I found this nugget while reading Ryan's latest entry on Personal Finance. (Actually his latest entry on this topic is about when to get an Xbox 360, which fits in nicely under rule 1.5).
- Make a will
- Pay off your credit cards
- Get term life insurance if you have a family to support
- Fund your 401k to the maximum
- Fund your IRA to the maximum
- Buy a house if you want to live in a house and can afford it
- Put six months worth of expenses in a money-market account
- Take whatever money is left over and invest 70% in a stock index fund and 30% in a bond fund through any discount broker and never touch it until retirement
- If any of this confuses you, or you have something special going on (retirement, college planning, tax issues), hire a fee-based financial planner, not one who charges a percentage of your portfolio
Yeah, I'm starting at #1 on this list. Getting a will setup is something that's been hanging over my head for a couple years, something I've been thinking about, and something I have not done. Looks like its time for the last new year's resolution of this year. That gives me two and a half months to get it done. All I need is just something simple, I can revise it next year.