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Five financial resolutions for parents in the new year
Filed under: Work Life, Day Care & Education, Sex
Another year come and gone? It really does go by faster once you become a parent. Before 2007 comes and goes too, resolve to sit down and take some smart financial steps that will put you a little ahead of the game, no matter how time flies. Because as you've probably already noticed, the future will be here before you know it. Read a similar piece on Yahoo! for more detailed information.
The Game of Life: Life insurance? A topic that probably never entered your mind before you became a parent. Now, however, it makes sense. Consider this: If the worst happened, would you want the ones left behind to have to worry about making the car payment? A good life insurance policy will help your survivors get back on their feet. Don't wait another year to get a policy for you and your family.
Bring out the Gimp: Again with the planning for the worst. But it's simply prudent to be prepared now that you have people depending on you. Getting yourself disability insurance is a small investment now that could pay big should you ever find yourself unable to work. Shop around and find the plan that works best for you. Monthly premiums can be surprisingly low.
Will you or won't you?: Death happens. Yes, even to young, healthy families. Nobody wants to think the unthinkable, but it's important for you to have a will that legally lays out your estate and wishes should the unthinkable ever happen. Even if you have no assets to pass down, a will enables you to decide who will raise your child in the event you can not. And there's not a lot in life more important than that. If you can't afford an attorney to write one up for you, there are several good do-it-yourself resources out there, such as Nolo Press.
Not...the Comfy Chair! - Retirement. It sneaks up on you. Especially after you have kids and you're busy paying for after-school art classes and soccer uniforms. But kids tend to grow up and leave you to your own devices after two quick decades...and then what? Saving for those empty-nest years shouldn't be an afterthought, unless you like the idea of living in your grown kids' back room in your elder years.
The Old College Try: They say a journey of a thousand steps starts with the first, and so it is with saving for college tuition. Yes, it might seem futile, given that the cost of a college education will have probably tripled again by the time our 2-year-old is 18, but you have to start somewhere. Start in 2007. All the information you'll need to decide how to save can be found online. Try starting on AOL's money and finance page.
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ReaderComments (Page 1 of 1)
12-23-2006 @ 2:49PM
Rachel May said...The other important thing to remember is to fully fund your retirement BEFORE funding college savings plans. Otherwise, while you may be able to pay your kids' college tuition, you will end up working at Wal-Mart into your 90's because you didn't fund your retirement fully!
For another way of looking at it: you can either burden your kids with college loans or burden them with caring for you in your "golden years". College loans are most likely cheaper, especially considering the cost of healthcare combined with longer lifespans. And if you think social insecurity and medicave (
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12-23-2006 @ 2:53PM
Rachel May said...... don't know what happened to the rest of my comment, but here it was:
if you think social insecurity and medicave are going to be around for those of us who are currently parenting young children, you're smoking crack.
A great financial planning resource is Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University (www.daveramsey.com). Most of the time it's offered in churches, but we had a lot of people who didn't go to church take the one we offered. It does have scriptural principles for money management, but it's not in-your-face type stuff. So, don't let that keep you from taking it. The information is incredible. It saved our marriage, without a doubt.
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