Open Enrollment season is upon us, and with it the yearly opportunity to make sure we’re taking advantage of all the workplace perks we are entitled to. This means checking that we’ve signed on to get tax breaks on commuting, health care costs, and child care. It also means being sure we’re enrolled in our retirement accounts so we can build wealth to secure our future.

Last year, in an effort to help student loan borrowers through the financial crisis that COVID-19 brought upon us, the Federal Government suspended payments and interest accrual on most Federal student loans. At first, this administrative forbearance was slated to last until October of 2021. Since then, the student loan pause has been extended twice, but we have been promised that this is the last time. Federal student loans will go back into repayment as of January 31, 2022.

I’m so sorry that you are dealing with this. Having to cope with unjust and unconstitutional violations of your right to choose should not happen to anyone, and we are appalled by how far reaching this legislation is. And from a financial perspective, we know that this law can be devastating to women. For those who aren’t aware, here is some background for understanding how dire the situation is: SB 8 (formally known as Texas Senate Bill 8) is a law that went into effect on September 1st, 2021 that bans abortion in Texas as soon as a “heartbeat” can be detected in an embryo, which happens at about 6 weeks.

As a Trainer, I always ask my clients to track their spending. After all, it's hard to know how much you can save or invest if you don’t know what’s coming in and going out! One pain point we hit on often is that people think it’s not a good time to track spending because something out of the ordinary is happening. Maybe it’s vacation time, a holiday, a houseguest will be visiting, or any number of other little things that come up in life seem to conspire so that it doesn’t seem like the spending we’ll be tracking is “typical” enough.

Eight years ago, I delivered a pro-bono financial plan to a former co-worker; and after I had gone through all of her numbers with her, she said, “You know you’re saving my life, right?” Those words hit me like a lightning bolt. At this point, I had been delivering financial plans for almost two years, and no one had said anything like that to me.

Although they should only be used as a last resort, 401(k) loans can be a helpful tool to get you through a rough time or to help you contribute to a downpayment for a primary residence. A 401k loan entails taking a loan from your retirement and paying it back over time with money that is deducted directly from your paycheck. Not all 401(k)s allow loans, but many do.

“I’m starting Monday!” Ahhhh… the age-old excuse for why you’re not in a fitness routine right now. We can put this excuse with “I don’t have time.” Let it live next door to “I have no motivation.” The funny thing is that you do have motivation to do some things. You’re reading this blog post right now, so I’ll safely guess that you’re motivated to change your relationship with money. The money that you have has been earned, so somewhere, whether it is out of pure necessity or the enjoyment you get out of work, you have found the motivation to make money. Let’s start there.

I don’t know about you, but after 17 months of pandemic living, lockdowns, social unrest, government transition, nonstop virtual meetings, and general feelings of isolation and depression, I’m exhausted. I’ve never struggled so hard, for so long; and just when I feel like the struggling may end, new struggles present themselves. In the past, my coping mechanisms were human interactions: hugs from my clients, lunch with my teammates, and laughing with friends; and for the most part, none of those have been available to me.

In May, our Certified Financial Trainer Tina wrote this helpful blog post to inform our clients and readers about this year’s unique Child Tax Credit and to help parents know what to expect as the program rolled out. Now that many people have received their first payments, an update is in order!

For most of us, our first experience with insurance is buying car insurance to meet state laws or a lender’s requirement. But building a comprehensive insurance plan is an absolute necessity to anyone who wants to be in great financial shape. At Insurify, we recognize that insurance is a vital part of a sound financial plan— not just another item on a to do list. It’s our mission to help people find the best deal on home and auto insurance products.

Rest assured, Financial Friend, you are not alone. Last weekend alone 3 meetings popped onto my calendar with descriptions like “Impending financial downfall,” “Save me from myself,” and “I can’t stop spending money.” It’s not shocking that we would see increases in spending around this time. For one thing, summer can be a rough time on our budgets, as it seems there is always another wedding, or a friend in from out of town, or a vacation opportunity, or cute new bathing suits and dresses to replace the ones that have been sitting in our drawers for two years now.

Our guest blogger today is Derby Chukwudi. Derby is a contestant in the Miss New Jersey USA competition, and she is passionate about travel, education, reading, writing, and also the power of financial literacy. Here, she shares some money myths that she’s identified and eliminated on her path to financial wellness.

I never thought of myself as being bad with money. I usually had an extra month or two of rent in the bank, I didn’t rack up charges on my credit card, I lived frugally enough to enjoy life on my small salary, and I kept my fixed expenses well within my means. I hoped I’d make more money at some point, but all in all, I felt like some major pieces of my financial puzzle were in place.

Over ten years ago now, I left a successful investment banking career to become a Financial Advisory at Merrill Lynch because I saw a tremendous need for diversity in the financial advisory space. I enjoyed the entrepreneurial spirit of Merrill and the education they provided me on anything from ETF’s, to life insurance to trusts and estates. I carried so much of that spirit and content with me when I left to build The Financial Gym.

Although it can seem counterintuitive at times, having and using credit cards are essential parts of optimal financial wellness. Not only do credit cards provide us with a temporary safety net if we need cash in a pinch, but in a lot of cases they are non-negotiable forms of currency, such as when we need to rent a car or leave a deposit on a hotel room. Plus, once we move on to increasingly more adult transactions, like renting an apartment or buying a home, a long and strong credit history is hard to come by if we haven’t established and wisely used credit lines in the past.

Getting financially fit can be challenging for anybody, but a lot of the steps towards building a healthy relationship with money can be more tough for those with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. Recently we interviewed Amalia Sirica, a FinGym client and LCSW. Working with a mental health professional can be a crucial part of ADHD management, but according to Amalia, this avenue may not directly address how ADHD and money intersect.

The basic facts of the racial wealth gap are that Black Americans hold about 13% of the wealth of white Americans. This wealth disparity can be seen through almost every measure of wealth, from actual financial holdings, to income levels, to housing values, to stock ownership. While this issue can seem simple on its surface, the history, current reality, and potential solutions for this problem are complex.

In four more months I’m becoming a father for the first time. My wife and I are excited to bring a new person into the world, but with it come so many challenges. How much do we spend on childcare? Are we going to need to buy the latest and greatest stroller? What about college, which can push up to $50,000/year in tuition?

So, not unlike many of our clients at the Gym, you bailed on your big city tiny apartment and giant rent burden in favor of getting through a tough time without bleeding cash. Good for you for making a wise financial choice! Still, despite the charms of living in your childhood bedroom and having a concierge grocery service, you may be itching to re experience the freedoms of your own place. Somehow you did this before without missing a beat, but now with your new savings rate and bill-free living, stepping back into the world of the rent-paying adults seems more daunting than it once did. Lucky for you, we’ve been feeling this question a lot lately and we’ve got you!

As trainers, we always give our clients a weekly spending goal. This is supposed to be for everything that isn’t a fixed monthly expense. My fixed bills each month are rent, utilities, internet, and a Netflix family subscription. I do have a monthly Peloton subscription (just the workouts, as I don’t have the bike) but it’s reimbursed from my credit card for the rest of 2021. Annually, I also pay for renter’s insurance, 2 travel credit card fees, and professional license dues/fees. So my weekly spend goal is for things like groceries, takeout/delivery, bubble tea (I drink a lot of this), and all the other random stuff I buy.