• Transfer cash held in digital wallets like Venmo, PayPal and Cash App to your bank account monthly.
  • Benefit: Funds held in these apps are not FDIC insured. Moving them protects your money—and allows it to earn interest.
• Vacuum out your dryer vent at least annually.
  • Benefit: Your dryer runs more efficiently, and more importantly, you significantly reduce the risk of a house fire.
• Make a credit card payment twice a month.
  • Benefit: Your credit score could increase by lowering your credit utilization rate before the lender reports your balance to the credit bureaus.
• Take photos of your ID, passport, and credit cards and store them in a hidden folder on your phone.
  • Benefit: If items are lost or stolen, you’ll have quick access to important details and customer service numbers securely stored in a password-protected Hidden/Locked/Secure folder.
• Write a postcard to a friend you haven’t spoken to in a while. A stamp for the standard domestic postcard (4 ¼” high by 6” long) costs $0.61.
  • Benefit: Staying socially connected can reduce loneliness and positively impact your long-term health and happiness!

At the end of the day, progress doesn’t come from grand resets—it comes from small, repeatable choices that quietly stack in your favor. Whether it’s reconnecting with someone you care about, protecting your money, improving your safety, or strengthening your financial footing, these simple to-dos are easy to overlook but powerful when practiced consistently.  If your New Year’s intentions wobbled a bit, that’s okay—consider this your reminder that a reboot is always available, and even the smallest habits can make a meaningful difference over time.

Related reading:

Good Habits Need Good Techniques — a practical look at how to build habits that actually last.

The post Good Habits for the New Year appeared first on MainStreet Financial Planning.

I am in a book club, and for our next book, I suggested that we read a self-help book.  We chose to read “Atomic Habits” by James Clear.  I was telling my husband about the book choice and he mentioned that a woman he had worked with just published a book on habits, “How to Change” by Katy Milkman.   So, I doubled down on my self-help and bought both books!  Below is my book review for “How to Change” by Katy Milkman.

“How to Change” by Katy Milkman is a great book, filled with many takeaways that have been proven to work!  Katy is a researcher in behavioral science and knows a lot of other researchers at the top universities in the country.  In her book, she uses the results from actual studies done with real people to test theories of how to change behavior.  I found it so interesting to read about the studies and appreciated the honest account of what worked and what did not.  Katy’s storytelling about the studies also helps me to easily remember the takeaways so I can work them into my life.

Here are some of my favorite takeaways from the book:

Fresh Starts– Timing a behavioral change with a new beginning (new year, new season, birthday, anniversary…etc.) can increase your motivation to change.

Temptation Bundling– Engage in a guilty pleasure (example: binge watching TV) only while pursuing a valuable activity that you dread (example: exercising).

Cue-based Plans– Forgetting is a big reason we don’t follow through on our intentions.  Combat forgetting by linking a plan of action with a cue.  Example: Whenever I get a raise, I will increase my monthly retirement savings contribution.

Piggyback Habits– Piggybacking new habits with old ones can help you avoid laziness.  Example: Brush your teeth before bed (old habit), floss right after (new habit).

Katy points out in her book, that laziness, forgetfulness, temptation, and lack of confidence are like symptoms of a chronic disease.  Which means that changing behavior and forming good habits requires a lifelong commitment.  So, the key to behavior change is find what works for you and keep doing it permanently.  That is why I enjoyed this book so much, because it gave me a deeper understanding of human nature and gave me a bunch of tools to use to improve myself.

I am excited to use the techniques I learned in this book in my own life and with clients.  As a financial planner, I recognize that behavioral change is an important part of a successful financial plan.  At MainStreet Financial Planning, we help you identify what is holding you back from achieving your goals then work with you to develop the techniques that will keep you on track.

If you decide to read “How to Change” by Katy Milkman please reach out…I would love to hear what your favorite takeaways are!

The post Good Habits need Good Techniques! appeared first on MainStreet Financial Planning.

When did you become a single mother, and how?

I officially/legally became a single mother when my daughter was 18 months old. Mentally, it was much sooner.  My former husband and I decided to divorce in my 8th month of pregnancy before my daughter was born. We stayed together another year as roommates and took turns being home with our daughter until we were able to sell our house.

How did you first react to this development and what has it been like?

I was shocked at the idea of becoming a single mother.  That wasn’t what I signed up for when we decided to have a child.  My daughter wasn’t even born yet, and I felt angry, scared, and overwhelmed at the proposition of being divorced, alone, and a first-time mother.

