8 Ways to Getting on Solid Financial Footing: The Cheat Sheet

This report gives you a quick lowdown on how to get on solid financial footing. It’s a cheat sheet so that means that we won’t be doing a detailed itemization of each step. Rather, this part is for those who are in a hurry and just want basic information on what to do now. Getting an idea on how to manage your finances way will get you started towards a much better future and a comfortable retirement. These 8 ways are not necessarily written in any order of importance so you can choose where to begin depending on what your situation calls for and what your priorities are.

If you’re ready, here’s the quick rundown on how you can get into solid financial footing fast:

1. Get health insurance.

One of the things that put people in financial ruin is illness. If you’re unprepared, one serious and debilitating disease can get you up to your neck in debt and yes, even bankrupt you and your family’s coffers. You want to protect yourself against this possibility by getting health insurance coverage. Those working with employers who offer healthcare insurance are fortunate as any contributions you make are bound to be less costly than if you were to buy coverage on your own.

Now if you are one of those who have to get health insurance yourself, be sure to compare plans first. Inquire about the illnesses that are covered and if you are limited in seeing doctors or specialists that are members of the plan. Do they charge extra if you go to a non-plan doctor? How much are the deductibles and copayments? If you are still on the hunt for a job, perhaps you can get temporary insurance that will shield you for a few months from very expensive medical issues. If you’re young, perhaps you can still be covered by mom and dad’s coverage so check this option out as well. Going without health insurance is a sure way to invite bankruptcy and financial ruin in so no matter how limited a coverage you can afford, make it a point to take care of healthcare insurance first.

2. Take care of your debts.

Who doesn’t have debt? It seems that this is a common thread that runs among majority of American families and is one of the reasons why it’s very difficult for many to manage their monies. Well, if you are not yet in debt, don’t go into it. But if you already have financial obligations to take care of, start freeing yourself from them right away. Begin by paying off those high-interest loans. If you have other debts, ask for a time extension or maybe even lowering your interest rate. Some debtors may not be as kind but some will give you consideration so it never hurts to ask.

Now you may be tempted to invest your money or put it in a savings account. But if you are still burdened with high-interest rate debts, you stand to “earn” much more if you paid off your 18 percent interest credit card loan first than put your money in an investment that pays only 5 percent interest.

3. Save for retirement.

Retirement may seem so far off into the future when you’re young and healthy but the best time to prepare for it is now. Most employers offer a 401k plan to their employees which give a matching contribution to what the latter puts in. So if your employer matches your contribution 100 percent then every dollar you put will also mean receiving another dollar for your retirement fund. That’s free lunch money that comes at no extra effort from you except, perhaps, to see to it that you have that extra money to contribute. There are also tax benefits for putting money into a retirement fund. One is that it grows tax-free—that is, you only get taxed when you withdraw that money later on. You can also borrow from your 401k although it is best at all not to so that your money grows undisturbed.

If you are self-employed or working for a company that does not offer a retirement plan, you can still prepare for retirement by opening an individual retirement account or IRA. There are maximum contributions to an IRA adjusted each year by the Internal Revenue Service. For 2013, it’s $5,500 ($6,500 for those aged 50 or older). Try to give the maximum contributions as much as possible.

4. Save money for emergencies.

You must make it a point to save three to six months of living expenses in case life catches you unawares and throws you those unexpected blows, like the loss of a job or the death of a spouse. If you want to be “forced” to save money, you can have a certain amount of your paycheck each month sent automatically to your savings account. This way, you don’t have to worry about spending it. You may also opt to put your savings in a money market fund which offers higher interest rates than traditional bank accounts. The more unstable your job is, the more you should beef up your savings. If you’re the only breadwinner in the family, you should also strive for a fatter emergency fund.

5. Invest in stocks, bonds, and mutual funds.

With your savings account firmly in place for emergencies, you can choose to be savvy by building your wealth portfolio. Investing in stocks, bonds, and mutual funds has always been the traditional way of building your nest egg and growing your wealth. These three investment vehicles are considered risky (well, all investment is) but the riskiest of all are stocks. However, it is also the one that gives the fastest growth over the long-term so it would be unwise to avoid it because you are afraid of losing money.

