Learning how to save and manage money usually begins with an allowance.

Our friends at The Money Mammals® Kids Club™ know a thing or two about age-appropriate money-smart habits that actually work. When it comes to starting an allowance for your child, they recommend labelling three clear jars as Save, Share and Spend Smart.

 Explain the purpose of each jar to your kid, then give them the power to choose how to divvy up their dollars. Pretty straightforward, right?

 Let’s dive into why this works.

ALLOWANCE JAR 1: SAVE

The Save jar will be used for—you guessed it—saving up for big purchases. The key to success with this jar is introducing the SMART Goals framework.

You might be wondering, uh, what is that? It’s a helpful acronym to make sure you’re setting your child up for success when it comes to their savings goals. Goals should be…

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Relevant
• Time-Based

You can learn more about SMART Goals here.

ALLOWANCE JAR 2: SHARE

What matters most to your kiddo? UNcovering a cause they care about is crucial to helping them understand and prioritize giving back. Maybe it’s donating to a local animal shelter or contributing to the offering plate at church. Maybe they’re passionate about school fundraisers. Let them experience the feel-goods of giving back at a level that makes sense for their age and allowance amount.

Pro-tip: The rule of thumb is one dollar per your kiddo’s age every week. Got a five-year old? Their allowance is five bucks. A ten-year-old? Ten bucks. You get the idea. Whether or not this allowance is tied to chores, schoolwork or something else is your call.

ALLOWANCE JAR 3: SPEND SMART

The final jar is what’s left for small purchases—aka fun money. This will no doubt be your kid’s favorite jar because they can spend these funds any way they’d like. However, because it’s only a portion of their allowance, they’ll still need to think before buying anything because they know pulling from the other jars will affect their other goals. Boom, smart spending UNlocked.

Remember, allowances require a progress over perfection mindset. Your kid isn’t going to be making money moves like an investment banker. Managing a budget can be difficult for even the most responsible adults, so the fact that your family is making the extra effort to teach your kids about money is a HUGE win.

We’re proud to offer additional guidance and resources for families raising money-smart kids through our youth savings program.

• The Money Mammals ® Kids Club™ is designed for parents and kids 12 and under
• ADOLESCENT$ helps parents connect with tweens and teens

 Swing into Savings!

Available for ages 12 & under

There are several benefits to opening a Money Mammals Kids Club account at Community Choice. The Money Mammals Kids Club provides a safe, fun and interactive way to learn how to save and manage money!

Benefits include:

• • 0.15% APY*
  • Access to educational apps, games, videos and more
  • Regularly refreshed content, including engaging newsletters and printables
  • Guiding tools for parents

($5.00 minimum deposit required to open the account.)

Meet the Money Mammals!

Joe the Monkey, leader of the Money Mammals, is always swinging into savings with his helpful tips and fun attitude. Plus, he’s got three great friends to help! Meet Piggs the Bank, Marmoset the Monkey, and Clara J. Camel. These Money Mammals are on a mission to help your children learn smart money habits!

It’s never too early to start learning about saving money. The Money Mammals engage and educate kids with games, books, videos and more to promote money-smart skills. Learning is made easy and fun with their custom-made programs that are designed and suited to children’s needs.

It’s also never too late to start learning about saving money. That’s why Money Mammals isn’t just for kids! Check out their personalized content for parents, tweens/teens, teachers and more. The Money Mammals approach is a comprehensive experience to teach everyone better financial habits.

This blog is intended for educational purposes only. For details about specific products or services, see credit union for details. For questions about investments, please consult your financial advisor.

UNexpected times call for a fund that always has your back!

  Become a Savings Boss

Do you feel prepared for those UNexpected obstacles that life likes to throw at you? Imagine this: it’s the middle of Iowa’s blistering cold winter, and just when you need it most, your furnace decides to call it quits. When life happens, don’t kick yourself for not being prepared. An emergency fund is a friend indeed when you’re in need!

    Your Financial Superhero

For life’s UNexpected plot twists, like UNexpected home repairs, and UNforeseen vet visits when your dog eats your favorite pair of socks, an emergency fund is your financial superhero, there to swoop in and save the day.

It’s all about being ready to rock when the hard times roll.  Thoroughly planning your monthly budget prepares you for the curveballs that come out of nowhere! Your emergency fund bestie’s got your back for those surprises you never see coming.

It Just Takes a Little Preppin’

Never dive head first. Begin with as much moola as you deem fit when starting your fund; just don’t force more than you can afford and leave yourself UNprepared for your monthly bills and expenses. The slow build of your emergency fund might feel daunting at first, but it’s a step towards your goal of being ready for anything life throws at you! Once you’ve gathered the first portion of your fund, start to beef it up. 💪 Aim to save for a couple months’ worth of expenses. After you’ve saved your goal amount, continue building your fund and increasing your goal, small steps at a time. Your savings possibilities are UNlimited. 

