Money Talks

June 12, 2011 By Cricket

When our son was little and trying out new words, there were a few times when we had to ask, ‘Do you know that that means son?’ Often, he said ‘No!’ and we had to tell him that he shouldn’t use words he didn’t know the meaning of; it could get him into trouble.

As I was thinking about that principle, it occured to me that managing money comes with a lot of big termonology. How can you possibly know what to do with it if you don’t know what it means. So I decided that the SIABC BLOG would be a perfect place for some FINANCIAL VOCABULARY.

Each week, we will post a new vocabulary word related to money and how it plays a part in our daily lives.

Vocabulary, math…sounds like school’s back in!

WORD OF THE WEEK:

asset

Definition

Any item of economic value owned by an individual or corporation, especially that which could be converted to cash. Examples are cash, securities, accounts receivable, inventory, office equipment, real estate, a car, and other property. On a balance sheet, assets are equal to the sum of liabilities, common stock, preferred stock, and retained earnings. From an accounting perspective, assets are divided into the following categories: current assets (cash and other liquid items), long-term assets (real estate, plant, equipment), prepaid and deferred assets (expenditures for future costs such as insurance, rent, interest), and intangible assets (trademarks, patents, copyrights, goodwill).

Filed Under: Asset Building, Family finances, Financial Stability, Southern Indiana Asset Building Coalition

4 Steps that you may take to set up a good budget

May 1, 2011 By Cricket

SIABC Welcomes Jason Holmes as a guest blogger. Jason is a contributing writer to several other financial sites. His expertise is woven around various aspects of the debt industry and with his e-books he tries to impart to people the different situations and simple solutions to get out of difficult situations.

If your financial situation is deteriorating due to rising debts, then it is time you choose from various debt solutions that will be able to help you out of this situation. A debt solution is a solution that helps you come out of your debts with ease. There are many debt solutions that you may choose from. You must remember that the choice that you make should be based on your financial situation. However, it is also important to consider various other alternatives to coming out of debts. You may try various other options rather than considering traditional debt solutions.

One such way in which you will be able to control your debt situation and you will be able to stay out of debts is the formulation of a budget. A budget that is made accurately will help you in finding out where your money is going and how much you are spending. Thus, you will be able to regulate your finances better and will be able to save enough to pay off your debts.

Some simple steps that you may follow in order to set up a budget are as follows:

1. Categorizing your expenses: You are to take down every little expenditure that you do. These expenditures should be recorded under different categories. There are two different types of expenditures that you are to put in your budget. They are variable and fixed expenses; in case of fixed expenses the expenditure is constant every month. In case of variable expenditure the expenses keep on fluctuating. Recording all your purchases and expenditures is very important when you are formulating a budget. As the expenses are put in categories you will be able to see clearly how much you are spending and where you are spending. Thus, you will be able to control your expenses.

2. Calculating your total expenses: You are to then add up all your expenses together in order to find out how much you exactly spend in a month. This presents to you clearly how much you are spending in one month.

3. Totaling your income: You are to now total your income. Income here does not only include your monthly salary but also the money that you earn form investments and your fluctuating income. Try to include all possible earnings that you have in the budget and total your income.

4. Finding the net income: The next step is to find out your net income. This can be found by subtracting your total expenditure from your total income. This is the amount that you will be using in order to pay off your debts.

These are the steps that you may follow in order to formulate a good budget and get out of debts.

Filed Under: Asset Building, Budgeting, financial literacy, Financial Stability, Southern Indiana Asset Building Coalition

Suze Orman – LIVE!

April 14, 2011 By Whitney

Posted by Cricket – Guest Contributor

On March 15, 2011, I had the opportunity to hear Suze Orman at The Louisville Free Public Library, thanks to SIABC! I admit I am not a loyal follower of the well-known author/speaker/financial guru and I think dread is probably the emotion I felt going in. My thought process was something like this:

“Oh great. Someone else telling me how much I have screwed up my finances.”

“Just what I want to hear, a lecture on investing and saving for the future, when I would just like to be able to put gas in my car for the week.”

“That’s nice for people who have a lot of money to do something with, but I barely get by as it is.”

