NYC Financial Empowerment Centers provide free, one-on-one professional financial counseling and coaching to help you reach your goals.
Heads Up
Your financial counselor will work with you to:Manage your moneyCheck your creditSet up a spending planOpen a safe and affordable bank accountContact your lenders about debt, including student loansDevelop a strategy to reduce your debt or lower paymentsAccess emergency government resourcesIn your first session, you will develop a list of action steps to help you reach your financial goals.Your counselor will ask you about your financial history and ask to see any financial documents.You may attend as many follow-up sessions as you want with your counselor.You can meet with a counselor in person or over the phone. You can choose your preferred language for services.Services are secure and confidential. Financial Empowerment Centers do not provide loans or grants.
Eligibility
You are eligible for free financial counseling if you:
Live or work in NYC; andAre at least 18 years oldIncome and immigration status do not matter.
Required Documents
Your financial counselor can better support you if they have more information about your finances. If you don't have your documents with you, that's OK too!Financial documents you can show your counselor include:
Bills or statementsCopies of your credit reportCollection noticesCopies of your tax returnsPaystubsCourt papersStudent loan bills or loan information, which can be found on studentaid.gov (https://studentaid.gov/)
How to Apply
Online (https://a866-dcwpwb.nyc.gov/talkmoney/book-appointment) Book an appointment online (https://a866-dcwpwb.nyc.gov/talkmoney/register) for an in-person or phone financial counseling session.You can also set up a Portal account to:
manage your appointmentssecurely share information and documents with your financial counselorreview and update your personal financial Action PlanIn personSelect a program that fits your needs and choose a location to make an appointment. You can choose your preferred language for services. By phoneCall 311 and say "financial counseling".
Online
(https://a866-dcwpwb.nyc.gov/talkmoney/book-appointment) Book an appointment online (https://a866-dcwpwb.nyc.gov/talkmoney/register) for an in-person or phone financial counseling session.You can also set up a Portal account to:
manage your appointmentssecurely share information and documents with your financial counselorreview and update your personal financial Action Plan
Book an appointment
By Mail
In Person
Book an appointment
Get Help
Call the Financial Empowerment Center hotline: 212-487-4583 (https://www1.nyc.gov/site/dca/consumers/get-free-financial-counseling.page) Call 311. Ask about "Financial Empowerment Centers" or "financial counseling"Go to the DCWP webpage (https://a866-dcwpwb.nyc.gov/talkmoney/faq) about Financial Empowerment Centers or visit the FAQ.