Category: Personal Finances

Money Magic Tricks

Money Management

Magic is one type of entertainment that will never go out of style. Whether it’s David Blaine and his shocking stunts, or newly famous films such as Now You See Me, this classic art has proved to truly stand the test of time. While Peoples Bank & Trust may not be the best at sleight of hand, we do have a few savings tricks up our sleeves! See if you can understand the steps to these financial stunts and make your fiscal success appear out of thin air.

Make your money disappear (into your savings!)

Before you’re tempted to spend those hard earned dollars, we’ll show you how to make them vanish, and then reappear! By logging into your online banking, you can set-up recurring monthly transfers for a set amount from your checking to your savings. This way, your funds will get tucked away before you even knew they were there! The extra money saved can contribute to your retirement, education, or even an exciting getaway.

Cut your debt in two.

Tired of paying pesky credit card debt, a mortgage, or student loans? This helpful hack can show you how to saw that number in half, and potentially make it disappear. Financial talk show host Dave Ramsey has a proven method called Snowballing Your Debt. By continuing your monthly minimum payments, and using extra funds to “attack” one debt at a time, you can then rollover extra money from the fully paid loans into paying off the next biggest debt and then the next. Before you know it you’ll be debt free, and looking for another financial trick to master!

See double dollars on your retirement plan.

If you’re like most Americans and need to play a little catch-up on your personal retirement savings, this trick is sure to impress! To really maximize your saved dollars, we recommend diversifying your retirement accounts, by allowing one to be maintained by your employer (401k) and creating a separate account for you to contribute to on your own (IRA.) By automatically withdrawing money from your paycheck through your 401k, you can potentially invest MORE while having it managed through your employer. In addition to this, creating a dedicated IRA to store personal savings dollars in allows you to explicitly manage the growth of your continued contributions. Know what’s better than one retirement savings account? Two!

Pull extra money out of a hat.

Just like magicians, a good budget can help you find things you never knew were there – like money! Whether you’re using traditional methods like the envelope system, or more digital options like the YNAB, the end goal is still the same. To help you save even faster, you can couple your budget with additional savings tips and tricks on common recurring expenditures such as groceries, and you’ll see the savings in no time!

Peoples Bank & Trust Co.

Member FDIC

Equal Housing Lender

Why Your Child’s Allowance Should be Tied to Their Chores

Financial Education

There are literally thousands of how-to’s and self-help books for parents, but truly the only real way to learn how to raise a child is to do it! Luckily our growing team of parents at Peoples Bank & Trust have some true hands-on experience when it comes to upbringing and explaining money management to little ones.

One of the most common fiscal questions parents have concerning their child’s financial education is, “How do I teach them about money using an allowance.” The simple answer is, however you want. There are a number of ways you can utilize a recurring allowance to help your children understand both the importance of good money management and a sound work ethic. Below are two of our favorite strategies:

Example #1: Earn Your Extras

In this scenario, allowances are guaranteed to an extent. Every two weeks give your child a pre-determined amount of cash, say $5.00. That money then has to be split evenly between their educational savings and their retirement savings (yes – retirement savings!) While this money is technically theirs for future use, they have no tangible money to immediately spend. Where the fun part comes in, is the commission. Assign a small dollar value to various tasks around the house. Ensure things like making their bed, or doing their homework are givens, and they are required to do them no matter what. However, extra work such as mowing the lawn, cleaning the bathroom, or cooking dinner, earn a predetermined amount of commission. Paid every two weeks, this commission is then theirs to split between three areas: save, spend, and donate, but they MUST allocate at least $0.50 in each area. This lesson teaches three primary lessons: the first is housework is a part of everyday life and it doesn’t come with a paycheck. The second lesson is that working hard pays off, and the third is that creating a plan or budget for your money allows you to use it as a tool instead of using debt as a burden.