So going in, I pretty much thought I wouldn’t take home anything but a bunch of guilt! I was SO WRONG!

Suze Orman was talking to real people like me. Some of her more significant messages that I took home were:

There is a NEW American Dream. This isn’t the same world or economy that my parents were basing their hopes and dreams on.
You need to go ‘back to class’ in terms of your money.
Be REAL about what is coming in and going out.
It’s ok to rent a house if it provides more security for your situation. That was such a relief? How many of you have been taught all your life that home ownership makes your life more valuable?
If you are living in order to just pay the mortgage and nothing else, SELL YOUR HOUSE!
Most importantly: STAND IN YOUR TRUTH! Be honest with yourself about your financial situation and go from there.

It was so eye opening and I have been giving a lot of thought to what she said.

She had a great Q/A session with the crowd of over 500 people and gave some really great advice to questions about money and marriage, saving for retirement, other Financial Advisors and so much more. I admired how she was willing to take whatever questions were thrown her way and some of them were pretty challenging! She also talked with great affection about her Mama which was so sweet to hear!

Suze Orman is on tour promoting her new book: The Money Class (www.suzeorman.com) BUT she advised everyone to check it out of the library if they don’t have the money to buy it!

So what about you?

Do you listen to Suze Orman or someone like her? Why or why not?
Are you scared to stand in your financial truth?
How do you and your partner/spouse/roommate discuss financial issues?
How much did your parent’s financial situation influence how you manage your own money?

Now would be a great time to join the 6 MONTH MONEY CHALLEGE going on at SIABC!

Filed Under: American Dream, Asset Building, Changing Economy, Financial Expert, financial literacy, Financial Stability, Southern Indiana Asset Building Coalition, Suze Orman

Earned Income Tax Credit Can Put Money in Your Pocket

January 7, 2011 By Whitney

You could be eligible to get more money back from the IRS – as much as $5,666. If you earned less than $48,362 from wages, self-employment, or farming last year, you may qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit – or EITC.

EITC is a financial boost for working people hit by hard economic times. You may qualify for the first time if your financial, marital or parental status changed in 2010.

Eligibility is based on several factors, including the source and amount of your income, or combined income if married, whether you have qualifying children and how many. Workers without children also may qualify.

Four of five eligible people claim and get their EITC. Use IRS’s online EITC Assistant to see if you qualify. If so, you must file to get it.

Free help is available at volunteer income tax assistance sites and IRS Taxpayer Assistance Centers. Locate a volunteer site by calling your community’s 211 or 311 number for local services or call the IRS at 1-800-906-9887.

Get back even more if your state also has an EITC.

EITC. You earned it. Now file, claim it and get it.

Filed Under: Asset Building, Earned Income Tax Credit, Southern Indiana Asset Building Coalition, vita tax preparation Tagged With: EITC, Southern Indiana, Southern Indiana Asset Building Coalition, vita tax preparation

Grants & Gratitude – Funding News from SIABC

November 17, 2010 By Whitney

GREAT NEWS for SIABC and Southern Indiana – We were recently awarded grants from both the Community Foundation of Southern Indiana and the Horseshoe Foundation of Floyd County to support our VITA Tax Preparation programs for 2011! Thanks to these wonderful foundations for their support of the non-profits in our region. Their support has provided so much to so many!

We also had some press this week – check out the article in the News and Tribune by clicking here.

Preparations for our 6th tax season are underway as we recruit and train over 70 volunteers for the 2011 Tax Prep season! Our goal is to get working families the tax credits they deserve, save them costly tax preparation fees and to provide them with information and tools to make smart decisions about how to apply their refunds towards asset building activities.

Sponsorship opportunities are still available – are you interested in supporting our efforts and reaching over 2,750 working families during tax season? If so, let’s meet! The opportunities are tremendous and the impact our program has on families is a great return on your investment!

Volunteer Opportunities also exist – we have room for everyone! We have openings for tax preparers as well as for intake and clerical volunteers. If you’d like to join us this tax season, give Whitney a call today!

Thank you Southern Indiana for supporting our efforts and understanding the value of giving back!

Filed Under: Asset Building, vita tax preparation