September 15, 2022

You know you should take a deeper look at your financial plan every so often, but you also have some questions. Questions like:

• How often do I go through this process?
• Do I need a financial expert to help me?
• What things should I be looking at in my review?

At least once a year is a good chance to sit down and review and update your financial plan. This is important because your goals or even your lifestyle might have changed since you last checked in on your financial plan. You can also check in more frequently based on those major life changes. 

As you sit down to review your financial plan, you’ll want to look at

• Your current financial situation
• Your financial goals
• What steps you’ve taken to achieve those goals since your last check in. 

You should have short, medium length and long term goals. For example, saving for a vacation is a short term goal, while saving to buy a new car in a few years is a medium term goal, and ultimately funding your retirement or your child’s college education in 15 years is a long term goal. You’ll need to have specific dollar amounts attached to each of these goals in order to maximize your chances of achieving them.

Checking in regularly helps you adjust and account for things like inflation or changes in your perception of what you need set aside in these funds. Don’t forget estate plans and life insurance policies in your financial plan review as well. It is possible that you may need to purchase more life insurance coverage if the dynamics of your family have shifted, or if you wish to provide more resources for your loved ones after you pass away. We like to look at all of these issues from a broad lens and help you to determine what is most appropriate in your financial plan.