Example #2: Ambition Is Important

There is a viral story trending about a young boy whose allowance was determined by how many self-help books he read and wrote a report on. This simple lesson offers many variations and proves an important point on the dedication to values at a young age. For this example, there is no guaranteed allowance on a weekly or monthly basis. In this scenario, all funds are accumulated via commission. How that commission is earned is determined by you. This can be the number of extra assignments completed or the amount of successfully replicated YouTube tutorials. It could even be the quantity of miles your child is dedicated to running each week. Through this valuable learning experience, you can showcase to them that a solid work ethic is pinnacle to success, and can at times even out earn an education.

However you decide to help your children understand the complexities of personal finance, Peoples Bank & Trust is here to support you. Stop in today, and ask about our designated children’s savings accounts. We’d love to help your family get started on their journey to financial success.

Peoples Bank & Trust Co.

Member FDIC

Equal Housing Lender

The Best Advice from Today’s Entrepreneurs

Small Business

Sometimes finding the perfect idea for a new business can be easier said than done. Often you start by asking yourself a series of questions. Where is there a need? What can be created more efficiently? How can I solve a recurring problem? These are all great prompts to help you when looking for a concept your new business. To help inspire your next venture, Peoples Bank & Trust would like to share some of our favorite quotes from several of today’s most influential entrepreneurs.

“Don’t quit, and don’t give up. The reward is just around the corner.” – Chip Gaines, HGTV’s Fixer Upper.

While Chip may add some much-loved humor to HGTV’s Fixer Upper, his ambition and work ethic are what help him and his wife Joanna, continue to succeed in both their real estate and retail ventures. This dynamic duo also proves that one business does NOT limit you to other opportunities. If you have a true passion for entrepreneurship, you can plant the seeds for multiple ventures so long as you tend to them as they grow.

“Sweat equity is the most valuable equity there is. Know your business and your industry better than anyone else in the world. Love what you do or don’t do it.” -Mark Cuban, ABC’s Shark Tank.

Mark Cuban started growing his businesses at an early age, showcasing that even a small idea can grow into something big. In 1990 Cuban sold his first computer consulting business for $6 million dollars to CompuServe. Not even a decade later, Cuban and business partner, Todd Wagner sold their new online audio company for nearly $6 billion dollars.  Cuban is one of the best examples of growing your earnings and turning a penny into a fortune.

“If you are successful, it is because somewhere, sometime, someone gave you a life or an idea that started you in the right direction. Remember also that you are indebted to life until you help some less fortunate person, just as you were helped.” -Melinda Gates, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Melinda Gates began her career as a programmer for Microsoft. Soon after she and Bill began to build the company, they decided to push their wealth into various organizations to help others around the world. While there are various tax write-offs that make this a helpful tool for any business, this gesture also allows the company to share its love and showcase its own values through these acts of generosity. The Gates family is a great illustration of not only how to generate success but also using that platform to help improve the lives of countless others.

“You don’t learn to walk by following rules. You learn by doing and falling over.” -Richard Branson, Virgin Group

Richard Branson is known for his cavalier lifestyle, passion for quality, and continuing desire to grow his expanding empire. While Branson may have begun his entrepreneurship in print, he soon expanded to international corporations and other industry diversification. His journey to wealth held its fair share of trial and tribulations, however, today his company, Virgin Group, oversees more than 200 companies, proving that early business lessons can eventually pay the best dividends.

“When I sat down to write about mistakes that have led to my success, I had a much tougher time coming up with them than I would expect. Heck, I’m sure I’ve made hundreds of mistakes! Thing is, I often don’t look at them that way.” -Stephanie Izard, James Beard Award Winning Chef

Chef and entrepreneur Stephanie Izard knows that sometimes the best ingredient to a successful business is a good attitude. No matter how far her restaurants and industry successes take her, Izard is always seeking out new tricks and techniques to continue improving her business. Her efforts paid off in 2013 when she was awarded the James Beard title of Best Chef: Great Lakes, for her innovative work at Girl and the Goat. This culinary creator showcases the key indicator of a great entrepreneur, grit.

Whether you’re looking to start a restaurant or a software company, there are some key components you’ll need to get started. Our dedicated commercial lenders are here to help guide you through the entrepreneurship process and help you discover the best financing solutions for your upcoming venture. If you’re ready to get the ball rolling, stop by Peoples Bank & Trust’s nearest branch today!Entrepreneurs

Peoples Bank & Trust Co.

