|
Money News>
Community Resource Centre Money News
April 1, 2008
*April 8, 2008 FREE Planning for Future Care of an Adult or
Child with a Disability 7- 8.30 pm
*April 21, 2008 Credit and Why it's Important 6.30 to 8.30
PM.
*April 30, 2008 Deadline for 2007 Personal Income Tax
Filing
*Book for your free personalized money management advice
session
---------------------------------------------------------------
Spring cleaning
While you're attacking those cobwebs in the corner of the
spare bedroom, take a swipe at the dust collecting in these
five rooms of your financial house.
5 places to get your financial
house in order
1. Banking
2. Credit cards and debt
3. Estate planning
4. Retirement accounts and investments
5. Insurance
Banking
What to do: Consolidate accounts, streamline with online
statements and bill pay, toss old statements and checks.
Time involved: A solid hour will get the ball rolling, but
you may need to follow up during the next few weeks to make
sure the changes you've made have taken effect.
Cost: Some banks have small fees to close accounts --
usually less than $30 -- if you've had them for less than
six months.
Details: If you've moved a few times, you may find that you
have several bank accounts -- and an overwhelming number of
monthly statements. "It's easy to keep a bank account
open," says Galia Gichon, author of the "My Money Matters
Kit." "But the downside is that you may be incurring fees
every month, and those can be avoided."
Credit cards/debt
What to do: Check your credit report, shop around for lower
interest rates, and come up with a payment strategy.
Time involved: 30 minutes and up.
Cost: None.
Details: A 50- or 100-point change in your credit score can
mean the difference between great loan terms and terrible
ones, and inaccuracies in your credit report can drag that
score down at least that much. Do yourself a favor and
double-check it, says Liz Weston, author of "Easy Money."
In Canada, getting copies of your credit reports are free
by mail, but you have to pay to get your credit scores.
Equifax and TransUnion have independent scroing systems, so
get both.
TransUnion
PO Box 338, LCD 1
Hamilton, Ontario L8L 7W2
www.tuc.ca, consumer@tuc.ca, 1 866 525 0262
By letter with 2 pieces of ID
Equifax Canada
110 Sheppard Ave
Toronto, Ontario M2N 6N1
www.equipfax.ca consumer.relations@equifax.com
1 800 465 7166
By letter with 2 pieces of ID
See a problem? Dispute it, in writing, and you
should have a resolution in about a month.
Once you have an accurate credit report, check the interest
rates you pay on balances and compare the rates with other
cards. You may be able to use that as leverage to improve
your credit card terms. Credit card companies are happy to
use any opportunity to hike your rates, but that doesn't
mean you should just accept it. If you have a history of
making your payments on time, give your credit card
companies a call and ask if they can do better with their
rates. Many will drop them if you're just willing to take
the time to ask.
Finally, develop a plan to pay off any debt. Tackle high
interest credit-card debt first to guarantee the best bang
for your buck, says Kim Lankford, a contributing editor at
Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine. Any tax return
you've got coming can help you make a big dent in your
debt, so consider paying it off before blowing it on the
latest gadget or a luxury vacation.
Estate planning
What to do: Create or update a will or trust; consider a
living will and financial power of attorney; toss old
documents.
Time involved: If you're starting from scratch, plan for at
least an hour.
Cost: The Community Resource Centre often runs Wills
Workshops. Call in April to see if any are scheduled 604
885 4088. If you have a more complex situation, a will
drawn up
by an attorney starts at about $300.
Details: First things first, says Mary Randolph, author of
"The Executor's Guide." If you don't yet have a will, it's
time to buckle down and draw one up. "It drops to the
bottom of people's to-do list for obvious reasons," she
says. "But the good news is not that hard to do."
Step-by-step software and online programs can guide you
through the process fairly easily and inexpensively.
If you've got any property at all -- a home, a car, a
flat-screen TV, or jewelry with real or sentimental value
-- a will can help make sure it gets to the right person
upon your passing, and it can help prevent a lengthy
probate process.
Retirement accounts and investments
What to do: Consolidate accounts, rebalance and update
beneficiaries.
