Money Smart By taking Money Smart, you are taking an important first step to building a better financial future for you and your family. It all starts with understanding the basics of personal finances. This class is designed to help you build a positive relationship with financial institutions such as banks, thrifts, and credit unions.  Money Matters – How to keep track of your money • Prepare a personal spending plan or budget • Increase income • Budgeting tools that will help you manage your bills • Create a plan to achieve financial goals Borrowing Basics and To Your Credit • Three types of loans • Factors lenders use to make loan decisions • Credit reports and how they are used • Guard against predatory lending practices Bank On It and Check It Out • Five reasons to use a bank • Opening a bank account-savings or checking • Benefits of using a checking account • Manage a checking account wisely Keep It Safe and Pay Yourself First • Federal deposit insurance protects deposits • Guard against identity theft • Financially preparing for disasters • Save for large expense goals – car, vacation, home purchase, collegeFunding for this project was provided by the U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services, Admin. for Children and Families, Grant 90FM0004. Any opinions, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Dept. of Health and Human Services, Admin. for Children and Families. Visit EventBrite.com for pricing.