Shoppers always need to be alert and prepared to protect themselves against credit card fraud, particularly during the holiday shopping season.  The good news is that there are some simple things you can do to make you less vulnerable. Here are a few tips on how to avoid becoming the victim of credit card fraud.

• Periodically review your credit reports. There are three main credit bureaus. Order your credit report from each of them at least once a year. Request copies of your credit report from TransUnion, Experian and Equifax. You can also obtain a free copy of your credit report.
• Properly discard documents. Cut up, shred, or otherwise destroy credit card statements, bank statements, pre-approved credit offers or any other documents that contain your personal information. Destroy credit card receipts, too.
• Limit identification pieces. Carry only essential identification pieces in your purse, wallet, backpack or car. Do not carry your Social Security card or your birth certificate with you unless absolutely necessary.
  
•  Limit the number of credit cards you carry. Try to only carry one or two.
• Memorize your PIN and password numbers. Do not write them down.
•  Make and keep copies of account numbers in a secure place.
• Guard your personal information. Don’t give out credit card or Social Security numbers to people you don’t know.
•  Do not have your Social Security number printed on your checks or driver’s license.​

Back to school clothes, computers, and other expenses can add up in a hurry.  Results from a study conducted by the Rubicon Project’s Back-To-School Consumer Pulse Survey found that parents will spend an average of $917 per child gearing up for school this year.  Use the following planning and budgeting tips to help stretch those back to school dollars:

Start with a list of needs.  Make a list for each child that includes what they need, not want, for school, and add up those expenses to compare to your budget. Remember to include school fees, lunches, Comb through closets, drawers and last year’s backpack to inventory what you already have to avoid duplicate purchases.  You may be surprised at the amount of school supplies left over from last year. 

Get the kids involved in budgeting.  Don’t shy away from including your children in your back to school budget process.  Show them what the budget is versus what the expenses are so that they understand spending limitations.  As an incentive, you may want to offer to split the savings with them if you come under budget.

Go coupon clipping online.  Consolidation websites post downloadable coupons and sale codes for online retailers, including: CouponCabin.com, CouponCode.com, CouponCraze.com, Dailyedeals.com, DealCoupon.com, DealHunting.com, Dealnews.com and MyBargainBuddy.com.

Buy only the clothes you need for now.  Kids grow and fashion changes quickly, so purchasing a lot of clothes at once may not be your best strategy.  Spread out your clothing budget throughout the year and take advantage of sales that pop up each season.

Pool resources.  Talk with other parents about buying supplies in bulk together and splitting costs, setting up carpools, and swapping gently used clothing, uniforms and unused supplies.

Rent versus buy.  For musical instruments and sports equipment, renting is a much more affordable option than buying.  As your child’s interest change, they may decide they don’t want to play trombone or lacrosse.

If you’re faced with a layoff, here are some things you can do to prepare:

• Prepare a written budget. This clarifies your cash-flow situation and helps you with the following strategies.
• Dump debt. Extra debt beyond the home mortgage and perhaps car payments—especially high-interest credit card debt—can weigh very heavy if you are laid off. Pay off as much debt as you can while you still have a job.
• Build a cash reserve. Ideally, you already have an emergency fund in place for just this sort of possibility, preferably with at least three to six months of cash to cover bare-bones expenses. If you don’t have such a fund, or it’s not well funded, put cash in it now while you can afford to.
• Cut expenses. To free up cash to pay off that extra debt, feed the emergency fund and perhaps even to test run a bare-bones budget in the event you are laid off, tighten your financial hatches as much as possible. Look at what expenses you could do without or reduce if you were to become unemployed, such as entertainment, clothing, and meals out. Surprisingly, many unemployed workers try to maintain their employment lifestyle, often by piling up credit card debt, dipping into retirement savings, or running through their lump-sum severance package.
• Start scouting for jobs. This includes not only outside firms, but positions that may be available inside the company. As odd as it may seem, even though the company may be laying off workers in some departments, it may be hiring in others—often from the inside first. Keep looking for work once you are laid off. Amazingly, it’s common for unemployed workers sitting on top of generous severance packages or lump-sum retirement payouts to postpone looking for work for months. Take your layoff as a good opportunity to upgrade your marketable skills.
• Negotiate an exit package. If the pink slip arrives, you may be eligible for a substantial exit package. You may have options, such as taking a lump sum or taking a salary continuation package that might include company funding of a health care plan or your retirement account for a while beyond severance. You also may be in a position to negotiate a stronger exit package than initially offered. Review any exit package options with your CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ practitioner.
• Continue health insurance. Don’t go without! If the company’s exit package doesn’t continue your group health insurance, consider continuing the coverage under COBRA. This is a federal law that requires many employers to allow unemployed workers to continue group coverage, usually for up to 18 months, as long as the worker pays the premiums.
• Don’t count on unemployment insurance. It won’t begin to make up for your lost wages, though every little bit helps. Keep in mind when calculating your post-layoff income that unemployment insurance income is taxable and it’s short term.
• Don’t touch your retirement funds. Try to avoid borrowing or withdrawing funds from your retirement accounts, or spending lump-sum retirement payouts from your former employer. The layoff probably will be temporary, but retirement isn’t. Pulling funds out early could cost a lot in taxes, penalties, and lost growth opportunities.

