The Sharpen Your Financial Focus program is a nationwide initiative of the National Founda-

tion of Credit Counseling (NFCC) and broad cross-section of supporters who are committed to

increasing the financial well-being of Americans. As of January 2016, the NFCC and its mem-

ber agencies have enrolled more than 60,000 clients in the Sharpen program, which debuted

in 2013. CCCS of Rochester has been part of the program since the beginning.

Researchers at The Ohio State University, member agencies and Experian gathered and ana-

lyzed data on program participants. The study found that Sharpen clients perform better on a

variety of credit outcomes, such as:

*Improvement in levels of revolving debt and total debt

*Better money management

*Improved financial confidence

*Change in Credit Scores

*Change in Payment Delinquencies

According to the Sharpen Client Profile:

• 63% of Sharpen clients are female, with an average age of 43

• The median Sharpen client has reported $2,800 in monthly income, $10,000 in

liquid assets (such as housing equity) and no savings.

• The median amount of monthly housing and debt related expenses for clients is

around $910 and $1,000, respectively.

The main reason for seeking counseling was Financial Shock

• 63% of clients face a reduction of income due to a change in employment or job loss

• Almost 30% struggle with medical expenses or increases in debt payments driven

by higher interest rates.

• Many have a poor or declining credit score.

Based on the responses from the survey, Sharpen clients reported that the program is making

a positive impact in their financial lives just three months after counseling. If you haven’t taken

part in the Sharpen program, get started by visiting https://www.mymoneycheckup.org/

cccsofrochester with the MyMoneyCheckup financial evaluation or call our office at 585-546-

3440 for more information.

Sharpen Your Financial Focus

CCCS of Rochester/RethinkingDebt Headquarters: 1000 University Ave, Rochester, NY 14607 **Spring 2016**

Inside this issue:

Sharpen results 1

First Home Buyer 2

Summer Vacations 2

Building Credit 3

Ask CCCS 4

CASH Coach Program 4

In the Community 5

Creating a Budget 5

By: Dominique Williams, Advisor

Page 2

First Home Buyer Education

For many years, Consumer Credit

Counseling Service of Rochester

has offered a First Time Home-

buyer workshop. Demand for this

workshop has increased over the

past few years. This workshop is a

requirement for First Home Club

members and we want to make this

requirement as easy possible for

our clients to obtain.

For your convenience, CCCS of

Rochester now offers an online

course for first time homebuyers.

This course is offered through E-

Home America and can be ac-

cessed through our website

www.cccsofrochester.org/first-

time-homebuyer-workshop.

The fee is $79.00 after the use of a

coupon code CCCSHBE. The

course is offered in both English

and Spanish. The entire process

takes 6-8 hours to complete and

must be finished within 30 days

once started. When completed, you

will follow up with a brief conver-

sation with one of our certified

counselors to issue your certifi-

cate.

Instructor led classes will still be

offered at our location at 1000

University Avenue in Rochester.

These in person workshops are

offered once per month on a Satur-

day and run 6-7 hours. A class

schedule can be found on our web-

site– www.cccsofrochester.org/

events/calendar . You can register

for the workshop online or you can

give us a call at 585-546-3440 to

schedule your workshop. There is

a $40.00 fee paid online prior to

attending or in person using a

money order.

During the summer, no one wants

to stay home. To ensure that you

will be able to enjoy your summer

to the fullest, here are some tips to

help plan ahead for vacations. This

is important so as to ensure that

you are not over spending on cred-

it cards or getting behind on regu-

lar monthly bills.

Set a goal: First set a goal for

yourself that will allow for sum-

mer fun within a budget. Then de-

cide how much you can set aside

out of each paycheck and how

many weeks this goal will take to

achieve. Sometimes this can ac-

complished without putting aside

extra funds, but rather tightening

up your current expenses– cutting

out one cup of coffee per week or

bringing your lunch each day.

If you are planning a vacation

away from home, it’s important to

plan for all of the possible expens-

es, such as plane fare, hotel costs,

food, activities and don’t forget-

the unexpected expenses! Once

you know how much you will

need, you can set up a savings

plan that will work for your budg-

et.

If you are staying close to home

for the summer, look for options

that have little to no out of pocket

expense, such as visiting a park, a

beach or the zoo.

Look for discounts: Do not be

afraid to ask about possible dis-

counts at your destination or

events, as you never know what

will be available.

