What Is The Best Financial Planning?

Financial Planning is a term we hear bandied about in the media all the time, but ask people "What is financial planning?" and you are bound to get many different answers. It means different things to different people, but the most important question is what does it and what should it mean to YOU?

To a young couple starting out the best financial planning could be a way to save up the down payment for a home while still paying for all the bills and keeping consumer debt under control.

To a couple with children planning to fund college or university expenses could be the most important issue.

For someone who has lost their job it might just be figuring out a way find new work or generate an income.

To folks suffering from crippling debt it can be discovering a way to comfortably maintain that debt and beginning to pay it down.

For folks approaching retirement it is ways to make sure retirement income will be available to cover the cost of retirement living without the fear of running short.

Simple financial planning for a young couple starting is--making sure the appropriate amounts of life insurance are in place and if you plan to buy a house. (Remember--owning a home is more than just having a roof over your head.) How using an RRSP (Registered Retirement Savings Plan) is the easiest way to accumulate a down payment.

To the family planning concerned about the costs of their children's post-secondary education, financial planning is a big help. But it is something to be considered when the children are babies or toddlers.

In the case of someone recently unemployed, it's important they take stock of the employment opportunities in their chosen field to determine if what they wish to do is viable. And take stock of their skills education and capabilities. Two sets of job skills can be a life saver and if there are no jobs--having the mindfulness to look at opportunities for self-employment, starting a small business or even taking the steps to move to an area where there are jobs.

To folks overwhelmed by debt a financial planning can simply consist of some guidance and a better understanding of how their current fiscal situation occurred and the steps they can take to change things for the better.

And the one most people equate with financial planning--retirement planning. The key to retirement planning isn't how much cash you have accumulated but rather the amount of after-tax cash flow available for retirement living. It is important that you take steps to ensure you don't inadvertently cause claw-backs of your government benefits.

The elements of financial planning described here are purely small thumbnail sketches of strategies that can be used.

Actual financial planning is a more in-depth and extensive process which takes place over time and is designed to help you achieve the results you want.

In conclusion whatever your issue is--the sooner you begin your financial planning the more likely you are to see success.