Windfalls

Call it what you want. Getting Lucky. Being blessed. The moon and stars aligning. Sometimes things happen and you end up with an unexpected sum of money in your pocket—now you need to know what to do with it. We are going to give you some suggestions on how to maximize your windfall, whether it be big or small.

$500 –

• Start or pad your emergency fund. Adding $500 is going to go a long way toward covering those unexpected expenses in life. It would be a shame to blow $500 at the mall and then your ride breaks down. I’m sure your mechanic isn’t going to accept payment in Dooney&Burke or Sean John.
•    Pay down that credit card balance. The average American household had $9000 of credit card debt. Those extra few dollars you pay now can make a big difference in the end.
• Take a cooking/art/language class. Investing in yourself pays off big. Why not take the opportunity to learn something new?

$5,000 –

• Fund your IRA for the year. Here is a great way to get yourself a little closer to your retirement goal. The maximum contribution is $4,000
• Start an online brokerage account. There is no better way to learn about investing than to do it yourself. Compile a list of stocks, mutual funds or ETF’s, do your research and then have at it.
• Travel overseas. It’s called globalization people. You better embrace it or get left behind. Go see the Great Wall, or the Roman ruins, or the Taj Mahal.

$20,000 –

• Pay your car/student loans/credit cards off. You’ll be floating on air with all that debt off of your shoulders.
• Make a down payment on a house or investment property. You know that at UMO we are all about ownership. Owning real estate is key to building wealth.
• Start a business. The majority of millionaires didn’t get that way by punching the clock everyday. Twenty grand can go along way towards financing your start up dreams. 

As always for more information check us out at www.urbanmoneyonline.com