By: Andrea Colline, Outreach Coordinator

Saving for Summer Vacations

By: Danielle Grasta, Client Support

Page 3

Building Credit

By: Amy Holland, Advisor

Being in your 20’s can be an exciting time. For many people, it is the

first time experiencing independence from their parents. However, with

this increased freedom comes increased responsibilities, and managing

your credit is a major one.

It’s easy to be misinformed about how credit works, as well as how to

effectively build credit. Unfortunately, it’s one of the few subjects one

normally doesn’t learn about in school. Bad financial habits are hard to

break, so it’s good idea to educate yourself before these habits have a

chance to form. In this article, we’ll go over some tips on how to get on

the right track with your credit.

Check and Monitor your credit report

A good place to start is to first review your credit report. One way to do this is to pull a copy of your credit

reports on annualcreditreport.com. This site is free of charge, and you can access a copy of reports from

Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax once a year. It’s a good idea to review for any inaccuracies, and to see

if there is anything reported that you may be unsure of.

Secured credit cards and Installment loans

The first way to build credit is to obtain credit. A secured credit card is a great tool for people with a lim-

ited credit history. Many credit unions offer these cards to applicants with no credit or bad credit. A se-

cured card is backed by a deposit from the applicant, which the credit limit is usually the same amount of

the deposit. The minimum deposit varies from bank to bank, but is generally at least $300. These cards

work similarly to a debit card, but report each month to the credit bureaus. The best way to utilize these

cards is to use them for smaller monthly expenses and pay them off each month when the statement comes.

Another way to establish credit is to get an installment loan such as a car loan or personal loan. Installment

loans are great because they have a set timeframe to be paid off, and when they are paid on time demon-

strate that you are a reliable borrower.

Using Credit Wisely

Once you get credit, it is important to make your payments on time, as payment history accounts for 35%

of your credit score. Credit utilization is also a major portion of your credit score. Keeping your balances at

30% or less than your total credit limit helps your score. Avoiding applying for unnecessary credit cards is

also a good thing to keep in mind. Applying for new credit results in a hard inquiry on your credit, and can

bring your score down two or more points each time.

AmazonSmile

CCCS of Rochester is now listed as a charitable organization with AmazonSmile. AmazonSmile is the same Ama-

zon you know. When first visiting AmazonSmile, customers are prompted to select a charitable organization from

almost one million eligible organizations. In order to browse or shop at AmazonSmile, customers must first select a

charitable organization. For eligible purchases, the AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5% of the purchase price

to the customer’s selected charitable organization. CCCS of Rochester would appreciate being one of your choices

for this donation. To shop with Amazon Smile, visit smile.amazon.com and select Consumer Credit Counseling

Service of Rochester.

Page 4

Ask CCCS

Question:

What will being on a debt manage-

ment program do to my credit score?

Answer:

One of the questions the majority of

our clients ask is “how will a debt

management program effect my

credit score?” This is a great ques-

tion! After all if your credit wasn’t a

concern, you most likely wouldn’t be

seeking our assistance to begin with.

The debt management program is a

structured plan designed to help pay

off your debt in an efficient and

timely manner. Many of our clients

are struggling to make minimum

monthly payments which can cause

them to fall behind and to receive

late fees which add to balances and

can negate the payments you are

making. Once your debt manage-

ment plan is established, you begin

making more consistent on time pay-

ments to your creditors therefore

helping to improve your credit score.

Experian says: “The impact on your

scores may be minimal, depending

on how the payments are managed

and if you have other positive ac-

counts. The most important thing is

that you must make sure that the

company will immediately take over

the payments so that you never miss

a payment in the transition to their

service. As long as all your payments

are made on time, it won’t matter

who paid them and there is no scor-

ing issue from that aspect.”

Typically, our clients notice im-

provement in their score within the

first year they are on the program

and by the time they make that last

payment, they experience relief and

pride in seeing what they’ve accom-

plished to help improve their credit

and ultimately their future. For more

information, call our client support

department at 585-546-3440 to

schedule a free consultation. You

can also read more by visiting the

websites below:

www.experian.com

Or

www.cccsofrochester.org

By: Lynette Rieke, Advisor

C.A.S.H. Coach Program

Consumer Credit Counseling Service

of Rochester is happy to announce

we are now accepting applications

monthly for the C.A.S.H. Coach

Program. We partner with the

C.A.S.H. Coalition (Creating Assets,

Savings and Hope) to offer this free

financial coaching program. The pro-

gram provides confidential one-on-

one and group financial coaching to

help participants reach financial

goals that will help to improve mon-

ey management skills, savings, debt

repayment and credit scores. Visit

http://www.empirejustice.org/

cash/cash-coach-program/ to learn

more.

