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Many people don’t have enough money to maintain their lifestyle. They turn to credit cards to make ends meet, and their children are beginning to notice. According to the Federal Reserve, borrowing from credit cards and other unsecured lines of credit rose to $937.5 billion.

Children notice changes at home. When parents start to alter their spending habits, no more Friday pizza or renting movies for example, it sends a message that something could be wrong.

Parents need to sit down and talk with their kids about money

Be honest but don’t be all doom and gloom. To make this task easier, the experts at Consolidated Credit Counseling Services have created a booklet “Talking Money with Your Kids”. The free booklet gives parents guidelines on how to approach money topics with children.

For more information, visit consolidatedcredit.org.

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AARP and Coupons.com recently announced a new relationship to help consumers save money and, at the same time, give back to those in need. The AARP Grocery Coupon Center allows people of all ages to access coupons that will help them save on everyday items from dozens of leading brands.

Continuing through the holiday season, for each coupon printed from the Grocery Coupon Center and redeemed by December 31, 2009, Coupons.com will donate five cents to the customer’s choice of one of a selected number of AARP Foundation charitable initiatives. The AARP Foundation, AARP’s affiliated charity, helps provide security, protection and empowerment for older persons in need.

Coupon use in general has increased since the economic downturn began, however the growth in popularity of coupons has been particularly significant among AARP members. In fact, a 2008 Scarborough Research report found that more than 79 percent of AARP members reported using coupons for groceries at least once in the previous 12 months. The Grocery Coupon Center will make available as many as 100 or more valuable coupons at any given time, with an average savings of more than one dollar per coupon.

Users of the Grocery Coupon Center can choose to direct donations to one of nine AARP Foundation initiatives designed to:

• Assist individuals struggling with the high cost of prescription drugs and basic necessities;
• Provide job training and assistance to older Americans who need to work to make ends meet;
• Help lower-income taxpayers qualify for the right deductions and credits;
• Protect older Americans from consumer fraud and identity theft;
• Protect against age discrimination;
• Help seniors manage their finances so they can remain in their homes and retain their independence;
• Support grandparents raising grandchildren;
• Provide education and training to older women reentering the workforce to support their families; or
• Help improve the lives of all seniors.

At least through Dec. 31, the AARP Grocery Coupon Center is available to everyone.

For more information, visit grocerycouponcenter.com or createthegood.org or coupons.com.

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Every day, Americans are bombarded with special credit card offers — and opportunities to spend — but Bills.com co-founder and co-CEO Andrew Housser cautions that consumers should think twice when deciding if they should change credit cards or add new plastic to their wallet.

Many consumers, however, ignore this advice and continue to use credit cards to buy items they cannot pay off at the end of the month.

Some Americans compensate for these dangers by juggling credit cards. With the average American receiving a dozen credit card offers each month, Housser suggested consumers evaluate these offers to decide whether they should change where they charge — or stay with the status quo.

When to switch:

1. When you have a balance on a store card. Most store credit cards offer appealing initial terms. Later, the interest rates on these cards typically reach 18-22 percent.

2. When a “no payments for X months” offer is expiring — and you cannot pay. You planned to save up to pay off your refrigerator. But you do not have the cash, and are about to be stuck with 12 months’ interest charges. For a big-ticket item (like that refrigerator), it might be worth it even if there is a balance transfer fee – if the fee is less than the interest. Whatever you do, pay off the purchase ASAP.

3. If you carry a balance, the balance fluctuates and the card uses two-month billing. Some credit card companies calculate interest (“finance charges”) based on the average of the last two months’ balances. So if you owe $1,000 in month one and pay it all off in month two, your interest for month three will be calculated on the two previous months’ balance of $1,000

When to stay:

1. When building your credit score. If you are new to building credit or thinking of a major purchase such as a home, avoid changing your financial profile. Opening a new credit card can lower a cardholder’s score.

2. When you have an amazing rewards points offer – maybe. Some people add a card because of the great rewards – such as 25,000 points with the first purchase. Those with tremendous discipline can benefit from these deals, especially if they cash in the points for a gift card to replace some cash purchases, and then funnel the money saved to paying off debt. Others become tempted to spend on the shiny new plastic. Still others forget to cancel the card and get stuck with a hefty annual fee.

3. When you are a compulsive spender. Look yourself in the eye. If you get that new credit card, will you max it out, shop excessively or secretly spend? Most people really need only one credit card for personal business and convenience. Housser suggests spenders do themselves a favor and shred applications for new cards.

4. When you are over your head in debt. You can only juggle overwhelming credit card balances for so long.

For more information, visit bills.com.

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The National Endowment for Financial Education® (NEFE®) now provides an easily-implemented, unbiased and noncommercial financial education solution for colleges, universities and alumni associations to offer to their students. More than 60 schools across the country have signed up to use CashCourse , an online resource directed at college students and recent grads, since its inception in fall 2007.

Living away from the guidance of their parents during college is often a time when many students make unwise financial decisions due to lack of knowledge. They are confronted with easy access to credit cards, and spending decisions that go far beyond tuition, housing and food, including items such as spring break travel, fraternities and sororities, and the temptations of alcohol and gambling. Students also need financial tools for their transition to adulthood, including saving, investing, taxes and evaluating the financial aspects of job offers. Increasing concern over this issue has lead to the joint effort between NEFE and universities to fill in the missing gaps of financial knowledge that many college students have.

CashCourse offers unbiased content with no advertising and no connections to commercial entities. Colleges and universities can brand the program with their own logos and decide independently where to place it in their Web sites. Any college department can initiate CashCourse, including financial aid and student affairs offices, and alumni associations.

Among the schools using CashCourse are Bowling Green State University, University of Illinois Alumni Association, University of Iowa, Kansas State University, Michigan State University Alumni Association, Ohio State University, Rutgers, and University of Wisconsin Alumni Association. At the University of Wisconsin, Paula Bonner, president and CEO of the alumni association, and her colleagues have supported CashCourse since the start.
Additionally, Kate Seguin, assistant director of the Student Wellness Center at Ohio State University, observed a definite need among the students for CashCourse.

NEFE received input directly from college students to determine what information they would want to see. Representatives from the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) also wrote or reviewed CashCourse content on financial aid.

For more information, visit cashcourse.org.

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