W E A LT H & F I N A N C E Invest Windfalls: Invest any unexpected cash, such as bonuses or tax refunds, and make your money work harder for you. If you find yourself with significant new assets, such as an inheritance, a CFP® professional can help you make the most of your good fortune. Review Your Retirement Plans: The new year may bring changes such as buying a home, updating a will or navigating a higher tax bracket. A CFP® professional can provide a new year review to keep your retirement plans on track no matter where you are in your working life. Plan Your Tax Payments: Consider paying estimated taxes throughout the year to avoid a large tax bill in April. Estimated tax payments can be especially helpful for contract workers or freelancers who don’t have taxes taken out of their pay automatically. Visit LetsMakeAPlan.org for more information about financial planning and how to find a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional near you.
“The new year is a great time to review your strategies for smart spending and saving so you can weather whatever the future has in store.”
IS A DEBT-FREE LIFE POSSIBLE? THERE’S AN APP FOR THAT
WELCOMING WEALTH in 2023
SPENDING AND SAVING STRATEGIES FOR 2023 The past few years have upended many perceptions of financial stability. A layoff or career change, inflation never before seen by younger generations and the lingering uncertainty of the pandemic might have thrown off your financial planning. The new year is a great time to review your strategies for smart spending and saving so you can weather whatever the future has in store. Financial planning professionals suggest that you start by creating a budget. Online trackers such as Mint.com can help you understand your spending. Also, reviewing your expenses with a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ 54 ONYX MAGAZINE
professional is a great way to get a handle on spending smart today while saving for tomorrow. Try these tips for saving and spending in 2023: Use Credit Responsibly: Pay off credit cards each month, if possible, to avoid accumulating debt and build good credit. Set Up Automatic Savings: You can do this through your bank and via your employer’s payroll. Use the new year to take a fresh look at the savings options through your employer, including Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), which can be carried over from one year to the next.
In margin: Stories by NewsUSA
IT’S NOT TOO LATE IN 2023 TO GET YOUR NEW YEAR’S FINANCIAL PLAN TOGETHER. THESE THREE STORIES SHOW YOU HOW TO HAVE FINANCIAL PEACE.
"To say we were disorganized is putting it mildly." Like so many Americans, they didn't have a plan for their money. The problem is often not how much money a family makes, but that they have no idea what they're spending it on. Seventy-eight percent of fulltime workers say they live paycheck to paycheck, according to a recent report from CareerBuilder. Worse, most feel it will always be that way. But it doesn't have to be. Financial experts agree that the best way to break the vicious cycle of scrambling to make ends meet is by having a written budget and sticking to it. Leslie heard about a website, EveryDollar.com and the EveryDollar budgeting app that makes it simple to create a budget, manage money, and track spending. They signed up, set up their budget, and they've stuck to it for years. "We paid off $165,000 in debt since we got started. Now we're in a position to be completely debt-free, including our house and rental property, in the next three years." The "B" word has gotten a bad rap. Budgeting sounds hard. It sounds restricting. Frankly, it sounds boring. But people who've made budgeting the center of their financial behavior have discovered quite the opposite. The technology behind apps like EveryDollar make budgeting easy. Rather than feeling restricted, they say it feels as if they have permission to spend - just not permission to waste. Sierra was surprised by how much having a budget changed her attitude. She's a single mother whose bills include daycare, rent, and student loans. "I felt so far behind every month, and things seemed hopeless," she says. "Now, I keep track of every dollar, and the numbers are right in front of me. I'm getting ahead instead of falling behind. Every month I feel more confident that I can wipe out the debt that's been so stressful." Sierra and Leslie empowered themselves to take control of their money. You can, too. Creating a budget and sticking to it could change your life and help you take control of your money in the new year. EveryDollar is a free budget app that allows users to create customized
monthly budgets, and seamlessly track expenses, income and savings from the convenience of their computer and phone. It's available for both iOS and Android devices. EveryDollar launched in March 2015 and now has more than three million users. Learn more by visiting www.everydollar.com.
HOW FINANCIAL PLANNERS CAN ADVANCE EQUALITY
Financial planning is about helping individuals and families make sound financial decisions that enable them to achieve their life goals. When financial planners provide these services to diverse clients, they help bridge the gaps between different communities. A growing body of research shows that minority communities in the United States are both increasing in size and building greater wealth. However, studies have also found persistent racial gaps in wealth, financial literacy and access to or use of professional financial advice. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has found, for example, that African American and Hispanic individuals tend to score lower on financial literacy tests than Asian American and white test takers. African American and Hispanic adults are also more likely to experience unexpected drops in income, be unbanked or underbanked, and have difficulty making ends meet or saving for future expenses, according to FINRA. CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals play a vital role in helping to close those gaps. CFP® professionals guide clients through building wealth, managing financial challenges and securing their families’ financial futures. Depending on the client, that work could be as simple as helping a family create and stick to a monthly budget, or as complex as developing a diversified investment strategy to save for retirement. In either case, a CFP® professional helps their clients build financial knowledge along with their wealth — both of which can lead to greater equality among diverse communities. Thousands of CFP® professionals around the country also partner with organizations that provide free, quality personal financial advice to individuals who cannot otherwise access financial planning services. The Foundation for Financial Planning, for example, connects volunteer financial planners with individuals and families in need through a variety of programs. These programs provide the many benefits of financial planning to people who might not be able to afford professional financial advice, those who live in an underserved community or those who have other personal challenges. CFP® professionals help to promote financial literacy and awareness of financial planning within their communities, too. Many of them share this knowledge by participating in community events or by leading workshops or other educational programming at community centers. One program offered by Rock the Street, Wall Street has enlisted CFP® professional volunteers to provide financial literacy and investment instruction to high school girls and to encourage them to consider financial services careers. With a career as a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional, you can help improve people’s financial lives and make a real difference in your community. To learn more about what financial planners do and the benefits of a financial planning career, visit CFP.net to download CFP Board’s free “Guide to Careers in Financial Planning.” ONYX MAGAZINE 55
