Happy New Year! The start of a new year is a great time to take a look at your financial life and do some assessing. Getting out of debt and saving money often top the list of most popular New Year’s resolutions, but this year, I challenge you to create better habits. Examine your bank account, retirement accounts, credit card statements, monthly payments and debt load and write down three … [Read more...] about Financial Goals and Habits for the New Year!
The Dramatic Adventure of My New Car Purchase
I have some sad news to report: my beloved, Carla, has died unexpectedly. No, Carla, was not my grandmother, she was my 1997 Toyota Corolla with 218,800 miles on her. She is the infamous car that was the subject of my post on Why I’ll Never Buy a New Car that I wrote back in 2012. Our History Together Carla and I have been together since the summer before my senior year of high school. She was … [Read more...] about The Dramatic Adventure of My New Car Purchase
Tax Tips for Millennials
Taxes are not the most exciting thing in the world, so I thought I’d start with this short video on Cats Doing Taxes from one of my favorite non-profits AccountAbility Minnesota. (BTW: if you search for “funny tax videos” on YouTube, the results stink. Note to CPAs everywhere: please make a funny tax video that I can insert in my blog posts on tax tips). Tax planning is a really … [Read more...] about Tax Tips for Millennials
5 Steps To Organize Your Financial Life
Just because I’m a financial planner doesn’t mean I’ve checked off all the items on my own financial to-do list! I’ve been feeling a bit overwhelmed by the mounting businesses and personal financial tasks that I have on my plate — and I decided that if I’m feeling this way, maybe my readers are too. Here’s what I do when I’m feeling overwhelmed by financial tasks and don’t know where to … [Read more...] about 5 Steps To Organize Your Financial Life
Protect Yourself and Your Stuff – An Insurance Overview
Many millennials don’t associate insurance as part of their financial picture, but it’s an important piece of financial planning. We are so focused on saving, paying down debt, and investing, that we sometimes forget about protection planning. Please note: every person’s situation is different so it’s important to work with a comprehensive financial planner to make sure you have the … [Read more...] about Protect Yourself and Your Stuff – An Insurance Overview
Couples And Money: Avoiding The Two-Income Trap
About half of my clients are couples, and they often ask me what they could improve with their finances. My suggestion: View “your money” as “our money” and start planning as a couple. I realize that you may have spent the last 10 years of your adult life as a single lady (cue Beyoncé), and you didn’t have to take into account anyone else’s money habits — or their money … [Read more...] about Couples And Money: Avoiding The Two-Income Trap