Successful graduates of the Coach

Program have increased their credit

score, paid down debt, opened and

maintained savings accounts, and

gone on to reach other financial and

life goals such as purchasing a home

or new vehicle!

Applications are being accepted for

participants and volunteer coaches!

•Volunteer Coach: to learn more,

and apply, visit: http://

www.empirejustice.org/cash/

volunteer-intern-opportunities/coach

-program/

•Participants: to learn more,

and apply, visit: http://

www.empirejustice.org/cash/cash-

coach-program/participant-

information/

If you have any questions or find that

clients are unable to view our online

information and application, please

feel free to contact Tracy Merlau at

295-5733 or at tmer-

lau@empirejustice.org.

Page 5

CCCS in the Community

Our employees like to make a differ-

ence in the community.

Junior Achievement (JA) is the larg-

est organization dedicated to educat-

ing students in grades K-12 about

entrepreneurship, work readiness and

financial literacy through experien-

tial, hands-on programs designed to

help young people understand the

economics of life. In partnership

with businesses and educators, JA

brings the real world to students,

opening their minds to their poten-

tial.

JA Our Community introduces stu-

dents to the intersection of work

readiness and early elementary social

studies learning objectives, including

how citizens benefit from and con-

tribute to a community’s success.

One of our advisors, Stacey Walker,

had the chance to volunteer at Wil-

son Foundation Academy. She

taught 2nd graders 5 sessions about

being in the community and how we

contribute to the community daily.

The topics included careers, product

creation, innovation, taxes, govern-

ment, money, business and decision

making. Stacey and the students had

a lot of fun doing different activities

each week for 5 weeks.

By: Stacey Walker, Advisor

Creating a Realistic Budget

By: Jeana Breakingbury, Advisor

People from all different de-

mographics often struggle when it

comes to making a realistic budget.

However, the importance of creat-

ing a budget cannot be overstated.

Creating a budget allows you to see

how much money you have coming

in and going out of your household.

It also helps you to avoid over-

spending. There are times when it

may become necessary for someone

to revisit their budget.

• A life changing event such as mar-

riage or the birth/adoption of a child

• Loss of a spouse/family member

• The feeling of constantly running

out of money by the end of the

work week

• Change in employment

When creating your budget, use a

journal/note book or a software ap-

plication to get started. Start with

financial goals that are realistic and

financially attainable. (Savings,

retirement, car, home, vacation,

college, etc..)

Gather your 2 most recent pay

stubs, bank statements and monthly

bills. You can use a check register

or access to your computer to re-

view transaction history.

Establishing a budget can be done

through a three step process.

Step One: Total up all your

monthly income. Make sure you are

including any variable income such

as commissions, bonuses, alimony,

child support and summer job in-

come

Step Two: Write down all of your

monthly expenses

Fixed: Housing, heat/electric,

phone, cable, internet, groceries, car

payment, insurances, child care,

etc.…

Variable: Lunches, entertainment,

gift giving, personal care, clothing,

etc.…

** You may need to monitor your

expenses for a month or two to get

a good grasp on your spending

habits. Saving receipts or using a

mobile app to track daily and week-

ly expenses might be helpful.

Step Three: Subtract your ex-

penses from your income. Don’t

forget to include your financial

goals

**If you have a deficit, review your

expenses and look at where you can

trim or you may need to increase

your income.

Regardless of life changing events,

people should reevaluate their

budget on a regular basis.

For more information, contact

CCCS of Rochester at 585-546-

3440.

Non-Profit Org

US Postage

PAID

Rochester, NY

Permit NO. 986

Toll Free Phone: 1-888-724-2227

Email: cccsinfo@cccsofrochester.org

Headquarters:

1000 University Ave., Suite 900

Rochester, NY 14607

Phone: (585) 546-3440

Fax: (585) 546-5693

Toll Free- (888) 724-2227

This newsletter is a publication of CCCS of Rochester/ RethinkingDebt, a Not-for-Profit agency. It is a source of information for clients, sponsors, representatives of the credit industry, and the service networks supportive of our mission and vision.

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