage victims.

While the creators of the videos vary, the content is usually the same. Typically, the person in the video explains — in vague terms — that they’ve discovered a new program to help people make money through cash leveraging or cash gifting and might even open a FedEx envelope with cash inside to prove the effectiveness of the program.

“Bernie Madoff isn’t the only guy with a Ponzi scheme; money-making opportunities promising big returns for little work are all over the Internet and are extremely enticing to millions of people struggling with today’s economy,” says Steve Cox, BBB spokesperson. “Anyone tempted by slick cash gifting marketing appeals should run in the opposite direction, or they run the risk of being the next person ripped off by a pyramid scheme.”

Some cash gifting schemes are touted as fundraisers for a good cause or as an empowerment program to help people help themselves. In order to take part, the participant must pay anywhere from $150 to $5,000. After making the contribution, which is funneled to people farther up the pyramid, the participant must then convince more people to join in order to start making money themselves.

Recruiters may claim that the operation is legal and often allude to IRS laws regarding gifting. However, almost every state has laws prohibiting pyramid schemes and can assess penalties on those who participate.

The BBB advises people to ask themselves three questions to evaluate dubious money-making opportunities:

• Do I have to make an “investment” or give money to obtain the right to recruit others into the program?

• When I recruit another person into the program, will I receive what the law calls “consideration” (that usually means money) as a result?

• Will the person I recruit have to make an “investment” or give money to obtain the right to recruit and receive “consideration” for getting other people to join?

If the answers are “yes,” BBB warns people to steer clear of the scheme, don’t give in to tempting claims online and never buckle under to high-pressure sales pitches, even when they come from the mouth of a trusted friend, co-worker, neighbor or church member.

Finding Balance

Your Time

Make Time, a Plan, and Make it Real

No one can immerse himself or herself in work nonstop and maintain a healthy sense of perspective. Finding the proper balance between your work and personal calendars just takes a little strategy and forethought. This summer is a great time to start.

Here’s how:

Make time for family. The summer is the perfect time to make a new commitment to spending time with your family. You don’t necessarily have to work less. All you need to do is integrate your family into your world. Maybe you can coordinate this year’s family vacation with one of your business trips, or while the kids are out of school, they could come to your business every now and then to interact and see how you run things. As a bonus, you’re teaching kids the importance of pursuing their passion in life.

Make a plan and stick to it. You know that work schedule you’ve been following to build a profitable company? Well, now is a great time to create a plan for your personal life. Grab a calendar for the summer months and get to work! If you’ve got kids who will be playing on sports teams this summer, go ahead and decide now on the number of games you think you will be able to attend. Figure out which games on their schedules work the best with yours, then mark these dates on the calendar. Doing so ensures you’ll give these family events the same weight you would a critical client meeting.

If you go on vacation, make it a real one. A real vacation doesn’t involve having a cell phone attached to your ear, a laptop that is constantly alerting you about new e-mail, or a BlackBerry that can be carried every place you go so that you don’t lose touch with the business for even a second.

To avoid these activities, leave detailed instructions about what constitutes an emergency with whomever will be looking after the business while you are gone, and tell them to contact you only if such an emergency happens.

Common sense is really the best barometer for balancing your life with your work, no matter what the season. Always ask yourself with each decision you make, “How will this affect my business?” and “Can I personally live with this decision?” There is a healthy balance for you, and you can find it.

 

Flying High

Linda Warren, Warren Air Video and Photography

Warren Air Video and Photography provides aerial and ground photography and videos throughout Southern California. Contractors use the aerial photos to document the progress of construction projects for their marketing materials, and realtors use them to promote property locations. To capture the scenic images, owner Linda Warren uses Robinson helicopters and Cessna airplanes for her business.

For more information about Warren Air Video and Photography, visit www.warrenair.com or call (818) 899–5974.

Talking to Kids About Money

Family Finance

Kids & Cash

Many 18-year-olds have left high school armed with a knowledge of U.S. history and calculus, but no experience with the realities of car loans and college tuition.

Having those first conversations with children regarding spending on tuition and making out a budget can be challenging.
 

“Don’t keep your child in the dark about finances,” says Adam Carroll, chief education officer with National Financial Educators. “Throw the whole money taboo out the window. It’s okay to discuss what money realities with them.”
 

Tad Barton is on a mission to help children understand those money realities. Barton teaches business courses at John W. North High School at 1550 Third Street in Riverside. He currently teaches 150 students in the school’s Global Business Information Technology (GBIT) Academy. In their sophomore year, students take an intro to business technology course, which teaches them skills such as Excel and Web design. In their junior year, they take an economics and entrepreneurship class, which teaches them how to invest, budget and spend wisely. Finally, in their senior year, students take over the management of the GBIT Academy’s online news magazine (www.motoricon.com), which allows each graduating class the opportunity to leave their mark on the site’s design and content.
 

“The kids really learn how to keep a budget, invest in the stock market and balance their finances. Instead of giving them a letter grade, we pay them money and monitor how they use that money as they are asked to find a place to live and budget in expenses. They succeed based on their financial responsibility. It’s very hands on. Instead of reading about it, they have to perform it,” Barton says. “No matter what job they get out of school, with these skills in place they are prepared to manage their money responsibly.”

Elizabeth Galindo, a senior at North High School, is vice president of the school’s Investor’s Club and Future Business Leaders of America. “The classes help me see the importance of every financial decision I make and how important budgeting is. Now I know how much I can spend on things,” Galindo says. “Our economy got into this mess because people overspent and got into debt. I don’t want that to happen to me. These classes empower me with financial independence and security.”

With the right kind of financial education, both at home and at school, the next generation is bound to be smarter and more secure than its parents.