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Read These Articles on Personal Financing

Personal Finances 2 min read

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Knowing your finances is the first step to properly managing them and to ensuring you are in good financial standing. But how do you get started?

Reading personal financing articles can be a huge help when it comes to understanding financial management. That is why First Bank offers a Financial Education Center full of articles with advice on everything from buying your first home to making your first investment.

Personal Financing Articles

Check out the following articles on managing your personal finances:

Articles on Buying a Home

Saving Money

Investing

When browsing personal financing articles, remember that your financial situation is unique. You should always discuss your financial and investment opportunities with an experienced banking professional before making significant financial decisions.

First Bank* is a local community bank with banking professionals who can help you make sound decisions. Contact your local branch for personal financing advice today.

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What to Know About Joint Checking Accounts Some of the biggest causes of stress in a relationship stem from finances. If you’re considering opening a joint checking account, there are some things you should know. Here are some common questions surrounding this type of bank account. Managing a Joint Checking Account Questions about joint checking accounts often include: Q: What exactly is a joint checking account? A: A joint account is a checking account shared by more than one person. Each person on the account may add, withdraw or transfer money and has access to account records. Q: Who uses joint checking accounts? A: Joint checking accounts are common among married couples. Adults also sometimes share a joint checking account with an elderly parent or adolescent child as a way of monitoring and managing expenses. Q: What are the advantages of opening one? A: Bills and expenses become easier to manage as the two people involved no longer have to determine “their share” of a utility bill, groceries, rent, mortgage or any other expense. With a joint account, any money spent is coming out of the same pile. Because the income from both parties is combined, the balance on a joint checking account will be higher than it would be for two individual accounts. This increased balance creates less likelihood that checks will bounce and can keep account fees to a minimum. A joint checking account provides greater transparency of all the finances involved in the relationship and harbors trust and communication. Q: What should we be careful about? A: A joint checking account doesn’t offer any financial privacy between partners, as both parties are able to see every transaction that occurs. Additionally, either person has the ability to take all of the money from the account without consulting the other, which can be a problem if a relationship sours. Checking Accounts at First Bank* Whether you’re considering a joint account or separate bank accounts, First Bank can help. We have a number of checking accounts designed for different needs that can put you and your partner on your way to financial happiness. Source: Investopedia: http://www.investopedia.com/articles/pf/09/marriage-killing-money-issues.asp 2 min read
How Much Should You Have In Savings at Age 25? If you’re wondering how much you should have in savings by the time you’re 25, you’re already on the right track. At an age where financial independence becomes increasingly more important, how much you can save depends on a number of factors, including income and debt. Savings at Age 25 Many experts agree that most young adults in their 20s should allocate 10% of their income to savings. One of the worst pitfalls for young adults is to push off saving money until they’re older. If you begin at 10% and find that you still have money left over by the time you receive your next paycheck, you may be able to comfortably increase the amount you’re saving per month. You should also consider saving for retirement. CNN Money offers retirement savings suggestions based on your income level: Income Amount Saved Per Year $40,000 $4,000 $65,000 $6,500 $90,000 $9,000 $115,000 $11,500 Financial Goals to Make Saving Easier As nice as saving 10% may sound, there are other factors that can impact to how much you may actually be able to save, including necessary expenses and debt. Here are some milestones that can help you save money each month and help your credit and future purchases: Pay off auto loans, credit card debts and other consumer debts as soon as possible. This does not include student loans and mortgages. You’ll want to focus on the higher interest debt first. Save three months’ worth of living expenses in case of job loss or emergencies. This will allow you to create an emergency fund in case you encounter unexpected financial hardships. Start investing your money in stocks, real estate or bonds. One of the easiest ways to do this is to take advantage of a 401(k) or other retirement fund offered by your employer. Often, employers will match your contribution, so this is a good way to maximize your investment and make it grow quickly. Visit a First Bank Location Today Regardless of your age, it’s important to make savings a priority. If you’re in your 20s and getting started, it can help to have some professional advice. To learn more, turn to the financial advisors at your local First Bank.* We help 3 min read
Cropped shot of a businesswoman sitting alone and typing on her laptop during the day at home Learn the Cybercrime Warning Signs The number of cybercrimes continues to increase day by day. This can sometimes make it hard for you to completely protect yourself from these threats. But the more you know about these scams, the better chance you’ll have at identifying and avoiding them. What is a cybercrime? Cybercriminals aim to exploit your information for their own personal gain, causing harm to financial stability and exposing secure information. Cybercrimes are those criminal activities where a computer or the internet is used as a tool for fraudulent claims, to gain personal or business information, or to infect networks and devices. *First Bank will always take the appropriate measures to keep your personal information safe. In this article, we have outlined some common cyber scams, so that you can understand what to look out for. Some common scams/fraud includes: Phishing Email Scams Perhaps the most common type of scam is phishing, usually done via email and designed to look like they are coming from someone at your company, someone you know, or a notable figure. Because these emails look like they can come from anyone, it is easy to be caught in this form of scam. It may be hard to fully protect yourself from them, but it is always best to double check who is requesting your information. Payroll Scams In Protecting Against Fraud from Nacha, a payroll scam is when, “fraudsters target individual employees by directing the employees to update or confirm their payroll information via a fake payroll platform that spoofs their employer’s actual payroll platform. In some cases, the fraudster may claim the employee must do one of these: view a confidential email from human resources or the payroll department, view changes to the employee’s account, or confirm that the account should not be deleted.” Cybercriminals will use the stolen credentials to change payment information within the business’s payment platform. This type of scam can be extremely dangerous to an individual and a company because it exposes both user and business information. Romance Scams According to fbi.gov, romance scams, or online dating scams, “occur when a criminal adopts a fake online identity to gain a victim’s affection and trust. The scammer then uses the illusion of a romantic or 7 min read
Image for tile. Learn How to Be A Phishing Attack Detective With a number of people relying heavily on online services and communication for work and personal life, cybercriminals have increased their volume of attempts to acquire personal information. One of the most common ways they may try to gain access to this secure information is through phishing attacks. This causes problems for both individuals and companies when they are trying to keep information safe. What is phishing? As described by phishing.org, “Phishing is a cybercrime in which a target or targets are contacted by email, telephone or text message by someone posing as a legitimate institution to lure individuals into providing sensitive data such as personally identifiable information, banking and credit card details, and passwords. The information is then used to access important accounts and can result in identity theft and financial loss.” These attempts may look like someone posing as a coworker, asking for input, including links or attachments, among other things. Scammers attempt to gain access to user information every day, but when you know what to look for you don’t have to become a victim. Take a look at our playlist for a few tips to help you become a phishing email detective and use them in your everyday life. It is always a good idea to double check information before opening anything from unknown senders. In episode 1, you see Gil Ubble attempting to open an email from an external source. Upon further investigation, the domain name does not match and the email is not from someone at the company. Often times people are caught in these attacks because they aren’t paying close enough attention to who the email came from. If the email in question looks similar to something that provider would send, do not click on links or attachments. Instead, go directly to that company site or give them a call to make sure the information is accurate. If the email comes from someone who seems to work at your company, but you do not know the person, check to see if they actually work there. Even if the person’s email shows that they work at your company, check the email for other signs of false information. Scammers may go to extra lengths to spoof email addresses 4 min read
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