Need some inspiration to save more money and reduce debt? Utah Saves Week, Feb. 22-28, could help.
The nonprofit Utah Saves initiative kicked off Tuesday with a weeklong series of challenges, pep talks, workshops and classes designed to help Utahns improve their finances.
"This week is all about challenging yourself to start becoming financially savvy," said Ann House, campaign coordinator and assistant professor with Utah State University Extension Service.
Tuesday's emphasis was on how to order a free credit report by going to AnnualCreditReport.com. This site was set up by the nation's three main credit-reporting agencies — Experian, Equifax and TransUnion — to comply with a federal law. It requires them to provide consumers with one free credit report annually. That means consumers could go to this site every four months and get a free report from a different bureau. Or they could get all three at once.
Most experts recommend ordering a credit report for free once every four months. Why is this so important? The quality of a person's credit report is key to determining what interest rate is charged on a variety of loans and even what is charged for auto insurance.
Errors in credit reports aren't uncommon; one benefit of ordering a credit report one or more times a year is that errors can be spotted early.
"It's actually quite easy to correct errors,"said House of Utah Saves organizers.
Other areas that Utah Saves Week will cover:
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Wednesday • Participants can enroll in Utah Saves for free at utahsaves.org and make a pledge to start saving. As part of that pledge, they can establish or expand an emergency savings account and keep saving until they have three to six months of living expenses. They also can start a savings plan for large purchases instead of simply relying on credit cards or loans.
Organizers say a good way to do this is to put savings on autopilot. Enroll in a 401(k) plan and have a set amount of a paycheck go toward retirement. Another suggestion is to have a set amount of money transferred from a checking to savings account each month.
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Thursday • Learn to create a budget. The utahsaves.org website regularly lists courses and workshops on learning how to set financial boundaries for food, entertainment and other recurring expenses — and it helps participants learn how to stick with them. Most courses are free or low-cost and are offered throughout the state.
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Friday • Figure out where the money is going. Participants are advised to get a small notebook or check register and write down every penny spent. Tracking money spent for one day is informative; doing it for a week or more can be enlightening. That $3 latte purchased a few times a week doesn't seem like a lot until it is added up over time.
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Saturday •Organizers advise folks to sit down with their families to talk about finances. Having everybody —including children — understand the goals helps increase the likelihood of success. Even younger children can understand the concept of the need to spend less.
The website financeintheclassroom.org can help participants learn ways to help their children — kindergarten through 12th grade — become financially savvy.
Ultimately, Utah Saves Week organizers warn families not to get discouraged and to avoid trying to tackle too much at once. For the best shot at success, take the task of improving finances slowly.
For example, someone who goes out to lunch every day is likely to fail if they suddenly cut out all restaurant meals.
"Start slow by ordering water instead of soda, thenâ¦after you've gotten used to that, start going out to eat only two times instead of four or five. Make gradual changes and you're much more likely to stick with it"
lesley@sltrib.com —
Utah Saves Week
The Utah Saves initiative, designed to help Utahns save more and reduce debt, is dedicating a week to helping Utahns with efforts to improve their finances. Go to www.utahsaves.org for more information and a list of workshops, classes and events to educate and inspire.
