Monthly Archives: June 2017

The Latte Factor 101

latte factor

Making your way through the drive through every morning before 7:30 may give you a refreshing start to your day, but at what cost? The ideology that coffee shops and other retailers capitalize on is the notion that these small expenditures add a little excitement to your day without a hefty bill. However, when you enjoy perks like these on a daily basis, they add up, and quick!

Financial author, David Bach, is the mastermind behind the Latte Factor. This helpful calculator enables shoppers to see not only the cost of an individual purchase but the lost value it could cause for further investment as well.

For example:

If you purchase a $4.45 grande latte from Starbucks every weekday for the next thirty years, the total cost of your daily coffee is $34,786.29. However, if you had put that weekly $22.25 expenditure into an investment with an average earnings rate of eight percent or more, you could have made $109,225.02 in earned interest during that time. This showcases the true cost of a daily latte as the overall product expense ($34,786.29) + the lost interest ($109,225.02) = ($144,011.30)

While less than $5.00 a day may seem like chump change, compounding these expenses on a long-term level can showcase helpful savings opportunities to maximize your retirement savings efforts and limit unnecessary spending.

This equation doesn’t work just for coffee either! If you find yourself splurging for a fast-food lunch break, buying extra sodas at work, or even paying for a magazine you hardly read, you’ll soon find that all of those little expenses can make a big impact.

To help break some common splurging habits Iowa State Bank recommends the following:

Before making a purchase, ask yourself, “Should I spend these funds or should I invest them?”
Use free services like our Online Banking or Mint to visualize your spending and see areas where you can cut excess.
Remember the rule of 7. On average, invested funds will double every seven years, without any added contributions.
Utilize accounts like IRA, HSA, and 401(k) to maximize the dollars you invest and save.

If you have any questions on how to get started, or want to learn more about how to make your money work for you, our trusted personal lenders are here to help. Just stop by or drop us a line to set-up an appointment today.

5 Affordable Summer Vacations

vacation

One of the best things summer brings, aside from the beautiful weather, is time to enjoy with your family. Whether that’s planning a fun weekend adventure, or carving out a week to go exploring, your kids are sure to remember these getaways for decades to come. After years of trial and error, we’ve discovered some ideal destinations where you can stay in budget while enjoying all the perks of your family’s time away.

Wisconsin Dells, USA

This midwestern hot spot is filled with many of the nation’s premier water parks. With options at every price range, many resorts include park passes and discounts on other area activities. For those looking to save some extra funds, we recommend finding accommodations with a kitchenette. This added feature allows your family to cook meals instead of having to eat out at pricier restaurants, plus the kids will appreciate the extra time in the pool!

Tamarindo, Costa Rica

One of the most difficult parts of organizing a vacation is finding all the activities for you and your family to enjoy. At GO Adventures in Tamarindo, they have a bit of everything for your little ones to experience. Back at the hotel, they can run across award winning beaches, and spend the day relaxing in the sand. For those days you want to venture out, there is always an endless supply of options, and not to mention delicious food!

New Orleans, USA

This city is filled with a rich and vibrant history perfect for family vacations. With countless historical tours, you and your little ones can learn about the history of the South while enjoying some truly decadent dishes! Exciting excursions such as airboat tours and crocodile encounters will give your kiddos stories they’ll be anxious to share back home! For added savings, we recommend booking a home rental to avoid costly hotel fees and save some extra money by trying out your own creole recipes.

Vancouver, Canada

This vibrant town, just north of the border, is filled with fun and flavor! Enjoy all the best bites and adventures alongside your family at the Granville Island Public Market, and then take a walk through the Vancouver Aquarium, to watch your children learn all about Canada’s sea creatures. No matter what you and your family decide to do, you’ll be warmly greeted throughout one of the happiest cities in the world. Just be sure to remember your passport!

Austin & Waco, USA

These two sister towns are separated by just over 100 miles, but offer fun-filled activities in both locations. By combining the two cities for this memorable trip, your family can step on the set of Magnolia Market and savor the mouth-watering taste of Franklin Barbecue, all in one fell swoop. Austin will provide an endless list of new restaurants and tours, while Waco can set the tone for the ride home with classic family-fun that the whole clan can enjoy.

Wherever your summertime travels take you, Iowa State Bank is here to help safeguard you and your finances while you’re away.

Ranching with Russ

The old saying “Knee high by the 4^th of July” seems a little crazy now that the corn is mostly waist high in the first half of June. It’s hard to picture over a month ago that I was out walking our two dogs on a cool, crisp morning. While the dogs were doing their business, I looked over at my neighbor’s fields that were tilled up. I was able to spot the rows of corn sprouting through the crust. My neighbor’s John Deere tractor and planter were parked at the end of the lane after a night of planting soybeans, ready for the next day’s freshly tilled field work. I imagined how much farming has changed since the land was first surveyed and parceled by the original owners. It is hard to visualize now what farming would’ve looked like with the farmers using teams of horses to clear and work the land. I remember spending time with my grandparents and great grandparents listening to them talk about growing up in rural Iowa. Can you imagine living through the Great Depression and then witnessing the booms in farming after World War II?

