10 Steps to Financial Success

Adopting even one or two of these strategies will make a big difference sooner than you think. And while this is intended to help, it isn’t the solution. A little like watching the Harry Potter movies but not reading the books; you’ll get the basic plot line but never understand what the real excitement is about!

Insure Yourself Against Financial Ruin

  • You need health insurance. You need car insurance. If you rent, you are strongly advised to have rental insurance. And, if you own, you are strongly advised to have home owner’s insurance. These plans protect you when things go wrong and they guarantee that problems won't bankrupt you or your family.

  • For health insurance, if your company and/or spouse don't provide them, visit healthcare.gov, ehealth.com or visit individual insurance companies

  • For vehicle, home owners and/or rental insurance, visit insurance companies including Geico, AllState, StateFarm and many others.

Track Your Income And Expenditures

  • Its important to keep track of how you are spending your money. It is the first step to understanding how you are managing your money, and to taking control of your finances. The real reason you track your expenses is to create financial awareness. If you don’t know where your money goes or how you spend it, you won’t know what habits you can change in order to make your money work for you.

  • There are lots of Apps to track your spending, including Mint Links to an external site. and BillGuard. Free, but with optional premium services including credit monitoring.

Pay Off Your Debt The Smart Way

  • One of the smartest financial moves you can make it to take any savings you have (above and beyond your emergency fund and money you need for essentials) and pay off your high-interest loans. The reason is simple: You usually can earn more by paying off a loan than you can by saving and investing.

  • Your bank typically pays about 1% interest on a savings account; the credit card charges an annual percentage rate (APR) of approximately 18-20%.

Start Thinking About 2070! Or 2050!

  • Talk to any adult and ask them about regrets in their life. Many of them wish they had started planning for retirement earlier; learn from their mistakes! If you are fortunate to work for a company with a retirement plan, you should take advantage of it.

  • If you don't, you should start investing in an individual retirement account (IRA). Compound interest can be your best friend!

Emergencies Will Happen!

  • Build An Emergency Cushion Using An Automated Savings Plan

  • If you find it nearly impossible to save, you're not alone. But, the reality is, emergencies will happen. And it will seem like a crisis, even the small emergencies. When you create an emergency plan, the crisis will be manageable and you will stop having emergencies.

Consider Investing In The Stock Market

  • The rich get richer, while the poor continue to work very, very hard. The advantage of stocks is that the historical return of the stock market is far more than people earn elsewhere; typically averaging 8% (over the past 100 years!) With compound interest, the sooner you start (even with $50 a month) the amazing mathematical returns will amaze you!

Know Your Credit Score And Improve It!

  • A credit score is the number that tells lenders whether or not you are a good risk. The score is based on information about you kept by the three major credit bureaus:  Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian. You’re legally entitled to one free credit report from each of the bureaus each year from AnnualCreditReport.com Links to an external site.. You can also get a free version of your credit score from CreditKarma.com Links to an external site. and from many credit cards.

  • The better your credit score, the better the loan deals you can get and that alone can save you $50,000-100,000 (or more)!

Think Hard Before Buying A Home Or Renting An Apartment

  • For prospective buyers, you need a down payment (typically 10-20% of the purchase price), possible mortgage insurance, money for property tax (typically 2% of the house value each year), costs to repair anything and everything that goes wrong, money to pay the monthly mortgage and utilities.

  • For prospective renters looking to move away from home, consider the cost of renters insurance, water, electricity, internet, cable, propane, buying large items such as a refrigerator and washer & dryer, and all the other costs associated with running a household!

Get Smart About Income Tax

  • Nobody likes paying taxes. One way to decrease the portion of your paycheck that goes to Uncle Sam is to take as many deductions as possible. Consider both the standard deduction or itemizing your deductions. Learn the expenses that you can deduct from your total income. Consider tax credits for children, education, medical expenses and child care. If you earn less than $64,000 you can use irs.gov/freefile to file online without any charges. Or, consider tax prep software including TurboTax.com, HRBlock.com or consider using a professional.

Really Consider Your Goals

  • Do you want to make $50,000 or $100,000? What are you willing to sacrifice to achieve your goals?

  • What steps do you need to take to accomplish your goals?

  • Make short-term, medium-term and long-term financial goals.

Ask for help!

Return to Financial Wellness

Home | Your Local Health & Mental Health Center |  Accessibility | Feedback  | Technical Support