DIY Halloween Spider Decorations

Halloween is just around the corner! This is a popular holiday where a variety of creative sides come out. For many this means planning their costumes, while some are preparing what themed goodies they will make for a party. Others are getting out their decorations, or getting excited for all the candy they’re going to collect on the last day of October! Many people spend this time with friends, and many take the opportunity for some family fun. What is your favorite aspect of this spooky celebration?

Decorating is a big deal for this holiday, whether it be homes, offices, or schools. There are many different types of decorations you can buy, depending on if you’re trying to be more cute and friendly or more scary and intense. If you enjoy making your own, here’s an idea: a giant spider you can hang above your garage or doorway.

Take a large black trash bag and stuff it with crumpled-up newspaper until it’s nice and plump. Section off a small part of the bottom for the head with tape or a rubber band, or just attach a black balloon later. Then attach 8 black paper streamers for the legs, which you can adjust in any pose you want while hanging it up with tape or strings – make it look like its dancing, or reaching out to steal some candy! Finally, create the face with paint or colorful paper cutouts that you can tape on. All of this is fun to do on your own or with kids of all ages, and if you feel like it, you can get extra creative and give the spider more designs on its body!

Chestnut Spider

Pompom Spider

You can also make small spiders out of something round, like a little pompom or a bouncy ball or a cut-out circle of paper. Just add pipe cleaners and paint some eyes or glue on googly eyes! These can be placed anywhere around the house – you can stick them on the outside wall leading to the door or place them along the pathway.

If you make one of these spiders, friendly or spooky, tag us in your pictures @SunWestFCU so we can check it out! However you celebrate, stay safe and enjoy yourself this Halloween!

Saving Energy: Tips to Keep Cool and Keep Your Cash

It’s technically fall, but here in Arizona, the heat doesn’t seem to have gotten the message. By the end of September we hope to be getting cozy in sweaters while drinking our coffee or hot chocolate, but instead we’re turning up the A/C and still sweating wherever we go. Not only are we not getting the weather some hope for, we’re not getting a break on our electric bills, either. Here are some tips that should help you keep cool and save money as we head into October.

Temperature

Use a ceiling fan or plug-in fan in the room you’re in so that you can turn up the thermostat a few degrees and still feel comfortable. Just turning up the thermostat one degree can help save 2 or 3 percent on the cost –and most people we know don’t feel a difference! Leave the temperature up higher when no one will be at home. A lot of heat also enters houses through the windows – close the blinds or cover them some other way to block as much as you can. It might make your home feel a little cave-like, but whether or not you enjoy that, you’re sure to enjoy the money you save!

Lights

Switch your light bulbs from standard incandescent to LED lighting to save energy and money in the long run. While LED bulbs might cost a little more than the standard bulbs, they last over three times as long. Plus, they’re more environmentally friendly thanks to their energy efficiency and non-toxic chemicals! Reduce your bill even more by turning off any unnecessary lights or appliances when you’re not using them. Don’t forget, you want everyone you live with getting used to this too!

Other Areas

Your hot water heater can also take up a lot of energy. Turn its temperature lower, to around 120 degrees, and use a hot water heater timer to keep it cooler during times you’re not using it, such as when you’re sleeping. Find out the on-peak/off-peak usage hours of your energy plan and run major appliances like your washer and dryer during the off-peak hours. Speaking of which, you can wash your clothes in cold water and then dry them outside to save even more energy. Why not take advantage of that Arizona sun when you can?

You may not be able to act on all of these ideas, and some might take a bit of time to get in the habit of doing. But just think, these tips are sure to add up in your next energy bill. Start encouraging your family or roommates to work on all they can, and just wait and see how much money you’ll be saving!

Meet Rosanne Aviles, Our Member Services Director

Have you ever met someone who made you feel like the most important person in the room? How about someone who was incredibly passionate about leaving people better than they found them? Here at SunWest, we are so lucky to have that staff member who goes above and beyond to make not only her team, but also her members, feel like a million bucks. Let’s take a few moments to get acquainted with our new Director of Member Services, Rosanne Aviles.

For 13 years, SunWest Federal Credit Union has been fortunate to have Rosanne working for us and representing what great service looks like. From building the Goodyear and Surprise branches from scratch to leading the charge at our headquarters office, she’s clearly made an impact.

Our members mean so much to Rosanne and they are always at the forefront of her decisions as a leader in member services. Her dedication to our community is unparalleled, and who doesn’t love her enthusiasm for growing SunWest? Of course, it helps that she strongly believes SunWest is an exceptional credit union in so many ways, such as how we work hard to ensure our members don’t have to pay fees for every little thing. Rosanne also feels that both SunWest and its members benefit from the integrity and passion of its staff – and she would know, as she sets a great example for everyone around her!

