Overview
It’s that time of year again: a time to create changes, form habits, and make resolutions for the betterment of some aspects of in your daily life. This year, consider making changes or continuing good financial habits to reach your financial goals.
Here are some great tips that can help you commit to your New Year’s financial resolutions:
“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity”
Amelia Earhart
Become financially savvy
There is a plethora of resources to increase your financial literacy—through podcasts, articles, books, and even on our Insights blog! The more you know about your finances and the opportunities offered to you, the more informed your decisions will be, which can yield positive results for you in the future.
Make a financial plan
Knowing your net worth and spending and saving habits now can help you achieve your financial goals in the future and ensure a comfortable retirement. Schedule time with a financial advisor to walk through the process. Even if you are not ready to start a plan, it’s a good idea to scout out an affable and trustworthy partner in mapping out your finances. Call us today if you have any questions about the process or to get started!
A private credit fund is a little bit different than private credit. Private credit funds take investor money and pool it into one big fund. This fund is then used to buy and sell private credit loans made by institutional investors.
Calculate your net worth
Net worth is the value of all assets you hold after you calculate liabilities. Essentially, it is a gauge of your financial health and habits. Getting this big picture can help you make important decisions about your financial plan and future, and how you would like to spend or save those remaining funds.
Increase your retirement plan contribution
Saving away some of your earnings in your retirement plan now can have significant benefits in the future. Consider saving at least 10% of your monthly income into your plan. By doing so in a pre-tax plan, your taxable income will be reduced—because your take-home paycheck will be less—and your retirement fund can grow overtime. If you can, resolve to increase that contribution in the new year, especially if your company offers matching.
Utilize employer matching
Often called “free money,” company matching programs allow you to contribute an amount into your retirement plan that the company will also contribute. Typically, companies contribute between 50-100 percent of the amount that you contribute. If your retirement plan offers it, you should contribute as much as you can—the more you do, the more your employer also will, so it’s to your benefit to get more for doing less!
Pay off debt
The new year offers a fresh start: let’s leave our personal debt behind in 2023! Start by paying down your existing loans and paying off credit card debt.
Track your spending and create a budget
Especially around the holidays, our spending can spiral, and we can end up with larger than anticipated credit card bills! Take the time to track your monthly spending—on pleasure, necessities, and emergency funds. A good goal may be to ensure you are contributing the minimum required to take full advantage of any employer matching contribution.
Evaluate pleasure spending
Now that you’ve examined your spending habits, see where there are opportunities to cut excessive spending. While it is important to treat yourself, a daily coffee run every morning can add up each week. Or assess which and how many streaming services you really need. While important, these charges run up, and eliminating the extraneous ones can put more money into your savings or other areas of pleasure spending, like a vacation!
Prioritize an emergency fund
That money you saved from cutting out your frivolous spending can also be placed into an emergency fund for unforeseen situations. Life is full of unexpected turns, and if you have assets available when they arise, you will be less likely to go into debt to cover these expenses.
Be realistic
As with all resolutions, make sure that you are setting goals that are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-based). The more pointed your goals, the greater likelihood for success. Our team can help you set these SMART goals and resolutions and make sure that you are on track throughout the year (not just January!) to achieve them.
Give us a call today to make your resolutions a reality!
Sources
Ten financial resolutions for the New Year | Empower
Disclosures
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