December 21, 2018

consumer news

FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION

The New Year holiday creates a feeling 

of starting fresh and encourages us to set 

new goals. While diets come to mind, 

setting new financial goals should be on 

the top of our lists. As you reflect on the 

past year, focus on your experiences – 

build on what worked and what didn’t – 

to shape this year’s money habits. Here 

are some ideas to consider as you set 

your financial goals for the New Year. 

New Year, New Savings Account 

Think about what you want to save for 

the coming year and commit to opening a 

savings account to reach that goal, whether 

it’s creating an emergency fund or setting 

money aside for your kids’ future college 

tuition. There are many types of savings 

accounts available to save for both short 

term and long term goals.

Small Step: Decide on the type of savings 

account that will meet your goal and commit 

to depositing a set amount on a regular basis 

to get into the habit of saving. For example, 

if you open a basic savings account, deposit 

$25 every month and sign up for direct 

Time to Take a New Look at Your Money Habits

Pay down that 

old debt in the 

new year

deposit or automatic withdrawals from

your checking account to ensure that

amount is saved. Once you’re comfortable

with saving a small amount consistently,

you can increase it.

For information about the various

savings accounts available, visit:

https://www.fdic.gov/consumers/

consumer/news/september2018.pdf

https://www.investor.gov/introductioninvesting/basics/save-invest

https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/529-

plans-questions-and-answers

Pay Down That Old Debt in the New Year

Confronting your debt and thinking

about how to pay it off can be scary and

overwhelming. Use the New Year to face

your fears. Make a list of your debts,

noting the monthly payment, current

balance, and interest rate, and make

a plan to start paying down the debts.

Many experts recommend focusing on

either debts with the highest interest

rates or debts with the lowest balances to

pay off. While you will likely save more

money paying off debts with the highest

interest rates, it may be faster to pay off

the smallest balances first, and seeing this

progress may help keep you motivated.

Small Step: Whichever method you

choose for paying down debt, start by

adding a small amount to one of your

current payments. For instance, if you

are focusing on paying off a credit card

with a minimum monthly payment of

$100, add $25 to that amount to start

(for a total monthly payment of $125).

Once you are comfortable with that new

PHOTO: GETTY IMAGES
amount, add more when you’re able

and stay focused on the goal.

For more information about paying

off debts, visit:

https://www.fdic.gov/consumers/

consumer/news/cnfall17/debt.html

https://www.consumer.gov/debt#!whatto-know

Get Organized

Keeping your finances organized will help 

you control your money and achieve your 

financial goals. Some basic tasks to help

you get organized include making a budget,

tracking your spending, and putting a

system in place to ensure you pay your bills

on time every month. Be sure to monitor

your credit card and bank statements for

any unexpected fees or unusual activity 

too. The sooner you find mistakes or

unauthorized transactions, the easier

it is to correct those issues. 

Small Step: Like dealing with debt, organizing

your finances can be daunting, so start

small by picking one organizational task

and focus on that task for one month before

adding another. For example, you might

start by making sure your bills are paid

on time by setting up automatic bill pay

from your bank account, giving yourself

one month to learn about it, set it up,

and get comfortable using it. Next month, 

focus on creating a budget, which gives you 

several weeks to learn about budgeting and 

working on it. 

For more information on organizing

your financial life, visit:

https://www.fdic.gov/consumers/

consumer/news/cnfall14/

financialcheckup.html

https://www.consumer.gov/section/

managing-your-money

Protect Your Money All Year, Every Year

With so many financial transactions 

occurring electronically, it’s important to 

proactively protect your personal 

information, including your credit card 

and bank account numbers. Use the New 

Year to take charge of protecting your 

money. Never provide your personal 

information in response to an unsolicited 

request, whether it is over the phone or 

over the Internet. Always track your bank 

and credit card statements and your 

credit reports for unusual activity. 

Catching abnormal transactions early

will allow you to take steps to prevent

more harm if your information has

been stolen.

Small Step: One important step to protect 

yourself from online scams and theft is to 

change your passwords regularly. If you 

have been using the same passwords for 

your financial accounts for a while, create 

new difficult-to-guess passwords and change 

them often to keep your money safe.

For more information about protecting your

money from online scams and theft, visit:

https://www.fdic.gov/consumers/

consumer/news/cnsum17/scams.html

https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/

articles/0060-10-things-you-can-doavoid-fraud

https://www.nist.gov/blogs/takingmeasure/easy-ways-build-better-p5w0rd

For more help or information, go to www.fdic.gov or 

call the FDIC toll-free at 1-877-ASK-FDIC (1-877-275-3342). 

Please send your story ideas or comments to Consumer Affairs 

at consumeraffairsmailbox@fdic.gov