Financial Education

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All Howard County Library System branches have books on various aspects of financial literacy in their circulating nonfiction collections. Additionally, a small collection of books explicitly focused on financial literacy topics is located near the Information Desk on the second floor of the Central Branch.


Upcoming Financial Classes and Events

Date	Description	Register
05/22/13 7:00 PM Savage Branch	Are You Covered?--CANCELED Sue Rogan, Director of Financial Education at Maryland CASH Campaign, presents an interactive seminar on homeowners, car ... [more] Sue Rogan, Director of Financial Education at Maryland CASH Campaign, presents an interactive seminar on homeowners, car, and other types of property insurance. Determine if you are properly insured. In partnership with Howard County Financial Education Alliance and Maryland CASH Campaign. A "Your Money" event. [hide]	Register

Contents Basic Resources Banks Bankruptcy Budgeting & Personal Financial Management Cars & Money Buying & Leasing Insurance Ownership & Repair Children - Supporting & Educating Costs of Raising a Child Paying for College & Student Aid Consumer Credit & Consumer Credit Issues Collection Agencies Credit & Debit Cards Credit Counseling Credit Errors - Dealing With Credit Fraud Credit Reports Estates & Wills Fraud & Identity Theft Health Financing Housing Buying a Home & Getting a Mortgage Foreclosure Home Equity Loans & Lines of Credit Home Improvement Rental Housing Short Sales Utilities Insurance - Life & Property Legal Expenses Life Changes Retirement Planning Starting a Small Business Taxes County Taxes State Taxes Federal Taxes Unemployment & Disability

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Basic Resources

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• Amortization Calculators
• Economic Indicators (By the Numbers) (U.S. Federal Reserve Bank of New York)
• Financial Glossary (Yahoo Finance)
• MyMoney.gov (National Financial Education Network for State and Local Governments)
  
  • smartaboutmoney.org (National Endowment for Financial Education)

 

Banks

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• A Guide to Your First Bank Account
• Answers About Bank Errors (U.S. Comptroller of the Currency)
• Bank Products: What's Insured and What's Not (U.S. Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco)
• Certificates of Deposit: Tips for Savers (U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation)
• Electronic Banking (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)
• How To Balance Your Checkbook: Step-by-step Instructions
• Protecting Yourself from Overdraft and Bounced Check Fees (U.S. Federal Reserve Board)
• What Is the Credit Union Difference? (Credit Union National Association)
• When is a Check Not a Check? Electronic Check Conversion (U.S. Federal Reserve Board)

Bankruptcy

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• Bankruptcy (Nolo Press)
• Bankruptcy Basics (U.S.Bankruptcy Courts)
• Filing for Bankruptcy: What to Know (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)
• Student Loans & Bankruptcy (National Consumer Law Center)

Budgeting & Personal Financial Management

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• Budget Worksheet (National Foundation for Credit Counseling)
• Building Wealth - A Beginner's Guide to Securing Your Financial Future (U.S. Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas)
• Financial Literacy (Broad Financial)
• How to Create a Budget
• HowToSaveMoney.me - Saving Tips, Ideas, and Tools
• Taking Control of Your Finances: A Special Guide for Young Adults (U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation)

Cars & Money

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Buying & Leasing


 

• Buying a New Car (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)
• Buying a New Car: Smart Shopping Tips (Howard County Office of Consumer Affairs)
• Buying a Used Car (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)
• Read the Fine Print Before You Lease an Automobile (Maryland Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division)
• Wise Buys for Teens - Dude, what about Cars? (Maryland Attorney General)

Insurance

• Auto Insurance (Insurance Information Institute)
• Car Insurance Buying Guide (Consumer Reports)

Ownership & Repair

• Auto Service Contracts and Warrantees (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)
• Avoid Getting Ripped Off on Repairs and Maintenance (edmunds.com)
• Your Rights Under Maryland's Lemon Law (Maryland Attorney General)

