PERSONAL FINANCE
Final Portfolio Project
In The Game of Life®, players start out with a set amount of money and travel along the game board in little plastic cars—“experiencing” life by following directions on cards with life events on them. The winner is the player with the most money at the end of the game. In real life, random cards do not determine your life—you do. One of the most important skills you need for success is to be able to set up and live within a realistic budget.
You are to create a detailed, realistic personal finance plan (budget). The required components of your finished project are:
~PowerPoint Presentation
Title Page
Required Information (see below)
Rationalize your decisions on each slide
Pictures of specific expenditures (car, house, personal, ex.)
Reflections/Final Thoughts
Excel Budget Spreadsheet showing monthly calculations
Reference Page
RESEARCH
~Create a folder for your project
~Find the following information regarding your potential career:
-Pay Scale for State of Residence
-Job Availability for Chosen State
-Education Requirements for Chosen State
-Career Path (starting level through retirement)
CRITERIA
~Location – Where are you going to live (city and state) and why did you select this
location?
~Job/Income – Job title, starting salary (annual ÷ 12), benefits
~Housing – No Roommates!
a. Apartment (studio, 1 or 2 bedroom)
b. Rent
c. Security Deposit
d. Utilities (heat, electric, water, gas, garbage disposal)
e. Renter’s insurance/Homeowner’s insurance
~Transportation – You must purchase or lease a vehicle, new or used (no more than 3
4 years old) and purchased from a dealership
a. Make, model and year
b. Purchase price
c. Terms of loan: years and interest rate
d. Monthly payments
e. Auto insurance (company and cost)
f. Deduct $30/month for car repairs
g. Gas – Figuring 1,000 miles a month, calculate your gas consumption based
on the MPG for your vehicle (calculation must appear)
h. If you chose to live in a large city (NYC, Boston, Washington DC, etc.) and
chose public transportation, deduct $65/month for an unlimited access
pass
~Medical Insurance
a. Health insurance cost
b. Physician co-pay ($15 per visit)
c. Rx’s – co-pay generally $5 per prescription each time it is filled
~Dental
a. Insurance cost
b. Dental cost (insurance covers all cleanings/x-rays 2x per year, you still need
to pay a percentage for fillings, root canals, crowns, orthodontia, etc.)
~Clothing – Professional occupation needs appropriate clothing
a. Does your job require a uniform? Usually you’ll have a pay some of the
cost/cleaning.
b. Shoes/sneakers/coats/swimsuits/underwear/etc.
~Health and Beauty (just the basics)
~Household/Cleaning Supplies
~Laundry/Dry Cleaning
~Union Dues – If you are a member of a union, budget a deduction of $56 a month for
dues
~Cell Phone
~Gas
~Food – groceries (breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks). Everyday household
products/cleaning supplies
a. Dining out
b. Taking a lunch daily or eating out
c. Coffee/Soda in the morning? Bagel?
d. Fast food once a month? Weekends?
NON-ESSENTIALS
~Gifts – birthday, holiday, anniversary
~Haircuts – cuts, perms, straightening, color. Calculate a monthly deduction.
~Other Beauty – tanning, manicures, pedicures, etc.
~Pets – food, litter, snacks, toys, annual vet visits
~Subscriptions – health club, AAA, magazines
~Entertainment – Vacations, movies, games, rentals, Itunes, etc.
~Internet
~Cable/Satellite
~Donations – religious, humanitarian
AUTOMATIC DEDUCTIONS
Build into monthly budget – 25% of your gross income for taxes and Social Security
-- 5% of your net income for savings and investments
COLLEGE LOANS
~See the Scenario Worksheet for the deduction you must take based on your selection of occupation. Should reflect college choice and rationalization.
Scenario #1: Post-Secondary Graduate
You have just graduated from college (2-year, 4-year, master’s program) or a training/licensing program and have landed an entry-level job in your career track. You currently have $5,000 in your savings account (thanks to those generous graduation gifts). You need to research and create a detailed personal finance plan (budget) using all the categories listed on the Criteria Page PLUS you have monthly student loan payments:
· $250 if you’ve completed 5+ years of college
· $150 if you have completed 4 years of college
· $100 if you have completed 2 years of college
· $50 if you have completed training/licensing program
Your job:___________________________________________________________________
Education required: ____________________________________________________________
Annual salary: $______ ÷ 12 = monthly salary $______ (You must put monthly salary in Excel worksheet)
You will live in (city & state): _____________________________________________________
Scenario #2: Workforce
You have just graduated from high school and have chosen to begin work rather than go to college at this time. Thanks to generous parents, friends, and relatives, you have $5,000 in your savings account. You need to research and create a detailed personal finance plan (budget) using all the categories listed on the Criteria Page.
Your job:___________________________________________________________________
Annual salary: $_______ ÷ 12 = monthly salary $_________ (You must put monthly salary in Excel worksheet)
You will live in (city & state): ________________________________________________________
Health Benefits:
To make it easier for you, we have figured out what a basic, single, health coverage would be (this does not include dental).
