SafeAmerica Credit Union

Take advantage

• By SafeAmerica Credit Union

Financial Well-Being For Our Youth – National Credit Union Youth Month

Kids can learn a lot watching their parents. What they see can set a pattern for life. The key is to not run away from the conversation, but look at it as an opportunity to set our kids up for success.

You might feel comfortable talking to kids about their favorite video game, fashion, or trending Tik Tok video, but maybe not about money. As everyone is looking forward to new beginnings after the pandemic, it’s always a great time for the whole family to establish new habits and that includes with the younger ones at home.

What have we learned and what do we want to pass on to be ready for another major crisis, if it comes?

Some parents may need help passing on a financial literacy mindset to their children. However, once you decide to have the conversation, it’s important to start as soon as possible. Money is a tool that is very powerful, when mixed with the right knowledge.

Start Talking About Money Early

Experts say children as young as five or six can understand the basics of money and saving. With that in mind, we can start sharing financial literacy skills early to ensure our children are set up for success.

As grown ups, we know money is important to buy groceries, keep a roof over our heads, buy things we want, and much more. Even before they are in first grade, children can understand what money is and how to use and save it. Be proactive talking about money and modeling good spending behavior yourself.

The conversations may vary depending on your child’s age, but the general idea is the same – teach them early and often about money and finances. This will help them become comfortable talking about money and find solutions instead of having a financial misstep and ignoring it.

Learn the Importance of Saving Money

Learning how to save is just as important as learning what to spend money on. As their savings grow, parents can reinforce the good money management habits they are putting into practice. Having financial reserves can protect against hardship and give the saver power to decide how to spend or invest the money. Being financially literate is important at any age, but especially for young people just starting on their financial education journey.

Talk About Wants Vs. Needs

It is always important to make every dollar count. Part of the money education for children is helping them understand the difference between things they want and things they need.

That differentiation can be challenging for adults too. Financial literacy means understanding the difference between a “nice to have” (a want) and something they cannot live without (a need).

Sometimes a family challenge may move the “wants” to the back burner temporarily, while the “needs” become more important. If a challenging financial situation requires the family to adjust their lifestyle, make sure kids understand what is going on and why. This is a great opportunity to teach the importance of planning, budgeting and the fact that it’s ok to wait.

Create A Budget Together

Next time when you create a budget for the household, include your kids. Include them as you talk about how, where, and why you spend your money. Start small and slow, be honest, be patient, and encourage questions. Remember to talk in a way that doesn’t upset them or make them worry about finances.

Help Kids Understand Where You Are Financially

Being honest about your current situation can be a great opportunity to educate young people about money and how to handle it. A great start is getting a free financial health assessment and then, involve them as you work through the financial process for the entire family.

Incorporate Money Into Daily Activities

One way to increase your child’s financial I.Q. is to incorporate learning into everyday activities. Here are some tips:

  • Play games involving money
  • Help kids make a wish list for things they want
  • Teach while you shop
  • Link their allowance to chores around the house
  • Teach them to split money into categories like saving, spending, and giving
  • Have them “save up” for something they want

Wrapping It Up

It’s important to remember money plays an essential role in all of our lives.

Consider starting early to share the right information and lead by example. If you need help getting your own financial house in order, connect with a caring, certified GreenPath counselor.

GreenPath Financial Wellness

• By SafeAmerica Credit Union

Message From Your Interim CEO: Your Accounts Are Safe With Us

Dear valued SafeAmerica Credit Union member,

The recent development regarding technology-based Silicon Valley Bank may have brought concern and questions regarding your deposits here at SafeAmerica Credit Union. This development does not affect the security of your accounts here at SafeAmerica Credit Union.

As a credit union, we operate under a different model than big banks. SafeAmerica Credit Union does not invest with or do commercial lending with any businesses such as technology start-ups or Crypto. We were founded in 1953 with the core principle of people helping people, and our focus has continuously been to help our members reach all their financial goals.