To diversify your portfolio and balance the volatility of stocks, you can invest in bonds. Here, the government or company borrows your money in exchange for interest and the promise of paying it at a certain time in the future. The safest bonds are those guaranteed by the federal government as it is highly unlikely that the government will go out of business. However, bonds issued by companies may also be safe provided that you check out the ratings from independent companies which give you an idea of the stability of the bond issuer.

Mutual funds are the best way to invest if you only have limited funds and cannot possibly put on a diversified investment mix by buying individual stocks and bonds. In mutual funds, your money together with thousands of other investors are gathered and the mutual fund manager invests it in a variety of stocks, bonds, and money market accounts. For only a fraction of what you would spend for individual stocks and bonds, you get a diversified portfolio in a mutual fund. Moreover, you also enjoy the benefit of having a professional manager who has years of training manage your portfolio. Do look for no-load mutual funds so that you can maximize the return of your investments.

6. Improve your credit score.

Your credit score is based on your credit report, which details whether you are a good debtor or not. Your credit history matters a lot because it affects almost all aspects of your life. Of course, an unblemished history of on-time payments and good credit will give you a good score and enable you to take advantage of competitive interest rates when acquiring any type of loan. On the other hand, a marred credit history and low credit score will be detrimental, not only in your chances of getting approved for a loan. It will also lessen your chances of getting a job or renting an apartment.

You are entitled to a free copy of your credit report once a year at www.annualcreditreport.com. You may also contact any of the three credit bureaus—Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion—to get a copy of your credit report. Review your credit report carefully and see if there are any errors on it. If you spot anything that is erroneous, be sure to communicate with the credit bureau right away so it can be corrected.

7. Get your own crib.

We’re talking about buying your own home, if you don’t have one already. Getting your own crib is a good investment because real estate values always go up, no matter how unpromising the housing sector has been in the past years. It’s a good idea to pay up for your home in cash but since this is not really very possible for a lot of people, strive to save more for the downpayment. Commercial mortgage lenders require at least 10 percent for the downpayment but if you can give more then you are much better off financially because that would mean lower monthly payments. As much as possible, avoid adjusted rate mortgages and balloon mortgages.

8. Figure out ways to legally lower the taxes you pay.

We need to pay our taxes to keep the government working. But if you’re not smart about handling it, you can end up paying more than you should. Find out ways that you can legally lower the taxes you pay to Uncle Sam. Putting money in retirement accounts and in college savings funds yield tax advantages so be sure to acquaint yourself with them. Some expenses are tax-deductible too, so learn what these are. The website of the Internal Revenue Service gives the most comprehensive source of information. You can also ask a financial adviser on ways to lower your income tax.

Check out www.adamscapgroup.com for more Information on How to Get the Best on Mortgage Deals.

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The Cost of Divorce

Marriage does indeed offer a host of pleasantly surprising monetary benefits. While these might be good reasons to really work on your marriage, divorce is even costlier and should give you both more incentives to avoid it as much as possible. If money issues are disintegrating your union, you should try to really work things out because divorce is certainly going to make your finances take a turn for the worse. How come?

Divorce results in exorbitant legal fees. When you and your spouse decide that it’s time to call it quits, you should be ready to pay each of your attorneys to handle the legal proceedings. Even if you both decide not to contest the divorce, you can still expect to shell out $1,500 in legal fees. On the average, contested divorce can cost $15,000 and more complex divorces can cost anywhere from $50,000 to $100,000 according to estimates. If your relationship is beyond repair that you are only talking with your ex-spouse through your attorneys, the cost can go up significantly. Even if you do decide not to hire an attorney to keep costs low, you still have to spend money to end the relationship legally.

Divorce can result to higher taxes. When a couple decides to split and they have investments in a joint account, they usually end up liquidating and splitting the assets. This might seem like a good idea at this point, especially since one or both would need the funds to start over, but the capital gains tax bill later on can hit you in the face. It becomes worse if the funds were taken from a traditional IRA and both are below 59 ½ years old. The 10 percent penalty for early withdrawals also increases the burden you have to pay to the IRS.

Divorce means you have to maintain two households. We have mentioned how you can save on certain expenses when you live together. When you head for Splitsville, you both have to find separate houses and pay your bills and expenses on your own. If you have already bought a house or other properties during your marriage, the property laws in your state will determine how these will be divided. The challenge lies in the fact that your income will still be the same but you will be paying all your bills yourself compared to when two incomes were sharing the expenses.

