By Ash Toumayants
While you didn’t plan it this way, it looks like spring cleaning will be happening while we all spend a lot more time at home due to social distancing. Allow us to make a suggestion: Make the most of the extra time you may have on your hands. It’s the perfect opportunity to not only organize and declutter your home, but also give your finances a little extra love. It might even relieve some stress to be proactive and gain a better understanding of your financial situation.
Here are a few ways to use this time wisely and bring clarity to your finances.
Cut Down On Financial Clutter And Documents
There’s a reason why we often put paperwork off as long as possible—it seems like a daunting task! But just think of how you’ll feel when it’s all done! Shredding old bank statements, pay stubs, and anything that has your personal information on it from more than two months ago is a great place to start. This decreases the risk of identity theft, frees up extra space, and allows you to find important documents much faster. The majority of banks, credit unions, and employers keep a digital file of all these statements should you need them for any reason.
Paper documents related to investments, home improvements, and taxes should be kept for seven years. Use the following link to find more details on what records to keep and for how long. (1)
Do A Credit Check
Did you know you can access your credit report for free? You can get three free credit reports a year from annualcreditreport.com and a free TransUnion and Equifax report once a week from creditkarma.com. Unlike some free credit reporting options, these are accurate records of your credit from three national credit bureaus. Whether you have great credit or you’re a little nervous to check your score, the important thing is that you are staying informed.
Doing all your banking, shopping, vacation bookings, and investments online are great for convenience, but having that personal information transmitted through the internet means you’re more susceptible to cyberattacks and identity theft. As a result, there is a higher chance that someone could obtain that information and start using your credit without you being aware of it. So even if you know the exact balance and interest rate from every creditor you pay, staying on top of your credit will alert you to any suspicious behavior before it’s too late.
Review Your Interest Rates And Create A Budget
If you want something, sometimes all you have to do is ask. Give your creditors a call to see if they can lower your credit card interest rates. If that doesn’t work, consider consolidating to a 0% interest rate credit card and transfer the balance so you can pay off the debt faster. Also, look at refinancing any vehicle loan you have to pay off the debt faster or decrease the minimum payment so you can put more toward your emergency fund.
If you haven’t used a budget before, a few easy-to-use budgeting apps to choose from are Mint, PocketGaurd, GoodBudget (multiple users can access the same account), and YNAB or EveryDollar for zero-based budgeting. Some of these are free or have options to upgrade to a version that enables your banking to be automatically synced with the app. This way your expenses are imported into the app, allowing you to quickly assign expenses to all your budget categories without manually importing anything.
Finish Your Cleanup
Now that you are completely aware of your finances and where things are when you need them, you’ll experience added peace of mind—at the perfect time. To make sure you haven’t missed anything, allow Strong Tower Associates to conduct a financial checkup and help you set some financial goals. If you want to benefit from the knowledge and experience of a financial advisor as you spring clean your finances, contact us anytime at 814-325-9806 or [email protected]. Or, if you prefer, you can now quickly and easily click here to request a meeting using our online system!
About Ash
Ash Toumayants is a financial advisor and the founder of Strong Tower Associates. For over a decade, he has helped hardworking people across Central Pennsylvania prepare for retirement. Fueled by a passion for helping people see through the veil of confusion that shrouds the financial world, his goal is to educate his clients so they can make more sound choices regarding their financial future. A Penn State graduate, he currently lives in State College with his lovely wife, Noelle, and their four adorable children. Learn more by connecting with Ash on LinkedIn or emailing [email protected].
Advisory services through Retirement Wealth Advisors, Inc. (RWA), a SEC Registered Investment Advisor. Strong Tower Associates and RWA are not affiliated. This Email is being sent by or on behalf of a Registered Investment Advisor. It is intended exclusively for the individual or entity to which it is addressed. This communication may contain information that is proprietary, privileged, or confidential, or otherwise legally exempt from disclosure. If you are not the named addressee, you are not authorized to read, print, retain, copy, or disseminate the Email or any part of it. If you have received this Email in error, please notify the sender immediately by Email or fax, and destroy all copies of this communication. Please be advised that you may conduct securities transactions only by speaking directly with your Investment Advisor Representative either by phone or in person. Requests for securities transactions via Email will not be executed by Retirement Wealth Advisors, Inc. To help protect your privacy, we strongly suggest you avoid sending sensitive information, such as account numbers and social security numbers via Email. Please be further advised that, pursuant to the Bank Secrecy Act, the USA PATRIOT ACT, and similar laws, any communication in this Email is subject to regulatory, supervisory, and law enforcement review. This information is designed to provide general information on the subjects covered; it is not, however, intended to provide specific legal or tax advice and cannot be used to avoid tax penalties or to promote, market, or recommend any tax plan or arrangement. Please note that Strong Tower Associates and its affiliates do not give legal or tax advice. You are encouraged to consult your tax advisor or attorney.
___________
(1) https://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/what-records-keep-how-long-1267.php#records