With an In Case of Emergency or ICE plan, you assemble key contact and financial account information in one place. An ICE plan guides someone who must act on your behalf—it is like a roadmap of your financial life. If you use a web-based personal financial management service, you have a great head start. To create an ICE plan, prepare a list of: Bank accounts, credit card accounts, retirement accounts, brokerage accounts, and any other investments The name and phone number for anyone who helps you manage your financial life—banker, insurance agent, accountant, investment adviser Details about your lease or your mortgage—the name of your property management company or mortgage company Bills that are on automatic pay, with passwords to access the accounts or the master password if you use a password management service For someone just starting out, your retirement account is likely your most valuable asset. As you…
Home Office Refresh
Over the past few years, our home offices have taken on greater importance. Having a functional, organized home office makes our professional lives and our financial lives easier to navigate. If your home office needs attention, it is time to get started. Financial Spring Cleaning Just like when you go through your closet or food pantry to determine what to keep, what to donate, and what to toss, you need to do the same with your financial life. Perhaps even more important than what you keep is what you can shred, recycle, or delete. Keeping unnecessary documents and statements makes it harder to locate vital personal finance information in a hurry. Most of us waste a lot of time trying to find things on our computer and amidst our papers. Getting rid of unnecessary documents frees up precious space in your file cabinet and in your filing system on your hard…
Simplify Your Bills and Your Life
According to a study by Mercator Advisory Group, more consumers pay bills online than by mail or in person. The pandemic and subsequent rise in remote work and relocation helped to accelerate this trend. When it comes to paying bills online, you have choices. You can (1) use your bank’s bill payment portal; (2) go to each biller’s website and make a payment; or (3) sign up for a non-bank bill pay service. You can arrange automatic payments directly from your checking account for recurring bills such as rent, mortgage payments, and utilities. You can use your credit or debit card for smaller recurring payments like subscriptions. Paying bills online has numerous benefits. The two most important benefits are convenience and simplification. Your records will be digital and easier to maintain and organize. Each person’s financial situation is unique, as is their comfort level with technology. For most bills, using…
Navigating Tax Season
Tax time can feel overwhelming for many people. Preparing your taxes requires you to manage a lot of information and documents. In addition to your W-2 (or 1099-NEC forms if you are a contractor), you will need supporting documentation related to your savings and investment accounts. A 1099 statement details the year’s dividends, interest, and capital gains earned. Some investments are structured as partnerships and provide a year-end, or annual, K-1 instead of a 1099. A K-1 shows an investor’s share of partnership income for a given year. Transactions that you need to document at tax time occur throughout the year. Therefore, I strongly recommend that you keep a Current Year Taxes folder. As you receive tax-related documents in the mail or from a financial firm’s portal, store them in this paper folder or a similar folder on your hard drive. If you are a contractor, save an extra copy…
Getting Your Financial House In Order: Helpful Tools
Getting your financial house in order has numerous benefits. You will be more engaged in managing your finances and better prepared if life throws you a curve ball. Most important, you will feel less overwhelmed and less stressed. The In Case of Emergency (ICE) Plan and the Asset Allocation Grid are helpful tools. The ICE Plan creates a roadmap for your financial life, while the Asset Allocation Grid is the dashboard. Invest the time to use these tools. Engagement in our finances is essential. Asset Allocation Grid ICE Plan
Safe Ways to Keep Track of Your Passwords
As we conduct more of our financial lives online, the number of passwords we have—and need to keep track of—has exploded. As with other areas of your financial life, your passwords need to be secure. If you write them on paper, keep the list out of sight and away from your computer. Think about using a passphrase that will be easy for you to remember. The longer a password or passphrase you use, the harder it is to crack. Consider using a password management service, which stores your passwords securely online. You enter all your passwords into the service’s website. When you log in to a site, you enter a master password rather than entering your log-in and password for each website you visit. The sites will flag any of your passwords that are not secure and suggest you revise them. If you have a partner, a password management service…
Time for a Financial Spring Cleaning
Spring is the perfect time to clear out our home offices. I like to call it a financial spring cleaning. Just like when you go through your closet or food pantry to determine what to keep, what to donate, and what to toss, you need to do the same with your financial life. Perhaps even more important than what you keep is what you can shred, recycle, or delete. Keeping unnecessary documents and statements makes it harder to locate important information in a hurry. Most of us waste a lot of time trying to find things on our computer and amidst our papers. Getting rid of unnecessary documents frees up precious space in your file drawer and on your hard drive. Keep both a recycle bin and a shredding bin near your desk or wherever you pay bills or go through mail. Shred or delete monthly statements once you receive…
An Email Hack – What to Do
It all started when I received the dreaded text message …”I received a strange email from you”… My friend shared a copy of the fraudulent email content. Within minutes, I received notifications from dozens of friends, through email, text, DMs, and phone calls. Whether it was someone from one of my two non-profit boards, parents of my kids’ former teammates or classmates, members of my book club or old paddle tennis teams, or friends from high school, college, or the neighborhood, I heard from a lot of people on my contact list. I appreciate everyone looking out for me. After I took a deep breath, my first thought was, “what should I do now?” Fortunately, a neighbor who helps me with IT consulting texted me as soon as he received the fraudulent email. He walked me through the first steps: Update your password on your email account. Let friends know…
Tax Time Approaches – Get Organized
Preparing your taxes is not a fun task. It can be significantly less unpleasant if you are organized. Your taxes involve a lot of documents, and you must keep good records. In addition to your W-2 (or 1099-Misc forms, if you are a contractor), you will need supporting documentation related to your savings and investment accounts. A 1099 is a statement that details the dividends, interest, and capital gains earned during the year. Some investments are structured as partnerships and provide a year-end, or annual, K-1 instead of a 1099. A K-1 shows an investor’s share of partnership income for a given year. Transactions that you need to document at tax time occur throughout the year. Therefore, I strongly recommend that you keep a Current Year Taxes folder. As you receive tax-related documents in the mail or from a financial firm’s portal, store them in this paper folder or a…
Get Your Home Office in Shape
Over the past 18 months, our home offices have taken on greater importance. Having a functional, organized home office makes our professional lives and our financial lives easier to navigate. If your home office needs attention, it is time to get started. Financial Spring Cleaning Just like when you go through your closet or food pantry to determine what to keep, what to donate, and what to toss, you need to do the same with your financial life. Perhaps even more important than what you keep is what you can shred, recycle, or delete. Keeping unnecessary documents and statements makes it harder to locate vital personal finance information in a hurry. Most of us waste a lot of time trying to find things on our computer and amidst our papers. Getting rid of unnecessary documents frees up precious space in your file cabinet and on in your filing system on your hard drive. Keep both a recycle bin…