This week, we're going to talk about how to bridge the gap if you've decided you want to try something you've always dreamed about, find a different career, or just take a much needed break. When planning for this, think what do you want this gap to be and for how long. Then come up with a budget for that gap. Your current budget is a good place to start, then make adjustments.
Another key budget consideration is health insurance. This is NOT the place to skimp. It's not worth putting your whole financial future at risk by skipping health care insurance. This can be a bit of a challenge, but there are options. For example, if you're in the military you're when you transition out, you’re eligible for the Continued Health Care Benefit Program,but it is quite expensive. Anyone, can shop for health insurance on healthcare.gov. There's different plans you can choose from and you may qualify for a tax credit to pay for some of the premium costs.. You will need to know where you plan to home base, because these plans vary by state. If you're healthy you may save money selecting a high deductible health plan. Your premiums would be lower in exchange for paying more out of pocket expenses and having a higher catastrophic cap
Next consider life insurance. If you have someone you support financially who would struggle without your income when you pass, like children and or a spouse that has been out of the workforce awhile, or is earning a lower income, you need to plan for continuing life insurance during your gap. If you are meeting that need now with workplace group life insurance like SGLI or FEGLI, you will need to buy life insurance before you start your gap. Term life insurance policies are usually quite reasonably priced.
Once you've developed a budget for your gap t, look at how much time you have until your gap starts, and put a dollar figure on much you need to save from each paycheck to get there.
The last big decision is what to do with those savings until you need them. If you're one to three years out from your gap, the best thing to do is save that money in an FDIC insured bank account. That can be a savings account, a money market account at a bank, or certificates of deposit.
If your gap is more than three years away depending on your tolerance for risk and whether you've got flexibility in the timing of your gap, you may earn a higher return. But that means taking some risk. Bonds are often a good choice for these sort of mid-term goals. Your returns will fluctuate, but not as much as stocks. Stock are riskier, but on average provide even higher returns. It's helpful to have some flexibility in timing your gap. If for instance, you're able to just put it off a year, you can continue saving, and that gives time for the markets to rebound a bit. And then you could get that back in line and probably even exceed your initial goal. If you can wait.
A good vehicle for doing this saving into low cost index funds. You can buy these funds directly from a mutual fund company or open a brokerage account Another option is Betterment. They invest your savings in low cost index funds that track an entire stock and bond market, just tell them what percentage to invest in stocks and what percentage to invest in bonds. Vanguard has Life Strategy Family Funds look at how much time you have until you need your savings, then invest in mutual funds for you.
I hope you’ve enjoyed my podcasts on funding a gap. I’d love to hear about your dreams for a transition or gap and how you will save for it. If you’d like some help with the planning reach out for a free consultation. I love helping you live your dream life.