Time involved: Plan to set aside a couple hours to get
started, and another hour or two in coming weeks to ensure
that changes have been made.
Cost: As long as you simply roll over retirement accounts,
you shouldn't incur major fees. Some companies charge a
small fee to close accounts, usually less than $50.
Details: Diligent saving and good investment decisions are
keys to helping you build wealth and retire comfortably,
but it's easy to get bogged down with too many details and
accounts.
Insurance
What to do: Get new quotes for car, home and life insurance
policies; update beneficiaries.
Cost: None, unless you upgrade your policies.
Time involved: Plan to spend a couple hours doing research.
Details: Term life, car and some homeowner insurance
policies have gone down in price over the past few years,
says Lankford. If you haven't shopped around for a new
policy recently, you may find that a bit of research can
save you hundreds of dollars.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Are You Registered for Fair PharmaCare?
To receive your maximum financial assistance under the Fair
PharmaCare plan, register now.
PharamaCare subsidizes the cost of eligible prescription
drugs nd designated medical supplies. Most British
Columbians are covered under the Fair PharmaCare plan,
which bases financial assistance on your family income.
For information about the plan or to register, please:
*Visit the Health Insurnace BC website at
www.hibe.gov.bc.ca
*Call Health Insurnace BC
.Vancouver 604-683-7151
.Elsewhere in BC 1-800-663-7100
----------------------------------------------------------------
Tips:
. The very best way to save money is to have it deducted
from your paycheck. You can't spend what you don't have.
. Get organized. Know where your money is going by tracking
every cent you spend.
. When you receive any windfall money (raise, bonus, gift,
etc.) pretend it never happened. Instead, increase your
retirement contribution.
. If you always receive a tax refund, check with payroll at
work to see if they can lower your payroll deductions. The
average federal income tax refund has been averaging well
over $2,000 in recent years. That means the consumer could
have had an extra $200 in his pocket each month all year
long. There's
no reason to give the government an interest-free loan.
. Examine every spending category, and cut 10 percent from
each. You can't reduce your fixed expenses such as rent or
mortgage, car payment, etc, but you can painlessly cut 10
percent from the other categories such as groceries,
clothing, gasoline, gifts, utilities, etc.
. Pay cash for everything. Paying with cash makes us think
before we spend. Paying with plastic intentionally
distances us from our spending.
. Only spend paper money. At the end of each day, put all
of your change into a jar. After a month, you'll have
between $30 and $50 in your jar.
. Commit to saving $5 each workday. The incentive to pare a
little money out of each day's spending is that you can
look forward to living on your normal budget over the
weekend. If you're married, each person only has to carve
$2.50 out of his or her daily routine to find $100 extra
each month.
. Drinking water when eating out is estimated to save 20
percent off the total bill.
. If you are paying for a storage building, go through
those items and sell what you no longer need. Then, do the
same at home. You'll make money off of the items you don't
use, and you'll save on the cost of storage.
. Never make a late payment. The average credit card holder
has seven credit cards. Late fees are in the $40 range.
Paying late on each card once each year means you've thrown
almost $300 out the window needlessly.
. Eliminate all unnecessary banking expenses. Look for a
free checking and sign up for free online bill paying.
Never use an ATM that charges you. This can be accomplished
by banking with an institution with many branches in areas
near where you live or work.
. Review your cell phone plan to make sure it fits your
calling pattern, and that you aren't paying for features
you don't use. If you have a run-away cell phone bill each
month, control your spending by purchasing only prepaid
cell phone plans.
. Consider doing away with your land phone. At the very
least, review your long distance plan. If you also have a
cell phone with national long distance, you may be
duplicating the need.
. Research bundling of services such as land phone, cell
phone, cable TV, and Internet. The company benefits by
having all of your business, and you benefit through the
savings they pass on to you.
. Cut back on your cable package. Even the most basic
packages have plenty of channels to watch.
Use your browser's BACK button to return to the previous page.
5520 Trail Avenue, Box 1443, Sechelt, BC, V0N 3A0
admin@communityresourcecentre.info
Tel: 604-885-4088
|
