Your April Innovative Connections

April 2016

Greetings!,

April is Financial Capability month. Financial Capability month focuses on effective approaches to boosting financial awareness for all. Financial insecurity is an issue that affects many people in America. With the right resources, tools and guidance, every family has the ability to save and build assets and create a more prosperous future. One way you could start your financial awareness education is to listen to podcasts or read online articles. There are many resources and we have a few here.

Credit Tip of the Month

Did you know that if you take out a loan jointly with a spouse or partner, payments are reported to both of your credit files? Joint loans are reported to each of your credit reports, which can be a great benefit! However, it also means that if one of you is unable to pay, the other will be responsible for payment, and any delinquent payments will be reported to both files. Consider the tradeoffs and ask your lender about joint loans or credit cards!

Review: Money Girl: Quick and Dirty Tips for a Richer Life

By Rachel Stein

Looking for some short and sweet pointers on all aspects of money and personal finance? Money Girl is a rich resource for ideas on a diverse range of topics, and it's not just for women. There is something for everyone; episodes range from quick tips on avoiding spending leaks, to building and repairing credit, to pet insurance, to taxes, to investing in real estate or planning for retirement. One of the most recent episodes, Avoid 7 Spending Mistakes and Save More Money, covers strategies for saving when shopping online, avoiding unnecessary temptation, and investments, all in just 22 minutes - and that's one of the longer episodes.

Money Girl is hosted by author Laura Adams, who has written several books on money and savings. There are good and bad sides to her expertise. Her experience writing and researching mean she has great tips and an approachable, clear way of explaining them. However, like any free podcast, there are ads, some sneakier than others. If you listen to a lot of podcasts, you will already be familiar with the common SquareSpace ads, and you probably already ignore them. But sometimes the advertising sneaks in quieter ways, such as when Laura tells you about a great deal she arranged for her podcast listeners, and all you have to do is go sign up for some offer or service.

As with any podcast or publication, remember that you can pick and choose tips based on your own lifestyle and personal experience - for example, if you are struggling to pay debt, you are probably not in a position to be investing in the stock market right now. But with over 400 episodes available, you are sure to find some new and helpful information on Money Girl. Subscribe for free on iTunes or your podcast software of choice, or listen to all the episodes on http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/money-girl

Personal Finance Forums

By Stephanie Sampedro

Do you have questions about your finances and don't know where to get a reliable answer? Innovative Changes is always a resource for you, but if you want to continue reading about other strategies for saving, investing, and credit card options here are a couple of resources on the web that help us at IC$ keep up to date.

Your Money and Your Life via NPR

Your Money and Your Life is a Facebook group that NPR started as an "online community for anyone who wants to start saving, save more or make better investment and personal finance decisions". You must have or create a Facebook account and request to join this group. There are over 14,300 members in the group that post questions, strategies for saving and investing, and useful articles from the web. It is an informal learning and sharing community facilitated by journalist Chris Arnold of NPR Boston. He has recently directed his reporting on financial challenges facing millions of working and middle class Americans during our economic recovery. NPR has been running a special series (also called Your Money and Your Life) which he has been overseeing. You can check out their reporting for articles on new families and finances, money and relationships, how to be your own boss, strategies for dealing with student debt, and more. Both of these are a great resource for up to date information on how the world of personal finance is changing and affecting our lives.

Personal finance on Reddit

If you are not familiar with Reddit the online community that dubs itself the front page of the internet, there is one group that you should join - r/personalfinance. I became a follower of r/personalfinance when I saw a post about a "hack" that turns boredom into savings. When the author of the post got the urge to "boredom" spend, he opens his bank app and transfers the amount of money that he was going to spend, into his savings account. So instead of boredom buying a $4 latte at Starbucks, he transfers $4 into his savings account. In the first month of doing this he saved $150! Learn about apps and techniques that people use to save, budget, and invest. If you have a question about your own financial situation or a financial offer you are considering - share it here and get some feedback. The Reddit community is there to help you think through your financial choices.

Harriet Tubman to be featured on the $20 bill!

Wednesday April 20th, Treasury Secretary Jacob J. Lew announced that Harriet Tubman would replace Jackson on the front of the $20 bill. It has been more than a century since a woman was on a paper note and she will become the first African American to be featured. Now when you are trying to resist your boredom spending, you can ask yourself "What would Harriet do?"

Innovative Changes fundraiser approaching. Get tickets here.