April Lewis-Parks

April is passionate about empowering women through financial education and teaching the necessary skills to be financial independent. For over 15 years she has been a consumer affairs advocate generating awareness about personal finance issues. She develops surveys and polls to collect data concerning consumers’ financial needs and subsequent to her findings, she develops educational material and community outreach programs to cover those topics. Her promotional efforts can be seen in past issues of the New York Times, Washington Post, Consumer Reports, Money Magazine, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, among others. She is a graduate of Emerson College in Boston, MA where she studied Journalism, Political Science and Public Relations.

Posts by April Lewis-Parks:

Shopping wisely for summer
Smart Holiday Shopping Tips for 2018
The average family will spend over $1,000 this year on the holidays. These holiday shopping tips can help you avoid holiday ID theft and a debt hangover.
Eldery woman with her doctor
Going into Debt After a Cancer Diagnosis
If you went into debt after a cancer diagnosis, you’re not alone. Learn about debt relief options so you can regain control and focus on your health.
Life in college is stressful
Which State Has the Highest Student Loan Debt?
A new study from WalletHub explores which state has the highest student loan debt and which borrowers have the biggest student debt burden.
How Much Should You Have in Emergency Savings?
Emergency savings is essential to cover unexpected expenses like home and car repairs, as well as to give you a financial safety net in case you lose your job or can’t work due to a medical emergency. But how much should you have in emergency savings and how much do average Americans actually save?
74% of Americans are Getting Married with Debt

A survey of 1,000 couples set to get married in the next 12 months found 3 out of 4 couples will go into debt to tie the knot. And most, 61 percent, say they will use credit cards to pay. But is starting married life saddled with debt a good idea? Here’s what the wedding experts at the Knot say and what Consolidated Credit’s financial expert says. Here are some tips on what you can do to cut cost if you’re getting hitched.

10 Tips To Help Your Teens Become Financially Independent
A new survey finds that only half of teens see achieving financial independence from parents as a key financial goal for the future. We look at the survey stats and offer ten key tips for helping teens learn ow to become financially independent.
8 Money-Saving Ideas for Mother’s Day 2018

By the time Mother’s Day rolls around, Americans would’ve have already spent $23.1 billion on gifts for mom, according to the National Retail Federation(NRF). Mothers are special in every way. How can you spoil that special mom or mother figure in your life without going into credit card debt? Here are 8 money-saving ideas.

Can You Afford the Cost of Debt?
Another interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve means that the cost of debt for consumers just got higher again. WalletHub has revised their map of cities with the most and least sustainable credit card balances. Can you still afford to pay off your debt in a cost-effective way or do you need debt relief?
Research of the Week: Is Mobile Banking Better?
Millennials are the first to jump on new technology that makes their lives easier, but a new survey finds they also may be the first to dump tech that doesn’t perform like they expect. This survey shows the problems with our current mobile banking experience.
Good Debt vs Bad Debt
A new study finds that 2 out of 3 consumers believe they will never be debt free, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing when you consider the difference between good debt vs bad debt. We explain the difference so you can get the right financing for your needs.
Who is Most Likely to Default on Student Loans?
Student loan debt problems don’t affect all demographics equally. Learn who is most likely to default on student loans and what you can do if you’ve defaulted on student debt yourself.
Student Loan Payments Might be the Top Gift of 2018
A new study finds that student loan payments may be the top gift of 2018. Borrowers would prefer help with student loan debt over Bitcoin and the iPhone X!
How Do Americans Plan To Spend This Holiday?
Consolidated Credit asked indebted Americans about their holiday spending plan for this year. The results reveal a “gift gap” that’s rivals the wage gap.
Ending the Confusion to Achieve Homeownership
Potential homebuyers are confused about the homebuying process and unaware of financial assistance programs that can help them achieve homeownership.
Millennials Want Employee Perks to Go to the Dogs
A new study finds Millennials want employee perks to go to the dogs… literally. But is having pets at work really a benefit or a total distraction?
Following the devastating flood of Hurricane Harvey, we explain how to help Houston flood victims
How To Help Houston After Harvey
After the devastating floods following Hurricane Harvey's Category 4 landfall in Texas, we explain how to help Houston flood victims while avoiding scams.
Do You Have More Credit Knowledge than These Millennials?
LendEDU finds that Millennials have some interesting (and wrong) thoughts about how credit scores work. Is this lack of credit knowledge a recipe for debt?
How Much Should You Tip in 2017?
A new poll reveals credit card holders are some of the best tippers in the U.S., but how much should you tip in 2017? Who should you tip or not tip?.
Infographic: Avoiding Olympic-Sized Debt
The Summer Olympic games are here.While many will watch from their homes, others will travel to Rio. Budget‬ carefully to avoid Olympic-Sized Debt.
BBB Tips: Keeping Kids Safe Online

The average child spends 2-7½ hours online every day. That’s a good chunk of time. BBB Children’s Advertising Review Unit (CARU) is available to help parents control what gets advertised to their child while they watch television, listen to the radio and surf the Web. Since 1947, CARU has promoted responsible children’s advertising by managing […]