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You’ve finally decided to be your own boss. You won’t miss your overbearing manager, endless meetings that should have been emails, or white-knuckled commute. But you certainly will miss some of the perks that came with the job, like health insurance or a retirement savings… How to Put Together a Benefits Package When You’re Self-Employed as published on Women Who Money You’ve finally decided to be your own boss. You won’t miss your overbearing manager, endless meetings that should have been emails, or white-knuckled commute. But you certainly will miss some of the perks that came with the job, like health insurance or a retirement savings plan employer match. Fortunately, it is possible to put together a robust benefits package when you’re self-employed. We’ll show you how. Chat with Human Resources The first thing you should do is chat with your soon-to-be (or already) former employer’s human resources department. A representative from there can go over what will happen to your benefits after you leave the company. Be sure to get answers to all of your questions and discuss things like: When will your medical insurance coverage end?How much does COBRA coverage cost? Will you get your unused paid time off in a lump sum in your last paycheck?Is your employer-sponsored life insurance policy portable (meaning you can keep the policy and pay for it on your own)? Will you get your full pension?What’s the contact information for your retirement savings plan provider? Pro Tip: Now’s also a great time to determine if you’re eligible to get on someone else’s insurance coverage, like a spouse’s or parent’s. Prioritize Your Perks Once you know what your previous organization will do for you, list all the benefits you want to replace. Then, rank them in order of importance. That way, you have a plan to keep you organized. For example, if your spouse can add you to their health insurance, you can shift your focus to rolling over the funds in your 401k into a new retirement savings account or getting a new life insurance policy. Pro Tip: Don’t forget to double-check your list. You probably included the major benefits, such as health insurance, life insurance, and retirement savings. But did you account for perks like long-term care, pet, or disability insurance? Determine Your Budget As an employee, your employer might have covered a high percentage of your insurance premiums, matched a portion of your retirement savings plan contributions, and paid for other perks. But now, that responsibility falls solely on you. So, before you start assembling your self-employed benefits package, you must determine how much you can afford to spend. To do this, review your existing budget and your new income level. Do you have any wiggle room? Will you need to cut other spending to free up funds to pay for your benefits? Make sure you set a monthly limit that you can comfortably sustain. That way, you won’t find yourself scrambling to cover your insurance premiums during a lean period in your business.  Shop for Insurance Now that you have a budget in place, you can shop for insurance. Many freelancers, contractors, and solo business owners visit the Healthcare Marketplace. From there, you can review your options and enroll in the right coverage for you and your family (if applicable). Depending on your income, you might qualify for a plan premium subsidy, reducing your monthly cost. Even if you’re not eligible for a subsidy, a comparable marketplace plan will likely be cheaper than COBRA coverage. Note: Since your loss of employer coverage is considered a qualifying event, you don’t need to wait until open enrollment to obtain a new policy. If you don’t find a policy you like or can afford on the marketplace website, you may want to check out a Health Care Sharing Ministry. It’s not health insurance. Instead, it’s a program where group members help to pay for each other’s medical expenses. You need to be religious to qualify, and there’s no guarantee a particular claim will get covered. However, your monthly financial responsibility will likely be far less than if you opted for a traditional health insurance plan. Need dental and vision coverage? Your health

