The "Arvest Bank Blitz" home build in Oklahoma City with Habitat for Humanity is now complete.  The home was finished on June 25 and was presented to the new residents at the dedication ceremony on June 26.  The new home is a LEED-certified structure, reducing the costs associated with heating and cooling.

To learn more about Habitat for Humanity and how you or your company can get involved, visit their website.  For more information on Arvest's Oklahoma City build, you can read the original blog post announcing the project.

Thank you to all of our associates and community partners who worked so hard on this project, finishing a beautiful new home for a family in need.  Final photos are below.

We are happy to announce that Arvest and Pulaski County Habitat for Humanity will begin construction on a full home build in Little Rock this Thursday, July 2, for a very deserving family!

In honor of Independence Day, we are kicking-off the holiday weekend by celebrating the Jose Martinez family’s achievement of the American Dream of home ownership.

The Martinez family, along with several Arvest volunteers, will begin construction with the raising of walls and watch the new home begin to take shape.  Volunteers will sign the framed house with well wishes for the family and will share in a traditional picnic lunch.

Numerous Arvest associates will volunteer to help with construction of the home and will be on the home site three days a week until the home is complete.  A typical home build takes approximately six weeks. 

Please check the Arvest blog frequently for updates on the progress of the Martinez’s new home!

On Saturday, June 13th, a group of 10 Arvest associates and their spouses converged on Palmetto Street in Oak Park to work on Habitat for Humanity houses in an effort to give back to their community. While some of the group painted the fascia boards of one house, the rest of the group put two coats of paint on the interior walls and ceilings of another house. After a short lunch break, the remaining volunteers put the first coat of paint on the storage sheds behind the houses and on the gables of another house. All in all, it was a very rewarding day for the volunteers.

Arvest Bank in Bartlesville is proud to support this wonderful organization and we look forward to another workday for Habitat again in the near future.  We would like express our deep gratitude to Rosie Graheck for delivering our lunch, as well as our diligent, generous volunteers, including: Suzanne Jette, Chantel Gray, Lori Sheets, Rachelle and Bo Wilson, Lindsey and Billy Pickering, Liz Neal, Lona Ware, Alicia Tolbert, Jessica Hensley, and Duane and Tricia Richards. 

To learn more about Habitat for Humanity and how you can get involved, click here!

If you are like most Americans, you may find that you are spending more than you are saving, which can create an endless cycle of debt as a result. We’re all guilty of spending a bit too much money at times and it’s an easy routine to fall into. Luckily, with some careful planning and discipline, you can reverse the cycle of debt and reap the benefits of saving money.

As many financial experts will tell you, the first step to climbing out of debt is to create a personal budget. Creating a budget amounts to examining your income and expenditures in order to determine exactly how much money you have coming in and where that money is going.

1. Question Your Needs and Wants
What do you want? What do you really need? Make two lists – one for needs and one for wants.

2. Set Guidelines
We all have different budgets based on our needs and wants. You may need to make adjustments for a daily coffee fix or your child’s school lunch money, so remember to subtract amounts from other areas if you do.

3. Track, Trim and Target
Once you start tracking, you may be surprised to find you spend hundreds of dollars a month on eating out or other flexible expenses. Cutting back is usually a better place to start than completely cutting out. Be realistic. It will help you to be better prepared for unexpected costs.
This chart shows some rough guidelines on how much of your income should go toward different expenses.  This chart shows some rough guidelines on how much of your income should go toward different expenses. Keep in mind, these are only general guidelines and each individual should adjust the categories to fit their personal needs.  For example, if a young person lives at home with his or her parents, the housing expenses category could be omitted and that percent of money could be distributed throughout the rest of the categories.

For budgeting tools, don’t forget to check out www.arvestmoneyskills.com

Got any great budgeting tips? We’d love to hear from you! Send them in via our comment field and we’ll post the best ones!

*Source: Building and Budget - Guidelines- PracticalMoneySkills.com, 2008-2009
 

Arvest Bank presented the Nixa Care to Learn Fund with a $5,000 donation at the grand opening for the new branch in Nixa, Missouri.   Read more about the grand opening and new location in this article by the Springfield News-Leader.

Arvest Bank has joined forces with Habitat for Humanity to help build homes for people in need, and this summer a full home will be built in Pulaski County.

The home will be built for Jose Martinez and his family.  Jose and his wife, Leticia, have two children, seven year old, Leticia, and eighteen month old, Leslie.  The family currently lives with Jose’s father.  However, the house is too small for their growing family, and they would love a place to call their own.  Thanks to Habitat and Arvest, their dream will soon come true!

In order to fund the build, Arvest presented a $70,000 check to Habitat for Humanity this morning at the site of the home, located at 10401 Peace Valley Drive in Little Rock.  Representatives from Arvest Bank were on hand to present the check to the Martinez family and Habitat for Humanity.

We are excited about this opportunity and look forward to building a home for the Martinez family!

More information about Habitat for Humanity can be found on their website.

The Arvest Bank Built Together Habitat for Humanity build continues in Oklahoma City and our associates have done a great job working and braving the heat to finish this home for a local family. 

These photos show associates hard at work continuing to put finishing touches on the project. 

Arvest in Little Rock held a celebration to thank associates for their efforts in serving customers in the central Arkansas region.  Over 100 associates attended the thank-you celebration and had an opportunity to see the J.D. Power and Associates trophy.  While in town the trophy did some sight-seeing in Little Rock, visiting the Clinton Library, the Capitol building, and the Rivermarket.  Our associates are very proud of the achievement and thank our customers in central Arkansas and across all of the communities we serve for entrusting us with their banking services.

Arvest Bank ranked  "Highest Customer Satisfaction with Retail Banking in the Southeast Region" in the J.D. Power and Associates 2009 Retail Banking Satisfaction Study.  Arvest Bank ranked highest in the study that analyzed five factors - transactions, convenience, fees, account statements, and account initiation/product offerings.  The study was conducted with more than 28,000 banking consumers throughout seven regions across the United States. The Southeast Region is comprised of twelve states: North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Virginia, Mississippi, Louisiana, Kentucky, West Virginia and Arkansas.  For more information on the study, visit www.jdpower.com

The photos below are of Arvest's J.D. Power and Associates trophy visiting the Arkansas State Capitol, the Clinton Presidential Library, the downtown Arvest Bank location at the corner of Capitol and Broadway, and a view of Little Rock from across the Arkansas River.