Divorce means dealing with alimony and child support obligations. If one party—usually the disadvantaged spouse— requests for alimony and the judge grants it, this will mean more expenses on that spouse. If there are children, child support will have to be added to that list of ever-expanding financial obligations as well. Now let’s say that you do decide to marry again after the divorce: You will not only have to continue giving your former spouse alimony and child support, you also have to work to provide for your current family.

Divorce can lead to poverty. This is one of the lesser-known facts about divorce: That dissolution of the marriage can be detrimental to one or both spouses in the long-term. Studies show that the poverty rate of children living in married couple homes is about 8 percent while those in single-parent households have a poverty rate of 35 percent. When a divorced parent is unable to provide for the needs of his or her children and the spouse becomes remiss in his or her child support obligations, the financial impact on the child can be very devastating.

Check out www.adamscapgroup.com for more Information on Personal Finance and Budgeting.

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The Financial Benefits of Staying Married

Many individuals avoid discussing marriage and money in the same breath but in reality, the discussion— or lack thereof—of finances is one of the primary reasons why couples decide to call it quits. What a lot of individuals who tie the knot often do not understand until too late in the marriage is the fact that it is often money matters that lead to a lot of arguments. When not handled properly or left unresolved, financial issues often lead to divorce.

Yes, we do not go into marriage thinking that it will end in the big D word. We all want it to last forever. But we also have to face the reality that the specter of divorce looms in many unions. The best thing to do would be to learn from those who have gone before and try not to go that same path if it can be helped. For many marriages, the breakdown is often precipitated by a lack of communication about money and debt. If you are open with each other about things like the family budget, savings, debts, and the little luxuries that you want to buy for yourself, you set the stage for an honest relationship.

Aside from love, marriage offers a host of financial benefits that make a great incentive for couples to stay together through thick and thin. So before we discuss how divorce impacts your finances in more detail, let’s examine the financial advantages that come with tying the knot. These make a practical case for staying together and working through the rough spots that inevitably come with it.

Better financial stability. The most obvious benefit that comes with marriage is that there are already two of you working instead of one. Your earning power is increased. Even if one of you decides to stay home when the kids come later on, the other is still available to earn for the family and you get to save on major expenses like childcare. Moreover, having a partner to work for the family means that you still have a little leeway in case you suffer a daunting setback, like getting fired from your job.

When you treat two incomes as one, you have the leeway to allocate funds for certain financial goals that you both share. You have money to save for that house downpayment, that vacation, or your future plan to go back to college or pursue graduate studies.

The opportunity to combine—and lessen— expenses. When you are married, you naturally share one roof, the same cable, phone, and Internet subscriptions, and utility bills. Food expenses may likely be the same as you will still most probably be eating the same when you were still living separately. But for the other expenses mentioned, there is that opportunity to lessen your expenses. This will mean savings for you—money which you could invest or put in a nest egg for your retirement.

Better loan offers. When there are two incomes, lenders are more likely to grant favorable loan offers because you are naturally in a better position to pay off your debts than if there was only one breadwinner applying for a loan. If your spouse has a stellar credit score and yours is just so-so, you could both benefit by getting more competitive interest rates.

On the not-so-bright-side of things, your credit rating could get affected if spouse has a very bad credit history and low credit score. This is why you should always ask to see each other’s credit records before you tie the knot and have candid discussions about these issues so that you are both not caught off guard when applying for loans as a married couple.

Savings on car insurance. If you and your spouse are responsible drivers, you get to save on car insurance. Inform your insurance agent that you are getting hitched and you will benefit from lower rates. Moreover, you can consolidate policies and even insure your car and your home with the same insurance company to get discounts.

A word of caution, however: If your spouse is an irresponsible driver, you could end up with higher premiums if you put him or her on your policy. Be sure to read the terms and conditions carefully and weigh the pros and cons together if consolidating policies is going to result in savings or if you’re better off keeping separate insurances.

Access to your spouse’s employer-sponsored health plans. Employers often give generous benefit plans to their employees. Most plans include coverage to spouses and kids as well. Marriage is one of the events that will allow you to gain access to your spouse’s health plans. This is considered a major financial plus to those who are currently purchasing their own health insurance policy which can really be expensive. If you are also covered by a health plan from your own employer, you should decide if it is more financially-beneficial for you to be covered under your spouse’s employer-sponsored plan or to keep your own.