Estate planning is one of those things everyone knows they should do. Still, most don’t do it. According to a recent Caring.com survey, only one in three Americans has a will or trust.  And these statistics make sense when you see why people don’t do… Our Estate Planning Experience [Why we set up a trust] as published on Women Who Money Estate planning is one of those things everyone knows they should do. Still, most don’t do it. According to a recent Caring.com survey, only one in three Americans has a will or trust.  And these statistics make sense when you see why people don’t do it. Many believe they need more assets to create a will or trust. Plus, estate planning can feel like a big chore that costs time and money.  That’s not to mention confusing legal terms and the emotional energy required to plan for your own death. And yet… It’s one of the most important things you can do for yourself and your loved ones.  An estate plan creates peace of mind. Because once you complete it, you know you won’t leave loved ones with a costly mess when you die. In other words, estate planning is a way to continue to care for loved ones even after you’re gone.  My husband, Alan, and I recently completed our estate plan. Our motivation was to make things easier for our adult children after we’re gone.  The process was painless once we took the first steps! Below, I’ll share our recent estate planning experience and why we set up a trust. Getting past procrastination About 20 years ago, we hired an attorney to draw up a will and power of attorney documents (POAs). Our kids were little, so back then, the catalyst was to name a guardian for them. But now, the kids are adults, and those documents needed updating. Why didn’t we do it sooner? Like most people, it didn’t feel pressing and was easy to put off. Also, we didn’t know what documents we needed. And we hesitated to spend the money on an attorney to help us figure it out.   A turning point was when I read Women Who Money co-founders Amy Blacklock and Vicki Cook’s book, Estate Planning 101. After reading the book cover to cover, I better understood our options. And I knew a living trust would be a good option for us. Still, it felt like a chore. Plus, setting up a trust is more expensive than doing a will and POAs. So, we continued putting it off. Until my grandma died.  My grandma set up a trust after my grandpa died years ago. And, as my grandmother’s health deteriorated last year, my parents also set up a trust.  When grandma died, I saw firsthand how trusts work. Since Grandma had a trust, nothing passed through probate courts. As a result, my mom and uncle didn’t have to wait for the money to pay her final bills. And my grandma’s assets were transferred quickly and efficiently to her children.   Alan and I decided then that we wanted a trust to make things as easy as possible for our kids after we die. Related reading: Do I Need a Living Trust in My Estate Plan? Why we set up a living trust We felt a living trust was best since it better protected assets and made things easier for our family after we’re gone. A living trust is a separate legal entity that holds assets. Trustees can change a trust and move assets in or out anytime. Plus, it’s revocable until death. And the trust continues to have control over the assets, even after death. Read on for more on why we set up a trust. We needed to update our will anyway. Our old will was nearly 20 years old and designed to name a guardian for our then-minor children. But it needed to be revised since our kids are grown, and life has changed in many ways. We would spend the money to do a new will and power of attorney documents anyway. So, we decided that part of that cost could go toward creating a living trust.  The cost of

When it comes to return on investment (ROI) for home projects, kitchen and bathroom renovations often come to mind. But, more than ever, people value landscaping and curb appeal over other home features. And according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), landscaping projects are… Is Landscaping a Good Investment? [+ improving curb appeal on a budget] as published on Women Who Money When it comes to return on investment (ROI) for home projects, kitchen and bathroom renovations often come to mind. But, more than ever, people value landscaping and curb appeal over other home features. And according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), landscaping projects are one of the best ways to increase home value (and add enjoyment). So, you may consider a landscaping project if you plan to sell your home or improve your outdoor space.  But is landscaping worth the investment? And which outdoor projects add the most value? This article covers all that and more. Read on to find the landscaping projects with the most ROI. And discover excellent ways to improve your home’s curb appeal on a budget. What is landscaping? Before discussing yard projects, let’s define what landscaping means. Landscaping is the design and features of the area outside a home, including softscape and hardscape elements. Softscape features include plants, flowers, trees, grass, and mulch. And hardscapes are things like concrete, pavers, and stone for projects like a pool, patio, or retaining wall. Is landscaping a good investment? The short answer is yes. Improving or adding to a home’s landscaping is among the top home renovations for return on value. Why? A home’s exterior is the first impression of your property. It conveys the look of a clean, beautiful, well-maintained home (or not!). But before starting a home landscaping project, consider the ROI. Some landscaping projects have an ROI of 100% or more, while others offer much less. Which landscaping projects have the best ROI? According to the NAR, the landscaping projects below had the best ROI: Lawn care (fertilizer and weed control)Maintenance (mulching, pruning, and adding plants)Outdoor kitchen (built-in grill, ice chest, sink, countertop, etc.)Upgrading landscape (flagstone walkway, planters, adding shrubs)New patioNew wood deck The top project for ROI was lawn care, at a return in value of 217%. In other words, keeping your lawn healthy and weed-free offers the best return on your money! Other projects return 100% or less. Which landscaping projects have the worst ROI? Most landscaping projects will add to your home’s value. But you won’t recoup the cost with some projects. These landscaping projects have the lowest ROI (according to the NAR): In-ground poolsFire features (like stone gas fire kits)LightingIrrigation systems Interestingly, some projects with the worst ROI are the ones that bring homeowners the most satisfaction! That’s why it’s essential to consider your reasons for doing a project. Consider your reasons Now that you know which projects have the best ROI, consider the cost and reasons for doing it. Investing in lawn care and maintenance makes sense if you plan to sell your home. Not only will it increase value, but it will help you sell your home faster. You can even DIY lawn projects and save money to boot. But if you plan to live in a home for years, more significant landscape projects could add to your enjoyment. For example, you may add a patio, pool, or fire pit so you enjoy your outdoor space even more. Related: Which Home Renovations Return the Most Value? Improving curb appeal on a budget The good news is, improving your home’s landscaping and curb appeal doesn’t have to cost much. And many include DIY projects you can tackle. The key to curb appeal is keeping things simple, clean, and generally pleasing. Avoid trendy or expensive personal projects. Also, if you plan to sell your home soon, steer clear of big projects that need ongoing maintenance, like pools and water features. Inexpensive ways to improve curb appeal Maintenance and cleanup An excellent way to improve curb appeal is to take what you already have and make it look clean and healthy. You can even do it yourself (DIY) on a limited budget. Here are some suggestions: Get rid

