Emma is probably best known as a budgeting app, but did you know that our features are helping people do a lot more than budget their money?

We hear from three different people that have used Emma to help improve their financial position for the better. From helping someone spot fraudulent activity to clearing debt to finding the perfect mortgage deal!

"Emma Helped Me Spot Fraudulent Activity On My Account"

What is bank account fraud?

Bank account fraud has taken place when a transaction you have not made shows up on your bank account. This type of fraud could have been carried out by an individual person, or an entity that has used illegal methods to access your money.

There are a few different types of fraud that you need to be aware of.

The first is debit/ credit card fraud. This is where someone has used your bank information online, or in store, to buy something without your knowledge, or permission.

Then there’s electronic fraud. This occurs when an external party uses various methods to trick you into sharing private information, like your bank details. They then use your secure/ private information to withdraw money illegally from your account.

And lastly there is also identity theft fraud. This is when someone uses fake, or stolen, documents to mimic your identity and then uses your identity to open new financial products, like credit cards.

How can you detect & avoid fraud on your account?

The easiest way to spot any fraudulent activity on your account is to make sure you check your account every couple of days.

Using an app like Emma makes this super easy. Each morning Emma will send you a notification with your account balance. If you’ve been a victim of fraud where a large amount of money has been withdrawn, you’ll soon be able to spot this.

It’s also extremely easy to scroll through all your latest transactions on Emma. Every few days get into the habit of checking your most recent spends and make sure you’re familiar with each transaction. You can even add a note to every transaction to help you remember exactly what you spent that money on.

How did Emma help?

Mike from Nebraska left us this review and we’re so happy Emma was able to help him spot fraudulent activity on his account. He said:

“I was the victim of a fraud with my debit card. Someone was slowly draining my account, $28.37 here, $35.62 there. All showing as charges at a gas station in NY state. I’m in NE. Never noticed it. Within 12 hours of installing Emma, it had crawled and categorized my transactions and I immediately saw the issue. Emma saved me over $300 in fraudulent charges - actually much more because I might not have caught this otherwise. Thank you!” - Mike, Google Reviews

"Emma Is Helping Me Clear My Debt”

What is debt?

Debt is an amount of money that is owed by one person to another. A debt therefore has to be repaid to the person, or organisation that lent it to you in the first instance.

If you have a mortgage, or a student loan you could consider this debt. However, traditional debt is often considered as debt that comes from owing money that’s been spent on seemingly unnecessary items like fast fashion and holidays.

How can you get out of debt?

One of the first steps to getting out of debt is to figure out exactly how much money you owe. If you owe money to multiple sources, you then need to prioritise which accounts you need to pay off first. Make sure you know the creditors name, the balance, the minimum monthly repayments and the interest rate of each debt.

It can then also be a good idea to see if you can switch credit cards to a card with a lower interest rate. Depending on your credit rating, you might qualify for a card that has much better interest rates, or you might even be able to apply for a card with a 0% introductory rate. Use Emma’s Save Money tab to compare the best credit card deals available to you in a matter of minutes.

You can also go through the same exercise in Emma but by comparing loans. Personal loans often charge lower interest rates than credit cards, so consider whether this could help you pay off your debt quicker.

Following Emma on social media could even help you reduce your debt. Every day we post lots of motivational content that inspires people to improve their relationship with money.

How did Emma help?

Penny For The Gal tagged Emma in one of her Instagram posts. She said:

“Emma Finance’s last Instagram post pushed me to do an instant cash payment to debt..... resulting in me dropping into the 5k’s on one credit card. I haven’t seen this number so low in forever.  I am following the snowball method with Dave Ramsey so this is something I have to live with, but any “bonus” payments I always pay to this just to help it a little. Thanks, Emma Finance for that little push” - Penny For The Gal on Instagram

“Emma Helped Me Apply For A Mortgage”

What’s a mortgage?

A mortgage is a loan that you take out to help you buy a property. The loan could be up to 95% of a property's value. Each month for a set period of time you then slowly repay this loan to the bank or building society that accepted your mortgage application.

For more information on mortgages, you can read this guide to understanding the different types of mortgages in the UK.

https://emma-app.com/blog/2020/10/16/understanding-the-different-types-of-mortgages-in-the-uk/

How do you get a mortgage?

Before you apply for a mortgage, you’re going to need to save some money. Most lenders will ask for a deposit of approximately 5% to 15% of the property’s value. If you’re buying a £200K home this means the minimum amount you’ll need to save is £10K. Using a budgeting app like Emma can be a great way to control your spending, and make sure each month you’re topping up your savings pot.

You should then look into the schemes available to help you buy your first home. We have more information on Help To Buy, Shared Ownership, First Home Scheme, and the Lifetime ISA here.

When you know that you can afford a mortgage and you know what type of mortgage you want, you can start comparing all the different deals. You can even do this by heading to the Save Money tab on Emma.

How did Emma help?

Bethany on Twitter dropped us a message to say that Emma had really helped improve her financial situation. She said:

“Emma helped me apply for my mortgage, it made the budgeting element much easier and I was able to review my spending on a bigger scale without estimates or guesswork or having to pull together my bank accounts manually!” - Bethany on Twitter

Summary

We’ve loved hearing how Emma has helped these three people improve their financial positions. If you’re reading this and know Emma has helped you master your money, please do get in touch! You can contact us through Instagram, Twitter, or drop us a message on our in-app live chat.