March 30, 2010
...Your financial check-up, of course. With tax time less than a month away, there is a good chance that many of your important financial statements are on the kitchen counter or at least not too far out of your reach. Since you have them out anyways, it might be a good idea to take a look at your financial status and see if you are on a good pace to reach your goals. Here are a few different things you may want to examine:
1. Is your net worth growing?
Take out your statements from this time last year and compare them to your most recent.
How is your 401k doing?
How about your personal investment account?
How much money is your savings account earning?
2. Check your ratios
Debt to Income
Spending vs. Debt Increase
3. Examine old insurance policies
Are the beneficiaries listed how you want them?
Are there any cash values building that could be better served elsewhere?
4. Review your investment portfolios
Is your retirement savings allocated the way you would like?
How about in your personal account: does the allocation need some tweaking?
How much did you add to your 401k or IRA last year?
5. Finally, are you happy with the results of your checkup?
Should you be putting away more for retirement?
Did you spend too much on 'non necessity' items?
Did you do enough work on reducing your debt?
Is your investment performance up to par?
For assistance with any of the questions, talk to your financial advisor. We're always happy to help!
Steve Hicks & Mike Fahey
(This article contains the current opinions of the author but not necessarily those of Brighton Securities Corp. The author's opinions are subject to change without notice. This blog post is for informational purposes only. Forecasts, estimates, and certain information contained herein should not be considered as investment advice or a recommendation of any particular security, strategy or investment product. References to specific securities and their issuers are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended and should not be interpreted as recommendations to purchase or sell such securities).