Does your young-adult student need a crash course in personal finance? A recent financial literacy survey by the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC) reveals that the majority of adults say they learned the most about personal finance from their parents. Should you give your student a personal finance crash course?
Basic Financial Knowledge Checklist
Parents: Compliments of the NFCC, here’s a checklist of basic knowledge that will benefit everyone managing his or her own money:
* Budgeting: Be clear with yourself and with your student about how much money is available for expenses. Help him create a workable monthly budget that balances income, loans, and gifts with anticipated expenses. This discipline is a skill that will pay benefits for a lifetime.
* Recording financial transactions: Show your student the importance of recording all transactions in a check register or monitoring online, tallying the running balance daily, and balancing financial statements every month. Tracking expenses might reveal some surprises (60% of your income is spent on dining out?) and provide opportunities to change direction.
Wise Use of Credit
* Using credit: Tell your student why it’s important to commit to paying each credit card bill in full and on time each month. By using credit wisely, she will be learning how to live within her means while creating a positive credit file that could help when buying a car, renting an apartment, obtaining insurance, and even landing a job.
* Getting financially organized: Help your student commit to keeping all financial records, bills, and bank statements in one location. This will help ensure that he will pay bills on time, avoid late fees, and keep an unblemished credit score.
* Recognizing the dangers of Identity theft: Discuss forms of identity theft, the kinds of personal information that need to be protected, and how to protect them—even, and especially, from friends and roommates. Discuss the pitfalls of careless, unprotected use of social media. Tell them about CardNav to protect their debit card from misuse.
Take Their Membership to College
Remember, too, that your departing young adult is still eligible for Mid Oregon Credit Union membership. Our low-cost, high-quality services will give any member a leg up on personal finances. The staff members at Mid Oregon are valuable resources.
