Index of Consumer Resources

Please note: Most of these publications and online resources do not reside on the St. Louis Fed's web site. Some links will take you to the web sites of the Board of Governors, various Reserve banks and other government agencies.

Can't find what you're looking for? Search the Fed's Publications Catalog, which lists all print, online and audio-visual resources (link to New York Fed), or take a look at the Federal Reserve's database of frequently asked questions.

Auto Leasing

• Keys to Vehicle Leasing: A Consumer Guide
  • ESPAÑOL - Arrendar un vehículo: Guía del consumidor

Community Reinvestment Act (CRA)

• Information on CRA from:
  • Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
  • Federal Reserve Board of Governors
  • Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC)
  • The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)
  • Philadelphia Fed
• Community Reinvestment: Does Your Bank Measure Up?
• Consumer and Economic Development Research and Information Center (CEDRIC)
• FFIEC Interagency CRA Rating Search

Credit Cards

• Credit and Charge Cards: What Consumers Should Know about the Cost and Terms of Credit
• Plastic Fraud: Getting a Handle on Debit and Credit Cards
• Choosing a Credit Card

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Credit Counseling

• Memphis Consumer Credit & Information Services (Call 901-321-6711)
• Consumer Debt Counseling (Memphis. Call 901-276-2000)
• Consumer Credit Counseling Services

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Credit Reports

• AnnualCreditReport.com — Where you can order a free credit report online.
• Credit Guide
• National Credit Bureaus:
  • Equifax
  • Experian
  • Trans Union
• Your Access to Free Credit Reports (Federal Trade Commission)
• Your Credit Report: What It Says about You

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Credit Rights

• Consumer Handbook to Credit Protection Laws
• Consumer Information (Federal Trade Commission)
• The FDIC's Consumer Assistance Brochure
• Your Credit Rights: How the Law Protects You

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Currency, Coin and Counterfeiting

• U.S. Treasury: Advanced Counterfeit Deterrence
• U.S. Treasury: Bureau of Engraving and Printing
  • Money Facts
• GoCurrency: Online Currency Converter and Information
• What Is the Euro?
• Get Real or Get Taken (Requires Flash 4.0)
• Know Your Money
• Newly Designed Currency
• U.S Mint
  • Special Programs
  • Coin Production
• U.S. Secret Service Counterfeit Investigations Division

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Electronic Transactions and Direct Deposits/Payments

• When Is Your Check Not a Check?--Electronic Check Conversion

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Fair Lending

• Closing the Gap: A Guide to Equal Opportunity Lending (PDF 241KB)

Financial Education Programs

• Arkansas High School Financial Planning Program (Call the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extension Service, 501-671-2109.)
• Bank-at-School Program
  • Illinois
• Banking on the Future (Program available to Arkansas high schools. Contact Center for Financial Training, 501-372-0940.)
• Check 21 FAQ Site.
• Consumer Economics Update (University of Missouri Outreach and Extension Service)
• Financial Fitness For Life
• Gateway to Financial Fitness (St. Louis area)
• Mid-South Chapter: Memphis, Tenn.; call (901) 767-9187
• Jewish Family & Vocational Service (Louisville)
• Jump$tart Coalition (For contacts in your state, go to the web site and click on "State Coalitions.")
• Junior Achievement
• Money and Work After 50 (AARP web site)
  • In Memphis: (901) 544-0247
• Money Math
• Money Smart
  • The Center for Financial Training in Little Rock, Ark., offers free Money Smart training to high school teachers. For information, call (501) 372-0940.
• National Council on Economic Education
• National Endowment for Financial Education
• Ozark Action, Inc.— A community action agency serving Missouri's south central Ozark region. You also may call (417) 256-6147.
• Personal Finance and Financial Planning: A Web-Assisted Approach (Jump $tart Coalition)
• State Economic Education Councils
  • Arkansas
  • Illinois
  • Indiana
  • Kentucky
  • Mississippi—There is no web site, but you may call (601) 961-4408.
  • Missouri
• Tennessee Saves
• The Advance Foundation (A Christian organization fostering economic development in inner-city Memphis. Call 901-543-8525.)
• Women's Institute for Financial Education
• Youth Financial Education Programs (Offered through the University of Tennessee Extension Service. Call (901) 544-0243.)
• Vollintine/Evergreen Community Association CDC (A Memphis organization offering education workshops. Call (901) 276-1782.)