Behind the scenes, Rosanne is an animal lover who owns 5 dogs and 6 cats – which is a lot to imagine, much less take care of! Those furry friends are lucky to live with someone so caring. Her favorite movie is the Godfather, which could just show how much family means to her! One quote that inspires her outlook on life is from Maya Angelou: “People will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel”. Both SunWest’s staff and its members are sure to remember how a thoughtful director like Rosanne makes them feel every day.

The next time you find yourself talking with a member of our team, you just might get a chance to chat with Rosanne. You might find out how her pets are doing, or discover that you have the same taste in movies. You can bet that no matter where the conversation goes, her commitment to helping you out will shine through. If you haven’t met her yet, now is your chance to get to know her! If you already do, share your favorite story of her!

Buying a Car Like a Pro Part 2: At the Dealership

Buying a car can be an exciting experience. It can also be daunting and expensive, especially if you’ve never bought a car before or have limited experience with car buying and dealerships. That’s why we’ve put together this helpful list of tips you should have ready to go when you walk onto the car dealer’s lot. Now that you have everything ready to with your credit score, financing, and budget, you’re ready to buy your car. Follow these easy steps to ensure that your car buying experience goes smoothly.

Create a List
We recommend that you start your car search online. This way you can see and compare models and features in the comfort of your own home without being pressured by a car salesman to pick a car or make up your mind. Look at what comes standard and what will be extra on the cars you like most, and determine whether the prices you see will fit into your budget. Once you’ve done your research, come up with a short list of a few cars that you would seriously consider owning. Have this list ready, along with the research that you’ve complied, with you when you head to the dealership.

New, Used or Leasing
Decide which option—new, lease, certified preowned, or used—works best for you. You’ll find all options in your budget, and you’ll find all quality of cars in each option. Buying used is often the best value, but you’ll pay a high interest rate, have a shorter warranty, and may not know the car’s full history. If you’re looking to lease, you won’t own the car, and there are often certain rules to avoid penalties. Buying new gets you a full warranty and lower interest rates, though there may be fewer features available without spending extra. Certified preowned cars are often a good compromise, as they are less expensive than new cars, but have some warranty and have to meet certain standards and regulations for safety. Pick which option you are most comfortable with and go with it.

Test Drive
Don’t rush your test drive. Once you’ve done your research and picked your car or cars, schedule a test drive with the internet or fleet manager. This will help you build a relationship with someone at the dealership who will be less likely to push you into making a deal. Ask for more time with your test drive. You’ll be driving this car around for a few years at least, so make sure you like how it handles on surface streets and freeways. Take your time with the car in park too—adjust seats and mirrors and play with the different controls. If you often drive with a passenger, bring them along and make sure they’re comfortable too. If you haul things, make sure everything will fit.

Negotiate Smart
When it comes to start signing the paperwork, you’ll already be ahead of the curve by having your credit information and the financing all set up, but there are still other fees and terms you’ll need to negotiate. Have ready any discounts you may have researched. Negotiate the trade-in value of your car separately from the purchase of your new car, and research the value of your current car ahead of time so you know if you’re getting a good price. Look carefully through the list of fees to make sure they are accurate and necessary. And be prepared to say no to the extras you’re offered. You can always get them later, if you end up wanting them, after you’ve done your research.

If you follow these simple and smart steps, you’ll have a great experience buying your next car, and you’ll get an amazing deal on your dream car. Check out these tips and tricks to get the best deal before you head out to the dealership.

Buying a Car Like a Pro Part 1: Before You Go to the Dealership

Buying a car can be an exciting experience. It can also be daunting and expensive, especially if you’ve never bought a car before or have limited experience with car buying and dealerships. That’s why we’ve put together this helpful list of tips and terms you should know before walking onto a car lot. You’ll be able to walk out with a great car at a great price once you understand these terms and ideas.

Credit Scores
Before you ever step into a car dealership, make sure you understand what your credit score is. Dealerships often advertise very good interest rates on new cars, but often these rates are only available to those with credit scores of 750 or better, and you will only see that in the fine print. Those with credit scores of 700 or higher can usually get pretty good rates, but anything below that usually comes with much high interest rates. And almost anyone can get a car loan regardless of their credit score or credit history because cars are relatively easy to repossess if you miss payments. So before you go looking for a car, make sure you know what your credit score is and what kind of rate you should be getting. If your credit score isn’t as good as you’d like it to be, Experian.com has some tips to raising your credit score.

