4 Fiscal Tips For The Savvy Single Woman
This is a guest post by Yolanda Shoshana. Yolanda Shoshana “Shoshi” is a personality, lifestyle expert, life coach, and speaker living in New York City known as the “Luscious Lifestyle Diva”. Her blog is “The Luscious Life” which gives the 411 on lifestyle, motivation, food, health, and entertainment for single women who want to leave behind the good enough life and live lusciously! www.lusciouslifestylediva.com
You can’t deny that single women are more independent these days. We are earning more money than our mothers, buying houses, starting businesses and just all around breaking financial ceilings. All of this is “you go girl” fabulous! However the story behind the scenes when it comes to single women and our money says we need to make some adjustments. It’s no secret that we are in a recession, but now is not the time to ignore your finances or give up from financial frustration. Here are several keys areas to focus on:
Did you go running to the your broker to take all of your money out of the stock market? Running away from the stock market is not the best thing to do right now. Stocks are about long term investing. What goes down must come up and vice versa. If you listen to wealthy people they actually like to invest during recessions and hard economic times, according to them this is when they make their money.
A small struggling stock today could be the next Google or Microsoft. Stock market trends show that after a good time in the economy the bubble has to burst to begin a new growth in the economy. Talk to your broker and find out what stocks you should keep or pick up. If you are your broker, why not research companies or see who the new kid on the stock market is.
What good will the money do for you under your mattress? You have to be in it to win it.
Most will say it’s a great time to buy a home, but ask another they say wait a year. Single women have become a force in the housing market. It is predicated that by 2010 single women will be 28% of the homeowners while single men are 11% of the homeowners.
Single women did benefit tremendously while the housing market was growing, but now single women are also being hurt in the housing market during this hard economic time. This is due to the discovery that women are more likely than men to be targeted by subprime lenders for loans. As the number of foreclosures rise, their homes are at risk and the mortgages are becoming getter than the value of the home.
The main thing to remember is if you are looking to buy in this market make sure you are working with someone who has your interest as a priority. Educate yourself about all the facts and ask questions such as do you qualify for a lower-cost loan. Learn the power of negotiating or get someone who can negotiate for you when it comes time to get down to the terms. Property is a good investment if you play smart from the beginning.
I know you have to have those shoes and that dress would look dynamite on you, but are you putting money away toward your retirement? The reality is single woman are not saving enough for retirement. Statistics show that only around 6% of women have even calculated how much they need for retirement. That is not a good number considering that single women are one of the biggest growing populations.
Experts say, the amount that single women should target to save is at least $500,000 saved for retirement. Do not let amount scare you, let it inspire you. If you make small changes to what you are saving it can go a long way. Buy things on sale, shop at outlets and discount stores. Do you really need a cup of $4 coffee everyday?
If your company has a 401(k) plan make sure to participate, most companies match your dollars to a certain amount. Start saving more money than you think you need. Keep educating yourself about money, new resources pop up everyday. As you watch your savings grow it will motivate you to spend your hard earned money smarter.
Stop waiting for Prince Charming to ride up with his pockets full of cash. If you were never waiting on a knight and shining armor, then what have you been waiting on? You are a woman on the go who can do for herself so roll up your sleeves and get your money under control. If you do not control your money, it will end up controlling you.
Very very useful
Please, can you tell me few more thinks about this, I am really fan of your blog.
I've had pretty good luck using the tips over at http://www.theotcstockportal.com. Maybe it's just beginners luck though!
PS: Thanks, love the site *wink*
-Ernie
I work in Wealth Management at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney in New York. Recently, a few female colleagues and I have been in the process of establishing a women's initiative and are currently setting up events focused on women. Many of these events are either put in place to celebrate successful women in business or to help women develop financial strategies and plan ahead in order to achieve their personal goals and the goals for their business.
From what I have seen in my business, sucessful women have a financial plan. However, fewer than one-third of all women have a financial plan in place to grow and safeguard their assets. Financial plans are an important part for everyone’s overall strategies, but several factors make financial plans essential for every woman. We have been in the process of putting financial plans intogether for women, married or single. Getting help from a professional who can help you create a direction and a clear path to get you to your goals is important. Generally first consultations with a Financial Advisor are fee and I suggest women work with a woman Finacial Advisor.
Love this article! As far as retirement goes, I have heard you should have enough money when you retire to replace 70% of whatever your salary was before you stopped working. In terms of whether a 401(k), Traditional IRA or Roth IRA is right for you, I find this breakdown helpful: http://www.learnvest.com/pages/financialBasics/Ty... Thanks for the great article!