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Which is a higher priority: buying a latte every day for a year or putting that money toward a car?

That's the kind of question students will grapple with in a free two-part "Money Smart" class that starts Saturday in Hayward.

The second session of the class will be May 13, and anyone who completes both classes will receive a calculator, a $20 prepaid gasoline card, a Quicken Software CD and other gifts. Lunch is free.

The class is meant to teach:

- The differences between various loans.

- How to open a savings account.

- How to get and use a credit or debit card.

- The pros and cons of owning a home versus renting.

- How to avoid being the victim of identity theft.

The classes attract people of all ages and backgrounds, said teacher Arnie Becker, who volunteers with the Community Child Care Coordinating Council (4C's). He taught the class two years ago and will teach it again this year.

"The things that a lot of the students didn't understand were the 'gotcha's' of credit cards and debit cards," Becker said. "Most had no inkling about overdraft fees and other subtleties of the banking system."

Some of his students were recent immigrants who did not have experience with the U.S. banking system.

"I've had people come in who were keeping their money under the mattress," he said. "When they do that, not only are they not earning interest -- there could be a fire or someone could steal the money."

The classes started in 2003 and are sponsored by the 4C's of Alameda County, and also the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. Each organization is impartial about how the students might or might not invest their money, Becker said.

"We have no connection with any financial institution," he added. "At least that way they don't look at us as someone who's trying to grab their money. They know we want to help."

# posted by Medical Information : 4:56 AM