Get financing quotes before you shop
Even if you have amazing credit, it doesn’t hurt to look around for the best rates. For those with high credit scores, you can often find great financing rates directly from the dealer. If you have average credit, visit your credit union or bank and apply for a car loan before you shop. You can often find some of the most competitive rates with credit unions and local banks. You can also apply for car loans online if you want more options, but you won’t necessarily get the best rates.

Set a budget
One of the first things you should do when you start searching for a car is determine exactly how much you can afford to spend on loan payments each month. While it might be tempting to get a longer loan term so you can have smaller payments over the course of the loan, in the long run you’ll end up paying a lot more in interest. So while a shorter loan term might have higher payments, you won’t have to pay as much interest. Calculate how much you can afford to spend each month and then find the shortest loan term that will fit in that budget.

Consider extra expenses
In your budget, make sure you account for other common car costs such as car insurance and GAP Insurance. GAP, or guaranteed auto protection, Insurance, is protection to cover the “gap” between than an insurance company believes your car is worth and what you still owe on your loan if you’re in an accident and the car is deemed totaled. So if you still owe $8,000 on your loan, but the car is only worth $6,000, the GAP insurances covers you for that $2,000 that you would owe on the loan. For both GAP insurance and car insurance, make sure you shop around to find the best rates. And shop around for both of these annually, as rates can change from company to company every year.

Now that you know your credit score, have financing ready to go, and know what you can afford for your budget, it’s time to start looking for your new car. Whether you’re buying a brand new car, or one that’s just new to you, these tips will help ensure that you won’t get taken for a ride at the dealership.

Find more information on auto financing with these tips for saving on your car loan.

Love is in Full Bloom

Spring has sprung! The flowers are blooming, the sun is shining and love is in the air! For many people, spring represents a new start, but for others, it is a time to reflect on the stories that still bring a smile to their faces. In relationships, each couple’s journey is unique and helps mold them into the dynamic duos they are today. Our employee Lauren and her husband Ryan have met their fair share of challenges over the years, but continue to create many wonderful memories together. Here is their story:

Lauren and Ryan met during her junior year of high school. She describes herself as a shy, quiet individual who took her schooling very serious, while he was outgoing and consumed by his love for music. Yet despite their differences in personality, they instantly clicked. As most idealistic teenagers do, both Ryan and Lauren thought this was the forever kind of love made in the movies, and they weren’t wrong! Ryan and Lauren served as each other’s rocks in challenging times as the years passed. They found parenthood early and learned that through love and determination, they could move mountains. When asked how they overcame life’s curve balls and still found success in their goals, Lauren said, “It wasn’t easy. We’ve gone through a lot. No relationship is perfect, and ours is no exception. However, the good memories have always outweighed the difficult times and we’ve yet to find an obstacle that we can’t overcome.”

Ryan and Lauren describe themselves as anything but a traditional couple. They had their wedding invitations designed like band flyers,   decided to include their three children in their ceremony, and more often than not, break out in air guitar concerts at the dinner table. Looking   back over the past two decades, Lauren cannot imagine her life without Ryan in it. “I realize how lucky I am that I found someone to share   my life with at such a young age, I know that does not happen often. I hope our relationship and what we’ve overcome serves as an   inspiration for our children, and I look forward to many more years to come.”

We hope Lauren and Ryan’s story continues to bloom for many more years!

Funding Baby: Financial Tips to Make Things Easier for New Parents

So you’re expecting a baby, or maybe you just had your first. Your bundle of joy is a wonderful addition to your family, but you might not realize just how much money new babies can cost. We want to help take some of that financial worry off your mind by offering some easy and useful tips that will make paying for baby significantly easier.

Create a pre- and post-baby budget
There are several new costs that pop up when you find out you or your partner is pregnant, as well as after baby comes, so creating budgets is going to be essential. Things to consider budgeting before the baby comes includes out-of-pocket medical expenses related to the pregnancy, car seat, crib, stroller, clothing, formula, and diapers. While some of these will drift into your new post-baby budget, you’ll want to have some on hand for the first days and weeks after baby arrives and certain normal activities go out the window. After baby arrives, make sure you factor in recurring expenses like diapers, food, child care, and more. You’ll also want to consider how much your budget will need to be adjusted for maternity and paternity leave.

Insurance
Before your baby arrives, or shortly thereafter, make sure you find a pediatrician in your health insurance network. Baby’s first doctor’s visit will come within a week of the birth, so having one already picked out will be helpful and make that first week a little less stressful. You’ll also want to make sure you add baby to your insurance policy within 30 days of birth to ensure that your little boy or girl is covered.