The first two years of my daughter’s life were a blur.  Setting up and taking care of my own household, juggling work, and raising a small person took all my time and energy.  I’m happy to say that I survived but I couldn’t have done it alone. I accepted a lot of support along the way.

Meeting other single moms helped a lot. I joined a meet up group called “Sisters in Arms” and we would get together regularly. The Moms in this group helped me through one of the most difficult times of my life.  A few of these ladies became very good friends.  I am so very grateful for this group.

What financial struggles are unique to single mothers? How might single mothers financially fall behind compared to households with two parents?

Women traditionally have taken a back seat to managing the finances in the household.  I have seen it time and time again with my clients.  As a result, they are often unaware of how to manage their solo finances, pay the bills, manage credit card spending, or save for their future.

Many single mothers prioritize short term expenses, maybe putting some aside for vacations or summer activities for the kids, but struggle to save for retirement and their own future. They are often behind on retirement savings and are looking at a modest retirement income, and possibly moving someplace cheaper once they stop working.

How can single mothers make sure they’re taking care of themselves too, financially? What are the smartest things for them to do?

Single moms need a spending plan so they can set themselves up for financial success.  This combined with a cash flow tracking tool (like Mint, or even a simple spreadsheet) will keep them on track to reaching their financial goals.

It would be great if they paid themselves first out of each paycheck.  Set aside a rainy-day fund for when those unexpected things come up.  I also recommend they save a portion of their income for retirement.

Reach out for support from a financial coach or fee-only financial planner can also be helpful.  Here are a few resources:

• Garrett Planning Network for help on a flat-fee or hourly basis.
• Accredited Financial Counselors (AFC) for financial coaching.
• Savvy Ladies – free financial education for women
• Check out MainStreet’s Money Library for helpful articles and videos.
• There are also a lot of cheap or free resources out there so don’t be afraid to do some research at your local library.

Why should single moms resist doing it all alone? How can they ask others for help? Whom might they ask?

There is a saying “It takes a village to raise a child”.  All moms, single or not, need the help of family and friends, and they shouldn’t be embarrassed to ask for help when needed.  I have met so many single mothers along the way and we have always provided support one way or another. Here are some areas where help could be appreciated by a single mother:

• Watching kids and/or pets
• Picking items up from the grocery store or Target
• Skill sharing. For example, as a financial planner I can help my friends with their finances, and they might be good at decorating or repairing things and could help me around the house.
• Making dinner/meal sharing. Get a few friends to make several batches of their favorite meal, then get together and swap. Cook once and eat different things throughout the week.

Any financial tips around accepting and spending child support?

Each state/county has specific guidelines for child support. There is usually an agreement, and or, court order, between the parents on what support payments will be given and what they should be used for.

In general, child support should be used to provide for the child’s basic needs:

• make sure your child has well-fitting clothing throughout the year,
• make rent or mortgage payments so the child has a safe place to live, and
• cover transportation expenses for the child, including car payments, fuel, bus fare, and any other costs associated with getting the child to and from home, school, family visits, and other places and activities.

Beyond basic needs, child support may be used to pay for other costs of raising a child, such as:

• school tuition, supplies, field trip fees,
• fees for extracurricular activities,
• health care, and
• childcare

What insurance is especially important for single mothers

• Most parents should have life insurance to provide for their families in the event of an early death. This would generally cover paying for childcare, education, extracurricular activities, etc.
• Health, dental, and vision insurance are helpful to cover unexpected health related expenses.
• Disability insurance is usually provided by employment and covers income replacement should a person become disabled and not be able to work.

What kind of estate planning should single mothers do?

Every parent should have a current estate plan which includes:

• A Will – This describes who is the beneficiary of their assets, an executor who would wrap up their affairs, and most importantly, a guardian who would care for their child if they weren’t around. Children cannot inherit outright due to being minors so they should also name a guardian of their children’s inheritance, which is someone who will help manage these funds until they are 18. This could be a different person than the guardian of the child.
• Financial Power of Attorney – Who can handle financial affairs if they are not able due to an accident, etc.
• Health Care Power of Attorney or Health Care Directives are important to name someone who can make healthcare decisions if the parent is not able to.
• Some parents also set up a Revocable Living Trust for their finances. This legal entity may inherit of all the assets of a parent’s accounts and the successor trustee of the Trust would manage the assets until the child is of a certain age. This gives a lot of protection for the child’s assets but could be more expensive than naming a friend or family to be the guardian of the assets.

Being a single mother is hard work, but also rewarding.  I know you can get through it too.  Please feel free to reach out if you could use some extra financial support during this transition.