Union job (blue or white collar) – $60.82/month
White Collar non-union job – $174.77/month
Entrepreneur, blue collar worker with no union, attorney or doctor in own practice - $287/month
Job / income
Go to a site like careerbuilder.com or take a career interest survey. Explore your options from the results; use an income/pay finder.
http://www.glassdoor.com
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Housing:
~APARTMENTS
Apartment Guide - use advance search to specify property features (eg: include heat, electricity, etc.). http://www.apartmentguide.com/
Craigslist - first click on your state, then your city/area and then click on apts/housing under housing; these are apts in houses as opposed to apartment complexes. http://akroncanton.craigslist.org/
Rent.net: Apartments - search by city or zip code; modify by amenities, broaden by searching around an area. http://www.move.com/apartments/main.aspx
gAS / eLECTRIC:
Natural Gas Statistics - average consumer prices and expenditures per month.
http://www.eia.doe.gov/dnav/ng/ng_pri_sum_dcu_nus_m.htm
Electric Power Monthly - Average Retail Price by state-Official Energy Statistics from the US government (based on electricity use of 600 kilowatt-hours per month per Fedstats • USA.gov • Dept. of Energy).
http://www.eia.doe.gov/cneaf/electricity/epm/table5_6_a.html
This gives you the cost in cents per kilowatt hour. Go to http://www.consumerspower.org/home_energy/billestimator.php to estimate how many kilowatt hours you will use.
INSURANCE
Renter's Insurance - Geico will do an online quote--select your state, put in your zip code and follow the prompts. (If you live in Florida or north Carolina, this link will not work for you.)
https://w2.assurant.com/agm/rentersinsurance/campaignstart?jobnumber=generic&accountId=GCW&cmsJobnumber=174631
~Insurance - click on links below provided by Yahoo! for quick estimates:
Auto: http://insurance.yahoo.com/a/a1.html
Dental: http://www.the-insurance-place.com/dental-insurance/dentalplans-dental-insurance-plans.html
Term Life - search by zip code for free quotes from Our Health Agent
http://www.ourhealthagent.com/
Health - see Scenario sheet
PHONE
Connect My Phone: Local Cleveland telephone services--products and pricing.
http://www.connectmyphone.com/local-phone-service/OH/cleveland
AT&T - check out local phone costs and long distance plans.
http://www.att.com/gen/general?pid=11010
Bell Telephone - select your area and look at residential new phone service costs.
http://www.bell.com/index3.htm
Mobile Phone Comparison - compares the top 4 U.S. wireless phone plans.
http://www.thewirelessreport.com/2006/02/13/apples-to-apples-comparison-of-the-big-four-u-s-wireless-prov/
SATELLITE/CABLE
Time Warner - click on TimeWarner Cable, AOL for online services, Roadrunner and more; you'll need the zip code to search for prices in your area.
http://www.timewarnercable.com/East/shop/pricing.html
Direct TV - satellite cost per month.
http://www.directstartv.com/directv/directv_pricing.html
transportation
~FINDING A CAR
Edmunds Automobile Info - new and used car information from Edmunds.com; information on financing and insurance.
http://www.edmunds.com/
Cars.com - new and used car information; financing and insurance information.
http://www.cars.com/
AutoTrader - new and used cars; car loans and insurance.
http://www.autotrader.com/
~AUTO LOANS
capital one bank - go here first to get the loan rate (APR)
http://www.capitalone.com/autoloans/
Auto Loan Calculator - calculate your approximate monthly payments for your car.
http://www.banksite.com/calcs/autocalc.html
Remember: Car websites offer insurance AND loan information, too.
~AUTO INSURANCE
Auto Insurance - calculate your annual premium using Yahoo!Finance.
http://insurance.yahoo.com/a/a1.html
Auto Insurance - "ballpark" quote for insurance from Allstate, just respond to the prompts. https://quote.allstate.com/
Remember: Car websites offer insurance AND loan information, too.
College Loans
This is determined for you in your task:
$250/month if you’ve completed 5+ years of college
$150/month if you have completed 4 years of college
$100/month if you have completed 2 years of college
$50/month if you have completed training/licensing program
Savings / investments
5% of your net pay is automatically deposited.
Essentials
~Food
NetGrocer.com - create a typical grocery list and check out prices; also has prices for health & beauty needs. http://www.netgrocer.com/
My Grocery Checklist - quick checklist helps your remember all the items you may need; compile your list and then go to NetGrocer.com for pricing.
http://www.mygrocerychecklist.com/
non-essentials
~Magazines
Discount Magazine Subscriptions - magazine subscription prices
http://www.magsonthenet.com/
Amazon Magazine Subscription - use the drop down menu under Search, click on magazines - look for magazine subscriptions by title or subject. http://www.amazon.com/
~Movies
Movie Tickets - price movie tickets online through Fandango
http://www.fandango.com/
NetFlix - monthly video plans; click on How much does it cost? (first question under FAQ sidebar to right) http://www.netflix.com/HowItWorks?lnkctr=nmhhiw
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