If you’ve ever tried to cook a meal in someone else’s kitchen, you know that so much of your success depends on having the right tools at hand. If you don’t have the equipment you need, doing anything becomes more difficult and more frustrating, discouraging many of us from even making the attempt. The same is true of managing your finances: managing your money becomes significantly easier to do when you have the tools you need.

That’s why we at Salal CU have taken care to supply you with the right tools and with the information you need to use those tools effectively. As we discover new resources to share and hear from members what they need, we continue to add more to our website. If you have a moment, I’d like to take you on a tour of what Salalcu.org has to offer:

Debt in Focus: Salal CU subscribes to this money management program so that we can offer it free to our members and the public. You’ll read more about how to take a “snapshot” of your current financial situation later in this newsletter, but I highly recommend checking in with Debt in Focus several times a year, to assess your situation and your progress toward your financial goals.

BALANCE: This confidential financial-counseling service provides invaluable, personalized information. Our members are able to scheduled free one-on-one conversations with personal finance experts to get help on issues with debt, identity fraud, budgeting, etc., or for advice on the best way to proceed with obtaining a mortgage loan, planning for retirement or financing higher education.  It’s a great resource no matter what your financial situation. The site also offers a wealth (truly!) of worksheets, newsletters, handouts, and so forth that are free to anyone.

Calculators: There’s no such thing as “too much information,” as far as your money is concerned, so from Salal CU’s website, you can access a number of calculators to use in planning. Does it make more sense to buy a car or lease one? How much house can you comfortably afford? How much should you be saving now to have the retirement you want later? You can get answers to all these questions right from our website.

Let’s Get Fiscal’s Captain Safety Our blog contains a great deal of information on financial news and on your credit union, our events, products, etc., but one of my favorites is our own “Captain Safety.” Drew from our Compliance Department keeps close tabs on scams and posts alerts so we can all protect ourselves from identity thieves and other scammers.

Workshops: We frequently host free public workshops in our branches or in the workplaces of our Community Business Partner organizations on topics such as budgeting, debt, home buying and credit reports. If you’d like to find out more or schedule a workshop for your business, you can find more details on our website.

Did I mention that all of these resources are free, no strings attached? Sharing important information is a vital component of the credit union philosophy, and we want to make our information available to as many people as possible. Please take advantage of any or all of the resources on our website and blog, and if you know of another resource you’d like access to, I encourage you to share it with us at news@salalcu.org. We may be able to add your recommendation to our website or blog!

Filed under: President's Corner by admin