Foundations
of Personal Finance
Discussion
Questions
Week 1 DQ1 - Refer to Figure
1-1 of Personal Finance. List the five steps in the personal financial
planning process. Share one or two questions you may ask yourself when you are
in Step 1.
Week 1 DQ2 - Setting goals is one of the five steps of the financial planning
process. Refer to Section 1.2 of Personal Finance which discusses the
changing needs over the Life Cycle. Provide some examples of financial goals
that may be important for a family. Select one goal that is important to you
and briefly discuss how this goal will influence your future financial
planning.
Week 1 DQ3 - Refer to Section 1.3 of Personal Finance. Which part of the
comprehensive financial plan do rent and food fall under? What about life
insurance, long-term care insurance, and estate planning; which section of the
comprehensive plan do these fall under?
Week 1 DQ4 - Page 8 of Personal Finance discusses how education plays a
critical role in financial success. List at least two financial benefits of
being college educated? How might a college education affect your long-term
financial plan?
Week 1 DQ5 -
Watch the video, Decision to Own a Home vs. Rent, located at the following
link: https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/secure/aapd/materials/videos/FP101.html
Tom and Tammy Jones have been renting a house for 5 years. They have
been saving money to buy a house for their family and have over half of the
down payment set aside.
The house the Jones’ have been living in has
been sold and they are trying to figure out what to do. They are considering
the following options:
·
Move
in with Tom’s parents, who live nearby. With the low room and board they will
pay, they should be able to buy a house within a year.
·
Rent
a house. Rental prices have gone up, so if they do this, they will not be able
to add to their down payment account.
·
Move
to a less expensive town, which will add 45 minutes each way to Tom’s commute.
They will be able to add to their down payment account and should be able to
buy a house within 3 years.
What should the Jones family do? Discuss your reasons for making the
choice you did.
Week 2 DQ1 - Refer to p. 87–93 of Personal Finance. Identify two cash management
products and provide a short description of each. Do you have any experience
with these products?
Two cash management products that I have experience with are regular
checking accounts and savings accounts.
A regular checking account is an account that you can make deposits and
withdrawals from. A savings account is
an account that you can hold your money in and draw interest on it.
I currently have a regular checking account. It does not draw interest and I have
unlimited check writing. My checking is
connected with my savings, so if I accidently overdraw the bank will
automatically pull money from my savings on put it into my checking with no
fees.
Week 2 DQ2 - Review Section 4.4.1 of Personal Finance. What are some questions you
should consider when opening a checking account?
Week 2 DQ3 – What are some ways to save and store your personal financial
information?
Week 2 DQ4 – Review Mary’s balance sheet. Do
you think Mary is saving enough money for emergencies, college, or
retirement? What Rule of Effective Cash
Management should Mary use to improve this situation?
Week 2 DQ5- Review the Home Budget Calculator located at the
following link: http://wps.pearsoncustom.com/wps/media/objects/7557/7738468/fin-calcs/HomeBudget.html. Input the requested information from your
paycheck and on the expenses page. Did
you find this calculating tool useful?
Explain why or why not.
Week 3 DQ1 – Review p. 113 of Personal
Finance and list the five C’s of credit.
Provide a brief description of each.
Week 3 DQ2 – Edwina has been living with her parents since she
graduated from college about 2 years ago. Because her parents only charge her a
small amount for her room and board, she has managed to tuck away $5,000 in a
savings account. Her car has died and her uncle has offered to sell his car for
$4,500.
·
Edwina
has never had a credit card or taken out a loan. Some of her friends are
advising her to take out a loan. Edwina’s parents are against her borrowing
money; they want her to use her savings to pay for the car.
·
What
do you think Edwina should do? Should she get the loan or pay with her savings?
Explain why you think your choice is the better one of the two.
Week 3 DQ3 - Review Section 5.2 of Personal Finance. If you want
to buy something, what are the three main ways to pay for the item? If you
decide to use consumer credit to make your purchase, what are the two main
types of credit available?
Week 3 DQ4 - Discuss one advantage and one disadvantage of
consumer credit.
Week 3 DQ5 - After reviewing The Five C’s located in your course
materials, answer the following questions:
·
Which
of the five C’s does employment and education history fall under?
·
What
is collateral? Why is collateral required for some people and for some types of
loans?
Week 4 DQ1 - Go to
http://www.bankrate.com/calculators/managing-debt/minimum-payment-calculator.aspx.
·
Type
in $5,000 for “What is your credit card balance?”
·
Type
in $150 for “What fixed payment could you make each month?”
·
Do
you think it is better to pay only the minimum payment or pay the higher
monthly amount? Explain why.
Week 4 DQ 2 - Review How to Establish, Use, and Protect
Your Credit located under your Week Four Electronic Reserve Readings.
·
What
is one way to establish your credit and one way to protect your credit? What
are some things you can do to improve poor credit?
.
Week 4 DQ 3 - What are some advantages and disadvantages of using credit cards? Have
you ever had a credit card? If so, please share some of your experiences with them.
Week 4 DQ4 - Visit the Federal Trade Commission at
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre03.shtm. Using Section 2 of
this page, which explains what you can do to legally improve your credit
report, discuss what steps you can take if you find incorrect information on
your credit report.
Week 4 DQ5 - Log onto Annual Credit Report www.annualcreditreport.com. What are the
names of the three credit reporting agencies? Using information from the
Frequently Asked Questions section, briefly explain what a credit score is.