Check out www.adamscapgroup.com for more Information on How to Manage Your Debt.

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Money Questions to Ask Before Tying the Knot

1.   Do you have any savings?

So this might sound like you’re only after his or her money but if you haven’t encountered financial bumps on the road yet, you’re likely to do so when you’re already sharing your life together. One of you might get fired or need a medical operation. You both might want to have kids one day or your car needs a major repair. Whether the incident is major or minor, you are most likely going to need money to get you through it. Without some savings, it’s all too easy to get into debt and strain your relationship because of it. If you find that your would-be spouse is not a saver, you could suggest a plan for you both to open a joint savings account that you can each contribute to every month.

2.   Do you have any debt?

It’s time to own up on any financial obligations you may have to your future spouse. Whether you’re late on your credit card bills, have any personal loans, or other debt that you have, you should come clean. Remember that once you are married, you are also going to be sharing your financial life together as well. If you are the one with the debt, you owe it up to your beloved to be honest about the information and the things you are doing to rectify it. In case you are the one with the clean credit slate and your partner is having problems, discuss how he or she intends to pay off the debt and how you can help. By being open about these things, you avoid having to fight about debt—a potential relationship-breaker.

3.      How many credit cards do you have and how are they used?

While you’re talking about debt, ask your partner how many credit cards he or she has and if these have ever been maxed out. You may also like to inquire whether he or she uses these cards for everyday expenses. At the most, financial experts recommend having no more than two credit cards as having more could make you more prone to debt, especially if you carry all of them with you and are an impulse-buyer. Talk this over with your spouse so that you can come together to an amicable arrangement that will strengthen, not weaken, your financial foundation.

4.     What’s your credit score?

At this point, you should show each other copies of your credit reports and credit scores. These things matter because if you intend to get a house together or a new family car when you do get married, your spouse’s credit rating is going to matter. Your husband’s or wife’s low credit score could negatively impact your ability to get a competitive interest rate on your loans, for one. If your would-be spouse really has a major credit problem, you might consider postponing the marriage until after he or she has gone to counseling or has sorted his or her financial issues out. This does not mean that you are valuing money over love—you still offer your support while he or she is mending his or her finances—but you are merely setting a stronger foundation for your married life so you won’t be facing a lot of arguments and a potential divorce later on in the marriage.

5.       What assets do you bring to the marriage?

You are going to be living together so you should know what the other is bringing to the union. Decide on the things you want to share together and the ones you want to keep for yourself or to the people that you want to support even before you have met your future spouse. You can always go into more detailed estate planning later on but for now, it is better for each one to know what you bring to the relationship.

6.        What is your salary?

This is the starting point for your financial planning as a couple. When you know each other’s salaries, you are able to start putting together your budget and allocate funds for the projects you intend to undertake as a couple. Being transparent about how much you both earn is integral not only to your budget but to the trust you give each other.

7.       How do we handle our finances?

Since you are going to be living in the same household, you should decide early on how to merge your finances. There are basically three ways to do so: 1) Separate; 2) Joint; 3) Mixed. When you choose to keep things separate, you’re basically keeping your salaries and all the expenses you share together are going to be divided in half. You pay your own debts and keep your own savings.

When you join your finances, you merge everything. You have a joint account where you direct both your salaries and get your expenses from there. You also open a joint savings account where you put money to each payday. One spouse’s debt is also the debt of the other spouse. In an ideal arrangement, you inform each other each time you want to take money from the account to spend for your wants not included in the budget.

In a mixed arrangement, you have a joint checking account for the expenses that you will share together, such as food, mortgage/rent, and utilities. However, you also keep a portion of your salary so you can spend it freely as you wish. Debts that you incur for yourself are also paid out of your own money and not from your joint account.

You will know which arrangement works best for you if you are open and candid with each other. By deciding early on how to handle your finances, you avoid confusion and frustration when you are already married.

Check out www.adamscapgroup.com for more Information on Ways to Get Out of Debt.

