Stepping Stones Financial Cleveland, Ohio

Financial Hardware

Module 1 of 38 lessons

The accounts and habits everything else depends on: where to keep your money, how to read your paycheck, and how to plan where it goes.

Lessons in this module

  1. Banks vs Credit Unions

    How banks and credit unions differ in who owns them, what they charge and what they pay in interest, and how to choose between them.

  2. Checking Accounts Explained

    How a checking account works day to day, how overdraft fees happen, and how to read a monthly statement line by line.

  3. Savings Accounts and Emergency Funds

    How a savings account differs from checking, how interest and APY work, and how much to keep in an emergency fund before saving for anything else.

  4. Understanding Your Paycheck and Pay Stub

    Every line of a pay stub: gross and net pay, federal and state withholding, Social Security and Medicare, and deductions for health insurance and retirement.

  5. Budgeting Basics

    What goes into a budget, the difference between fixed and variable costs and between needs and wants, and the mistakes that make budgets fall apart.

  6. 50-30-20 Rule and Zero-Based Budgeting

    Two budgeting methods with worked examples. The 50-30-20 rule splits income into needs, wants and savings. Zero-based budgeting gives every dollar a job. The lesson shows when each one fits.

  7. Tracking Expenses and Subscription Creep

    Ways to track spending by hand or with an app, and how to find the recurring charges you forgot you were paying.

  8. Avoiding Fees and Money Leaks

    The fees banks charge most often, including overdraft, ATM, monthly maintenance and minimum balance fees, and how to avoid each one or get it waived.