• The Open University
  • The Open University Business School

Finance Fundamentals: Managing the Household Balance Sheet

Discover how to effectively manage household assets and liabilities in order to improve your household financial health.

53,835 enrolled on this course

A coin sits on top of a line graph on a piece of paper – a metaphor for managing finances.
  • Duration

    4 weeks
  • Weekly study

    3 hours
  • Accreditation

    AvailableMore info

Prepare for the future through the effective management of household finances

Each household is its own miniature financial world, with a balance sheet comprised of assets (property, investments, pensions) and liabilities (household debts). Prudent management is essential to ensure these finances deliver the best returns.

On this course, you will learn to effectively manage your household wealth. You’ll learn about different types of borrowing and the associated debts, different types of mortgage, and different ways to invest your money.

By gaining a stronger grasp of household finance, you can best prepare for the future, and ultimately for a comfortable retirement.

What topics will you cover?

  • Different ways of borrowing
  • The cost of borrowing
  • The lending institutions
  • Managing debts
  • Savings products and their returns
  • Investment products and their returns
  • Buying and selling property
  • Mortgage products
  • The household balance sheet and how to manage it
  • Pension planning
  • Pension products

Who is this accredited by?

EOCCS
EOCCS:

This course is accredited by EOCCS, the first international quality benchmark for online courses in business and management education.

Learning on this course

On every step of the course you can meet other learners, share your ideas and join in with active discussions in the comments.

What will you achieve?

By the end of the course, you‘ll be able to...

  • Identify and understand the different forms of borrowing and the cost of debt
  • Explore the different ways to invest and the returns provided by different investments
  • Identify and understand how to buy and sell property
  • Explore the ways to plan for a pension income
  • Identify and understand how to compile a household balance sheet and to measure the risks associated with it

Who is the course for?

This household finance course would be useful to anyone looking to more effectively manage their own household wealth and debts, with a view to preparing for the future. If you want to better understand the buying and selling of property, personal investment vehicles, and different forms of borrowing then you could benefit.

This course might also be of interest to current or aspiring business and management, finance, accounting, or actuarial science students, or financial advisors.

For further information about registration, the final assessment course, your eligibility and the BA in Business Management, visit The Open University’s website.

If you are aiming to use your study of courses in the Business and Finance Fundamentals program to obtain academic credit, please be aware that the final planned presentation of the Open University Assessment Course BXM191 Business and Finance Fundamentals in Practice starts October 2020. Please ensure that you allow yourself enough time to obtain all eight Certificates of Achievement from courses in the program before registering for the Assessment Course. Details of runs of the relevant FutureLearn courses in 2020 are available here.

Who will you learn with?

I am Director of the True Potential Centre for the Public Understanding of Finance (PUFin) at the OU Business School. Previously I was Treasurer of Nationwide Building Society.

Who developed the course?

The Open University

As the UK’s largest university, The Open University (OU) supports thousands of students to achieve their goals and ambitions via supported distance learning, helping to fit learning around professional and personal life commitments.

  • Established

    1969
  • Location

    Milton Keynes, UK
  • World ranking

    Top 510Source: Times Higher Education World University Rankings 2020

The Open University Business School

A pioneer in flexible learning for over 30 years, The Open University Business School delivers transformational, high quality business and management education which is quality assured.

Learning on FutureLearn

Your learning, your rules

  • Courses are split into weeks, activities, and steps to help you keep track of your learning
  • Learn through a mix of bite-sized videos, long- and short-form articles, audio, and practical activities
  • Stay motivated by using the Progress page to keep track of your step completion and assessment scores

Join a global classroom

  • Experience the power of social learning, and get inspired by an international network of learners
  • Share ideas with your peers and course educators on every step of the course
  • Join the conversation by reading, @ing, liking, bookmarking, and replying to comments from others

Map your progress

  • As you work through the course, use notifications and the Progress page to guide your learning
  • Whenever you’re ready, mark each step as complete, you’re in control
  • Complete 90% of course steps and all of the assessments to earn your certificate

Want to know more about learning on FutureLearn? Using FutureLearn

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