Lightning can strike the same place twice. Unfortunately, the Lessanu family knows this firsthand. In August 2002, Dawit, an IT professional at Booz-Allen Hamilton, was out of work. This August, his wife, Angel, a senior financial analyst for Pfizer, found herself in the same unpleasant predicament.
The Piscataway, New Jersey, couple, both in their early 30s, have two sons, ages 2 and 4, and are none too happy about walking down an uncertain path. The family was thriving with a household income of close to $200,000. The Lessanus own a home and one rental property and had already begun saving for retirement and the boys’ college education. They were on the road to financial prosperity.
Although Angel received a severance package worth about $55,000, she’s hoping she won’t have to spend it. She’s been searching for a job for several months and has had many interviews, but nothing has materialized. She’s hoping to land a managerial position, but, at this point, she’s showing signs of flexibility.
The family has refinanced its primary residence worth almost $400,000. Although they won’t pay less monthly, they rolled over a high interest rate home-improvement loan into a new loan, which will reduce their overall monthly expenses. They are also in contract to sell their investment property, which will provide cash for living expenses.
“Right now, we’re kind of hanging in the balance. The best case scenario is that I will find a job soon and not have to spend the severance for living expenses,” says an optimistic Angel. And if not, they’ll face what comes. “We have resources [such as property assets] that we can tap if necessary; they just aren’t very liquid,” says Angel, who lost her job due to a company merger. “Layoffs come with the territory. It’s what happens in corporate America; it’s not personal.”
TAKE TIME TO PLAN
Life’s surprises are just one of the financial challenges Angel and her family are facing. To combat them, the time-strapped two-income family has to plan to avoid financial fatalities.
“Women are really working two full-time jobs, outside and inside the home. They’re juggling a career, cooking, and shuttling [kids] to baseball games. There’s often not a whole lot of time and attention given to budgeting and long-term planning,” says Cheryl Creuzot, a certified financial planner and president/CEO of Wealth Development Strategies in Houston.
For women who find themselves in a situation similar to Angel’s, it’s time to get organized and figure out where your money is going. Do a budget. Your hectic lifestyle can be expensive. Dinners out, a housekeeper, buying expensive prepackaged foods from the grocery store, and not taking the time to comparison shop can quickly fritter away dollars.
Once you know where you’re spending, sit down with your husband to set goals and priorities. If drastic changes are needed, let your children know what actions will be necessary to meet goals that will benefit everyone.
“Families at this stage of life are usually trying to meet several goals at once: buy a home, build savings for emergencies, their children’s college education, and their retirement. It’s a lot. It’s very stressful, and can be overwhelming,” says Nancy E. Frank, a certified financial planner with Frank Advisory Services in New York City. “The bottom line is you have to set priorities, to make choices. Few people can have it all.”
For example, if you have a teenager and you’ve saved little for his or her college fund, it’s not realistic to suddenly start socking away $1,500 a month. “Instead, max out on your retirement and let the children get financial aid. When they apply for financial aid, your retirement accounts [are] not considered,” says Creuzot. Pierre Dunagan, president of the Dunagan Group in Chicago, suggests 529 College Savings Plans. You can put away small amounts monthly and your money will grow tax free.
TAME THE DEBT TIGER
The other bugaboo for families is debt. When you don’t stick to a budget, things can spiral out of control in short order. There’s nothing like the stress of debt to chill the romance.
“List your debts in descending order. Vow to pay off the smallest amount owed first, and pay minimums on others,” suggests Dunagan. Victory will come as
you check off each debt from your list. “Decide not to use credit if you can’t pay off the balance at the end of the month,” he says. “You don’t want to destroy your cards because you need to use them periodically to maintain credit.”One way to avoid debt is to prepare for loss. “If you’re buying a house [or] car, ask yourself how you would manage that payment if you were suddenly faced with having only one income,” says Dunagan. “You have to think like that. Even as the economy improves, companies will still downsize to cut costs. Most families should have at least six months of reserve money.”
BE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR FINANCIAL WELL-BEING
One of the biggest mistakes married women make is failing to prepare for the “gotchas,” says Marilyn Bergen, a certified financial planner with CMC Advisers in Portland, Oregon. “You think you will be happily married forever, but you could be vulnerable because of death or divorce. [Your husband] alone shouldn’t make all the financial decisions. You are responsible for your own financial well-being. At a minimum, pick up financial magazines once a month at the grocery store. You want [to have] a working knowledge of financial matters,” says Bergen. Furthermore, she adds, women should have credit established and bank accounts in their own names. Even if a woman doesn’t work and doesn’t have an employer’s 401(k) to build her retirement stash, she should contribute to an IRA account on her own.
Showing some financial aptitude will also be a good for your children. “You’ll be teaching them some important life lessons [as] they see you saving and investing,” says Marianne Shine, a certified financial planner with Shine Financial in Deerfield Beach, Florida. “Whether you think so or not, they watch your moves. Set a good example and you set them up for life.”
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW
1. Plan for life’s unexpected interruptions by reviewing your family’s finances. It’s important to have adequate health, disability, and life insurance to weather the storm. Also contact a financial planner to discuss your options.
2. Review your family’s consumption habits. “Slow down. Get off the treadmill. If you’re moving too fast to plan, you’re moving too fast to succeed,” says Cheryl Creuzot, a certified financial planner. Create a budget for short-, mid-, and long-term goals to enjoy the fruits of your labor.
3. Learn about your family’s finances. Lack of education can lead to unnecessary financial missteps. For a no-nonsense approach to saving and investing, read Millionaire by Al Winnikoff and Wayne Wagner (Renaissance Books; $14.95).
4. Save for your children’s education now. Vehicles such as CDs, government bonds, and mutual funds are a great place to start. With as little as $25 a month (depending on the company), you can begin saving.