Laura McKay is the co-founder and COO of PolicyMe, Canada's fastest-growing digital life insurance company. In 2021, she was named one of the Women of the Year by Bay Street Bull. Laura has a Bachelor of Mathematics from the University of Waterloo. Her degree focused on Actuarial Science, which included learning about mortality risk, the basis of life insurance pricing and valuation. After her degree, she was employed by Manulife and Munich Re in Actuarial Science. Laura then worked at famed management consulting company Oliver Wyman in New York from 2013-2018. In this position, she worked with many Fortune 500 life insurance companies and helped them develop growth strategies and solve operational problems and regulatory issues.
October 16, 2019
•
5 minutes
,
PolicyMe content follows strict guidelines for editorial accuracy and integrity. Learn more about our editorial guidelines.
You’ve been good friends with procrastination for a long time (even since your days of pulling all-nighters in Grade 10 English). That’s why even all these years later, it’s easy to put off making key financial decisions. After all, there’s always tomorrow.
But the thing is that unlike when you procrastinate on booking your next vacation, there are times when putting off a financial decision can seriously cost you.
Here are 5 important financial decisions you should never delay:
Contributing to your retirement savings accounts
Can’t wait to stop bolting out of bed at the crack of dawn, sitting in horrendous traffic every morning, and dealing with irritating office politics? Well, here’s the thing: the longer you wait to start saving for retirement, the longer you’ll have to wait to retire. Period.
At this point in your life, retiring at age 60 vs. 65 may not seem like the biggest difference in the world. After all, it’s only 5 years, right? But trust us: when you turn 60, this difference will seem huge.
Keep in mind that it isn’t just your savings that you might be missing out on. In many workplaces, employers match a portion of your retirement savings contributions. If you’re lucky, this can be as high as 6% of your salary. So if you make $100,000/year, you could be missing out on $6,000 every year from your employer. That’s no small amount.
And remember that when you have savings, you make interest or investment income on the money. Because this income compounds year over year, it doesn’t take long before those savings start to snowball and you’re making interest on your interest. (It’s about time that your money started working for you!)
If you’re holding off on contributing to retirement savings, you could be leaving lots of money on the table in many different ways. That’s why it pays to start saving today. Your 60-year-old self will thank you for it.
Getting life insurance
Life insurance rates rise as you age. If you need it, buying early means paying cheaper premiums.
But taking advantage of cheaper premiums isn’t the only reason we recommend getting your life insurance sooner rather than later if you have dependents who rely on your income. The thing is that every day that you don’t have protection, you run the risk of getting sick. And any health conditions you develop later in life, like high blood pressure or sleep apnea, will only lead to much higher rates.
However, if you do find yourself getting life insurance later than you anticipated, there's no need to worry. Life insurance for seniors over 80's exists for that purpose.
Another way staying on top of your finances can pay off is through guaranteed issue life insurance. This type of insurance provides coverage without requiring a medical exam, which can be a great option for those who may have difficulty obtaining traditional life insurance
By getting a policy joint first to die policy with your spouse, you can save more on premiums by not needing to pay for two separate policies. Rather, you receive a payoff regardless of who passes away first.
Are you delaying a life insurance purchase because you don’t know how much coverage you should buy? We can help with that. Complete our free life insurance checkup to figure out how much life insurance you need to protect the ones you love.
Building your credit
You may not be house hunting today. (Have you seen the price tags on homes lately?)
But one day, you’ll probably want to make a purchase that requires you to borrow from a bank. Maybe it isn’t a home, but it could be a car or something else.
The catch-22 is that if you want to get credit, you need to show that you have good credit. So even if you don’t have plans to make a big purchase anytime soon, start building up your credit now. You can also use your rent payments to build credit. Get a few credit cards or open a line of credit and pay off those bills on time (more about that next). This way, you’ll be able to get the help you need when you’re ready to take the plunge.
Paying off credit cards
The annual percentage rates (APRs) for credit cards can be as high as 15% to 17%. This means that if you’re used to making only the minimum monthly payment, you can rack up a whole lot of interest. Aside from putting even more money into the pockets of your credit card company, you’ll make it even harder to pay off your next monthly bill.
So is it worth it? If you can afford it, it’s worth it to pay off your credit card bills as soon as possible. If you put it off, you can eventually end up paying double the cost of your purchases. (Remember those awesome boots you bought for $250? They’ll end up costing you $300–$400 if you maintain a balance for a few years.)
Cancelling subscriptions you no longer use
A monthly subscription fee of $9.99 may seem like a steal (especially when you compare it to what you used to pay for cable). But if you have a bunch of these subscriptions and don’t really use them anymore, you could be spending over $100/month for no reason.
To avoid paying for services you no longer use, keep a close eye on your credit card bills. If you catch unnecessary recurring purchases quickly, you can potentially save lots of money.
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage and assist in our marketing efforts. More info
By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage and assist in our marketing efforts. More info
%20(1).png)
.svg)
.svg)
Back to main menu