It might seem a little morbid to think about this after baby comes, so we recommend looking into life insurance policies before the big day. If you already have one, make sure you adjust it accordingly to reflect your new son or daughter. If you don’t have one, get one. You love your child, and can’t ever imagine not being with them, but sometimes the unexpected happens, and you’ll want to make sure that your child is protected and taken care of no matter what happens. Adjusting your will and beneficiaries goes hand-in-hand with this, so make sure you make those changes as well.

Emergency Fund
There is no way to predict what will happen in the future, so having an emergency fund set aside is always a smart way to go, whether you’re expecting a child or not. If you don’t already have an emergency fund, now is the time to start one. Whether you are the one who is injured, or your child, or something happens with your car or job, it’s a smart idea to have a rainy day fund set aside with at least three to six months’ worth of living expenses covered.

Plan for the Future
Setting up a college fund for your child is a bit of a given for many people, but many often to forget to plan for their own futures once a child comes into the picture. Don’t forget to keep funding your retirement as well as your child’s future. Their dreams and goals may become more important than yours in your ideas, but that doesn’t mean that your dreams should be neglected. Make sure you keep building your retirement fund so your kids won’t have to take care of you when you’re older—they’ll thank you for it, and you’ll be glad for it in the long run.

Babies are amazing, and we know that you’re excited to welcome this new addition to your household. Just make sure you follow these simple steps to make life with baby a little bit easier and a little more financially secure.

Raising Money-Smart Kids

Every summer, thousands of kids across the country set up stands on their front yards to sell lemonade, or beg their parents for chores to do in exchange for a little more allowance so they can buy that super awesome cool thing they saw in the store that all their friends have now. And while it might be cute that these little entrepreneurs are working hard to earn the things they want, are they really managing their money wisely? How often to do you talk to your kids about good financial habits? Here are a few important tips you can share with your kids to ensure that they know how to manage their money now and into the future.

Teach Key Terms
Making sure you kids know the basic terms of banking and money management is a great first step to making them money smart. Make sure they know terms like Credit, Debit, Checking and Savings. And making sure they understand that money comes from hard work and not from the bank or the magic tree in the backyard is key to their future success with money management. Telling them how ATMs work—and that the money isn’t infinite—will help them grasp these concepts better later in life.

Patience is Important
When kids see their parents shopping, it seems magical. All they have to do is swipe a piece of plastic into a machine and everything they want is theirs. But as grownups, we know this isn’t the case. Teaching children that sometimes you have to wait to buy something is another important concept for them to learn. Waiting until the money is in place, or for the item to go on sale so it is less expensive, are key ideas that children should learn. Try teaching your kids about saving and waiting by having them set a goal, and then save to achieve that goal. Whether it’s a toy or a trip to the movies, encourage your kids to try and save their money until they have enough to buy the item or activity on their own. Don’t make it too expensive so that it takes them months to save the money, but something that they will have to work towards, and they will start to understand how Mom and Dad have to wait to buy what they want until they have the money for it.

Sometimes Choices are Hard
Like the previous example, understanding that tough choices are often involved in money management is also very important. Kids should learn that money doesn’t actually grow on trees and that you may not have enough money to buy everything you want. This is another way to encourage your kids to set and achieve their goals. They might have enough money for a game right now, but if they choose to wait a little while longer and gain a little more money, they could afford the upgraded version. Also, taking your children shopping with you and explaining why you pick one product over another is another way to show your kids how this idea can be applied to life. Ask your kids which is a better deal, the generic item or the name brand, and then ask which one they should buy and why.

The Importance of Savings
As your kids get older, and possibly get their first jobs, encourage them to set up a checking and savings account so they can manage their money and see how their savings can accrue interest over time. As they see their money grow in their savings accounts, they will begin to understand the importance of adding to their savings. It’s like free money, right? Well, it might seem that way to your kids, and who doesn’t like free money?

Make a Budget, and Make it Work
Budgets are even hard for adults to handle, so teaching them to your kids at a young age could be extremely beneficial to their money management abilities in the future. Help them sketch out a basic budget that shows them how much money they make from chores, allowance, or a part time job, and show them where their money goes each month. Breaking things down into categories like Entertainment, Toys, or Gas can help your kids and teens better understand where they spend too much or not enough, and will help them become efficient money managers as they grow older.

It might seem like an awkward topic to discuss with your kids, but once they can start doing simple math, they are old enough to understand some of these important ideas. And trust us, there will be much more awkward topics you’ll need to discuss down the road.