Children - Supporting & Educating

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Costs of Raising a Child
• Cost of Raising a Child Calculator (U.S. Department of Agriculture)
• Expenditures on Children by Families (U.S. Department of Agriculture)

Paying for College & Student Aid

• An Introduction to 529 Plans (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission)
• Federal Student Aid (U.S. Department of Education)
  • Fafsa (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) Form
• Pay for College (College Board)
  • CSS/Financial Aid PROFILE
• State Financial Aid Assistance Programs & Applications (Maryland Higher Education Commission)

Consumer Credit & Consumer Credit Issues

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• Collection Agencies
  • Dealing with Debt Collectors (Maryland Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division)
  • Debt Collection (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)

   

• Credit & Debit Cards
  • Answers About Credit Cards (U.S. Comptroller of the Currency)
  • College Credit - Building a Different Type of Credit
  • Debit Cards (Bankrate.com)
  • How Credit Cards Work
  • Lost or Stolen Credit, ATM, and Debit Cards (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)

   

• Credit Counseling
  • Choosing a Credit Counseling Agency (Nolo Press)
  • Credit Repair: How to Help Yourself (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)
  • National Foundation for Credit Counseling

   

• Credit Errors - Dealing With
  • Billed for Merchandise You Never Received? (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)
  • Disputing a Credit Card Charge (Maryland Attorney General)
  • How to Dispute Credit Report Errors (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)

   

• Credit Fraud
  • Alert: Credit Card Fraud and Debit Card Scams
  • Credit Card Fraud
  • Credit Repair Scams (Maryland Attorney General)
  • Protecting Against Credit Card Fraud (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)

   

• Credit Reports
  • Free Credit Reports (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)
    • AnnualCreditReport.com (Note via the U.S. Federal Trade Commission: Do not contact the three nationwide consumer reporting companies individually. They are providing free annual credit reports only through annualcreditreport.com)

Estates & Wills

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• Estate and Inheritance Tax (Comptroller of Maryland)
• Estate Planning: Wills, Trusts & Probate (Nolo Press)
• Marriage & Property Ownership: Who Owns What? (Nolo Press)
• Wills & Estates (American Bar Association, Division for Public Education)

Fraud & Identity Theft

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• Identity Theft (U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation)
• How to Avoid Credit Card Fraud (Maryland Attorney General)
• Identity Theft: What to Do if It Happens to You (Maryland Attorney General)
• Identity Theft: What to Do if It Happens to You (Privacy Rights Clearinghouse)
• More Than One-In-10 Americans Fell Victim to Fraud (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)
• What Are Identity Theft and Identity Fraud? (U.S. Department of Justice)
• What to do if You Are a Victim of Identity Theft (Howard County Office of Consumer Affairs)

Health Financing

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• See Howard County Library Financial Aspects of Illness Pathfinder

Housing

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• Buying a Home & Getting a Mortgage

   

  • Buying a Home (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development)
  • A Consumers Guide to Mortgage Lock-Ins (U.S. Federal Reserve Board)
  • A Consumers Guide to Mortgage Settlement Costs (U.S. Federal Reserve Board)
  • Consumer Handbook on Adjustable-Rate Mortgages (U.S. Federal Reserve Board)
  • FAQs About Escrow Accounts for Consumers (U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development)
  • How Much House Can You Afford? (CNN Money)
  • Looking for the Best Mortgage (U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporaton)
  • Mortgage Professor's Web Site
  • Mortgage Payments to Your Mortgage Servicer (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)

• Foreclosed Homes - Purchasing
  • Buying a Foreclosed Home: Your Way Into the Real Estate Market? (Nolo Press)
  • Foreclosure Guide for Buyers (HGTV Front Door)
  • Is it Safe to Buy a Foreclosure? (MSN Money