There are few maxims in personal finance more beloved than “You should have a paid-off house in retirement.”  Whether they actually happen in real life or are just the stuff of legend, the dream of a middle-aged homeowner hosting a mortgage-burning party persists. But let’s… Everyone says that I should pay off my mortgage before I retire. What if I can’t? as published on Women Who Money There are few maxims in personal finance more beloved than “You should have a paid-off house in retirement.”  Whether they actually happen in real life or are just the stuff of legend, the dream of a middle-aged homeowner hosting a mortgage-burning party persists. But let’s get real. In the hottest real estate markets, a typical thirtysomething dual-income household today has little chance of homeownership.  And if you’re single? According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the median annual income for a woman in her mid-30s is about $50,000; that buys you a $200,000 house.  There are certainly places where that works, but only a few. (The current median home price in the US is $467,400.) The bottom line is that it is increasingly common for Americans to delay buying a home.  According to research published in 2021, the median first-time home-buying age is now 33, up from 29 in 1981.  Whether it’s student loan debt holding you back, outrageous home prices, or, more recently, high interest rates, there are myriad reasons why you may be entering the real estate market for the first time with more than a few gray hairs.  Paying off that “forever” home before Social Security begins may simply be a fantasy. Are you doomed to a sad retirement of canned cat food? What’s the real goal? Stepping back, a paid-off mortgage has become synonymous with a stable retirement because, for most people, housing is the biggest line item in their budget – followed by transportation and food costs. If you can mostly zero that out (taxes, maintenance, and insurance costs will always remain), your fixed retirement income need not stretch as far.  The actual goal, then, is affordable housing; a paid-off mortgage is simply one tactic to get there. Instead of comparing “having a mortgage” to “no mortgage,” why not frame the choice more realistically for those who have decided to delay homeownership into middle age?  Either because they could not afford it earlier in their adulthood or simply because they had no previous desire to be homeowners, for many, the more relevant comparison is renting in retirement vs. a mortgage.  If that is the choice, then having a mortgage can be a better path to achieving the real goal, i.e., a sustainable, affordable, and predictable budget line item for housing. Buying your first home even as “late” as your 50s allows you to lock in most of your monthly housing cost in retirement.  It’s not that your housing costs won’t rise over the years; no one can escape that.  But the increases in your housing costs, if you buy, should be more modest than never-ending year-on-year rent increases (assuming that you avoid purchasing a maintenance money pit or a home in the path of repeated natural disasters).  While every real estate market differs, the average national year-over-year rent increase from 2017 to 2022 was 5.77%. You could even see a decline in your monthly payment if you can take advantage of falling interest rates in future years.  As long as you have the income to support a mortgage application (and the desire to own a home), it is never “too late” to buy your first home.  An important cautionary note, though: Size your mortgage payment to your expected retirement income, not your current working-years salary. This may mean you will buy “less house” than your real estate agent and banker want to sell you. I have already bought my “forever” house. Should I make extra payments to pay off my mortgage early, before retirement? Ah, now that is a different — and prevalent — question. And like many personal finance questions, there are both math and emotional answers.  When your mortgage rate is low, then the numbers are pretty straightforward. If you were lucky enough to lock

