Gen Z and Millennials
You’re in the beginning stages of your career and many people at this age are taking charge of their own finances for the first time. You have a long financial journey ahead of you; how do you make sure you’re on the right path for fiscal success? You may be recently married or considering starting a family. Here are some common questions you may be facing:
- Am I living within my means given my income vs. expenses?
- If I have extra income at this point, what should I be doing with it?
- How much should I keep in an emergency savings account?
- How do I prioritize paying off debt vs. saving for the future?
- What benefits are available through my employer that I should be considering?
- What is the best way to begin saving for my retirement? (i.e. Roth contributions vs. Traditional contributions, 401ks vs. IRAs, etc.)
- I’m newly married, how do we merge (or not merge) our finances?
- What are common pitfalls to avoid so that I don’t fall behind?
- How do I protect my growing family from unforeseen circumstances?
- I have children - what’s the best way to start saving for private school or college?
These are some common questions we help answer for our clients under the age of 40 (otherwise known as Gen Z & Millennials). Our services include:
Budget Review:
After you complete a Cash Flow Worksheet outlining your income sources and expenses, we will provide objective cash flow analysis.
- We can help decide “maximum” levels of spending given your individual financial situation. We will also help you decide on an appropriate amount to hold in an “emergency cash account” and discuss ideas for future disciplined automatic investing ““dollar cost averaging” methods.
- If total income exceeds expenses, we help you figure out an appropriate savings and investment plan for the excess funds. For example, “Should you start a 529 plan for your child?” or “Should I max out my contribution to my 401(k) or 403(b)
Debt Management:
Review outstanding debts to see if the rates and loans are as “efficient or competitive” as possible and help develop a “pay-off” plan.
- Identify any additional finances required for further education-what’s the best way to fund this?
New Home Purchase Affordability Analysis:
Often times, lenders will pre-approve you for an amount that in reality, may turn out to be unrealistic given your specific financial picture. We will help you determine what type of mortgage might be the most appropriate given your short and long-term housing goals. What is reasonable and affordable for you now and in the future.
Identify & Discuss Possible Retirement Savings Vehicles:
- Determine eligibility and deductibility for Traditional or Roth Ira Contributions
- Examine any employer sponsored retirement plans (such as 401(k)s and 403(b)s) to see what investment options are available and what is most appropriate given your age and risk tolerance
- If self-employed, we help analyze what options you have available for retirement plans and discuss some other tax minimization strategies.
Investment Analysis/Portfolio Review:
We will review any current investment accounts and give you our thoughts and where necessary, suggest changes (this includes objective advice as it pertains to potential real estate purchases/sales).
Career Move/Job Change Analysis:
We help walk you through the financial pros/cons of a job change including benefits analysis and cash flow comparisons.
Risk Management Analysis:
Based on a variety of factors, we will review your current insurance policies (including life, disability and umbrella coverage) to determine if you are over or underinsured and can offer assistance and possible strategies.
- If you’re newly married for example with a new mortgage or with young children, do you have enough life insurance to support the other spouse and children if God forbid, something happened to you? Would the surviving spouse’s income be enough to support the household & mortgage, pay for childcare, and possibly pay for children’s college?
- This discussion includes Disability Insurance as an option since it is a risk some people don’t think about as much as basic life insurance. However, it is actually a bigger risk for younger people than death is as its more likely you could have an injury that precludes you from performing your job than it is that you would die at younger ages. It’s important when you’re in the beginning of your earning/accumulation years to consider this since many people at this stage in life don’t yet have large amounts of savings to supplement your spouse or children should something happen to you.
- We help review your Employee Benefits Booklets to help you identify the most cost-effective options to address the above concerns and help you decide what benefits are appropriate for you and/or your family.