The post Financial Tips for Single Mothers appeared first on MainStreet Financial Planning.

Spring is here! New energy is flowing and many of us tend to want to get out more, maybe clean out our homes and closets. But what about our finances?

Here are 5 tips to get you going in the right direction:

Shred all financial files/Go paperless
Sort through your old statements, pay stubs, bills and other financial records and keep only the documents that are absolutely necessary. If you’re unsure about throwing away certain types of receipts, scan them or make a copy, then go ahead and shred! Only tax-related documents and tax returns need to be kept for seven years.

Review your credit report and credit score
I recommend doing this every 4 months. You need to know your score, but you also need to review your report for any suspicious activity.

Reset passwords
Do you have duplicate or easy-to-guess passwords? Do you use two-factor authentication? Think about steps to make your online information more secure. It’s also a best practice to use a password manager like LastPass and to have a back-up system.

Review your Spending Plan
Review all your outgoing expenses and compare those bills to your net income, or your take-home pay. The key here is to make sure you are not deficit spending – or spending more money than you’re earning. Also, change your mindset about budgeting. Don’t look at it as a negative thing. Instead, view your budget as an empowering tool. It’s something that gives you a spending plan of action and helps you prioritize where you put your hard-earned dollars.

Create Your Own Financial Calendar
Set reminders throughout the year to do things like review insurance policies, get a credit report or rebalance investments. Just stay on top of things!

The post Spring Clean Your Finances appeared first on MainStreet Financial Planning.

While I don’t agree with every principle he lays out, i.e. how to manage debt, investing primarily in real estate and small cap stocks, etc. I find myself coming back to this book year after year. I’m a strong believer in the power of intention, the benefits of delayed gratification, and the importance of expressing gratitude. These are three of my top personal values and Kiyosaki really speaks to them.

I’ve listed five of my favorite quotes from the book below. And sure enough, you’ll see that none of the quotes are investing principles or hot tips for increasing wealth. They’re deeper than that.

This is why I coach my clients through a detailed values exercise. Money is not an end in itself. It’s merely a tool to help you achieve a particular goal. A tool to help you create the life you desire. The way I see it, how could I possibly create an effective financial plan if I don’t know what it is you truly care about?

Today was the ninth time I read this book yet the first time it became clear to me: this is why I’m dedicated to empowering my clients to live their best lives utilizing values-based goal planning.

Enjoy!

“Often in the real world, it’s not the smart who get ahead, but the bold.”

“To be truly rich, we need to be able to give as well as to receive.”

“Face your fears and doubts, and new worlds will open to you.” 

“There is a difference between being poor and being broke. Broke is temporary. Poor is eternal.”

“Failure inspires winners. Failure defeats losers.”

The post Money, Values, and Goals appeared first on MainStreet Financial Planning.

In this week’s Money Date, Anna reviews tips for young adults.

Create a budget & start an emergency reserve (Curveball Account)
Live cheaply. Know where your income is coming from and where your expenses are going.
Setting up a Curveball Account is a must. 3 to 6 month of living expenses is a good baseline for an emergency fund.

Break up with debts
Debt is the reality of most young people today. It’s unreal how many graduates come out of college with huge debts. Your number one focus should be to get rid of college debt, or any other debt, as fast as possible. You don’t want to be bogged-down by still paying your debts off in your 30s, if possible.

Do your numbers
Figure out how much debt you have? How fast can you pay it off? By now you have a budget in place, which will allows you to understand what your basic needs are. Most of your discretionary money should be spent paying down your debt. Focus on paying higher interest rate balance first. Adding additional dollars, beyond what you pay monthly will save money on interest paid over time and speed up paying off the debts.

Begin building credit
This will help you establish a track record of making payments on time for when you want to buy bigger ticket items like a first home.

Pay yourself first
This simple, yet very powerful concept of Paying Yourself First is something you need to drill into your head! There is no other way to succeed. Once you make more money, there will be lots of temptations. Look around and explore how successful people treat their money.

The post Money Tips for Young Adults appeared first on MainStreet Financial Planning.

The top seven things “not-to-do” financially when the new year begins:

Procrastinate. Don’t start worrying about your finances. Luck will take care of it. Maybe your parents or siblings will help you pay off those bills or fund your IRA. That weekend when you’ll get all the organizing done and bills paid is just around the corner you tell yourself.

Move the bills from one pile to the other pile. No sense in getting organized or prioritizing your bills. They always send you a second notice anyway. Just wait for those emails or letters to pop up. The bigger the print the sooner you should pay them, right?