Member FDIC

Equal Housing Lender

Avoid These 4 Common Phishing Scams

Phishing as defined by Merriam-Webster is “A scam by which an e-mail user is duped into revealing personal or confidential information which the scammer can use illicitly.” Scams like these happen each and every day, and many times, the victims don’t even realize they’re participating in them. Peoples Bank & Trust wants to help you avoid these common tactics many cyber criminals use to lure you in. If you hear or recognize any of the following prompts, hang up the phone or delete the email immediately before acting on it any further.

 

  1. Relative who is in need abroad. This scam can be delivered via phone or email, typically with an individual claiming to be a cousin or niece/nephew. This person asks you how you are doing and makes some remarks to indicate a tie to family. In all appearances, they come off as someone you know and care for. The individual contacting you will typically share the news that they have come into some trouble while traveling, and he/she doesn’t have the appropriate funds while vacationing to resolve it. Then, this person will ask if you would be so kind as to wire them some funds to help them through this circumstance, and they will happily pay you back once they return. The best way to confirm this is a scam is call the relative they are claiming to be, or call that person’s parent to see if the story truly checks out. Ninety-nine percent of the time it will not, and then you know that the person contacting you is a fraud. At this point, we recommend reporting them to the police and ceasing all contact.
  2. Foreign lottery winner. This scam is pretty clear cut. Typically via phone, someone will call and claim that you have won a fantastic prize courtesy of the lottery in an overseas country. After the initial surprise has you jumping for joy, the caller informs you that there is a small five percent fee to wire you the funds. If you can quickly transfer them the funds, you will have your money within a given time frame. DO NOT SEND ANY FUNDS OR GIVE OUT ANY INFORMATION. Unless you distinctly remember buying a ticket for a lottery in another country, this call is most certainly a scam. Many victims of this example never received any further funds as their winnings, and further lost the money they were conned into sending.
  3. IT help in disguise. This scam has been the downfall of many companies. Done over both phone and email, cybercriminals have found a frightening loophole in many cyber security policies. Generally, this scenario starts with an administrator receiving a call or email from someone who appears to be from their IT department. Incoming phone calls can be masked to have recognizable numbers, and email address can appear to be from a legitimate person with the exception of one changed letter. The person sending the communication will typically identify themselves as someone within the company who has a high access level, and then ask for the verification of various passcodes or other information. Often times, this scam succeeds because employees want to help one another, and don’t always spotlight the source upon receipt. To help prevent this, we suggest that businesses have a rigid identification policy when sharing confidential information via phone or email.
  4. Urgent change to your information. In many situations, the factor of urgency is what makes victims coherent to a stranger. To further push that sense of emergency, the caller in this situation claims that there has been a breach to your financial or lending institution and you need to update your login information immediately. The caller, of course, is willing to update it for you, if you can simply state your current username and password, along with what you would like it updated to. DO NOT GIVE OUT ANY OF THIS INFORMATION. Anytime your bank or other financial institution would like you to reset your password, or make an update to your account, they will ask you to complete it through your online banking portal or by visiting your nearest branch. By no means should you ever need to give out your information by phone to ensure that a username or password is changed.

 

As you can see, there are numerous situations that could catch anyone. We hope to decrease the likelihood of scams amongst our customers, and offer additional cyber security tips on our website! If you feel you could be more proactive against threats like these, visit our website today and see how you can avoid unfortunate situations such as these.

 

Peoples Bank & Trust Co.

Member FDIC

Equal Housing Lender

Red Flags to Look for on Your Credit Score

Everyone and their brother seems to be sharing the importance of checking your credit score, but once you have the information, how do you actually know what it means? At Peoples Bank & Trust, we want you to not only have the information about your personal finances but be able to understand and act upon it as well. If you see any of the following red flags while viewing your report, you may want to look into the appropriate remedies as quickly as possible.