Most importantly, we want our members to feel safe with us. We understand that in times like these, consumers may feel uncertain about the safety of their money. I want to remind you that SafeAmerica Credit Union deposit accounts are insured to $500,000 per account through American Share Insurance (ASI). ASI is the credit union equivalent of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).

SafeAmerica Credit Union is 100% member-owned. Through our 70 years in serving the Bay Area and surrounding communities, we have successfully and responsibly managed our financial integrity and continue to work diligently for the safe keeping of our future.

We value your continued trust and assurance in us. We remain committed to providing you with security for all your deposits. We will continue to provide you with the friendly and knowledgeable service needed to answer any of your questions.

Thank you for allowing us to be your financial partner for 70 years and counting. Should you have any questions or concerns, don't hesitate to contact us at (800) 972-0999 or by visiting a branch.

Best regards,

Frank Zampella

 

 

 

Interim President/CEO

• By SafeAmerica Credit Union

How Your Credit Score Is Calculated and How To Improve It

Understanding Your Credit Score.

Ever wonder how your credit score is calculated? It is a common question and can be helpful to explore.

Your credit score is a number based on a formula using the information in your credit report. The result is an accurate forecast of how likely you are to pay your bills.

Your Credit Score Considers Five Areas of Your Credit History.

As the video explains, your credit score is calculated using five major components, with varying levels of importance. These credit score factors, with their relative weights, are:

Payment history (35%)
Amount owed (30%)
Length of credit history (15%)
Credit mix (10%)
New credit (10%)

All of these categories are taken into account in your overall score. No one factor or incident determines it completely.

Why Credit Scores Are Important.

Credit scores are especially important if you are considering applying for any type of loan. If you’ve gotten a loan, a credit card, or even auto insurance, the rate you paid was directly related to your credit score.

The higher the score, the better you look to lenders.

People with the highest scores get the lowest interest rates.

Credit Score or Fico Scores?

Your credit score communicates the idea of “risk.” That’s because credit scores are used by lenders to determine the risk involved in doing business with a borrower.

Credit scores look at the information that can predict your future behavior.

If you’ve been paying your bills on time for the past 25 years, you’re likely a low-risk person to lend to. In contrast, imagine you got your first credit card two years ago and have had four late payments during that time. Your balance on the card is at the credit limit. You have applied for new credit four times in the last six months. Based on these facts, you will have a lower score and are considered a higher risk.

Credit scores can and do change. Often, a negative item on a credit report can result in a quick and sudden decrease in the score. However, improving a credit score usually takes time and patience. There is no “quick fix” for damaged credit.

Here's How To Improve Your Credit Score.

1. Be Punctual With Payments.

Paying your bills on time is the biggest single factor used to calculate your credit score. Late payments, past due accounts, and accounts in collections have a negative impact on your credit. Always aim for consistent, timely payment (even it’s the minimum amount). Punctuality pays off: a positive payment history across 18 months or longer increases the likelihood that you’ll receive more favorable loan terms from lenders.

If you’re falling behind, be proactive in your financial planning. Create a realistic monthly budget that accounts for bills and everyday expenses like gas and groceries. Struggling to keep track of multiple bills? Consider automation. Automated payments can minimize late fees. If you know you will miss a due date, call your credit card company or lender. They may be able to help by moving your due date out.

2. Pay Down Your Debt.

How much you owe is another big factor when it comes to credit score calculation. If you have a large amount of debt or are carrying balances on credit accounts for extended periods of time, it can negatively affect your score.

Make it a goal to pay down your debt. Take inventory of any categories where you can reduce non-essential spending so that you pay a little extra on your credit accounts. A credit counselor can walk you through different options for dealing with debt and may be able to help you pay it off more quickly.

3. Don't Max Out Your Credit Limit.

The amount of credit you use (also called credit utilization) also affects your score. Our financial counselors suggest using less than 30 to 40% of your available credit. Spending above that threshold or carrying high balances relative to your credit limit will cause your score to fall. If you are using more of your credit limit than you would like, consider making adjustments in your budget and spending choices to reduce your overall reliance on credit.

