Money Wise Children
by Bryon Zirker
1.Start teaching your children now about money, the
sooner the better.
Children tend to develop a mentality that money grows
on trees. This kind of thinking can carry on into thier adult
years and have dire consequences on their financial lives.
Get them going on the road to handling money correctly now.
Most children at young ages do not understand the concept of
where and how money is made. They think that there is an
unlimited ability of their parents to buy what they (children)
want. Making the connection between work and collecting the
cash is a hard process to teach. It requires a more mature mind.
As far as a child is concerned money grows on trees.
2.When the child learns about the supply/demand life of money
they develop an instictive conservatism.
When children learn that the posession of money equals the
ability to buy things they desire they start to hoard all that
they can get their hands on. Channeling this behavior can
determine the financial management abilities the child will
possess later in life.
3. Plant financial seeds now for good financial fruit later.
Start your children early. Create some small jobs for them
and pay a salary each week. For example a child could feed
a pet twice a week or help with dinner twice a week. Pay
them each week, show them how to divide their income into
savings and spending. Open a bank account jointly with them
and help them make thier deposits.
4.Paying a salary is effective as a teaching tool.
By paying your children a salary for jobs they do enables
them to work at understanding the different aspects of
money management and the fact the money is earned.
5.When your children become teenagers and then enter
the college years they will have more responsibilities.
Teaching our young people about managing money may
help cut down the number of people who retire dead broke
and have to rely on social security for their income. If they
are allready saving and investing they are way ahead of
the game.
6. Start your children investing by opening CD accounts
and or investment account.
Help your children to learn how to invest their cash wisely.
Teach them about the markets and investing in them with
real money. The best way for them to learn is to apply what
you teach them immediately so they can see their money in
action. I would love to of had parents who were a little more
savvy with the principles of saving and growing money.
Budgets-Learn To Love Em!
By Bryon Zirker
1. Budgets are very necessary when funds are limited.
Budgets help you get a fix on your financial position. You can
see your spending trends much easier and can help you to see
where every dollar is being used.
2. Budget creation usually follows three steps.
Getting perspective on your spending now.
Spot current spending trends and apply goals to move your
toward your financial objectives. Set a tracking system to keep
you on target and stay withinyour set guidelines.
3. Software can save time and prevent headaches.
By using Microsoft Money or Quicken personal finance programs,
you build a budget with budget building tools. They streamline
the process.
4. Do not get frustrated.
Try not to get to caught up with all the options and details
when using computer software to create your budget. Identify
the areas you wish to focus on and discard the rest. Keep it as
simple as possible.
5.Keep an eye out for money holes.
ATM withdrawals can drain your account quickly. It is hard to
track where the cash went. Keep good records. Limit your trips
to the ATM and set an ATM budget limit.
6. Do not spend beyond what you earn.
This is crucial to your budget. Trend patterns from the US
government have shown that households with inomes of
$50,000 and less, spend more than they earn. This is a sign that a
serious look at spending is needed. and a budget put in place.
7.Luxuries must no become necessities.
Try to keep a good perspective of what is needed and what
you really want. Set your budget to cover what you need and allow
for future purchases of what you want.
8. Pay your self first.
Make sure to pay yourself 10 percent right up front and put it
away. This can be built for future investment or big ticket
items.
9. Never count on that money you have not recieved.
A gift, lottery win, insurance settlement, bonuses or tax
returns should never be projected it into your budget. Be sure
to wait unitl any of these monies are in hand or account.
10. Watch for and avoid spending creep.
when your income grows your spending tends to increase with it.
Avoid this situation by putting the extra money away. Use it to
add to your emergency fund or savings. This takes alot of
awareness and discipline.
Banking Basics
By Bryon Zirker
1. Putting your money in the bank is safe.
Banks are some of the safest places to put your cash and the
accounts insured to $100,000 per depositor by the Federal
Government.
2.The convenience of a bank account costs money.
Lower rates should be expected on interest bearing bank
accounts. The rates are mutch lower than securites accounts
that offer checking accounts and usually do not keep up with
inflation. Fees can easily be as much as $200 dollars per year
unless minimum balances are kept on deposit.
3. The main enemy of a bank account is inflation.
Even when inflation rates are at their lowest they are usually
higher than the interest earned in a typical bank account. The
increase in the cost of goods and services usually stays ahead
of what banks pay in interest.
4.Interest rates can be misleading.
Different methods for calculating interest rates are used by
banks. Make sure to use the "annual percentage yeild"
calculation for each account. The APY is calcualted the
same everywhere.
5. So you want better rates?
You can ask the bank about certificates of deposit (CDs). These
offer garanteed rates and are insured to $100,000. The downside
is that they require a minimim of three months up to five years
or more that the mony is locked in. If interest rates fall the
rate is garanteed. If interest rates rise above the CD rate
then the money is not using its full earning potential. Lastly
if you remove the money early there is usuall a penalty for
doing so.
6.Watch out for ATM fees that bite.
ATM machines are a nice convenience however the rates can vary
from $1 to $2. Keep an eye on these as they will no doubt
increase more. You could end up paying from $3 to $4 fora transaction
if your bank charges you and the ATM location charges you.
7. Interview different banks for the best deal.
Comparison shop different banks and ask about price breaks. A bank
may allow a discount if you maintain a certain deposit amount.
Free checking might require that you become a share
holder or use direct deposit for your paycheck.
8. Look for bank services on the internet.
Compare yeilds and fees on the internet. Find out minimum
deposits and requirments nationwide. Check CNN/Money in the
banking section. Use a search engine to find a bank by putting
the name in the search window.
9. Bill paying is much faster and easier online.
Paying your bills online is a very good way to save time and
headache of writing checks and licking stamps. When you combine
online banking with a good finance management program you will
have the ability to connect your budgeting and financial
planning with your banking.
10. What, bankless banking!
There are accounts offered by some financial institutions that
look like bank services. Credit Unions, brokerage cash-management
accounts and mutual fund company money market funds are the
most common.