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Financial Privacy

• Privacy Choices for Your Personal Financial Information

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Foreclosure

• Foreclosure Resources for Consumers

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Frauds, Scams and Identity Theft

• From the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC)
  
  • Internet Pirates Are Trying to Steal Your Personal Information
    But you have the power to stop them. A consumer guide that helps consumers prevent Internet "phishing."

• From the U.S. Treasury:
  
  • Frauds, Phonies and Scams: educating the public about sellers who falsely claim their "securities" are issued or backed by the U.S. government.
  • Consumer Protection information from the Federal Trade Commission
  • Frauds and Scams: Protect Yourself and Your Money
  • Cyber crimes
  • Identity Theft and Fraud
  • Identity Theft (Boston Fed video—information and order form)
  • ID Theft: When Bad Things Happen to Your Good Name
  • Plastic Fraud: Getting a Handle on Debit and Credit Cards
  • When a Criminal's Cover Is Your Identity

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Handling Your Money

• America Saves
• Building Wealth: A Beginner's Guide to Securing Your Financial Future
  • Also available in Spanish/Espanol
• Check 21 FAQ Site
• A Consumer Guide to Check 21 and Substitute Checks.
• CreditSmart(SM) Curriculum from Freddie Mac
  • El Curriculo CreditSmart(SM) Espanol
• Fresh Start (a Louisville program gives those who have been denied bank accounts a second chance. Call the Louisville Urban League at 502-561-6830, ext. 122, or Consumer Credit Counseling at 502-458-8840, ext. 222.)
• Federal Trade Commission Consumer Information
• Good Faith Fund (Arkansas and Mississippi)
• Institute for Consumer Financial Education
• Missouri Families Personal Finance
• Missouri Saves Program
• Old North St. Louis Financial Literacy Project
• Project Money $mart
• South Side Day Nursery: Family Economic Education Center (St. Louis)
• The Center for Women and Families (Louisville)
• Your Spending, Your Savings, Your Future: A Beginner's Guide to Financial Readiness
• Women's Financial Education Series (St. Louis area)
• MemphisDebt
• What You Should Know about Your Checks

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Home-Equity Loans

• Don't Borrow Trouble (Freddie Mac's web site)
• Don't Borrow Trouble (brochure created by the Metro Louisville Coalition)
• Putting Your Home on the Line Is Risky Business
• When Your Home Is on the Line: What You Should Know about Home-Equity Lines of
  Credit

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Home Ownership Counseling

• CreditSmart/Homeownership Development Initiative (Louisville)
• HOPE Homeownership Center (Evansville, Ind., organization offering down payment assistance and home buyer education. Call 502-423-3169.)Neighborhood Housing Opportunities (Pre- and post-purchase home owner counseling in the Memphis area. Call 901-729-2934.)
• Homebuyer Counseling Providers (St. Louis area)
• Home Ownership Partners (Louisville)
• Learn Before You Leap Into A Home
  • Little Rock Area (PDF 42 KB)
  • Louisville Area (PDF 224 KB)
  • Memphis Area (PDF 45 KB)

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Interest and Interest Rates

• The ABCs of Figuring Interest
• Interest Rates: An Introduction
• Economic Indicators for Consumers
  
• Points of Interest (PDF 7.9MB)
• Selected Interest Rates from FRED®, the St. Louis Fed's database of financial and economic data

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Investing

• Forms for Ordering T-Bills, Notes and Bonds
• TreasuryDirect
• U.S. Treasury's Department of Domestic Finance
• Upcoming Treasury Auctions, Results, Debt Buyback Operations and Historical Information

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Small Business Credit

• Access to Credit: A Guide for Lenders and Women Owners of Small Businesses
  (PDF 277KB)
• The Credit Process: A Guide for Small Business Owners

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