Keep in mind that regularly utilizing small amounts of credit (and paying it off) will increase your score. People without established credit history typically receive lower credit scores.

4. Maintain Good Habits.

Your credit score is built on patterns over time, with an emphasis on more recent activity. Improving credit and rebuilding a credit score that has fallen will take some patience, but it can be done! Credit scores can and do change.

A history of timely payments and accounts that you have held for five years or longer have a positive effect on your credit score. Quickly opening multiple accounts, carrying high balances for a sustained period, or even closing unused accounts have a negative effect on your score.

Events like foreclosure and bankruptcy, while they serve an important purpose for those with severe debt, have a significant and lengthy impact on your credit score. (We are not lawyers, and this is not legal advice. If you are considering one of these options, we encourage you to consult a legal professional and to investigate other alternatives as well.)

5. Chat With A Credit Counselor.

While talking to a credit counselor won’t have a direct effect on your credit score, you can gain valuable insight and information. We will work with you to understand your financial situation, explore different options, and make a personalized plan. We can help you review and understand your credit report. If debt is preventing you from making progress, we can help you explore debt management plans and other options that can accelerate your path forward.

Free Credit Report Review

Now that you know how your credit score is calculated and the ways to improve it, speak with a GreenPath NFCC-certified credit counselor who can walk you through a free review of your credit report. They will explain how to read the report, how credit scoring works, and answer your questions.

Together we’ll make a plan for managing your credit score to support your goals.

Greenpath Financial Wellness

• By SafeAmerica Credit Union

Saving At Any Age — America Saves Week

Saving. Do you view it as an ongoing journey? Or do you consider saving as someplace you arrive at? At America Saves we are in the camp that saving is a habit, not a destination. And it’s a habit that can be formed at any age. Whether you are a parent trying to instill this habit in your children or you want to change your own saving behaviors, there are strategies that savers of all ages can develop.

Research tells us that children’s money habits are often formed by age seven so starting early to teach them about saving can have a huge impact. Many parents are accustomed to hearing frequent requests from their children about a toy, game, or piece of clothing that they “just have to have.” Sound familiar? Using these wants is a great way to help children learn to save.

Children can learn to set a saving goal and figure out how long it will take to save enough money for their goal. Create a fun system to track progress, provide regular encouragement, and use incentives such as matching funds. Talk about how it feels to see your money grow. And don’t forget to lead by example – show children how you are saving.

Saving at any age

You can also give children the opportunity to make some decisions about their money. Empowering children from a young age to make choices about money they earn or receive as gifts is a great way to build that confidence.

For young adults, as they begin to earn a regular and potentially higher income, a strong foundation begins with basic understanding of the difference between needs and wants. The America Saves Spending and Saving Tool is an easy-to-use resource that provides a clear view of your finances and can be insightful in identifying essential and discretionary spending. The system of automatic saving, especially through paychecks with split deposit, can set young adults on the path to a lifelong saving habit.

It can be hard to stay motivated when setting aside money for something in the future no matter what your age. It’s easy to focus on what you want in the moment — we don’t want to wait to purchase that expensive pair of sneakers. We want to take a trip in the next three months. Retirement is so far off that it feels OK to spend more of your current income right now and catch up later. In each of these scenarios, we aren’t thinking about our future selves, just who we are and what we want today.

Thinking of our future self – what we will want, what we will be doing, what we will believe – is one way we can develop a saving mindset. Asking questions about our future selves helps us create a vision for our future. For example, consider:

  • Where does your future self live?
  • What does a typical day look like for your future?
  • What hobbies does your future self enjoy?
  • How much money does your future self earn?

Later go back and read your answers to see how they compare to the present. Having the ability to look ahead, even if it’s a short time in the future, is a great way to reinforce saving today for tomorrow. This exercise can be done at any age, even with children.