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Marriage and Your Financial Compatibility

The excitement and anxiety that comes with getting married often clouds rational thinking and sound judgment. While many think that tying the knot is simply a romantic undertaking, those who have been there know that it’s as much financial as it is quixotic. In fact, money plays a vital role both before and after the wedding and even more so during your marriage that it’s important to marry the person who you are financially compatible with.

Unfortunately, finding the one who is financially fit for you is often quite difficult. Most of the time, we go out of our way to please the person we love by putting our best foot forward—and this means spending a ton of money on gifts and surprises. Some people don’t care if they are on the verge of maxing out their credit cards for as long as they are able to see the happiness mirrored on their loved one’s faces.

However, this is not the best way to get to know each other on a more intimate level, especially where money matters are concerned. It is often the opposite. By spending more than what you can afford, or even by not calling your boyfriend’s or girlfriend’s attention to the fact that the extravagant displays and expensive presents are making you feel uncomfortable because it shows how conflicting your views are about money, you are both setting the stage for false assumptions and financial disagreements. Money problems are one of the issues that couples often fight about which lead to divorce that it’s vital early on in the relationship to find out if you and your would-be spouse are the right financial fit.

Before we dig deeper into this issue, let’s first get certain things clear. First of all, even if you know that you are going to be marrying a millionaire, you still should be on the same wavelength when it comes to handling money. Second, even if you know that your partner is a whiz at all the budgeting and financial planning, you should still work as a team. He or she may be the one managing the money but you should have your say on how or where the funds go.

So how do you figure out if you hold the same views about money or if you still need to work things out? Here are some very crucial questions to ask before you both tie the knot. Now remember, if you are the one opening up this conversation with your partner, there’s a chance that he or she might take it the wrong way. These kinds of topics require the utmost tact on your part. You might need to preamble it by explaining how important financial compatibility is to the new life that you are going to share as a married couple. But you must make it clear that these need to be answered so you have a starting point on how you want your finances handled.

Check out www.adamscapgroup.com for more Information on Money Management Tips.

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What is the Evidence for Prescribing Foot Orthoses?

This article discusses the available evidence for the efficacious use of custom-made foot orthoses and is limited to custom-made products defined as “manufactured from raw materials and molded over a three-dimensional (volumetric) cast of the foot, which captures bony alignment and shape”.

Orthotic Efficacy

It is not uncommon for professors, professional association representatives and clinicians to claim, “foot orthoses are an effective treatment for low back pain and a variety of other musculoskeletal and postural complaints.”

In this era of evidence-based medicine, however, where conscientious care depends upon our ability to make clinical decisions, which have been confirmed by sound scientific enquiry, practitioners cannot make such claims about foot orthoses just yet.

Perhaps it is the empirical observation that patients “respond favorably” to foot orthoses that has slowed the pursuit of hard evidence for the efficacy of custom-made foot orthoses. Regardless, third party payors may soon require stronger evidence before letting the current trend of increasing foot orthotic use continue.

Journals primarily for foot care professionals publish very few randomized clinical trials (RCTs). A review of the podiatric literature arbitrarily choosing 1998 and 1993, found that a mere 1% of the articles were RCTs. Instead of testing hypotheses, the majority of the articles generated hypotheses. To compound the problem, those articles published in podiatric journals were of a lesser quality than those published in mainstream medical journals.  A Cochrane database review (1997 to 2004), concerning the efficacy of foot orthoses, revealed only 6 RCTs. The studies were deemed to be of variable quality according to the Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials (CONSORT-http://www.consort-statement.org/) guidelines with only one rating as high as a Sackett’s grading of B – provides some support for clinical practice.

The range of research outcomes regarding orthotic efficacy varies from inconclusive to supportive with one study suggesting that customs were inferior to off-the-shelf products. A significant concern with research on custom-made foot orthoses, prior to the last few years, is the absence of “subject-specific design” in those studies and the lack thereof being a confounder of results. Without adequate research to provide an evidence-based platform, professionals vary considerably in what they prescribe and it is difficult to develop guidelines for orthotic prescriptions.

Four retrospective studies regarding custom-made foot orthoses, between 1985 and 1993, revealed patient satisfaction ratings between 70% and 91%. A recent questionnaire of 275 patients indicated the majority felt that custom-made foot orthoses had provided relief of their symptoms to a level of 60-100%. Criticisms of these studies however, include that they were retrospective, did not control for other forms of treatment during the course of orthotic therapy and were unclear in their classification of orthotic device. Furthermore, it has been documented that “patient satisfaction” indicates service satisfaction and not necessarily treatment outcome satisfaction.

