Quick Tips: A Resource for Members and Staff

Each month, BALANCE sends out an educational e-newsletter called Quick Tips. It’s sent to members who opt in and addresses timely matters of personal finance. You can use this tool to supplement staff training and education and to remind your staff of the many ways BALANCE counseling and education can help your members. Encourage your staff to opt in to the newsletter by logging on to www.balancepro.net and clicking on the Newsletters link in the Financial Education section of the site. Or, you can assign one team member to subscribe to Quick Tips and forward the articles to staff or include them in your employee newsletter or intranet.

Recent issues include:

• July '08: Is Now a Good Time to Buy a Home?
• June '08: Dealing with the Student Loan Crunch
• May '08: Teaching Your Children the Value of Money
• April '08: How to Beat the Shopping Blues
• March '08: Tax Time Does Not Need To Be Taxing!
• February '08: Money Smart Ways to Go Green
• January '08: Credit Card Scam - Beware Fake Investigators

Bankruptcy Filings Dramatically Increasing

The total number of U.S. bankruptcies filed during the first three months of 2008 increased 26.9 percent over the same period in 2007 and nearly nine percent over the fourth quarter of 2007. This represents the ninth consecutive quarterly increase in filings since the changes in bankruptcy legislation. According to the American Bankruptcy Institute, the first quarter 2008 filing total represents a 110 percent increase from the total filings recorded during the first calendar quarter of 2006, the first full quarter following the implementation of the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005 (BAPCPA).

Escalating consumer debt, the rising cost of everyday purchases such as gas and food, and the housing crisis have all contributed to the financial strain many of your members are experiencing. Some may be falling behind on their accounts with you, while many may be current on their credit union accounts, but considering bankruptcy due to collection activity.

Combining a targeted and blanket approach to promoting financial education and counseling through BALANCE can ensure that you reach all of your members in need. Through referrals by your collections team -- both verbally and in mailings -- members falling behind will feel encouraged to reach out for help. Using your newsletter and website to promote counseling and education as a benefit of membership will ensure that members you don’t even realize are struggling will know the credit union is providing tools to help them overcome their challenges.