Look at last year’s expenses. Who wants to know how much they spent at Starbucks or Macy’s? How many pairs of shoes did you buy? It doesn’t matter, does it? And, it might make you feel bad. I’m sure you’ll do better this year by not knowing where all the money went.

Look at your investment results. Why would want to do that when the stock market was such a bummer the last quarter of the year? If fact, just put everything in cash or the money market so it can’t go down anymore. That way you can sleep at night and not worry about the stock market. I’m sure someone will tell you when it’s safe to invest. By the way, that won’t be me.

Forget about that will. There are lots of famous people who die without a will and nothing else bad can happen to them that’s worse. Remember Aretha Franklin, Prince, and Michael Jackson? No biggie. The family will be ok, and the attorneys will help for a nice fat fee.

Keep emergency money in your checking account. It may not pay any interest, but you can get to it quickly. ATM card, checks and online banking are convenient. It wouldn’t be that much money if you took all that time and effort to find some insured savings account that paid you 2.5% interest. It’s too hard to figure out how much you’d earn anyway.

You’ve got until October to do your taxes. Yes, everybody talks about April 15th, but it just comes too fast. Unless you’re getting a giant refund, why spoil spring and summer? When it starts to get chilly again is time enough to do your taxes. What’s a little delay anyway? I hear all those business people wait until the last minute and look how smart they are.

So, there you have it. When complying with my not to-do list you will see it doesn’t take much effort at all.

Now, what not to-do for 2022?

The post The What Not-To-Do Financial Checklist appeared first on MainStreet Financial Planning.

Tip #1- Live cheaply & learn to budget

Once you bring home the bacon, you’ll need to figure out how to slice it.

Live cheaply and learn how to budget. Without some sort plan for how you will allocate your earnings and how you will keep track of your expenses, it’s going to be impossible for you to succeed.

During my years of practice as a financial planner, I’ve observed that many people hate budgeting, so I created my own system.

First, you need to explore and understand where your money is coming from.  Now, let’s be clear, this is not budgeting. You’re not counting every penny; you are building an awareness of the ebb and flow of your money.

Let’s start with this simple exercise:

Step #1

-Identify Income Sources

How much you make per month (weekly/bi-weekly/monthly)?

Add up all your income:__________________

Step #2

-Look at your expenses

Where do you spend your money? Track your expenses for 2-3 months. I like using mint.com. It does the job for me. It aggregates all transactions from credit cards and checking accounts and creates a real overview of my expenses.

Step #3

How much do you need to live on each month?________

Is it $3K, $5K or $10K?  You need to know this number because it is very important for you to understand the kind of lifestyle you have, versus the kind of income that you generate.  Are there adjustments needed or are you right on target?

Step #4:

What is your bottom line?_________

Subtract total expenses from your income.  Do you have money left over?

Evaluate where you stand. Knowing where you stand is a first BIG step in making your budget your friend. Do you spend more than you make? Or are you living within (or beneath) your means?

 Tip #2 Break up with debts

Debt is the reality of most young people today. It’s unreal how many graduates come out of college with huge debts and no real idea if they will get jobs right away.

Your number one focus should be to get rid of college debt, or any other debt as fast as possible. Your future’s so bright, that you don’t want to be bogged down by still paying your debts off in your 30s or 40s.

Do the math:

1.    Figure out how much debt you have, and how fast can you pay it off.

2.    By now you have a budget in place, which will allows you to understand what your basic needs are. Most of your discretionary money should be spent paying down your debt. If you have credit card debt, you should focus on paying higher interest rate balance first

3.    Adding additional dollars beyond what you pay monthly (and by the way, remember that a lot of student loan providers give you 0.25% discount on your interest rate, if you set up auto payments) to your debt principal will help you in two ways:

a.    Save money on interest paid over time

b.    Speed up the debt payoff

4. You also might be interested in exploring jobs that help you pay off your loans, for example, Public Service loan forgiveness (if you have public service job or work infederal government, or serve in the military or Peace Corps.)

Tip #3 Start a Curveball account

And last, but not least, let’s talk about an emergency fund or what I like to call a “Curveball account.”  I promise you, if you can master this step early on in your life, you will never have to worry about situations where you have to borrow for emergencies or opportunities. There is a huge power in having a stash of cash that you can tap into any time!

I know it might hard right now to even wrap your mind around the idea of being able to set aside emergency savings, since you are just starting to earn more income. But what choice do you have? If some unexpected event happens and you do not have a cushion, you are putting yourself further in the hole.

