According to the Personal Finance Employee Education Foundation (PFEEF), one out of three school, hospital, and technology employees reported they were so sad or down they could not perform the tasks expected of them at work—and that their depressive symptoms were directly related to high levels of financial distress.
 
The PFEEF also found that financially unhealthy employees are also likely to be less physically healthy.  Financially stressed employees were found to be more likely to smoke, eat unhealthy diets, be overweight, and are less likely to exercise regularly.

The downside to the employee is obvious; however, there are also significant consequences for the employers.  For example, financially stressed employees are often less productive and miss work more often.   In fact, PFEEF’s Director of Research estimates that financially stressed employees waste 12 to 20 hours of work time per month dealing with personal financial matters.

In other words, an individual’s bottom line directly impacts their employer’s bottom line. 

If you are an employer, it is worth your time and effort to improve your employees’ financial wellness.  Thankfully, there are organizations that offer free workplace counseling and education.  If you’d like more information about implementing an employee fiscal fitness program, contact MMI’s education division.

Each month, you receive a statement from your credit card company. But do you really take the time to read it? If you did, would you know what to look for?

There is a lot of fine print in those statements, so it can be tempting to skim the details. However, savvy consumers know that it is well worth the effort to review each and every credit card statement—no matter how little time you have. In fact, you can review a credit card statement in five minutes or less.

For many, unraveling the maze of eligibility requirements to qualify for mortgage assistance can be difficult.  Thankfully, there is a new free service called Mortgage Relief Online that helps U.S. homeowners to determine if they may be eligible for mortgage relief under the government’s new Making Home Affordable plan.

Mortgage Relief Online is sponsored by MyFico (the company that offers the FICO credit score to millions of individuals each year), the Homeownership Preservation Foundation (nonprofit dedicated to reducing foreclosures and preserving homeownership), and Money Management International (us). The program is designed to help reach the approximately 7 to 9 million U.S. homeowners that qualify for a loan modification or refinancing under the Making Home Affordable plan.

If you are interested in Mortgage Relief Online, please rest assured that the service is completely free and confidential.  No one is obligated to purchase any product or enroll in a subscription to use the service.