Entries by Emily Hickox

CCCSMD Celebrated Financial Literacy Month!

The month of April is one of our favorites because it’s Financial Literacy Month! Last month, our staff and volunteers had their schedules jam packed bringing education and consumer awareness to the communities we serve.

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Catch the FIRE: Financial Independence, Retire Early

The key to achieving long term financial success is to balance your investments and business expenses with your income to ensure that you’re operating within your means. You may need to invest in a variety of products, services, tools and technologies to help your business grow, but these investments should always be made with a sound budget in mind.

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Can I Get Another Loan If I Already Have One?

As of the fourth quarter of 2022, consumers held personal loans with an average balance of $11,116. Personal loans can be helpful when used wisely, but they can become a debt trap if not appropriately handled. There may be unforeseen circumstances where you find yourself in a situation where you need more money than your loan can provide. You may start wondering if you can take out another loan. This article explores whether you can obtain multiple loans and what factors to consider before taking on additional debt.

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CCCSMD Now Offers Online Counseling!

At CCCSMD, we believe you deserve quality financial guidance that is both convenient and easily accessible. This is why we recently launched online counseling, to supplement our in-person and telephone counseling services! You can now work online with a Financial Advocate to get personalized credit, debt, and housing solutions when you have a free moment.

Financial Success Amidst the Holiday Season

Regardless of what holiday your family celebrates, there are an abundance of gifts being exchanged during the month of December and the expense of all that gift giving can sneak up on you. If you’ve been working hard to stay on budget and gain financial stability this year, don’t let this season derail your progress. There are three things to keep in mind from now until New Year’s to stay on course to improving your financial health.

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GetLifted Program

We are excited to share that we have been selected to be a part of Capital One’s GetLifted program! When we first heard about this program, we thought this was a fantastic way to bring financial education to the communities we serve.  In this article, we will explain all about the program, the volunteer positions we are looking to fill and how you can become a part of this exciting project!

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How to Navigate Buying a Home with Student Loan Debt

Consumers’ first line of defense against frauds is awareness, which is why CCCSMD works to safeguard them. People most frequently associate scams with attacks on their identity or financial security, but as the amount of fraud rises, so do the attack strategies, and individual people aren’t the only group being targeted. Scammers target businesses, especially nonprofit and volunteer organizations, and their actions can cause significant financial harm.

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Are You Living Within Your Business Means?

The key to achieving long term financial success is to balance your investments and business expenses with your income to ensure that you’re operating within your means. You may need to invest in a variety of products, services, tools and technologies to help your business grow, but these investments should always be made with a sound budget in mind.

Board Member Spotlight – Gail Sanders

Gail H. Sanders is a native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  Upon graduating from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, she moved to Maryland to accept a teaching position.  After receiving a master’s degree from The Johns Hopkins University and teaching for nine years in public and private schools, she changed the direction of her career and began working […]

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Two Personal Financial Apps that Changed our Finances

When my wife and I began carefully budgeting four years ago, we sat down and developed a budget and a system for tracking our spending. In the old days, we may have handwritten a list to track our purchases or put cash in envelopes to use throughout the month, but this is 2022, and there are now more options available than ever for tracking your finances.