Financial Planning

We all like to think that we'll live long, healthy and prosperous lives. But to base our financial plans on that assumption would be foolish. When it comes to financial planning, you need to prepare for the unexpected. Protection & Security products form the foundation of a sound financial plan. They are the fundamental elements of the plan that should protect you from common risks like:

• Losing your job

• Becoming sick or disabled

• Living too long

• Dying too soon

The base of the financial planning pyramid consists of emergency savings and insurance. Two areas that you should give careful consideration to as you build the foundation of your planning pyramid are:

Emergency Savings - Many financial professionals will advise you that you should strive to always have enough money on hand to pay your everyday living expenses for a period of three to six months. This money could fill the gap in income if you lose your job, or if you get sick or injured and need to cover expenses before your disability insurance kicks in. You should consider your personal and family situation, job security, and other factors in determining an adequate emergency savings. You should invest your emergency savings in places like savings, checking and money market accounts where you'll have ready access to your money.

Insurance - Insurance makes up the fundamental elements of your financial plan. If your home gets seriously damaged, where would you find the money that it might cost to pay for the repairs? How would your family survive if you became sick or injured and couldn't work for an extended period of time? What would happen financially if you died? Would there be money to allow your family to pay for their everyday living expenses, and fund college and retirement savings plans? Insurance provides a financial safety net to make sure your family's financial situation won't fall apart if the unexpected strikes. Follow these links to get more information on the primary kinds of insurance you may want to consider as well as other products that could also be a part of the foundation of your financial plan:

Financial Services Links