Sure, popping over to the farmers market every couple of weeks to stock your fridge with locally grown veggies is a boon for the community. But imagine if you really put your money where you heart is, investing your dollars with smaller, local financial institutions who share your values.

Next week, June 4-8, Lowcountry Local First wants you to consider moving your money — but not just willy nilly. They’ve outlined the benefits of putting your money into a local bank, creating easy to digest tools that will help you get your finances in order.

LLF reached out to community based financial institutions to see what their advice is for those looking to get their Benjamins in a row.
[pdf-1] Meredith Siemens from South Carolina Federal Credit Union says: “As a business owner, you know your priorities and values. Make sure you’re doing business with a financial institution that aligns those and is willing to go the extra mile for your bottom line.” Jennifer Murray of South State Bank offers, “build good credit for your company by paying bills on time, taking out small loans, or opening a business credit card.”

And Amy Alderman from SC Federal Credit Union says to “pay yourself first by putting 10 percent of your income into savings every paycheck.

Get tips and tricks all week by following LLF on Facebook and Instagram. Anyone who wants to sit down for a face to face with the local pros can find contact information for financial institute reps listed on the LLF Move Your Money landing page.


If all this green talk has piqued your interest, Wed. June 6 at 8 a.m. at Harold’s Cabin LLF will host Coffee Talk: Aligning Your Accounts with Your Values. Brady Quirk-Garvan, who is in charge of business development and operations at Natural Investments: Money With A Mission, will discuss how to move your money to make a bigger impact. Attendees will discuss different retirement options that can be provided to keep and retain employees in a small business, as well as ways individuals can make sure that money in a retirement account has a more direct impact on the community.

Help keep the City Paper free.

No paywalls.
No newspaper subscription cost.
Free delivery at 800 locations from downtown to North Charleston to Johns Island to Summerville to Mount Pleasant.

Help support independent journalism by donating today.