Journeys can take us on many different paths and saving journeys are no different. So stay with America Saves as you and your family embark on a new journey or resume one that encountered a detour. It’s never too late to #ThinkLikeASaver.

SafeAmerica Credit Union is here to help you on your savings journey. Check out all the Savings opportunities we have to offer.

Savings accounts

• By SafeAmerica Credit Union

Paying Down Debt Is Saving — America Saves Week 2023

Making the decision to pay down debt, particularly consumer debt, can be mixed with emotion. You feel good about choosing to take concrete steps to pay off balances on credit cards, auto loans, student loans or other installment loans. On the other hand, you feel less positive about the amount of money you are directing into a savings account. Well, we’re here to show you how reducing debt is a form of saving, to give you strategies for the best way to do so that align with your personal situation, and to boost your financial confidence to keep you working toward your goals.

As you pay off your debt you are freeing up money, allowing you to direct those funds toward saving for something else that’s important to you – perhaps an emergency/opportunity fund, a vacation, home purchase, or retirement. This money is freed up as you spend less on interest, and possibly late fees, and lowering the debt balances themselves.

If you have more than one debt you want to pay off, for example an auto loan and a credit card balance, there are two main strategies to help you decide which debt to pay off first.

  • The snowball method focuses on the balances of each loan. In this strategy, you make the minimum payment on all your loans except the one with the smallest balance. With this loan, you put as much money as you can toward it and when it is completely reduced you allocate that money to the next smallest balance. Your confidence gets a boost every time you see an account balance at zero.
  • The avalanche method focuses on the interest rates of each loan. In this strategy, you pay the minimum payment on all your loans except the one with the highest interest rate. You apply any remaining money you have for debt repayment to the highest interest rate loan. By paying off the debt with the highest interest rate first you reduce the overall amount of interest you must pay.

You choose which method is right for you and your situation.

Once you are on a path to reducing your debt, reflect on the type of relationship you have with credit. Credit is a tool. When used wisely and with purpose, credit can help you achieve your financial goals and build financial confidence. Having a clear view on when and for what purpose you use credit is the foundation for a positive relationship.

Sometimes we’re told that there are good types of debt (home mortgage) and bad debt (credit cards). This type of categorization is based only on the financial aspect and not the personal situation you are dealing with. It may feel better to ask yourself if the type of debt you are taking on is a good decision for you or not.

For example, when an emergency expense crops up and it is large enough that it will deplete all or nearly all of your emergency savings, you may feel like you’re on shaky ground if another expense crops up before you can replenish your savings. So, you may weigh this option against using a combination of savings and credit based on what feels best for you in the situation.

Making purposeful choices about credit, something that you plan for financially and mentally, can help you build more financial confidence.

You can use the America Saves Spending and Saving Tool to calculate how much you have available for debt repayment, take the America Saves Pledge to make a plan for this repayment, or listen to the ThinkLikeASaver Podcast for even more tips.

SafeAmerica Credit Union is here to help you on your saving journey. Check out all the Savings opportunities we have to offer.

Savings Accounts

• By SafeAmerica Credit Union

Saving For Major Milestones – America Saves Week 2023

What do homes, education, and retirement all have in common? They are major life milestones that require advance planning and saving large amounts of money. That amount of advance planning and money saved that is needed may make you doubt your ability to reach these goals. Even if you don’t feel that way today, you may have in the past or may in the future.

The good news is that there are ways to plan and save for these major milestones in a way that aligns with your values and current life situation and still sets you up for success. Keep in mind:

  • Whenever you have more than one goal that you are working on at the same time, it’s important to prioritize them. Yes, you can save for retirement and education or retirement and home ownership at the same time. You just may need to allocate a greater percentage of your available money to save more for one goal over another.
  • You get to decide which goal is the most important to you right now and you can use that decision to guide your plans. And this can change over time.
  • When tough times happen, and they will at some point, it’s OK to set aside some saving goals. If you lose your job, you may need to forgo continuing to save for your retirement and child’s education until you find a new job.
  • Do your research. Having the right information for your personal circumstances can help you more confidently plan and execute that plan.