 

Missed or Late Payments

Your credit report should accurately showcase your current repayment history, which accounts for approximately 35 percent of your credit score. This area of the report should indicate if any payments have been missed and have been reported to the bureau as late. If you see a payment that you were unaware of, be sure to reach out to the company listed and contact them to pay off the bill in question.

 

Fraudulent Activity

It is possible to view your credit report and find bills or inquiries that you did not initiate. In this instance, it is important to take the appropriate steps to report identity theft and begin recovering your financial reputation. The sooner you alert the authorities and lending organizations to this unfortunate dilemma, the less likely you are to suffer any long-term side effects.

 

Excessive New Accounts

While having more than one account open can positively affect your credit score, attempting to open too many in a short time period can cause a negative reaction. If you see more than two accounts opened in the last three months, you may want to wait before attempting to apply for a credit card or other lending option.

 

Active Collections Accounts

If you haven’t checked your credit score in a few years, any potential missed or late payments may now have spiraled into active collection attempts. In this instance, the best practice is to contact the companies listed and discuss repayment options. Many times if you are actively working to pay down an account receivable, the company will work with you to structure monthly installments that fit within your personal budget.

 

At Peoples Bank & Trust, we recommend checking your credit score each month. If you’d like more information on how to increase your credit score, stop in today. One of our trusted personal bankers would be happy to answer any questions or curiosities that you have.

 

Peoples Bank & Trust Co.

Member FDIC

Equal Housing Lender

Three Things to Look for in a Starter Home

If you’re in the market for your first home, congratulations! Becoming a homeowner is an exciting step on your financial journey. At Peoples Bank & Trust, our dedicated mortgage lenders are here to help you find the best financing option for your new home. Remember to stop in and secure a pre-approval letter before you start your home search.

 

After speaking with a mortgage lender to help determine your family’s ideal price point, it’s time to start viewing potential homes. During this process you’re bound to find a home you’ll fall in love with, and others that may send you running for the hills. As you ride this rollercoaster of an experience, we recommend searching for the following three things in your family’s ideal new house:

 

  1. Good Bones. Starter homes are a great option to find a great house within an affordable budget. To ensure your investment lasts for the long-term, we recommend taking a hard look at any foundational cracks, leans, or other structural ailments. While the rest of the house could look fantastic, these three issues should be instant red flags signaling you to continue looking at other homes.
  2. Cohesive Neighborhood. The people you surround yourself could be the individuals you see at 6:00 AM taking the trash out, or the partiers you have to ask to turn down the music at 11:00 PM. As you tour properties, don’t be afraid to chat with any potential neighbors and see if there is any information they can give on families you’ll be living alongside.
  3. Suitable Layout. While some renovations are certainly possible when purchasing a starter home, obstacles such as load-bearing walls could limit your expectations. Consider the overall layout of the home at the showing, and see if you could picture yourself the way it is. If the answer is no, then you may want to find a few backup options should the renovations not be available within your budget.

 

 

The perfect home will look different to everyone. If you’re ready to start searching for your family’s new house, our experienced mortgage lenders are here to help. We work with many successful local realtors, and we would be happy to refer you to the one that fits your needs best. Give us a call or stop by to begin the search for your home today.

 

Peoples Bank & Trust Co.

Member FDIC

Equal Housing Lender

NMLS# 407724

The Argument for a Monthly Money Meeting

Personal Finance

Whether you’re recently married, or you’re approaching your 30th anniversary, you know that money can be a topic of controversy among couples and families. Even in the most perfect relationships hardships happen, and decisions have to be made. At Peoples Bank & Trust, we think there is a helpful and long-term tool that can help you have less conflict and more compromises while contemplating both goals and solutions. The answer is relatively simple, talk it out, however, the complicated part is how.

The first thing you need for a successful money discussion is an agreement between all persons to refrain from defensiveness and accusation. With this mindset, you can openly consider both positives and negatives of past and future financial decisions. Each month set a time where you and your spouse or family can get together and determine your current financial landscape. Discuss the highs as well as the lows, and gain perspective from each individual on where they feel the money is best spent or saved. Once the past month is discussed, start making a list of any suggested changes for the upcoming month.