This article was submitted by the Financial Planning Association, the membership organization for the financial planning community. FPA members are dedicated to supporting the financial planning process in order to help people achieve their goals and dreams. Submission of this article does not imply an endorsement or recommendation of the Financial Resource Center site

Most people aspire to become financially independent, but few actually think about or take the actions necessary to reach independence.

Financial independence means having sufficient financial resources to comfortably choose whether to work or not work, or perhaps work in a highly desirable job that otherwise couldn’t support your standard of living. It means being able to withstand the inevitable financial storms along the way. But what key steps does it take to achieve financial independence?
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1. Set specific goals. Goals define what financial independence will look like for each of us. Goals, particularly specific goals written out with timetables, can motivate us to initiate and stick with the other keys to financial independence.
2. Consistently spend less than you earn. Yes, your mother probably taught you this when you were receiving an allowance as a youngster, but so many of us forget this basic principle. Unless you spend less than you earn, it’s impossible to become financially independent — short of winning the lottery. Consistent saving is even more important than the investment rate you might earn with that savings. Aim for saving at least ten percent of your pre-tax income. If you’re unable to save ten percent now, saving a smaller percentage will help you—especially if you start saving while you’re younger and can let the power of compounding work for you.
3. Create a spending plan. The key to spending less than you earn is to create and follow a spending plan. In general, if you subtract your expenses from your earnings, the amount left should be your savings. Another way to view your savings, though, is to treat savings as an expense item and put it at the top of your budget. Simply have the money deducted from your paycheck and deposited into your savings account. You won’t miss it, and you won’t be tempted to spend it.
4. Invest. To build financial independence, you’ll need to earn a reasonable return on your savings. A savings account alone is not enough. Invest in stocks, bonds, and other assets that involve an acceptable level of risk. Yes, there’s the risk of some loss of principal, but understand that investing is for long-term goals that are at least five years away. When you are closer to reaching your goals, shift the invested funds into those lower-earning but less risky savings accounts and money markets.
5. Stay invested. One of the big mistakes many investors make is waiting to invest until the market is really strong and then bailing out when it sinks. In short, they buy high and sell low. Get in and stay in—and make adjustments if necessary. Keep in mind that the bulk of the returns of a bull market tend to come early in the upswing, and people often miss out on them because they’re waiting for the market to turn “hot.”
6. Diversify. It’s important to diversify your assets. Overloading on company stock, on stock in the industry in which you work, or on other higher-risk investments is an open invitation to trouble. By spreading your investment money among several asset categories, you minimize the impact of the downturns of a particular segment.
7. Use tax-favored accounts. Retirement plans and individual retirement accounts are the most efficient way to build toward financial independence because you get more bang for each invested buck, especially if your employer matches your contributions.
8. Bulletproof your independence. As you accumulate money for financial independence, you need to protect it. The primary way is insurance—not just life, health, auto and homeowner’s insurance—but disability and liability coverage. Disability insurance helps offset the loss of income if you can no longer work due to a disability, and liability coverage is a cushion against lawsuits. Another form of insurance is a cash-reserve emergency fund where dollars are kept in a savings or money market account to see you through emergencies or a stretch of unemployment, so you don’t have to dip into retirement accounts or other investments.

This article was submitted by the Financial Planning Association, the membership organization for the financial planning community. FPA members are dedicated to supporting the financial planning process in order to help people achieve their goals and dreams. Submission of this article does not imply an endorsement or recommendation of the Financial Resource Center site.