When’s the last time you measured your financial health? It’s time for your annual checkup as part of National Financial Literacy Month. Tropical Financial Credit Union offers a wealth of free information and resources to help you manage budget stresses and unanticipated expenses.
To get started, visit Tropical’s new financial education center, KOFE (Knowledge of Financial Education). After enrolling for free, you can access videos and podcasts and attend webinars.
If you’re a beginner or would like a refresher on smart financial strategies, there’s something for everyone. Let’s break down the website’s selections:
Financial goals: What are they, and how do you determine them? Tropical Financial and KOFE help you calculate your net worth and walk you through banking basics so that you know the difference between APR and APY.
Budgeting: Everything is more expensive these days. Learn how to build a budget, reduce expenses, and create spending guidelines you can live with. You probably already know how that’s easier to imagine than to turn into reality because of the many financial challenges individuals and families face today.
Savings: That’s become harder to do for everyone – single, married with children, retired. You’ll probably want to start with saving for emergencies. Medical bills are the leading cause of consumer bankruptcies in the United States, according to an American Bankruptcy Institute article. Rather than go into debt, or worse, pile on more debt to pay doctor, hospital and other medical expenses, Tropical/KOFE will show you how to create and manage a backup fund.
Debt and credit: You can’t separate the two. Your credit history affects everything from qualifying for a loan to the rate you pay on that and other forms of borrowing. The two have a complicated relationship that Tropical/KOFE breaks down in easy-to-understand terms. Need a plan to get out of debt? There’s a guide for that.
Looking for a new home? There’s an entire section on renting and another on borrowing for a purchase, as well as how to budget for property insurance and taxes.
You can learn at your own pace, the way you like, with videos, webinars, podcasts and an e-library. There’s a section for teenagers, too.
Want help? You can ask a coach online or schedule a private appointment with a financial coach who can help you fine-tune your finances.
Tropical Financial opened its doors 90 years ago to help people with their needs in a way only a non-profit financial institution can. The new KOFE service continues that tradition, fulfilling the credit union’s mission to help members and those in the communities it serves to guide, educate, and empower them to turn their financial dreams into reality.
