Articles Posted in financial wellness

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Management wants good benefits for employees. Decision-makers know these services improve morale, boost productivity, and improve retention rates. Executives are concerned that employee benefits have a good return on investment. A comprehensive financial wellness plan can provide excellent benefits for the entire workforce. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services offers a plan.

Something for Everyone

Workforce demographics are important, and the Countrywide plan has options that can be particularly useful for various groups. New college graduates must find ways to manage their college loan debts. We have a benefits option that addresses the college loan problem. Older employees confront medical bills that easily get out of control. We will help them manage the debt with suggestions on how to negotiate with healthcare providers. Millennials may want to buy a house and don’t know how to purchase one. The Countrywide Financial Wellness Program has a self-study course to educate a first-time home buyer.

Everyone Benefits

Countrywide has a nationwide network of certified counselors who provide the service. Standard Countrywide benefits will include a budget analysis. It will help plan members understand where the money is coming from and where it is going. The counselor will also give suggestions on how to save for major expenses. Sensible financial planning includes knowing a person’s full value. We will do an asset inventory for the financial wellness plan member, allowing that person to fully appreciate his or her holdings. Continue reading

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An employee starts thinking about retirement when that person turns 50. Financial planners will emphasize putting more money into retirement plans and learning how to live on a lower income. Middle-aged employees confront the dual challenge of saving for retirement and making ends meet in the present.

Financial Wellness Becomes Critical

Paying off a mortgage releases considerable cash but credit card payments can swallow the money. Parents are still helping children pay for college and lack an understanding of college debt. Older employees will use the group health insurance more and incur a sizable debt by doing this.

Older employees understand budgets. They lived with them for years. The challenge comes from new, and often heavy, expenses. Middle-aged employees are looking forward to the day when they can retire. Unfortunately, the debts that they have incurred over the years can block the dream. Many of them are wondering if they can effectively retire any time soon. Dealing with debt can be a nightmare which will require informed guidance. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services can give a plan member the right information. Continue reading

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It is 2019 and everyone wants to start as fresh as the new year. Finances are on everyone’s mind. Employees have various needs and financial wellness concerns. Management can help by providing services that address money management. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services can provide the right help to employees.

A Variety of Assistance

Countrywide has a financial wellness program that is easy to use. We rely on a nationwide network of certified counselors who offer needed support. They have experience in many areas where people face financial problems.

Not everyone understands how to efficiently budget; it is a skill rarely taught. A Countrywide counselor can perform a budget analysis and use it to educate a plan member on money management. If a person wants to know his or her full value, the counselor can do an asset inventory for that individual. Continue reading

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Filing for bankruptcy may be a New Year’s resolution for some people. Personal debt may have gotten out of control and an individual may be floundering in unpaid bills. This is a crisis that is highly emotional because a person’s financial wellness is in jeopardy. The only way out may be in bankruptcy court. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services has a program to help those in a desperate money situation.

There Is a Process

It is not simple to file for bankruptcy. The Bankruptcy Code of The Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 contains specific requirements. A debtor needs to complete a financial management instructional course before their debt can be discharged in bankruptcy and the individual must undergo credit counseling within six months before the filing. A certificate that provides evidence of completion must be issued by an approved agency. It is not easy to access any of this and helps to have some assistance.

Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services can help. We provide bankruptcy counseling and education as part of our Financial Wellness Plan. We have a debtor education course that meets the education requirement. We are also able to provide counseling. Continue reading

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The new year is a great time to organize your finances. The 2019 calendar year is just starting, and a person can plan for the months ahead. Personal budgets are new territory for some people and financial wellness guidance can help.

Starting on the Right Foot

People are not always in financial trouble; they only need some new ideas. A new college graduate is seeing the end of the loan grace period. That person wants to know how to budget and meet the monthly loan repayments. Someone else wants to stretch his or her income a bit to pay bills and still save some money. Every individual has a personal need.

Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services provides a financial wellness program for employers to consider. It is a benefit to assist employees in keeping their financial house in order. Continue reading

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Christmas has come and gone, leaving wrapping paper all over the floor and boxes waiting to be tossed out. It is no secret people enjoy this holiday and they want to be generous with family and friends. A person may become a little too generous and overuse the credit card. It creates a situation that threatens financial wellness. The same person who acted like Santa Claus will face a credit card bill that is above and beyond what he or she can afford.

