Better Business Provides Tips For Improving Financial Health In 2024

For many people, New Year's resolutions may include getting in better financial shape.

Amie Mitchell with the Better Business Bureau joined News On 6 to talk about some of the things you can do to start the year off right.

Autumn: Okay, so this is a question a lot of people have we at least want to start the year off, right, of course.

Amie: Right. I hope so. Yeah, financially would be great. I think everybody hopes for this.

Autumn: And it's a challenge for everyone. What are your best suggestions when it comes to managing money starting off the year?

Amie: Okay. So the first thing that I recommend that you do is look at those credit cards, look at the interest rates, how many do you have? Can you combine your debt? And remember, you can do this on your own, you don't need another company to help you combine the debt. But look at look at what you have to start with, then you can implement a budget. So you want to start with the debt, know how much you have, then create a budget and stick to that budget as much as possible. Do

Autumn: Do you recommend like if you have a large number of credit cards, maybe getting rid of some of them? What's your suggestion for that?

Amie: Right consolidation is a great thing. You can take multiple credit cards and consolidate them into one hopefully getting a lower interest rate. Some banks will help you with this as well. Just know that there are third-party companies out there that can do consolidation. But it is something you can do on your own. You don't have to pay a fee for it. So I do recommend Yeah, consolidating is your best bet for the biggest bang for your money.

Autumn: All right. And although you may be doing the things you need to financially, there are always those scammers out there that try to make it difficult for you. What are some things that people need to be aware of to avoid falling victim would you say?

Amie: So I think one of the new things is that AI has become so sophisticated. We're seeing some different scams around that. So I think people need to be careful whether it be sending money through a social media app or sending money to friends and family even having the voice technology. Now they have AIAS has voice technology where it can sound like a family member calling you in desperate need for something we recommend you hang up that phone call, or call your family member directly to see if there's an issue.

Autumn: Is it having like codewords important as well, sometimes it Yeah,

Amie: I think that's a great idea. Have some code words, you know, with your siblings and spouse and family members that you know that this is the right person? Okay.

Autumn: And as far as social media, are there some things that people need to be aware of as well?

Amie: Yeah, absolutely. Social media companies change their policies all the time. So once a year, we recommend you do a refresh on all your social media settings and your privacy settings is a good time to change your password, you know, update that. Check all your settings to see what's public, what's private, and what your friends can see, you know, you may not want your birthday out there. You may not want phone, number out their address, who knows what settings have changed on there. And now is a good time to check all those to make sure you're secure as you want to be online.

Autumn: Lovely, great information, as always. And last question for you real quick, what are some good tools that people can use to help them continue to have a great year financially?

Amie: So there are a lot of free tools with budgeting online that I would recommend. Find some free ones. Stick to that. Do your research on your companies, even if you're already doing business with them as a regular contractor, and recheck their rating with the Better Business Bureau. Make sure they're still doing good business before you do business with them again. All right. Thank