The list should detail any adjustments that are going to be made, and the desired outcome they hope to generate. The meeting participants can then choose which, if any, changes are warranted and should be enacted.

This meeting not only keeps a continuous dialogue with you and your spouse or family but also allows you to have a fresh look at your finances every month, ensuring all bills and saving initiatives have been completed before the meeting takes place.

Other great tips we suggest to continue improving your money management:

  • Calculate your net worth every six months. This will help you with the large scale view of your family’s financial well-being and see where you can find additional ways to continue to grow.
  • Set new goals when you surpass the old ones. The worst thing you can do for your finances is to do nothing. If you knock your latest goal out of the park, Peoples Bank & Trust challenges you to make an even more challenging goal and find a way to make it happen.
  • For spouses, have joint and individual accounts. By structuring your finances together and apart you can ensure your joint account holds all the necessary funds for any household expenses, while each person’s private account can be used at their own discretion.
  • Designate a bill payer. Determine who in your house will be in charge of paying the monthly invoices and balancing the checking account throughout. By allowing one person to be responsible for this task you can ensure bill are not able to be missed due to misinterpreted communication.

Water Your Lawn & Your Wallet Too

Savings

If you’d like to grow your landscape and your finances this season, Peoples Bank & Trust has the perfect tips for you! To jumpstart this warmer weather, we’re excited to share our top tips and tricks to maintaining a healthy lawn and garden without digging too deep into your budget:

Seed your lawn early on. Get the growing season started right, and give your landscape some food to help it grow. By not only seeding your grass, but adding fertilizer as well, you can help ensure that your roots grow strong and healthy to fight off intermittent weather changes and pesky pets.

Automate your watering routine.  Keep your landscape looking green by maintaining a daily watering routine without all the fuss of hoses and watering cans. By setting up an automated system, you can make certain you’re not wasting water, while also saving additional funds from no longer needing to replace malnourished plants.

Utilize alternative landscaping options. Reduce your overall recurring costs by taking advantage of helpful products such as landscape fabric, river rock, and various xeriscaping plants. By using these tools to grow foliage other than grass you can cut down on your time and expenses associated with mowing and upkeep.

Other Outdoor Savings Tips: While the above tips can aid you in keeping a green and healthy landscape, saving money isn’t  about maintenance only. To help continue your savings in other areas of lawn care, we wanted to share some further tricks in how to reduce other outdoor expenditures associated with your growing landscape.

  • Choose colorful perennials over less-timely annuals when planting flowers. While annuals can have prominent blooms that catch your eye, these flora varieties will need to be re-planted every year. Avoid paying for new seedlings each spring by utilizing returning perennials plants instead. These recurring blooms will hibernate underground each winter, and emerge where they were originally planted year after year.
  • Plant prosperous fruit trees for added shade and earning through plant production. By providing an escape from heated sunlight, shade producing trees can help decrease the cost of your home’s monthly cooling bill. If you choose a tree that also produces fruit you can typically accumulate $200 or more worth of produce that you have the potential to sell as well.

Make the most of this planting season, and create a garden that will give you both joy and savings. We can’t wait to see what you and your family create, be sure to post photos of your outdoor creations on our Facebook page. We’d love to see what ideas and hacks you use!

How to Save $1,000,000 for Retirement

Retirement

Retirement, 401(k), stocks and bonds, the subject matter of saving for the long term isn’t often as appealing as saving for the short term. Perhaps that’s why nearly three-quarters of Americans are underestimating how much they’ll need for retirement. The United States is on the brink, if not already in, a retirement crisis. However, at Peoples Bank & Trust we believe retirement saving can still be easily accomplished, there are just a few steps to get started:

 