Credit cards are convenient. There is no question about that. Retailers will admit they prefer people using credit cards because the shoppers will spend more money than if they use cash. These conveniences, which are almost necessities for some, will carry double-digit interest rates. There also may be other penalties, depending on the card. Anyone can get overwhelmed by the bill received in January. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services understands the anxiety of post-holiday debt. We have a program that assists in making the payments without drastic decisions.

Last Minute Shopping Is Expensive

Last minute Christmas shopping is frantic, and buyers won’t always look at the price tags. The day of reckoning arrives in January and the cost of Christmas presents becomes obvious. Folks can panic and wonder how to pay the bill. Countrywide has the answer. Continue reading

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It isn’t too early to plan for buying a house. Spring is the big season for house purchases and right now is a great time to organize finances. This is a major challenge for many first-time shoppers.

The house is often the most expensive acquisition an employee will make. This is a long-term commitment and personal budgets will be stretched. The ability to pay and the individuals overall financial wellness are primary pondering points. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services wants to help. We believe that the house buying process is bewildering to some folks and we have a benefit designed to assist shoppers.

Viewing the Buying Course

“Make Your Move” is the Countrywide self-study program for house buying. Real estate jargon is not always easy to understand, and the terms are confusing. How to work with a real estate agent, what qualifies a person for FHA financing and what to expect at closing are some of the topics covered. Continue reading

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Deductibles are the part of a medical bill the patient is responsible for paying. Standard deductibles have been rising to keep group health premiums down and $5000 deductibles are common. Most people do not understand how deductibles operate. These financial obligations can easily go out of control.

Deductibles will renew every year. A person who has paid the full deductible in 2018 is liable for the full amount in 2019 (e. g. Assume a deductible of $5000 in 2018. A plan member must pay up to $5000 in 2019 as well.). Medical treatment can overlap the new year. A person easily accrues thousands of dollars in medical debt with one single operation or treatment.

Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services knows the stress caused by such financial obligations. Our Financial Wellness Plan is designed to help folks better manage medical debt. Continue reading

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American colleges and universities are graduating some of the most technically astute people in our history. The Z generation grew up with technology and have a better understanding of social media than even their older siblings. Unfortunately, it does not mean that they are masters of all subjects. Personal finances can be a nightmare for them. Financial wellness education is essential to surviving in the real world. Learning how to deal with problems is important and the biggest problem these young people face is the college debt they accrued while earning that college degree.

Payment Can Be a Horror Story

Nobody can blame a college student for trying to ignore the mounting costs. A student must get through school and loans are sometimes the only way to pay for the education. What happens too often is that an individual graduates from college and then six months later is hit with a major shock. The final debt figure can be enormous. Many graduates have loan obligations in the tens of thousands of dollars. An unlucky few will have over $100,000 in debt and are looking at payment obligations that will stretch out for decades.

Shock can lead to panic that, in turn, will generate poor decisions with bad consequences. The new college graduate may use forbearance but that only delays the final responsibility and can cause payment problems to develop. Others will try to ignore the debt completely, but that is not a wise decision. A final, and very drastic move has a young person declaring bankruptcy. That can damage credit rating at a time when the individual needs to have good credit status. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services sympathizes with the plight of a recent graduate. We want to help, and a benefit option of our financial wellness plan is assistance in dealing with college debt. Continue reading

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Medical premiums and expenses are rising, not falling. People are always looking for ways to curb expenses. We commend those employers who have proactive wellness plans. Benefits such as smoking cessation and weight control improve health and lower costs. We suggest that organizations go one step further and address financial wellness.

Sudden Emergencies Will Surface

Employees rarely budget for future medical costs. They assume the group health insurance plan will cover expenses. It doesn’t happen that way. People will bear responsibility for treatments not covered by the plan and pay for the deductibles, as well. A sudden medical bill costing thousands of dollars is not out of the question.

People will panic at the price. They may consider taking out loans or a second mortgage to make the required payments. The stress and anxiety are considerable. Countrywide Pre-Paid Legal Services wants to relieve the pressure and help a person overcome the challenge. Our financial wellness plan provides welcome assistance to those in financial stress. Continue reading