Secret Saving Hack

By now, you could consider yourself a savvy saver! Here’s the secret sauce to building that emergency fund like a boss: Keep the money you want set aside out of sight (and out of mind) by making it do a little dance 💃 straight from your paycheck into your savings account, all on its own by divvying up your direct deposit. Your new savings will make you feel so good, you’ll be doing the electric slide and patting yourself on the back for having a solid emergency fund. Who said saving money couldn’t be fun?

Here are some steps to get you started:

• Set an initial goal you want to reach (example: $1,000).
• Identify how much you need to set aside from your paycheck each month to reach that initial goal.
• Once you’ve reached your first savings goal, focus on growth!
• A good rule of thumb for a fully funded emergency fund is 3-6 months’ worth of expenses.
• Once this goal is reached, continue saving to your heart’s content!

If you’re already starting to think of ways to build your emergency fund, consider moving it over to Community Choice where you can create customizable Savings Accounts! Easily move your money where it needs to be, including your emergency fund.

This blog is intended for educational purposes only. For details about specific products or services, see credit union for details. For questions about investments, please consult your financial advisor.

Go Dutch! (Split the Check)

How?

Splitting up your paycheck is easy peasy, as long as your employer offers the ability to do so (many do). To double check, just ask your payroll department or sign into your account on your payroll provider’s website.

If your employer doesn’t allow you to split it, one hack is to set up recurring transfers from checking to savings automatically through your bank (or UNbank 😉)! If your employer does allow you to split your direct deposit: you’re golden. The possibilities for your money are endless!

Why?

One popular reason for divvying up your direct deposit is budgeting. For instance, does it seem like toward the end of a paycheck, you never have quite enough for groceries or gas? Or you’re dipping into savings? Try making a separate account for those expenses to prioritize them over other spending! Then allocate money from your direct deposit to go straight to that account.

Or perhaps you’re a Type A personality who loves organization! Splitting up your check can help you stay organized and track your different savings—such as a vacation fund, holiday shopping money, wedding savings, etc. Divvying up your direct deposit is perfect for helping you stay on track toward your financial goals.

Mo’ Planning, Mo’ Money

Not only can splitting your check help with budgeting, it can also earn you money! One way to do this is to split part of your direct deposit from your paycheck into a high-yield savings account or an investment account. If it’s money you know you’re not going to touch for awhile anyway, you might as well make the most of it while it’s sitting in your bank account!

Bonus perk: Once you start seeing the interest you earn in these types of savings accounts, you’ll be less tempted to spend it.

A Little Goes a Long Way

You may think dedicating, say, $20 bucks a paycheck to a separate savings account isn’t worth it… but think about all those paychecks added up. By the end of one whole year, you could have over $500 tucked away! Did you know: According to a study by the Federal Reserve in 2022, about 32% of U.S. households could not afford to pay for a $400 emergency with cash. You could be in that 68% just by divvying up your direct deposit!

Bonus UNbanking Perks

If you’re already starting to think of ways to rework your direct deposit, why not move it over to Community Choice for even more perks & benefits? Community Choice offers discounts on certain loans when you have your direct deposit set up with us!

Move your direct deposit today and start using all this information you just learned to make your money work for you!

This blog is intended for educational purposes only. For details about specific products or services, see credit union for details. For questions about investments, please consult your financial advisor.

Credit Score Origin Story

First of all, credit scores are younger than you may think. They were first introduced at the tail-end of the 80s, right before the boom of Beanie Babies and boy bands.

This first type of credit score debuted in 1989 and is known as the FICO score. While it may sound like the name of a dog, FICO stands for Fair Isaac Corporation. This was the only type of score for almost two decades!

The Two Types of Credit Scores

There are now two types of credit scores used today: FICO and VantageScore. In 2006, the trifecta of credit reporting agencies—TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian—joined forces to create VantageScore. But what’s the difference between the two?

In 2017, VantageScore introduced something called “trended credit data.” This is when a credit score reflects changes in someone’s credit behaviors over time. Credit utilization, which plays a role in trended credit data, is the amount of credit you use with your credit card compared to the amount of total credit available to you. Using data like credit utilization can help someone who has been working to pay off credit card debt over time.

Meanwhile, FICO only takes your most recent credit utilization rate into account. So, someone who has made progress in paying off debt could potentially have a better credit score with VantageScore than FICO.

How to Improve Your Credit Scores

Looking to improve your credit scores? Do these things consistently:

• Always pay your bills on time whenever possible.
• Use 30% or less of the credit available to you.
• Don’t apply for credit cards you don’t need.
• Don’t close older accounts, unless they are charging high fees. If that’s the case, contact the company to see if you can switch to a no-fee card with the same lender.
• Check your credit reports every few months to make sure there are no errors that could be dragging down your scores.

Want to Know More?

SavvyMoney is a tool used for viewing real-time financial data. Easily see your credit scores and learn more about them as they change over time. If you UNbank with Community Choice, SavvyMoney is right there waiting for you in our online banking website and mobile app!

This blog is intended for educational purposes only. For details about specific products or services, see credit union for details. For questions about investments, please consult your financial advisor.