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5 New Year’s Resolutions for 2016

Financial Tips

MONEY TALKS - 

1. Pay off Consumer Debt - Credit cards can have interest rates well into the double digits. Paying off credit card debt is a great way to free up cash flow for the future. Credit card purchases are generally for short term items that have no lasting value. Putting away your credit cards and learning to live within your means can go a long way towards financial independence. If you are prone to consumer debt, try consolidating your credits cards down to one and using cash for everyday purchases.  

2. Build an Emergency Reserve - Wage earners should have a minimum of 10% of their gross annual income in a long term savings account. An additional 20% should be saved as an emergency reserve. The best place for your emergency reserve is within your 401(k) or other tax sheltered accounts because the interest earned is tax deferred. Self-employed and retired individuals should build their cash/emergency reserves to an even greater level. As an additional test, the combined value of cash and emergency reserves should be at least 20% of your mortgage balance.

A Home Equity Line of Credit or HELOC is loan where a homeowner can borrow against the equity they have in their home. Unlike a conventional home equity loan where the borrower is advanced the entire lump sum up front, a HELOC is different in that the borrower only draws on the line of credit if needed. A HELOC could be used to cover a variety of expenses including unforeseen outlays for home improvements or medical bills. Homeowners should consider getting a HELOC as a supplement to their cash/emergency reserves as an added security blanket.

3. Purchase Long Term Disability Insurance - For most workers, the ability to earn a living is their most significant financial resource. A disabling illness or injury stops income, often leads to additional medical costs, and prevents savings for key goals such as education and retirement. Despite these facts, employees are more likely to have dental insurance than long term disability. The reason for this is most people associate disability with serious accidents. Since very few employees have high risk jobs, the general inclination in the workforce is to say, “I don’t need it” when it comes to disability insurance. In reality this couldn’t be further from the truth as 90% of disability claims are due to illness not injury. Even people who don’t have high risk jobs are still at risk of disability from cancer, cardiovascular, muscular, or other illnesses. A disabling illness or injury can have a devastating effect on you and your family. Purchase long term disability insurance now to protect you and your family’s financial security.

4. Increase Retirement Savings - Most company retirement plans allow you to enroll in a plan where your contributions are automatically deducted from your paycheck and directly deposited into the retirement plan. The beauty of automatic deductions is, since you never see the money, it’s nearly impossible for you to spend it. The only problem with this out-of-sight, out-of-mind enrollment process is most people set up a standard contribution rate when they enroll in their plan and never think to increase it. Lots of employers now offer an auto increase plan where your contribution percentage will increase by 1% per year. If your employer offers an auto increase plan be sure to enroll, if not then be sure to increase your contribution percentage manually each year. Consider investing in an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) if your employer does not offer a retirement plan.

 5. Create an Estate Plan - Approximately 55 percent of American adults do not have a will or other estate plan in place. The primary reason for this staggering statistic is twofold; one being that no one wants to think about their own demise. The other; more alarming reason, is because many Americans are ill-informed on benefits of an estate plan. The most common excuses I hear are; “I don’t have children so I don’t need an estate plan” and “estate plans are only for wealthy families.” Both of these statements couldn’t be further from the truth. Most people don’t know that one of the primary purposes of an estate plan is to give guidance while you are still living. Questions such as, whom do you want to make medical decisions on your behalf or what are your wishes concerning life-prolonging procedures are typically addressed in a comprehensive estate plan. Regardless of your wealth or family situation an estate plan is beneficial for everyone involved.