Finish the Year Out Strong

by Carmen Gonzalez

As the year ends, we want to make sure we are starting the new year right. We talked with our friends at Summit Financial to find out what ways we can plan ahead so our future selves will thank us and this is what they had to say:

As the year ends, here’s what you want to complete:

• Update Personal Information – Employees should make sure addresses and contact information is up to date for W-2s and other records with their employer.
• Max out employer-sponsored retirement plan contributions by December 31.
• Submit and/or Spend your Flexible Savings Account so you don’t lose out since the funds cannot be rolled over into the new year
• Finalize Benefits Elections and make sure you are happy with your choices so you’ll be covered for everything you need in the new year.
• If you plan on making any charitable donations, do so as soon as possible before the year ends so the charity can process your donation and you can claim it on your taxes for this year.
• You have until December 31st to convert your 401k or traditional IRA into a Roth IRA, but you can continue to contribute to your Roth IRA for this year until April 15.

When following these guidelines, you can start the new year with the confidence that it will be the best yet. Centric is always looking for ways to help our members Live Better which is why we offer FREE financial wellness checkups with our Certified Credit Union Financial Counselors. Another way we help our members Live Better is by partnering with Summit Financial to provide our members with experts beyond budgeting and credit building. We asked Summit Financial what all they could do to help our members prepare for the new year, and this was the amazing list they gave us:

• Provide guidance on tax loss harvesting.
• Assist with Roth IRA conversions.
• Advise on charitable planning.
• And help with overall financial planning for retirement, especially if you are within 5 years of retirement.

If you are needing help with reaching your financial hopes and dreams, but you aren’t sure where to start; stop by any of Centric’s locations, give us a call at 318-340-9656 or visit us at MyCentric.org. We can help guide you on what your first steps need to be to start the new year right, and we can help connect you with a Summit Financial Wealth Advisor. To hear more from Summit Financial, check out our podcast as we discuss more details on how to finish the year out strong.