Investment & Credit

What are ways to invest your money? Before you invest → BUDGET your money! Checking Account: will need a SSN, ID, contact info, & a minimum deposit. Be aware of: fees, interest rates, check costs, check-writing restrictions, overdraft policies, & a minimum balance. May come with a debit card. Savings Account: offers low interest rate but is the safest form of investment, more difficult to reach than a checking account, low minimum balance required

What are ways to invest your money? Money Market Account: like a savings account, but with a higher interest rate, the ability to write a few checks/month, and a required minimum balance Certificate of Deposit: offers a set interest rate (usually higher) for a set time period, cannot touch money for a certain amount of time without penalties

Investing Your Money (cont.)… Bonds: loaning money to a corporation or the government, earns a specific amount of interest over a certain amount of time, good when you don’t need the money right away

Investing Your Money (cont.)… Stock Market: a stock is a share of a company; you can pay a price & sell it for a profit; can be dangerous but can make the most money Mutual Funds: a combination of the above funds, it diversifies your investment

Investing Your Money (Retirement) 10% of your pretax income should be for retirement 401 (K): offered through employer. You decide contribution, and employer puts money into individual account or invests it. Some companies match contributions. Pay taxes when you withdraw money.

Investing Your Money (Retirement) Roth 401 (K): pay the taxes on your contributions, but not your withdrawals; no required minimum withdrawals after you turn 70 ½ unlike traditional 401(k) 403 (b) : similar to 401(k) but offered to employees of government and tax-exempt groups, such as schools, hospitals and churches.

Credit: What is it? Credit is using someone else’s money (borrowing, charging, or getting a loan) Having a good credit history means lower interest rates & higher credit limits in the future

Credit: What is it? The “Three C’s of Credit”: 1.) Character, measured by your past record of paying bills on times 2.) Capacity, determined by whether you have steady employment with enough income to repay loans 3.) Capital, which includes money saved, investments, and property you own

How can I build my credit? Get a debit card and only use what you have in your account Get a store credit card, then pay everything back immediately and do not go over your limit

How can I build my credit? Take out a small loan (like a student loan) and pay it back on time Don’t check your credit score too often; this can often hurt your score

How do I check my credit score? Use myFico, Equifax, TransUnion, or Experian. TrueLink combines all three Check your score every year! Your credit score comes from four areas: Employment/ Income, Housing, Assets, & your Credit History. If there are mistakes, fix them immediately!

How do I check my credit score? Credit ranges from The average credit score is 629. The best scores are Cancelling a credit card may hurt your chances at another credit card if your credit score is not very good.