When it comes to personal finance, the best-laid plans can often go awry—especially
when there’s a lack of financial strategy or savings discipline. It’s all too easy to start
drifting outside of your budget and eventually abandoning your financial planning efforts
altogether.
The good news? This can easily be prevented by creating an annual financial plan and
checking in regularly to make sure you’re staying on track. Follow these three easy
steps to ensure your personal finance success.
Engage and Review Your Budget with Experts
Setting a budget and tracking your spending habits is the foundation of sound financial
planning. Moreover, engaging with a financial planner can help you create the right
annual plan, refine your budget, and optimize your savings. An expert can also help you
to leverage taxation to your advantage.
When creating your financial planning roadmap, schedule regular check-ins every few
months to review your progress and ensure you stay on track. And if you temporarily fall
off the plan? Whatever you do, don’t beat yourself up—instead, think of it as a
momentary setback and commit to getting back on the financial strategy track.
Invest and Grow Your Savings
One of the best ways to achieve personal finance security is to save and invest your
money over time. Now that you have a budget and an emergency savings fund, focus
on determining the amount of money you can comfortably afford to invest as part of
your financial strategy. Keep in mind that all investments come with some risk; however,
the long-term rewards of a smart, diversified investment strategy can be significant.
There are several different personal finance investments available, including stocks,
bonds, mutual funds, and securities. When considering which investments are right for
you, be sure to keep in mind your financial planning goals, your age, your time horizon,
and your risk tolerance. These decisions can be hard to fully understand if you’re not an
expert. It’s a good idea to talk with a broker to set up and manage your stock, 401(k), and other
personal investments.
Plan for Your Eventual Retirement
Building retirement savings plans such as 401ks, IRAs, or pensions during your working
years is a great way to secure your eventual retirement. Most American retirees need
70 to 90 percent of their pre-retirement income to maintain their standard of living, so
the sooner you create a retirement financial strategy, the better.
To begin, set your savings goals and timelines, and determine how much you’ll need to
save each year. Be sure to monitor changes to your income, debt, taxes, or personal
plans. If you intend to move to another area in your retirement, you’ll want to calculate
the cost of living in that location as a part of your financial planning efforts.
Getting Started
Having a financial strategy and reviewing it regularly can help you achieve financial
success. Access the most affordable financing options for auto refinance and personal
loans with Gravity Lending. Contact us today to get started!