College grads need solid financial plan
Recent college graduates need to take control of their financial lives. If you are a parent, grandparent or close friend, you can help in this process by highlighting these financial goals.
Every grad needs to know how much she is making and spending to address all aspects of her financial life. Some expenses may be a shock, especially rent, utility bills and groceries now that the graduate is not living with three roommates. There are lots of apps to help with the process, including Mint and PocketGuard.
With cash flow in hand, it’s time to address the three most important issues for any adult: reduction of consumer debt, establishment of emergency cash reserves (6-12 months of living expenses) and maximizing retirement contributions.
Create a list of each loan (credit card, auto, personal and student) and include lender details, like the interest rates associated with the loans, monthly payment amounts due and contact info.
Parents/grandparents/friends, you can discuss repayment strategies that will eradicate the outstanding debt as quickly as possible. Income will drive how much any graduate can allocate toward this goal, and as a result, how long it will take.
Grads should focus on the highest interest loans and then systematically work their way down to the lower interest ones. Whatever amount will be going to pay down debt should be automatically sent to the lender so that no penalties or late fees accumulate.
If there’s no debt to manage, then new grads can quickly aim to accumulate a financial safety net. Remind grads that this money cannot be put into risky investments; it should be liquid in case there is a need to access the funds, especially for any expenses that could arise within the next year.
If the new job includes a retirement plan, contribute to it, at least up to the match, if one exists, or to the extent cash flow allows. Parents can review the investment options within the plan and steer their grad toward lower cost index funds, if they are available.
While there may be some resistance, help him understand the power of saving and investing for the future.
If a grad is living independently, she needs to review the lease. Keep in mind that many landlords hike the rent after the first year. Every time you move, it will cost money, so there may be an incentive to sign a longer lease that has a slightly higher rate in the first year.
If your grad will be boomeranging back home with you (about one-third of all 18to 34-year-olds live with their parents), it’s a good idea to create ground rules, which may include how long the arrangement will last and whether or not you will charge rent. I recommend putting these types of agreements in writing to make sure everyone is on the same page.
Grads should understand the different items that are detailed on their paychecks, including: federal and state income tax withholding; Social Security and Medicare taxes, also known as FICA taxes; health insurance premiums; and retirement contributions.
New grads, you will develop your own credit record, and is vitally important to pay bills on time and to guard your personal information. Review your credit report every 12 months at annualcreditreport.com, and if there are errors, flag them. Jill Schlesinger, CFP, is a CBS News business analyst. She welcomes comments and questions at askjill@jillonmoney.com.
In a competitive labor market, companies are getting creative to attract and retain talent.
A Foosball table just won’t cut it anymore. Here are several interesting real-life perks from Inc.’s 2019 best workplaces list.
A doctor in the house
Four percent of Inc.’s best workplaces take health care a step further by employing onsite medical providers.
For some, that’s fairly easy: Steven Lee, co-founder and chief science officer of the Chicago-based Visibly, is also an optometrist, which makes free eye exams for his workers logical.
Sand and snow
At Invoca, a Santa Barbara, Calif.based analytics company, employees take weekly walks to the beach.
The enterprise software startup Podium sits at the base of the Wasatch Range in Lehi, Utah. The company purchases season passes for staffers to the nearby Snowbird ski resort. When the powder is deep, entire departments hit the slopes before coming into work.
Ride the waves
At Scientist.com, board meetings have an entirely different meaning.
The Solana Beach, Calif.-based online marketplace connects pharmaceutical companies with vendors and research organizations. To support its surf-anytime policy, it called on a local surfboard maker to craft branded, custom surfboards of varying sizes for employee usage. Employees have a surf Slack channel where they coordinate when to hit the waves.
Flying high
At Ocala, Fla.-based MzeroA.com, which offers flight training, employees
Finding the best
workplaces
Inc. and Quantum Workplace conducted America’s largest national research effort for the best workplaces, collecting data on nearly 2,000 companies. We asked 139,251 employees across the country to rate their workplaces.
The biggest takeaway: Organizational health, as measured by employee sentiment, is at an all-time high. This year, 74.2% of surveyed employees said they were engaged by their work, besting last year’s 72.1%. The segment of disengaged workers dropped from 2.1 to 1.7%. It seems that low unemployment has spurred employers to be smarter about how to create competitive cultures. get gym reimbursement and access to company-paid, flat-fee partnerships with local health care practitioners, as well as a catastrophic insurance plan for emergencies.
Employees also have unlimited access to the company’s airplanes. All 19 employees are required to become pilots, even those who are in charge of things like marketing or HR.
I’ll be going now
Paid sabbaticals are typically for professors, but a surprising 16 percent of Inc.’s best workplaces offer them.
At AdvicePeriod, an L.A.-based wealth-management firm, employees accrue a week of paid sabbatical time on each work anniversary. Once they reach year four, they can cash in and hit the road.
Dog days
This year’s data shows that 49 percent of the best workplaces now allow