We live in a world filled with alluring advertisements and seemingly indispensable products. So, it’s no wonder we sometimes buy things we don’t need and regret it later. In a survey on buyer’s remorse, Americans attributed online shopping regrets to persuasive advertising and irresistible low… Items to Stop Buying to Save Money and Curb Clutter as published on Women Who Money We live in a world filled with alluring advertisements and seemingly indispensable products. So, it’s no wonder we sometimes buy things we don’t need and regret it later. In a survey on buyer’s remorse, Americans attributed online shopping regrets to persuasive advertising and irresistible low prices. Plus, most kept their regretted purchases at home – but out of sight. We all do it. We buy things that sound and look appealing, even useful, only to have them sit and gather dust until they eventually find their way to the landfill. You know the items we’re talking about – those forgotten objects stuffed in the deepest corners of your closets and cabinets. Of course, it’s best to avoid purchasing these things in the first place. But how do you know which items to stop buying? This article reveals common culprits that can cost you money and clutter your living space. We also include questions and tips to help you evaluate your purchases. So, read on if you’re ready to save time, money, and space! Items to stop buying to save money and curb clutter Extra items on sale Whether it’s BOGO, free shipping, clearance, or “free” offers, sales promotions aim to get you to buy!  Yet, even if it seems like an irresistible deal, it still costs you when you don’t need it. So you spend money needlessly but also must store the item – even if you never use it. Asking why you would buy a sale item is crucial. Of course, it might make sense if you need, want, and actually use it. But be honest about your motivations, consider its place in your home, and ask if you’re really saving money. Related: Is Joining a Warehouse Club Worth the Money Single-purpose appliances and kitchen gadgets Small appliances and kitchen gadgets are plentiful at thrift stores and yard sales. And there’s a reason for that.  Many have limited functionality, are of low quality, and get used sparingly, if at all. Consider items like egg slicers, quesadilla makers, cupcake makers, and pizza cookers. The tasks they perform can usually be accomplished in other ways.    So, before buying these items, ask yourself a few questions.  How often will you (honestly) use the specialized gadget? Is there another way to do the same task without it? Where and how will you store it? Holiday decorations The average American spends over $200 on winter holiday decorations alone. And when you factor in other seasons and holidays, the costs quickly add up!  This decor is often bulky, cheaply made, plastic, and trendy. And it only gets used a few weeks each year, if you use it at all. That’s not to mention that it takes up tons of space and often ends up in the trash.  In other words, cutting back on seasonal decor is a practical way to save money and reduce clutter.  Related:  Holiday Shopping Tips To Prevent Post Holiday Clutter How Do I Save Money and Have a Happy Halloween? What is the Best Way to Budget for the Holidays? Trendy clothing & shoes People spend billions of dollars yearly on new clothes and shoes to keep up with fashion trends.  But keeping pace with trends can lead to impulse buys and a stockpile of low-quality items. Plus, as trends change (and they do so quickly), unworn items sit in closets taking up space. Instead, focus on buying timeless, high-quality clothing and shoes rather than the latest trends. Also, consider buying secondhand or attending clothing swaps to combat spending and a cluttered closet. Outdoor & recreational items Outdoor items are used seasonally and often get left outside to weather. Plastic furniture, camping gear, pool toys, grills and smokers, and sporting equipment take up space and often get thrown away. That doesn’t necessarily mean you shouldn’t buy and use these items.

And focusing on something new…

It’s been over a year since my last blog post, which is the longest I’ve gone without posting, EVER. It’s crazy to think this blog used to publish content almost every day of the week during the heyday of blogs!

With the workload and success of Girl With Curves collection over the past two years, a gnarly car accident, and the loss of a family member, I needed some time away from this space to focus on my mental health. In the midst of brainstorming all the ways I was going to come back to this space stronger than ever, I’ve developed a craving for something fresh and new – a place where I can continue sharing all the things I’m passionate about, without the clutter of social media’s algorithm, or having to upload to a website; a place where I can truly build a community outside of a comment section, where discussions can dive deeper than ever before, adding the type of value I personally seek in my own day-to-day life.

All of this said, I’m excited to share a new chapter, venturing into your inbox with style inspiration, noteworthy fashion finds, discussions on self-acceptance, my pursuit of wellness and more via Newsletter. My hope is that we can share experiences, form friendships, as I continue to share fashion and personal style, as well as all the things that always weigh so deeply on my heart.

As for this space, I’m still figuring out what it should be, and whether it’s still meant to be.

In the meantime, can find me posting on my Newsletter and Instagram.

Thank you so much for the love and support, always!
x Tanesha