Blog

Since the Coronavirus has hit, most of us have had major changes to our careers – if not through layoffs and furloughs, by work from home adaptations and remote work. These changes have resulted in many people rethinking their career paths, which can be a scary thought. Before you decide, let’s explore a few important parts of this process: Considering a Career Change People seek career changes for different reasons. The most common are better pay, less stress, a better work-life...

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Looking for ways to protect your identity? Two options to consider are fraud alerts and credit freezes. But what’s the difference? A fraud alert makes companies verify your identity before granting new credit in your name. Usually, that means calling you to check if you’re really trying to open a new account. Placing a fraud alert is easy – you contact any one of the three nationwide credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion) and that one must notify the other...

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It’s 2020, so this should be the year that provides clarity for you to look at your personal finances with an eagle eye. Be honest with yourself, did the holidays cause you to go into debt? Because it’s a new start to the year, we want you to start the year strong and achieve financial stability before next December. Untangle yourself from all the debt you’ve accumulated over the years with these simple tips: Cut up your credit cards immediately The fourth biggest cause of...

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Credit is important for pretty much all facets of adult life. Credit can be impacted by a number of different things. If you’ve been turned down for credit or you’re looking to buy a house, credit is pretty important. It could be that you just don’t have enough of it or maybe you made some poor financial decisions. Poor credit can be embarrassing, stressful, and expensive. In fact, poor credit can actually cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars in interest over time on a mortgage....

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Getting approved for a small business loan can be a hurdle for many small businesses. Many banks are reluctant to gamble on small businesses and have pretty tight lending standards. However, it’s often necessary and crucial to obtain outside funding to start or grow a business. This puts small businesses in a tricky spot. While you can’t avoid the fact that acquiring a small business loan is going to be less than fun, there are things you can do to make it easier. Going into any situation...

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If you’re considering building your dream home instead of purchasing an existing house, you’ll need financing. The whole thing can be confusing and more than a little intimidating. Do you need a mortgage? A personal loan? It’s hard to know where to start. What’s tricky is that you’re asking for financing for something that doesn’t actually exist yet. It requires something different than a traditional mortgage. Trying to find land, a builder, and all the other...

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Did you know… The average FICO score in America is 695 and the average Vantage score stands at 673. [source] Less than 1% of the population has a perfect credit score of 850. [source] Only 41% of Americans understand that a credit score measures your risk of not paying a loan, according to a joint survey from the Consumer Federation of America and VantageScore. Credit is important for pretty much all facets of adult life. Credit can be impacted by a number of different things....

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Did you know that there is more Monopoly money printed every year than actual cash? If only we could pay for things using Monopoly money! Unfortunately, we can’t just pass Go for another $200 and there is no such thing as Community Chest. Or is there? While your community bank isn’t going to give you $10 for winning 2nd prize in a beauty contest, there are some definite advantages to banking with a local, community bank. Here are some advantages you can expect to see when you bank with...

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You might be starting out on a new business venture or it might just be time to adjust your banking expectations. Either way, if you haven’t done some research, choosing the right bank account for your business can be, well, risky business. It’s important to make sure your bank and your business account are optimized for your specific needs. Here are some things to keep in mind: Find a bank that offers the services that are important to you and your business. Perhaps low minimum balances...

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