Let’s take baby steps. Begin by opening a savings account, earmark it as a “Rainy Day” fund or “Curveball account.”

I suggest an online, high-yield savings account that is connected to your checking account so that you can transfer funds back and forth.

Begin saving of at least $50 or $100 (or if you can do more, Awesome!!) from each paycheck. You will see that in time you will have a small stash of cash accumulated.

Your target should be to grow the balance in your Curveball account to the equivalent of 3 to 6 months of living expenses,

I promise that you will feel a lot more freedom once you start growing your Curveball fund.

These are very basic skills I’d love you to learn now.  The real power lies in mastering them, because today is just the beginning of your new life as an adult. Knowing how to be Financially Smart is the best life skill you can learn early on!

I challenge you to Make Smart Financial Decisions!

The post 3 Money Tips for a New Graduate appeared first on MainStreet Financial Planning.

This month, your MainStreet team is covering the topic of (drum roll, please…) protection. I wrote a detailed article in December expressing the importance of considering a credit freeze with all three bureaus. Major changes were put into place to make this process easier than ever and at a cost of $0 it’s a no-brainer. This step allows you to take a proactive measure by preventing a thief from opening a fraudulent account in your name.

Additionally, we continue to recommend annual credit report checks to keep an eye on any fraudulent changes or inaccurate companies reporting information. No person or company can completely prevent identity theft, but I’ve enrolled in a particular service since 2015 and found it to be very valuable: identity theft insurance.

Here’s what my coverage includes:

• Continuous monitoring of my personal information to identify thieves attempting to sell it on the dark web
• Immediate notification if there is suspected activity related to one of these data points: social security number, credit/debit cards, email addresses, medical IDs, phone numbers, bank accounts, driver’s license
• If my identity is compromised, a team of certified recovery specialists handles all the work that’s needed to restore my identity. The insurance includes repayment of up to $1 million in stolen funds and reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses (ex. long distance phone calls, notary fees, application fees for loans that were rejected due to the theft, child and elderly care expenses, etc.)
• 24/7 U.S.-based customer service

If you think identity theft insurance may be a good choice for you, be sure to choose a product that monitors credit data at all three credit bureaus. Avoid credit monitoring products from individual credit bureaus, which tend to have less robust coverage and may limit your right to sue them if they are the ones that exposed your financial data. Also, if you’ve already placed credit freezes (well done!), you will need to temporarily lift them to allow a provider access to your files for monitoring.

As far as my personal experience goes, I have had a series of potential breach notifications in the last few years, and immediately changed my passwords associated with the account at risk. Fortunately, I have not had to utilize their recovery services, but I’ve seen very positive reviews related to their team of dedicated specialists. I know it can take many, many hours of hassle and stressful phone calls to make progress after you’ve been a victim of a security breach, and I am happy to pay ~$150/year for my entire family to have this added layer of protection. And most importantly, the recovery support when we become targets. Because in this day of digital security, it’s not a matter of if, but when.

The post Why I Pay for Identity Theft Insurance appeared first on MainStreet Financial Planning.

This tax season, there’s a renewed focus on “Withholding”. Have you noticed?

The IRS, and then employers, reduced withholding schedules because of the Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017. Federal withholding went down. Employees got a bigger paycheck. For many taxpayers, the result is less withholding, maybe less of a tax refund or owing more in taxes.

This has put a focus on reviewing and potentially adjusting your Federal withholdings. The idea is to match the amount you pay in taxes with the amount of tax withheld. That works for Federal, but did you know you’re able to change your state withholdings, too?

First off, if you live in one of the nine states that doesn’t have state income tax, you don’t need to concern yourself with state withholdings. These states are Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Texas, Tennessee, Washington, and Wyoming.

For the remaining states, your employer typically uses the same withholding status for state income tax withholding as they do for federal income tax which is based on your W-4. That would explain why you may not recall seeing a withholding form for your state! If the topic of state withholding is new to you, it is worth reviewing. Be sure to take a look at your state withholding any time you begin employment, change your filing status, or when there’s been an update to your personal or financial situation.

If you want to change your withholding allowances, you’ll need to find your own state’s Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate and complete the worksheet. You can use this form to claim an exemption from state taxes or to have additional tax withheld from your paycheck. Each state has its own tax rates, so expect that withholdings requirements and what qualifies as an exemption to be specific to each individual state.

One thing that seems standard, however, is that there is a penalty if you have not had a sufficient amount of income tax withheld. Be sure to check with your tax preparer if you have any questions.

The post State Withholdings- Can You Change Them? appeared first on MainStreet Financial Planning.