FINANCIAL WELLNESS MONTH: HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR FINANCES
Following the heavy spending of the holiday season, January, Financial Wellness Month, serves to help people get back on track and prepare their finances for the new year. National Financial Wellness Month is helpful to both civilians and military related personnel. Finances are often associated solely with money; however, finance is not only focused on income. Finance focuses people's relationship with money, how they earn their income, spend their money, plan for retirement, and how they save and invest.Related read:8 Great Military Retirement Benefits to Get Your Post-Military Life Started Right
Why Is Financial Wellness Month Important to Veterans?
Finances are a major concern for everyone. However, some may wonder why is financial literacy important for Veterans who receive a multitude of government benefits. Financial literacy is important to Veterans and their families due to the unique financial circumstances and risks that they face. Past circumstances that Veterans have previously encountered, such as housing instability and out-of-pocket moving costs, affect the financial life cycle of Veterans. The same can be said about potential excessive spending within the early years of their career. Poor financial decisions can lead to a rough transition to employment, lack of emergency funds, a build-up of debt, and the lack of a retirement fund. Check out these 3 ways Veterans can improve their finances during Financial Wellness Month.
3 Ways Vets Can Improve Their Finances
Below, we are sharing easy financial tips to help Veterans improve their financialstatus this year. Read on to uncover three simple ways that you can improve your personal finances.
1. Understanding Money and Your Relationship With It
Understanding financial principles and concepts such as interest, types of loans, liquidity, budgeting, risk and return, credit, profitability, and the time value of money are essential to having good finances. Learning these concepts, in addition to learning and establishing consistent personal spending, saving, and investing patterns, can help you build a good relationship with money. Furthermore, it can help you secure a healthy financial future.Learn these concepts by reading financial literacy books and resources, such as Soldier of Finance: Take Charge of Your Money and Invest in Your Future, written by Army combat Veteran and certified financial planner, Jeff Rose. They are here to provide you with money-saving strategies this Financial Wellness Month.
2. Consider Investing
When people hear investing, they normally think of stocks. While investing in stocks is a way to earn a higher income, investing encompasses more than putting your money into corporations. Investing in yourself is another great route to improve your finances during Financial Wellness Month. Investments options include: real estate, CDs, Roth IRAs, and more. The route you choose should be based on your risk tolerance–which understanding your relationship with money can help with. All Veterans should have a Roth IRA, or individual retirement savings accounts that allows them to collect after-tax dollars while growing savings and investments tax-free. A Roth IRA calculator can help estimate the potential growth of your investments into your Roth IRA over time.
3. Start Saving and Planning For the Future
One of the most important things that a Veteran can do to improve their finances is save and plan. Without a plan, knowledge about finance can go to waste and investments can be mishandled. As the government stops paying for important things such as housing, insurance, and taxes, it is important to have both the finances and the vision of how these things will be paid for. Veterans should keep an emergency fund for the challenges that life after the military may throw their way.
Take Advantage of Financial Wellness Month
Financial Wellness Month is the perfect time to implement these steps for a healthy financial future. With a new year ahead and new financial challenges, Veterans need to prepare early on. Start planning your financial future today.Read next: 5 Video Game Controllers Veterans Must Have In 2024
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