The traditional notion that foot orthoses optimally align the skeleton is being critically challenged by the scientific community as well. Repeated research efforts show that skeletal movement changes due to foot orthoses are small, subject-specific and non-systematic.

Not All the News is Bad…

Replacing the traditional “re-aligning the skeleton” theory, are several plausible alternatives to explain why custom-made foot orthoses seem to provide symptomatic relief of common musculoskeletal (MSK) complaints:

• the biomechanical theory suggests that full contact orthoses, (whereby there is complete orthotic-medial-arch contact) maximally control the pronatory moment (also described as assisting midfoot re-supination) and allow for functional first ray plantarflexion in the overpronating foot.

• The neuro-muscular theory for using full-contact custom-made orthoses suggests that the medial and lateral arches of the foot are the most sensitive regions to changes in pressure and vibration and that enhanced proprioceptive feedback allows for a movement pattern that minimizes muscle activities. This accounts for the decrease in symptoms where kinetic changes are minimal and unsystematic.

There is some research using these alternative theories, to indicate that full-contact custom-made foot orthoses may decrease lower limb musculoskeletal symptoms within 4 weeks and that there may be improvements in efficiency of gait by way of reducing centre of mass oscillation. These results however are generalizable only to custom-made foot orthoses used in that study. Another recent investigation using the same full-contact custom-made foot orthoses compared them to a group wearing traditional custom-made foot orthoses. The EMED system (a multi-sensor pressure mapping device) was used to assess changes in plantar pressure in the two groups over a 6-week period. The researchers found that patients wearing the full-contact orthoses more effectively approximated the ideal force curve, which included decreased pressure over the lateral metatarsal head with increased pressure under the 1^st metatarsal heads at toe-off.

What Can We Say?

There is some recent objective and subjective evidence in support of custom-made foot orthoses for reducing MSK complaints and moving gait towards more idealized and efficient patterns. There is however, not enough consistency in the research or volume of peer-reviewed research to claim that all foot orthoses will resolve the variety of complaints seen in most health care facilities. The responsibility rests with the individual practitioner to ensure that the orthotic devices they recommend meet the criteria of custom-made and that claims of efficacy are restricted to those within the mandate of evidence-based medicine.

Guidelines for the Conscientious Practitioner

As new research is published each month, it behooves clinicians to critically assess the quality of that research before making statements regarding the efficacy of any treatment. Here are some suggestions:

1. Ensure that the literature claiming orthotic efficacy is not promotional material distributed by an orthotic manufacturing company. However, note that some orthotic companies do fund research. If they do, look for a statement that they funded the study in the context of signing an “arms-length agreement” which states that both positive and negative results will be published. This is a risk most orthotics manufacturers are not willing to take and it is a good litmus test of their product confidence. Ask if your company has funded “arms-length” research.

2. Ensure that the peer-reviewed literature is not being misquoted. I recently read a headline within some marketing literature distributed by an orthotic company. The referenced literature was indeed good work, however, the “revised” company headline completely misquoted the author’s conclusions to imply an endorsement of their product.

3. Lastly, and probably most importantly, not all professional journals are stringently peer-reviewed. Some function, more or less, as professional trades magazines. Unless the research is published in a peer-reviewed journal be cautious of quoting any conclusions.

By the way, poster presentations at chiropractic conferences using underpowered sample sizes and sponsored by orthotic companies are not consider peer-reviewed (recently a colleague insisted that I must be incorrect about this). CONSORT provides an excellent 22-point checklist for practitioners to judge the quality of any research. (http://www.consort-statement.org/?o=1011)

Good luck, happy practicing and remember;

“Education is a progressive discovery of our own ignorance.”      - Will Durant

Leslie Trotter, BSc, MBA, CPed(C), MSc

Visit www.theorthoticexpert.com for more information about Orthoses and Foot Doctors in Ancaster, Ontario CA. If you need an Ancaster Orthotic Expert in Ontario CA, visit www.FootKneeBack.com

Other articles you will find interesting:

·         What is the Evidence for Using Foot Orthoses

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