Published by Taylor Financial Group
They say if you fail to plan, you are planning to fail. Take the most obvious example, financial planning. Financial planning is not (and shouldn’t) be a one-time event, but rather an ongoing process. The plan is a base from where you can make your financial decisions from, but the plan can and should change over time based upon your goals and life situations. Should we down size? Should we pay for our granddaughter’s private school? Can we take the entire family on that Italy vacation? Having a dynamic plan with those “what if” scenarios can help drive better decisions. So, if we know that having a financial plan can lead to better daily money behaviors, why do only about one in four Americans have one?
According to Charles Schwab’s 2018 Modern Wealth Index, a survey of 1,000 Americans found that an astonishing three in five people live paycheck to paycheck, two in five feel financially stable and just 35 percent have an emergency fund. However, the numbers vary widely between those who have financial plans and those who don’t. For instance, just 38 percent of those with plans live paycheck to paycheck vs. 68 percent of those without plans, 62 percent of those with plans feel financially stable vs. 32 percent of those without plans, and 65 percent of those with plans have an emergency fund vs. 24 percent of those without plans.
Some of the reasons why more people don’t have a plan is because they believe they don’t have enough wealth, that having a financial planner is too costly, and that the concept of a financial plan is way too complicated. However, the longer you wait to establish a plan, the harder it is to achieve your financial goals and reach long-term financial success. Financial planning should be done by all, and we can help! At Taylor Financial Group, we believe everyone deserves a financial plan regardless of their situation. Contact us to see how we can help!
WealthManagement.com, Most Americans Don’t Have a Financial Plan, May 2018
