By: The BALANCE Marketing Team
Navigating federal student loan repayment can be overwhelming, but this five-part webinar series is here to help you take control of your loans with confidence. From understanding repayment basics to…
By: Denise Keiser AFC®, Director of Training
At BALANCE, we believe that financial success is not just about numbers, it’s about empowering individuals to take control of their financial futures. Our Financial Coaching service is designed to inspire and motivate, going beyond…
By: The BALANCE Marketing Team
In July, 2024, BALANCE’s Financial Educator, LauRae Upchurch, delivered an insightful and highly engaging webinar, ‘Planning for Money Milestones,’ as part of our monthly webinar series available to all our partners. The session, held on Tuesday, July 9th, was a resounding success, attracting…
By: Denise Keiser AFC®, Director of Training
At BALANCE, we are deeply committed to supporting your clients as they navigate their unique financial journeys. As financial coaches, housing counselors, and student loan experts, we provide the guidance and education necessary to…
By: Denise Keiser AFC®, Director of Training
At BALANCE, we understand that life is filled with important financial milestones and unexpected challenges. Our financial coaching services help individuals navigate these events by focusing on the four pillars of financial health: spending wisely, saving for emergencies, borrowing smartly, and…
By: Denise Keiser AFC®, Director of Training
I grew up in the Great Lakes region, in the small town of Hillsdale, Michigan. You’ll find my hometown if you raise your hand and point to the bottom of the middle of your palm. Like many families in the Midwest, we lived frugally, growing our food, and…
By: The BALANCE Marketing Team
Grants available for credit unions of ANY size to establish programs supporting foster youth with basic financial education. Read to learn more about how to apply for a grant to support foster youth…
By: The BALANCE Marketing Team
Our COO, Cynthia Campbell, recently appeared as a guest on the Banking on Digital Growth Podcast with James Robert Lay. They discussed the importance of financial education and counseling within credit unions. Here are a few takeaways…
By: Cynthia Campbell, MBA, MEd, CUDE, Chief Operating Officer
When helping a member with their budget, how much time are you spending discussing their income? I think many times we, as financial coaches, ask them for their take-home pay for use as the starting place in the monthly budget and then we move on to the expenses. Most counselors are quite…
By: Denise Keiser AFC®, Counseling Programs Manager
“Too many people spend money they haven’t earned, to buy things they don’t want, to impress people that they don’t like,” — Will Rogers. In the spirit of garnering helpful advice from one of the wittiest performers in history, let’s review how money and debt shape today’s credit scores.
By: Shellye Carpenter, CCUFC, Director of Partner Relations
While we originally developed this content for veterans as a consumer-facing article, and will share it as such, it’s also extremely valuable information for you to use as a training tool or resource for your staff who work closely with veterans in…
By: Shellye Carpenter, CCUFC, Director of Partner Relations
As we all navigate through the “Great Resignation” and the changes taking place in the workforce, one thing employers should keep in mind is: for all the talk about rising wages and workers being able to “name their price,” many workers are still struggling financially. This leads to…
By: Cynthia Campbell, MBA, MEd, CUDE, Chief Operating Officer
If you are wondering what your members may need right now, I would suggest they need understanding and creative solutions. Recently, I have had conversations with two people who called BALANCE wanting financial counseling. They both had a gap that needed…
By: Shelly Weber, Certified HUD Housing Counseling and Financial Coach
We have often heard it said, “Do not neglect contributing to our employer’s sponsored retirement plan”…. Perhaps, taking advantage of an employer’s retirement savings should come with a warning sign: “Do not contribute until you are financially prepared.” This may sound counterintuitive, but let me explain.
By: Cynthia Campbell, MBA, MEd, CUDE, Chief Operating Officer
We all have messages about money that we have internalized over the years. These messages have shaped our money personality. Shame is the feeling of humiliation over a perceived wrong action or foolish behavior. Shame causes a feeling of…
By: Daisha Badgett, Financial Empowerment Manager
When I think about the CUFinHealth21 Conference, the first thing that comes to mind is… Mind Blown! I am the new Financial Empowerment Manager at BALANCE, and attending this conference early in my tenure was perfect. Last week, my first lesson was to …
By: Denise Keiser AFC®, Counseling Programs Manager
But, let’s be honest. Saving money isn’t something that comes easily to many of us, including the people we serve. We know it’s important, but so often, it seems like an overwhelming task. Instead of…
By: Meaghan Hiller, AFC®, Director of Financial Education
I was not always an expert in personal financial management. Years ago, like many other 18-year-olds, I stumbled into the credit card trap and fell…hard. I was finishing up my freshman year in college when I maxed out my first credit card, which was soon…
By: Cynthia Campbell, MBA, MEd, CUDE, Chief Operating Officer
There is a parable used in the healthcare industry that has changed the way I think about serving people. I would like to share this parable, which I heard told by Dr. Rishi Manchanda, the founder of HealthBegins, in a TedTalk called, “What is an Upstreamist in…
By: Jen Martin, Director of Partner Relations
You “dated” several financial wellness vendors. You found something that meets your needs, a proposal was sent, and now you are “engaged” to the vendor that best suits your needs. What comes next? Planning your marriage! When an engagement happens…
By: Linda Davis-Demas, Senior Director of Housing
Housing Counseling is a core competency of BALANCE. We handle pre-purchase, post-purchase, foreclosure prevention, rental, and reverse mortgage counseling. We are a HUD approved national housing counseling agency. We work with mortgage servicer partners…
By: Karina Galvan-Torres, Senior Director of Operations
During times of economic crisis and uncertainty, the significance of prioritizing financial stability suddenly leads every conversation with family and friends. For agencies, like BALANCE, that provide services to underserved and financially vulnerable communities every day…
By: Jen Martin, Director of Partner Relations
If you are considering implementing a financial wellness program for your members and/or staff you may feel overwhelmed at where to start. Luckily, my team and I have on-boarded many credit unions and have learned a lot along the way about what they were looking for, what they hope to…
By: Denise Keiser AFC®, Counseling Programs Manager
It’s not enough that money problems stress employees out, all of the time. Employee concerns about money also lower productivity while on the job and often increase the likelihood that employees will miss work. Money woes also account for…
By: Cynthia Campbell, MBA, MEd, CUDE, Chief Operating Officer
When I first heard of the Financial Health model created by the non-profit, Financial Health Network (formerly CFSI), I was thrilled. This framework offers four main pillars of financial health and under each pillar, there are two indicators. It is beautifully simple. They offer…