• Foreclosure
  
  • Foreclosure Counseling Services Law (Maryland Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division)
  • Foreclosure Prevention: Consumer Resources (U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation)
  • Foreclosure Resources (NeighborWorks America)
  • When Paying the Mortgage is a Struggle (U.S. Federal Reserve Board)
  • Mortgage Relief Scams (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)
  • Protecting Your Home From Foreclosure (U.S. Federal Reserve System)

• Home Equity Loans & Lines of Credit
  
  • U.S. FDIC Putting Your Home on the Loan Line is a Risky Business
  • What You Should Know About Home Equity Lines of Credit (U.S. Federal Reserve Board)

• Home Improvement
  
  • Hiring a Contractor (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)
  • Maryland Home Improvement Commission

• Rental Housing
  
  
  • Eviction: Get the Facts (Maryland Attorney General)
  • Landlord and Tenant Section (Howard County Sheriff's Office)
  • Landlords and Tenants: Tips on Avoiding Disputes (Maryland Attorney General)

• Short Sales
  • Short Sale of Your Home: Is it Right for You? (Nolo Press)

• Utilities
  • Choosing Your Residential Electricity Supplier (Maryland Attorney General)
  • Important Facts for Utility Consumers (Maryland Public Service Commission)

Insurance - Life & Property

• Answers About Insurance (U.S. Comptroller of the Currency)
• Insurance Information Institute
• Maryland Insurance Administration – Consumer Information

• Hiring a Lawyer
• Maryland Legal Aid
• Maryland Legal Services Corporation
• Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service
• Types of Legal Fees (Findlaw)

• Divorce and Credit Card Debt (Nolo Press)
• Emergency Financial First Aid Kit (EFFAK)
• Life Changes Require Health Choices: Know Your Benefit Options (U.S. Department of Labor)
• Moving Day Nightmares (Maryland Attorney General)
• Shopping for Funeral Services (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)

• Annuity Resources Retirement Calculators and Planners
  
• Avoid Debt as a Senior (Debt.org)
• Maryland State Retirement and Pension System
• Pension Benefit Guarantee Corporation
• Smart 401(k) Investing (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority)
• Social Security Online
  • Social Security Benefit Calculators
  • Social Security Retirement Planner
• Taking The Mystery Out Of Retirement Planning(U.S. Department of Labor)
• Top 10 Ways To Prepare For Retirement (U.S. Department of Labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration)
• Variable Annuities: What You Should Know (U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission)

• Howard County Economic Development Authority
• Maryland Department of Business & Economic Development
• Starting a New Business in Maryland (Comptroller of Maryland)
• Starting and Managing A Business (U.S. Small Business Administration)
• Small Business Loans (U.S. Small Business Administration)
• Teen Merchant and Entrepreneur Resources: Business, Finance & Economics

Taxes

• County Taxes
  • Howard County Department of Finance
  • Maryland County Property Tax Rates (Maryland State Department of Assessments & Taxation)
  • Property Tax & Assessments Information (Maryland State Department of Assessments & Taxation)
• State Taxes (Maryland State Department of Assessments & Taxation)
  • Income Tax for Individual Taxpayers
    • Filing Information for Individual Income Tax
    • Individual Tax Forms and Instructions
• Federal Taxes (U.S. Internal Revenue Service)
  • Do You Need to File a Federal Income Tax Return?
  • Free File (File your Federal Income Tax Online - U. S. Internal Revenue Service website)
  • IRS Forms & Publications
  • IRS Withholding Calculator
  • Understanding Taxes - Glossary (U.S. Internal Revenue Service)
    

• Dealing with Debt (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)
• Disability and SSI (U.S. Social Security Administration)
• Maryland Workers Compensation Commission
• Retirement And Health Care Coverage...Q&As For Dislocated Workers (U.S. Department of Labor)
• Protecting Retirement and Health Benefits After Job Loss (U.S. Department of Labor)
• What You Should Know About Unemployment Insurance in Maryland
• Unemployment Insurance Benefits – Maryland
• Division of Unemployment Insurance (Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing & Regulation)