Week 5 DQ1 - Go to http://www.annualcreditreport.com to get a free credit report
from Experian.
Note. Do not choose any of the options that require payment.
Review all of the brown tabs at the top of the page. After retrieving
your report and reviewing these items, answer the following question:
Discuss what you learned about credit in general, and what type of
information is in your credit report. Be careful not to divulge confidential
information about your credit; keep the discussion to the general type of
information found on a credit report.
Week 5 DQ2 - Refer to Section 6.4 of Personal Finance. Discuss some positive steps
you can take to manage debt.
Week 5 DQ3 – Choose one of the signs of credit trouble listed on p. 145 of Personal Finance. Explain how someone can try to improve this
situation.
Week 5 DQ4 – Review the Student Loans video, located at the following link: https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/secure/aapd/materials/videos/FP101.html
·
What are some benefits of using student loans?
·
When do you have to begin paying back these loans?
·
What does it mean if your loans go into default?
Week 5 DQ5 – Log onto the Federal Trade Commission website:
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre03.shtm
Under Section 3, which offers tips on dealing with debt, review Avoiding
Scams.
Answer the following question:
·
If a person is trying to get out of debt and
looking for help, what are some of the actions or organizations to avoid?
Week 6 DQ1 - Refer to Figure 7-1 of Personal Finance. Why is it important to go
through these steps when you are planning on making a large purchase?
Week 6 DQ2 - Refer back to Section 6.1.1 of Personal Finance. Discuss one of the
risks of a variable rate loan.
Week 6 DQ3- Review Decision to Own a Home vs. Rent. Discuss the advantages and
disadvantages of renting a home vs. buying.
Week 6 DQ4 - Refer to Section 7.4, 7.5, and 7.6 of Personal Finance. List three
steps in buying a home. What are some important points to consider in your
purchase?
Week 6 DQ5 - Review Purchase vs. Lease Decision. Imagine you need a new car. Input
the amount you can spend in the Buy vs. Lease Calculator. Review the results
and discuss the advantages and disadvantages of buying vs. leasing a vehicle.
Week 7 DQ1 - What does it mean to have insurance? Choose two types of insurance
(auto, home, health, disability, or life insurance) and identify one
characteristic of each.
Week 7 DQ2 - Angie is considering the options for deductibles on her auto
insurance. She can save $150 a year by switching from a $500 to a $1,000
deductible. What is a deductible? What does this mean if Angie has a car accident?
Week 7 DQ3 - If you own your car or house and are no longer making payments, should
you still have insurance on them? Explain why or why not.
Week 7 DQ4 - Geraldo works full-time to take care of his family. His wife, Marina,
stays home to take care of their two young children. What kind of insurance
coverage should Geraldo and Marina have for their family? Explain why.
I think, first of all, they should have medical insurance and
second they should have life insurance. You never know what will happen so it
is better to be prepared.
Week 7 DQ5 - Review the Reasons for Having a Will video, located at the following
link:
https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/secure/aapd/materials/videos/FP101.html
·
Acela’s aging parents own a house and a car. Acela
is currently living in the house with her parents. Her brother and sister are
married and live elsewhere. Why is it important for Acela’s parents to have
wills? What are some possible consequences of not having wills?
Week 8 DQ1 - Refer to Section 3.2 of Personal Finance. What is taxable income and
how do you know how much taxes are owed?
Week 8 DQ2 - There are a number of ways to fill out tax return. If you prepare your
own tax returns, you can use a software package to fill out the proper forms.
Review Personal Income Taxes located at the following link:
https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/secure/aapd/materials/videos/FP101.html
·
List one benefit and one disadvantage of filing
your taxes electronically.
Week 8 DQ3 - Some individuals prefer to have their employers withhold more money
than they will owe so they can get big refund checks in April or May. Others
prefer to minimize withholdings, so they can either spend the money throughout
the year, or put it into a retirement or other savings account. Which strategy
do you think is better? Explain why.
Week 8 DQ4 - Review Section 3.3 of Personal Finance. Do you
think it is better to prepare your taxes yourself or to have them prepared by a
professional? Explain why.
Week 8 DQ5 - Review Focus on Ethics: Reducing Your Taxes located at the following
link: https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/secure/aapd/materials/videos/FP101.html . Why
is it important to keep records and receipts for expenses you plan on deducting
on your taxes?
Week 9 DQ1 - What things do you take into consideration when beginning to plan for
investments? Why is it important to understand your long term goals before you
begin investing?
Week 9 DQ2 - At what age do you hope to retire? How do you plan to incorporate your
retirement in your personal financial plan?
Week 9 DQ3 - Refer to pg. 391 in Personal Finance and review Concern about
Retirement Benefits in the Future located at the following link:
https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/secure/aapd/materials/videos/FP101.html .
·
What is Social Security? Discuss how it fits into
your retirement plan. There are concerns that Social Security may have trouble
paying full benefits in the future. Why does this matter to you now?
Week 9 DQ4 - Refer to Section 11.1.3 in Personal Finance. List two ways to begin
putting aside money for investments. You can often save money by making small
changes. Share one tip you think may help save some money in the long-run.
Week 9 DQ5 - Review How Retirement Planning Fits within Your Financial Plan located
at the following link:
https://ecampus.phoenix.edu/secure/aapd/materials/videos/FP101.html.
·
Discuss the type of financial needs you will have
at retirement age. How important is retirement planning to you now? How
important do you think it will be in 10 years?
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