Tax season is around the corner! What resources are available to help you manage your personal finances?

On Wednesday, This Is Nashville hosted a panel of experts to answer your questions about personal finance and highlight resources that can help. The guests included Kandace Harris from Citizens Bank, Bill Parker of the Tennessee Financial Literacy Commission, and Erin Akery from United Way’s Financial Empowerment Center.

What kind of services does the Financial Empowerment Center offer?  

“We offer no-cost, one-on-one financial counseling for anyone who lives or works in Davidson County,” explained Erin Akery, who is senior manager of the program. She explained that this kind of personalized counseling can help with everything from setting up a basic budget to building savings to reducing debt. 

To learn more or sign up for counseling, go to the Financial Empowerment Center’s website. The center also offers counseling in Spanish. 

How important is it for kids to understand how money works? What educational resources are out there for kids and adults? 

Bill Parker, the director of the Tennessee Financial Literacy Commission, is passionate about this subject. 

“There’s been some research out of the University of Cambridge that suggests that many of our habits and attitudes around money are set by age 7,” Parker said. 

He explained that the Tennessee Financial Literacy Commission’s website offers resources for parents and educators to teach children as young as 5 about money management. The commission falls under the Tennessee Department of the Treasury, which also offers free educational material for adults to improve their financial literacy.  

Tax season is right around the corner. What kind of resources are available for Middle Tennesseans and trying to get their taxes done? 

The United Way of Greater Nashville runs a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program that can help, online or in-person. 

“They have IRS trained and certified volunteers who can file income tax returns for free for any household that makes under $77,000,” explained Akery. 

I just recently learned that Tennessee is number one in the nation for personal bankruptcy filings. This is concerning. Another stat is that 1 in 3 adults in Tennessee have outstanding medical bills. It feels impossible to get ahead here, is anyone addressing these issues?

— Mendy Boyd (@mendyboyd) March 8, 2023

We got a tweet (above) from Mandy Boyd who said, “I just recently learned that Tennessee is No. 1 in the nation for personal bankruptcy filings, and this is concerning.” 

Kandace Harris, VP of Business Development at Citizens Bank, said that there are a couple of options to help people avoid bankruptcy, including debt resolution.  

“I think people automatically go to bankruptcy because they don’t know about debt resolution or calling your credit card billing company and saying, ‘Hey, I’m going through a hardship,’” she said. “A lot of times, they’ll have zero interest for a certain amount of time and allow you to catch up.”

To listen to the full interview and learn more about managing your personal finances in Middle Tennessee, check out the full episode.