Articles Posted in financial wellness

It is exciting to purchase that first house. The buyers can move out of cramped apartments and into larger spaces with a yard. The new owners can put down roots and even start a family. The house is a sign of financial wellness, but caveat emptor (let the buyer beware!) is sensible advice. Too many first-time buyers will pay a premium for what they do not know.

Financing Is Tricky

A conventional bank loan is straightforward, but FHA financing requires inspections and a fair amount of paperwork. The size of the down payment will affect the monthly house bill for years to come. Continue reading

Remote working is the new normal for thousands of people. They are working from home and are enjoying the change of scenery. Management likes the results. Studies are showing increases in efficiency and productivity caused by working from a distance. This is a workplace condition that will not end with the pandemic. The challenge will be how to improve on those benefits. Employers can do that with the right employee benefits.

Reducing Anxiety

Change produces benefits, but remote workers sometimes feel anxiety because they are not in the office. Those informal communication networks are gone, and it is not easy to get useful information. A big concern for many employees is personal finances. Management can lower employee stress by offering a financial wellness employee benefit.

COVID-19 has been rough on personal finances. All levels of government stepped up to help and their efforts did ease the burden. Support included stimulus checks, interest-free forbearance on federal college loans, and moratoriums on evictions. It has been great, but there is a catch: all of this will end soon.

Headaches on the Horizon

Those interest-free forbearances will stop, and the eviction holidays will be over. We know this was going to happen eventually. Unfortunately, many forgot to plan. Continue reading

There are consequences for living from paycheck to paycheck. Emergencies arise when a person has no reserves to meet the crisis. Student loan debt can appear, and those monthly payments are required. An individual can get out of trouble if he or she knows what to do.

Young employees lived on Ramen noodles and an allowance during college years. Sizable paychecks are generous and credit cards are easy to get. It does not take too long before that new worker struggles with significant credit card debts and has trouble making the monthly payments. Continue reading

There is a lot of positive chatter about student debt loan forgiveness these days. Some are predicting as much as $50,000 per student and everyone is eagerly awaiting more news. We hope things happen that will benefit students; they deserve a break! However, we remain a little skeptical. Politicians often promise too much and deliver too little.

Employers often help financially beleaguered employees. They offer tuition reimbursement and those employees who are still in school much appreciate that. This generosity does not impact existing debt. An organization can add to its help by offering a financial wellness plan. This is a form of pre-paid assistance that does not have to cost the employer anything. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services has one of the best programs in the industry. Our financial wellness options include help with college debt. Continue reading

It is a brand-new year, and everyone has a resolution or two on their bucket list. Some of these goals are short term and will be completed by February. Others are intended to last for months, if not years. Those can be life-changing events. A significant resolution is taking control of those credit card balances.

Folks were generous during the holiday season and now it is time to pay up. Credit balances ballooned and so did the minimum payments. The debt may have caused a person to reach the maximum on a credit card, which generates a big challenge. Double-digit interest charged on an existing balance can threaten financial wellness.

Home remedies for credit card debt do not always work and can result in dramatic changes to a personal budget. It helps if a person can connect to an expert who can offer sound advice on safeguarding financial wellness. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services can provide the type of assistance that a money-conscious employee can use.

January is the start of a new year and a new tomorrow for many. Resolutions are made with every intention of being met. Some of these good thoughts can use a little help from experienced professionals.

Financial Wellness Is Pondered

Folks often take stock of their finances as the new year starts. They want to plan how to meet expenses and save for large purchases. These are common planning objectives, and some are quite important. Continue reading

COVID-19 has caused big changes in the academic world. Football games are canceled and classes on Zoom are more frequent. Campuses are going virtual, but something has not changed: tuition.

Students are required to pay for their classes and may take out major loans to afford the price. Loans are creating higher levels of anxiety among students. College debt is threatening the financial wellness of many, and many important life decisions are being delayed or given up on because of the figures. Organizations offer tuition assistance, but additional help is necessary. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services offers a financial wellness benefit that gives substantial support. Continue reading

Personal finances are a touchy subject. Everyone wants to feel responsible and money-sensible, but things happen. There can be sudden emergencies, such as medical bills, that mess up the best-laid plans.

Some find budgeting a challenge. They get used to living from paycheck to paycheck and rarely save any money. The kind of confusion that will harm financial wellness becomes a part of life. That should not happen, but it does. The mess only gets worse, but we can help end the cycle. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services has a benefits program to improve employees’ financial wellness. Continue reading

Whether it is Christmas, Hanukkah, or Kwanzaa, this is the time of year when people feel generous and give gifts. 

Employees feel the same way. Holiday bonuses and other extraordinary things are given out to employees to celebrate the season. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services thinks that this is the right time to present employees with a benefit they will greatly appreciate in the years to come.

A Primary Thought of All Employees