Free financial education workshops in Bradenton

The Bradenton Central Community Redevelopment Agency is offering financial education workshops to help people and their families reach their personal financial goals. The classes are free but participants are urged to register. Call (941) 744-2362 ext. 103 to register or for more information.



Cash Flow Management: Your Checking Account

6-8 p.m. Tuesday, April 20

Learn how to understand and effectively manage cash flow, learn the various elements of a checking account, and receive guidance on ways that cash flow and smart checking can help you achieve financial wellness.



Credit Management Workshop

6-8 p.m. Thursday, April 22

Learn about credit, how you affect your credit score, how to manage credit, how to establish or re-establish credit, what makes smart credit choices, learn the advantages and disadvantages of credit card use, and more.



Surviving on Reduced Income: Introduction to Savings Workshop

6-8 p.m. Thursday, April 29

Learn how to develop a realistic personal budget, understand the various elements of a savings account, and learn how to create new ways to make sound financial decisions.

TAX HELP AVAILABLE

The AARP Tax Aid Program and the IRS VITA Program are teaming up to provide free tax preparation for seniors and working families at sites throughout the Manatee County.

Each year, too many families eligible to receive Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) dollars do not because they don’t know how to claim the credit. Tax preparers at AARP and VITA sites are trained to help taxpayers make the most of their return through all available credits.

Tropicana Federal Credit Union is making Rapid Refunds through Refund Anticipation Loans available at deposit accounts at the credit union for participants taking advantage of this Free Tax Preparation Service.

Site locations are as follows:

Central Community Redevelopment Agency
Manatee Central Library
Braden River Library
Freedom Village - By Appointment only (798-8935)
Colony Cove Recreation Center
State College of Florida (Formerly MCC)
Kirkwood Presbyterian Church
Harllee Full Service Center
Manatee Central Library - Monday and Friday, 9-2
Braden River Library - Wednesday and Friday, 12-3
FreedomVillage - Tuesdays 9-12, By Appointment only (798-8935)
ColonyCoveRecreationCenter - Monday and Friday, 9-2
State College of Florida (Formerly MCC) - Thursday and Friday, 1-4
Kirkwood Presbyterian Church - Thursday and Friday, 9-3
Harllee Full Service Center - Saturdays 10-1



Call 2-1-1 or 308-4357 for more information on locations and times and schedule changes throughout the county!

Call the United Way Community Helpline at 2-1-1 or 308-4357 to find times, days, and schedule changes.

For more information on the program, call Henry at the CCRA at (941)744-2362.

CREDIT CARD "CONVENIENCE" CHECKS

FDIC Consumer News

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Blank Checks from Your Credit Card Issuer Carry Risks and Costs

Those blank "convenience checks" from your credit card company offer a quick way to write yourself a loan, pay bills or transfer other loans to your credit card account. But be aware that the use of a convenience check is a "cash advance" that comes with high costs and other potential pitfalls.

Take precautions to avoid serious fees and penalties if there's a glitch when you deposit a convenience check into your checking account or send it to pay a bill. Before you write a check, make sure that it will not put you over your limit for cash advances. Also find out what the current limit is in case your credit company reduced the amount you may borrow on your card through cash advances and you forgot or did not notice.

"If the convenience check puts your card balance over the new limit, your card issuer may not honor the check," said Luke W. Reynolds, Chief of the FDIC's Community Outreach Section. "The returned check could trigger overdraft fees from your bank, returned-check fees from others and over-limit fees from your card issuer."

His recommendations: "Understand when your card company might not honor a check. Consider calling your card company to verify your understanding of its policies," Reynolds said. "In addition, you may want to call your credit card company again after you deposit the check into your bank and before you spend any of that money, to make sure the card issuer has honored the check."

Know the fees and the interest rate you'll pay. Expect to incur a transaction fee of several percent of the amount of each check. If the fee is five percent, you'd pay $50 to write a check for $1,000. In addition, the interest rate on this loan to yourself can be much higher than the rate on your card purchases, perhaps twice as high. Most consumers believe that they will pay off the debt before the introductory rate expires, but many find they can't.

Also consider that you may not be allowed an interest-free period to pay the loan without interest accruing. "Most lenders will begin charging interest when the check posts to your account, even if they otherwise give you at least a couple of weeks to repay your credit card purchases interest-free," said Irma Matias, an FDIC Community Affairs Specialist.

Even if you are offered a low interest rate initially, find out what interest rate you will pay when the introductory period is over. And, think twice about repeatedly transferring balances from one credit card to another, because you could end up paying costly fees that more than offset the attractive, promotional interest rate.

Remember that there may be fewer consumer protections when making purchases with convenience checks. When you use your credit card for purchases, the Fair Credit Billing Act gives you the ability, under certain circumstances, to withhold payment on defective goods until the problem has been corrected. That protection doesn't exist with convenience checks, even though they are related to your credit card account. Also, with convenience checks, you may not receive any rebates or points as you would using a credit card.