I enjoy looking over vintage aerial photos of our local farmsteads and how they’ve changed over the years. Not only aesthetically but, in functionality as well. The old photos displaying magnificent barns with hay lofts, corn cribs, farrowing sheds, and chicken houses give perspective of a different time. The newer photos of the same farms show the transition over to Morton-type pole barns, grain bins with legs, and hoop buildings. I was born in 1973 so I can remember how the rural Iowa landscape changed at that time with a horizon dotted by blue Harvestore silos. Unfortunately, that agricultural “boom” didn’t last either and the farm crisis of the 1980’s was deeply engraved in my memory as well. It definitely affected my family while growing up on our farm in Southeast Iowa and changed rural America forever.

Growing up on a farm in the 80’s and early 90’s was not easy after the crisis. However, we re-grouped and learned to get by on a little less while working a little harder. This is a large part of why I enjoy working with farmers today. It is gratifying for me to be a part of the process whether it be helping with a beginning farmer loan or helping a customer expand their current farming operation. Our experienced lenders will help you take advantage of opportunities in the good times and figure out prudent solutions in the down times with responsible lending practices. That’s the great thing about our locally owned and operated bank. The lending decisions are made by people who live in the areas we serve and who understand the needs of our customers.

I’m sure you can tell by now that I’m a little nostalgic. Our country’s checkered history intrigues me. Poncho and Lefty on the radio, old photographs, and faded patina farm tractors always catch my attention. At Iowa State Bank & Trust Co., we have had our doors open since 1934. We’ve seen a lot of changes happen with community banking and farming in rural Iowa over the years. We’ve been here through the good and not so good times. We are merely a reflection of our past, present, and future customers.

– Russ McGee, VP Ag Lending

Why Checking Your Credit Score Matters

credit score

Across television ads, online banners, and even chit-chat among relatives, the phrase, “Check your credit score,” seems to be popping up everywhere. If something so important needs constant reminders, why does it have such a key importance in your personal finances? Well, the truth is that it doesn’t, your financial actions do.

A credit score is comprised of five different measures which indicate how you as an individual are perceived in terms of repayment and risk. Individuals who pay their bills on time, have been utilizing loans and credit cards, and don’t maintain too much debt, typically have a higher score. While the score itself is seen by potential lenders as a positive or a negative, the true meaning it portrays is to showcase whether you as an individual are a promising person to repay any funds you are lent. This score can be changed for the better or the worse depending on the actions you take.

This is why checking the report itself can be beneficial for your personal financial reputation. By reviewing your history on a recurring basis you can quickly identify any mistakes or missed payments that need correcting and do so in a timely manner.

For those who do not check their score scenarios like the following could occur:

Say you accept a job in another town, and after moving, you realize you still need to forward your mail. After a week or two in the new place, you go online and make the switch. However, unbeknownst to you, there was one last utility bill that was mailed to your prior address after you moved away. Weeks go by, even months, only now you’re connected with a new utility company, and you have new bills to pay. Behind the scenes, however, your credit score could be declining, because that one last bill has now been reported to collections. Your credit history will now note that a payment has been missed, and the longer it is missed the more it could damage your credit score.

Situations like this happen to many Americans, and while sometimes they can’t be prevented, the damage they cause can be minimized by checking your credit score on a monthly basis. Instead of allowing a payment like this to retain a balance for over 120 days, you can catch it in under 90 and minimize any potential negative effect on your score.

This is just one example in how checking your credit score can impact your financial health for the better. Other benefits include fraud prevention, better financial negotiation, and more accurate personal financial records.

If you’re ready to get started checking your credit score, we recommend Capital One’s FREE Credit Wise service, available for current and noncurrent Capital One customers. Our team at Iowa State Bank would be happy to walk you through your credit report from and is always available to answer any questions you may have.

Banking with Booth

For me, the most rewarding and satisfying part of my job has always been helping people buy that special ride they’ve been looking for, their kids’ first car, or if you’re like me, it’s simply time to upgrade a little. I’ve been doing this for a while now, and I have to tell you, it never gets old.

Many of us can recite every car, truck or motorcycle we ever owned. For most of us, it was a “rite of passage” as a teenager and a measure of pride and success as an adult.

The first car I remember was my Great Aunt Lucille’s red Mercury with push button controls. And like “Dennis the Menace” I so wanted to push those pretty buttons. (I was very, very young 🙂 ).

When Steve and I were married in 1971, he had an Oldsmobile he bought from his grandparents. The day of our wedding, his buddies hooked the horn to the brakes. When we drove away from the church in Richland to head to Cedar Rapids, the horn blared every time Steve stepped on the brakes! Ahhhh, good times.

Our next car was a Chrysler New Yorker Steve bought at an auction. The day after the auction, the previous owner knocked on our door explaining he had left some pictures under the driver’s seat and would we mind if he retrieved them. Of course we didn’t mind, but I have wondered just what (or who) those pictures were of.

We had two Buicks next. When we traded our first one in, the dealer called the next day. We had left two 50 lb. bags of oats and a pair of work boots in the truck. He seemed surprised. Apparently he didn’t deal with a lot of farmers.

In 2002, I bought my very first brand new car. I’m still driving it, but I’m starting to contemplate the possibility of getting something a little newer………………and with a backup camera. That’s a story for another time!

At Iowa State Bank & Trust Co., we have many great loan products and skilled bankers to make the entire process quick and easy. As a locally owned bank, you will always know where to come to, no matter what your financing needs may be. Let’s you and I sit down and see what we can do to put you in a new or used car of your choosing. I’m on the first floor at our 4^th and Burlington location.

– Susan Booth, VP Consumer Lending