Babies change everything, even your finances. Having a baby can get quite expensive. You may not believe it — after all, they are quite tiny — yet, they are able to really hit your wallet hard.
Trade in your gas guzzler for economical, high miles per gallon car. If you drive a truck or SUV that gets bad gas mileage, you may be able to cover the monthly payments for a new car with your gas savings. Calculate what you spend on gas now with what you would spend in a car that gets 30mpg or higher. The savings might shock you.
Search for professional advice if you are going to invest in stocks for personal financial gains. Hiring a professional advisor is a sure way to ensure that you will get returns back. They have the knowledge and experience in the field to help you succeed. If you go at it alone, you would have to spend days researching, and that can consume much of your time.
You can begin receiving SSI one month after you become disabled. You can begin receiving SSDI five months after you become disabled. Of course, your claim will not be processed and approved in just one month. Once it is approved, though, you will receive back-pay to the time you were eligible.
Second, as you reflect on the past year, write down everything you did right. Nothing succeeds like success and this is the time to capture what’s working well for you. Then do the same for what went wrong. Do you find yourself overspending? Do you have a hard time tracking what you spend? Perhaps you just need to get your income up? Are there any loose ends that need attention such as making a will or buying long low vision products catalog? Are you making good progress towards building wealth and/or paying cash for the nicer things you’d like to earn? Have you started saving a down payment for a home? Write out specific goals that can be measured. “Save more.” is too vague. “Save $200 every month towards a down payment.” is better.
To get copies of your medical records, contact the doctors, hospitals, and any other places you’ve received treatment for your disabling condition. They will require you to sign a form requesting your records. It may take a few weeks to get copies of your records. Also, some places only keep copies for a certain amount of time, usually ten years. Just get as many records as you can.
You should begin the application process as soon as you believe you are disabled. Because it can take a long time to be approved and begin receiving benefits, you should apply as soon as possible.
Finally, the disability insurance is if you were to get hurt and not be able to work anymore. This is usually short term insurance that can last for up to a couple of years. This will provide you with a temporary income until you are able to work again. This is a great type of insurance to consider.