Look for and shred convenience checks you don't plan to use. "Dishonest friends, family members or workers around the house have found convenience checks very convenient for getting a loan without going through the hassle of asking," said David M. Nelson, a fraud examiner in the FDIC's Financial Crimes Section. "Also remember that thieves rummage through trash looking for valuable papers such as convenience checks and bank statements, so do your best to shred these documents before you toss them away."

Consider asking your card issuer to stop mailing you convenience checks if you're sure you don't want them. "This saves paper, avoids the risk the checks might be stolen from your mailbox or home, and helps discourage you from turning to the checks as an easy fix," said Reynolds. "Convenience checks can be expensive and many consumers find that they should be used sparingly, if at all."

Learn How to Use Computers -Free Course from Microsoft

Students, Read below and click on the link to see the wonderful courses offered by Microsoft for beginners, intermediate and advanced students!

Welcome to the Microsoft Digital Literacy Curriculum. The goal of Digital Literacy is to teach and assess basic computer concepts and skills so that people can use computer technology in everyday life to develop new social and economic opportunities for themselves, their families, and their communities.

Whether you are entirely new to computing or have some experience, this curriculum will help you develop a fundamental understanding of computers. From using the Internet, to sending e-mail, to creating a résumé, the Digital Literacy Curriculum helps you develop the essential skills you need to begin computing with confidence.

The Microsoft Digital Literacy curriculum now has three levels:

• Microsoft Digital Literacy Basic curriculum

• Microsoft Digital Literacy Standard curriculum

• Microsoft Digital Literacy Advanced curriculum

The Basic curriculum features a course called A First Course Toward Digital Literacy. This course teaches absolute beginners to computing about what a valuable tool computers can be in society today, and the basics of using the mouse and the keyboard. The interactive, hands-on lessons will help novices feel comfortable manipulating the mouse and typing on the keyboard.

There are two versions of the Microsoft Digital Literacy Standard curriculum. The primary difference between the versions is that the examples and screen shots in the original curriculum feature Microsoft Office 2003 and Microsoft Windows XP, while Version 2 of the Digital Literacy Curriculum offers examples and screen shots from Microsoft Office 2007 and Microsoft Windows Vista. While there are minor changes to the content coverage between versions, the overall course objectives remain the same.

The Advanced curriculum features several courses that expand on what learners mastered in the Standard curriculum. These courses explore core topics like writing a resume, social networking, creating an internet e-mail account, and searching the internet.

The Standard Digital Literacy curriculum is currently available in over 30 languages. The Basic and Advanced courses are in development and will be available in other languages in the near future. This page will be updated when other languages are available.

http://www.microsoft.com/about/corporatecitizenship/citizenship/giving/programs/up/digitalliteracy/default.mspx

FDIC CONSUMER TIPS: Beware of Frauds

FDIC Consumer News

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Spring 2009

Beware of Various Frauds Tied to the Economic Slowdown

In addition to mortgage rescue scams (see Foreclosure Rescue and Loan Modification Scammers), consumers should beware of a variety of other frauds tied to current economic difficulties.

Scams tied to the Obama Administration's economic stimulus package. The Federal Trade Commission has warned about fraudulent Web sites and e-mails asking consumers for bank account, credit card and other personal information, supposedly for help getting money from the stimulus fund or for direct deposits of government payments. Instead, these scammers are collecting information to make unauthorized charges to credit cards or to withdraw money from bank accounts. For more information, go to www.ftc.gov/opa/2009/03/stimulusscam.shtm.

Bogus "help" with credit and debt problems. In some cases, con artists "guarantee" loan approvals to people with credit problems, then they disappear after collecting a nonrefundable fee and without delivering any services. Others involve companies that advertise credit counseling or promise to settle debts for less than is owed. They charge high fees and provide little or no assistance.

Con artists preying on people who need jobs. One common example involves attractive offers to work part-time from home but the end result is that the new "employer" commits identity theft or check fraud. Another involves "mystery shopper" programs for which consumers are supposedly hired to report on their experience doing business at a retailer but instead lose money in a fake check scam.

You can protect yourself from these and other financial scams by being extremely skeptical of unsolicited offers that involve "updating" or "confirming" personal information or requirements that you send a payment or provide bank account information before receiving anything in return.

Also, walk away from any offer from a stranger that would involve a large check to be deposited into your account and instructions to wire any of that money back, perhaps to someone in another country. In this type of scam, victims may end up owing thousands of dollars to the financial institution that wired the money.

For more information, see our tips in the Winter 2008/2009 FDIC Consumer News at www.fdic.gov/consumers/consumer/news/cnwin0809/scams.html.

DON'T BE AN ONLINE VICTIM

Don't Be an On-line Victim: How to Guard Against Internet Thieves and Electronic Scams

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Identity theft continues to be one of the fastest growing crimes in the United States, and has ranked as one of the top consumer concerns for the past several years. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) has produced a multimedia presentation to help consumers protect themselves from identity theft. The presentation provides information on steps consumers should take to secure their computer and protect themselves from identity theft, as well as actions consumers should take if they become a victim of identity theft. Financial institutions are encouraged to make the link available to their customers from their websites. This presentation is hosted by Vodium.

Don't Be an On-line Victim: How to Guard Against Internet Thieves and Electronic Scams.
(FDIC YouTube Channel)