  1. The first thing you’ll need to do is determine when and how you want to retire. There are an endless variety of retirement lifestyles, each of which entails a different budget and distribution structures. Some popular options include traveling by RV, retiring in a new location, downsizing your home in the same area, pursuing a new business or passion,  and of course maintaining your current lifestyle without the need for work. By choosing your lifestyle goal we can begin to structure your savings plan around what you hope to achieve.
  2. Once you know what you want, start saving ASAP. As the old adage goes, “Slow and steady wins the race.” This is phrase is the epitome of retirement. If you save less but start earlier you will consistently save more than if you deposited higher amounts later in life. We recommend utilizing any 401(k) or retirement savings plans your employer offers. If you are self-employed or don’t have access to retirement benefits, an IRA is a great self-funded option to help you save and take advantage of valuable tax incentives.
  3. Create a goal for how much you need to save. Financial Mentor offers great calculators to help you plan your path to retirement.  They can help you determine your strategy to become a millionaire or show you how much you may need beyond $1,000,000. Saving more than one million could be more pertinent than you think. Today’s research indicates that millennials may need to save more than their baby boomer or gen x counterparts.
  4. Add any available surplus funds to your retirement savings. Simple adjustments like changing grocery stores, carpooling, and bringing your lunch to work can save more than you think! If you are able to find some additional ways to save, put those funds to work by contributing to your retirement accounts.
  5. Diversify your retirement savings. Instead of putting all your funds in company stock, corporate shares, or your 401(k), we suggest diversifying your savings options to ensure your risk isn’t higher than you need. Speaking with a professional adviser could help you determine what type of risk you’re comfortable with, and how you would like to your contributions to grow over time.

 

By continuing to save each and every month you can beat the odds and have a fulfilling and successful retirement. The most important thing to do is to start. If you’d like to open a dedicated savings account, IRA, or CD, our dedicated team is here to help. Stop by or drop us a line today to get started today.

Who Says You Can’t Make a Snowball in the Spring

Debt Elimination

While the weather can be as predictable as the Powerball, one thing that you can always count on through the seasons is your ability to snowball anytime you want. However, before you start creating snowmen out of ice shavings, let’s first cover what a snowball is. Typically in financial terms, snowballing is an action in which you structure your debt payment to decrease the overall time and cost associated with any accounts payable you have.

Here’s how it works: To begin a snowball, you first need to know what debt(s) you have on the table. By creating a list of your known debts, and also checking your credit report for any unknown ones as well, you can ensure you have all your bases covered. Then, using that information, prioritize your debts by amount from smallest to largest. Once you have them organized you can begin to set-up or continue minimum payments across all installments.

For the next step, you’ll want to look through your current spending and earning to see if there are ways you can allocate additional funds each month to pay off your debt. Whether it’s an extra $50 or an extra $500, every penny matters!

These additional funds can then be assigned to the debt you indicated at the lowest amount. Each month you’ll have a little extra money to help pay off that expense even sooner. Once the balance reaches zero, the snowball officially begins! Now that you have eliminated one payment, you can utilize all the funds that were going towards that expenditure and push them towards the debt with the next lowest amount.

Continue to do this process until each unwanted debt is paid off. Debts such as your mortgage are a great thing to pay off early, but may not be necessary to include in your debt snowball. Our helpful mortgage lenders can always assist in restructuring your payments if you are truly passionate about eliminating all debt.

If you’re ready to get started, we have some great money savings tips to help you find those extra dollars!

  • Switch to a Discount Grocer: You could reduce your monthly grocery bill by up to half when you shop at a bulk or discount grocer instead of a brand-oriented chain.
  • Bring Your Coffee and Lunch: Both of these items could be costing you more than you think! The typical American lunch runs approximately $12.00 and an average latte could cost you $3.50 a day. By bringing both food and beverages from home you can drastically decrease your monthly expenditure for dining.
  • Take Advantage of Apps: New technology based tools like Mint, Honey, and RetailMeNot, offer continuous and unique ways to save and manage your personal finances. By taking advantage you can not only save on unexpected items but better visualize your budget through tracked spending categories.

At Peoples Bank & Trust we are excited to help you succeed on your journey toward financial success. If you’d like to set-up automatic payments, or monthly transfers, our Online Banking can help! Visit our website to get started today.

Peoples Bank & Trust Co.

Member FDIC

Equal Housing Lender