saving for major milestones

  • With retirement you want to understand what savings vehicles you have access to through your employer before seeking resources for individual accounts. You also want to have a reliable calculation for the money you need saved and what the best investment options are for you.
  • With home purchases it’s important to have an idea of the type of house you want and in what area so you can research prices. You also want to know your credit score to understand what types of mortgage rates you can qualify for.
  • When saving for education, 529 College Saving Plans are one of the best options available as the money grows tax free and is not taxed when withdrawn if it is used for qualified expenses.
  • With any of these goals, utilize automatic saving vehicles wherever possible. Typically, employer defined contribution retirement plans use automatic deductions from your paycheck. You can also direct an investment company or your financial institution to set aside money each month for retirement, home down payment or education accounts.

With all these goals, while the sooner you can start saving for them the less you will have to save each month, recognize that your situation will determine when you are able to start saving. Delaying when saving for education may mean you need to take out more in loans. Delaying saving for home ownership or retirement may mean you have to wait longer to buy a house or work longer before you retire. These are your choices to make.

Confidence comes with knowing you have done your research, consulted with professionals, examined your current situation, made some predictions for future saving opportunities, and recognized that as life unfolds you can adjust your plans.

SafeAmerica Credit Union is here to help you on your savings journey. Check out all the Savings opportunities we have to offer.

Savings accounts

• By SafeAmerica Credit Union

Saving For The Unexpected – America Saves Week 2023

How often have you heard that saving for life’s unexpected events is very important and a necessary part of being financially prepared? Most likely A LOT! Accompanying this message often is the statement that you need three to six months of expenses in your emergency savings account.

Saving for the unexpected

For those of us who struggle with saving for the unexpected or are saving but don’t have that three to six months amount accumulated, our confidence might be shaken because we haven’t met this standard. And when we lack confidence, it can be even harder to get or stay motivated to save for those unexpected events or opportunities that arise.

Instead of focusing on what you haven’t accomplished, here are a few strategies to consider that may help you build your financial confidence and begin or continue on your path to saving for the unexpected.

  • Set a goal of saving $500 for emergencies and once you reach this amount, set a new goal for another $500 and keep going. Reaching several smaller goals feels good and when we feel good, we’re more likely to remain committed to our plan.
  • If you’re not sure exactly how much you can realistically save each month, try using the America Saves Spending and Saving Tool to get a clear view of your finances. Once you know exactly what your income and expenses are you will be able to set a realistic timeframe for saving that first $500 or beyond.
  • Consistency can help build confidence. Saving automatically every time you get paid is the easiest way to be a consistent saver and consistency builds confidence. You can set up split deposit saving with your employer or your financial institution so that a portion of every paycheck goes directly into a dedicated savings account. When you are saving $10, $20 or some other amount every paycheck you will see regular progress, building your confidence along the way.
  • Instead of only focusing on the negative reasons for having an emergency savings account, think of it as saving for opportunities. Framing the reason you are saving in a more positive light may help you feel better about setting money aside. Not only are you saving to pay for car repairs, home expenses, or medical bills, tell yourself you are saving for an unplanned dinner out to celebrate a friend’s birthday or the chance to go see your favorite artist in concert. Those positive feelings can be motivating.
  • Use the three to six months of expenses in a savings account as a guideline. Try not to become discouraged if you haven’t met this level. Instead, focus on what makes the most sense for you at this time, knowing that as your income grows and/or expenses decrease your ability to save more and more quickly will change.

America Saves is here to help you get started on any of these strategies. Check out the 6 Steps to Establishing a Spending and Savings plan, take the America Saves Pledge, or listen to our Think Like A Saver podcast. We’re with you every step of the way on your savings journey.

SafeAmerica Credit Union is here to help you on your saving journey. Check out all the Savings opportunities we have to offer.

Savings Accounts
Translate »