6 Steps for Financial Spring Cleaning, Pandemic Style

April 2022

Given the challenges of living through a pandemic over the past couple of years, many tasks may have been pushed aside with the intention to revisit them at a later date. That being said, there's no better time than now to conduct a thorough review of your finances and address any neglected areas that may need attention sooner than later.

Your spring cleaning could look a little different this year - it might include tasks like reevaluating your budget, updating your insurance, or setting new goals for your future. Click here for 6 key financial steps to focus on addressing (and potentially adjusting) this spring.

If you happen to find yourself with questions as you work through this list, please don't hesitate to call our office at (518) 584-2555. We're here to help!

Did You Know? April is Financial Literacy Month!

According to the S&P Global Financial Literacy Survey,

Only 57% of US adults are financially literate, as measured by those showing knowledge of 75% of basic financial concepts assessed by the survey.

Only 20% of US adults demonstrate a relatively high level of financial literacy, answering over 75% correctly, and 17% show a relatively low level, answering less than 25% correctly.

Only 21 states require a high school course in personal finance education, while over 85% of Americans believe it should be mandatory.

Being financially literate is defined as understanding the core concepts of money management and being able to apply them in a manner that is beneficial to yourself and your family's long-term financial comfort and security.

Unfortunately, financial literacy in America is not the strongest, and in an effort to highlight the importance of teaching Americans how to establish and maintain healthy financial habits, the US officially recognizes the month of April as National Financial Literacy Month.

Want to see how you score among other Americans? Take the quiz to find out!

Source: Milken Institute, 2021

It's Official - Interest Rates are Rising

Interest rates are going up for the first time since 2018 - from near 0% to 0.25%-0.5%. The Federal Reserve's latest economic forecasts suggest that the economy is doing relatively better than it was at the beginning of the pandemic.The goal of these rising rates is to curb recent record-high inflation and keep surging prices in check.

Rising interest rates come with pros and cons. For those saving some of their assets in the bank, higher interest rates make is easier to keep up with taxes and inflation.

However, if you're looking to borrow money, these higher interest rates will increase the cost to finance large purchases, which will cause you to ultimately spend more over the term of the loan.

It's important to keep these increasing interest rates in mind when planning your future!

Save the Date!

Our 11th Annual Shred Event will be held on Saturday,

June 25th from 9-11am this year. We will be located in the parking lot adjacent to our building at 18 Division Street in Saratoga Springs.

For further details, be sure to check out our upcoming newsletters or follow the event on Facebook by clicking here!

Robert Schermerhorn, CFP®

Jamie Usas, CFP®

Operations Manager

Amanda Friedman

Wealth Consultant

Andrew Chapman, CFP®

Operations Research Associate

Lauren Bliss

Office Coordinator

Saratoga Financial Services

18 Division Street, Suite 305

Saratoga Springs, NY 12866

Phone: (518) 584-2555

www.SaratogaRetire.com

Securities & advisory services offered through LPL Financial, a registered investment advisor, member FINRA/SIPC