During Financial Literacy Month in April, Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona reminds consumers to keep track of their credit, debt and sensitive financial documents.

A recent study by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINERA) looked at the spending and saving habits of Americans and came up with some startling information:

Most Americans lack emergency savings or “rainy day” funds. Only 49 percent of survey respondents reported that they had set aside funds sufficient to cover expenses for three months in case of sickness, job loss, economic downturn or other emergency.

The majority of Americans have not done any retirement planning. Only 42 percent of the FINRA survey respondents who weren’t retired said they had taken the time to calculate what they would need.

Well below half of Americans have saved money for college. Only 41 percent of those who have financially dependent children have set money aside for college education.

There are numerous ways for consumers to make sure they’re on solid financial ground, but these four tips are especially important:

1. Start calculating now. You are never too young to start planning for retirement. While individuals increasingly have to take responsibility for their financial security after retirement, the majority of Americans appear not to have done any retirement planning. Decisions about how much to save in order to afford a comfortable retirement require collecting information about several important variables (including Social Security and retirement plan benefits) and doing some, even rudimentary, calculations.

2. Budget appropriately when it comes time to pay for a child’s education. It is widely reported that, over the past decade, tuition and fees at four-year public colleges and universities have increased more rapidly than they did during the 1980s or 1990s, rising by an average of nearly 5 percent each year (adjusted for inflation). With this trend unlikely to abate, an average American family with children can expect to dedicate a sizable share of their resources to paying college tuition.

3. Manage your debt. One of the best ways to ensure a brighter financial future is to manage and eliminate costly debt. BBB offers “Managing Credit – Made Simpler,” an online learning tool for consumers and small business owners.

4. Avoid “get rich quick” schemes. BBB exposes scams and frauds every day. Sadly, many of these are aimed at investors who have done the right thing so far and saved some money, but make a mistake when it comes to investing. BBB recently partnered with the FINRA Financial Education Foundation to promote smart investing and to help consumers avoid investment scams.

For more information on businesses, charities and investments you can trust, visit www.tucson.bbb.org.

Better Business Bureau of Southern Arizona is joining with over 30 federal, state, and local government agencies, and national organizations to promote consumer education during the 14th annual National Consumer Protection Week (NCPW), March 4-10.

“We’re very excited to be a part of National Consumer Protection Week,” said Kim States, BBB President. “This week is all about teaching consumers the tools to make smarter purchasing decisions, and that’s exactly what we plan to do.”

Each weekday during NCPW, BBB will issue a consumer protection tip via its Facebook page- www.facebook.com/soazbbb- on a variety of consumer related issues, such as credit and debit cards, buying a car, giving wisely to charity and other important marketplace issues. Consumers are more than welcome to offer their input or pose any questions they might have about each tip on BBB’s Facebook page.

One of BBB’s many partners in NCPW, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), recently issued its Consumer Sentinel Network Report for 2011. The FTC uses data from 27 federal and state law enforcement agencies, and a host of private entities- including BBB- to create the report. Some of the 2011 report’s findings included:

• Arizona ranks seventh in the U.S. in fraud complaints, and fourth in identity theft complaints.
• The Sierra Vista-Douglas metro area ranks 48th in the country for identity theft complaints.
• Arizona consumers filed 32,195 fraud complaints and 6,296 identity theft complaints last year with BBB, the FTC, and other law enforcement agencies.
• The top three national complaint categories in 2011 were: identity theft, debt collection, and sweepstakes/lotteries.
• Wire transfer services, such as Western Union, were used in 53 percent of fraud crimes committed in 2011.

To read the entire 2011 Consumer Sentinel Network Report visit www.ftc.gov. For more information about National Consumer Protection Week visit www.ncpw.gov.

Are you on Facebook yet? BBB’s Facebook page is a place consumers can go to not only get the latest breaking consumer news, but to also interact with each other. Did you receive something fishy in the mail? Did a salesperson show up at your door offering a seemingly dubious service?

“Like” BBB on Facebook and share your experiences, and get feedback from BBB, and other Southern Arizona consumers. Facebook has become a great way for people of all walks of like to come to together, share experiences, opinions, and connect as a community in a way that was unimaginable just a few years ago.

At BBB we know we can’t offer the service we offer without consumers coming together to report problems and experiences they’ve had in the local marketplace. So join BBB on Facebook, invite your friends, and help advance trust in our local Southern Arizona marketplace.

BBB of Southern Arizona | Promote Your Page Too