News
How to Handle an Overdue Mortgage
By Charlestien Harris The stress of not being able to make mortgage payments and other financial obligations because of the pandemic or any hardship...
Tax Time is Savings Time in Mississippi
Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves signs a proclamation designating Mississippi Saves Week. Last week, Governor Reeves signed HB 597 into law, adding...
Southern Bancorp Statement on CFPB Decision to Remove Payday Lending Rule
On July 7, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) announced that it had revoked the mandatory underwriting provisions of the 2017 Payday...
Homeownership: Knowing Your Numbers Can Make the Difference
I have been scanning the news lately and have read several articles about the housing market during this pandemic. To most analysts’ surprise, the...
Credit Reports and Scores Explained in Simple Terms
By Charlestien Harris Having access to credit can make dreams come true. In today’s world, you can hardly conduct business without using...
Consider All Your Options before Making Long Term Financial Decisions
Filing Bankruptcy: The Facts By Charlestien Harris This is a particularly tough time for millions of Americans, and a lot of people are wondering...
Meet ALICE
By Janie Ginocchio You might be thinking, “I only know one person named ALICE and she’s my 86-year-old great aunt.” That’s surely true, but what’s...
Learning How to Get Through the Month
By Charlestien Harris As difficult as it can be to make ends meet, it’s getting even tougher during this pandemic. Now is the time to develop...
Economic Impact Payments: How a Digital Economic System Can Leave the Unbanked Behind
By James Owen Cutting checks to 171 million Americans is no easy logistical undertaking. It gets harder when you don’t have direct deposit...
Keeping Your Credit Strong during a Pandemic
By Charlestien Harris Hello again my financial fitness trainees! As you know, we’ve been discussing the importance of lowering expenses and...
Don’t Let High Bill Payments Weigh You Down
Hello everyone! I am Charlestien Harris, certified housing and credit counselor, and I’m back again to talk about finances. The coronavirus has...
Financial Fitness
A financial coach’s blog of tips for staying financially fit By Charlestien Harris As we navigate this very turbulent time in our lives, there...
Talking about Poverty: Chained CPI
Editor’s note: This is one in a series of blog posts to critically examine how poverty is defined, measured, and talked about, and how those...
Building Wealth and the CARES Act: Some Points to Remember
By James Owen Building wealth doesn’t happen overnight. But over the next few days, you’ll likely have to make some decisions that could help you...
A message to our customers about COVID-19
The health and safety of our customers and employees are our top priority, and we want to share with you just a few of the things we’re doing to...
Banking the Underserved at the Speed of Trust
It’s easy to miss important parts of the Delta. At first glance, a juke joint could be mistaken for a roadside shack. A flooded field is actually...
America Can Save: How Southern’s Public Policy Makes Saving Easy
Southern knows a thing or two about saving. Every employee strives to be a wealth builder for everyone; each employee is a walking, talking...
Looking South by Southwest to Map America’s Unbanked
By James Owen Editor’s note: This is the second blog in a series aimed at understanding the what, where, why, and how of unbanked and underbanked...
Talking about Poverty: Inflation Inequality
By James Owen Editor’s note: This is one in a series of blog posts to critically examine how poverty is defined, measured, and talked about,...
Understanding the Underserved: Unbanked and Underbanked Households
By James Owen Southern’s mission is to be wealth builders for everyone. If you’ve spent any time following our Twitter, Facebook, reading our blog...
Talking about Poverty: Re-examining Basic Needs
By Kathryn Hazelett Editor’s note: This is one in a series of blog posts to critically examine how poverty is defined, measured, and talked...
Talking about Poverty: In Need of a Refresh
By Kathryn Hazelett Editor's note: This is one in a series of blog posts to critically examine how poverty is defined, measured, and talked about,...
A Big Idea: Banking on Building Empathy
Most of us don’t think twice about how easy it is to access money. If you’re like me, it’s so easy you can do it before your first cup of coffee....
Talking about Poverty: Food Costs in the 1950s
By Kathryn Hazelett Editor’s note: This is the third in a series of blog posts to critically examine how poverty is defined, measured, and talked...
Talking about Poverty: Measurement
By Kathryn Hazelett Editor’s note: This is the second in a series of blog posts to critically examine how poverty is defined, measured, and talked...