How Good Dental Health Can Save You Money in the Long Run

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Everyone is looking for a way to save money no matter how much they make or spend. The world is filled with people looking to make wise financial decisions, and many of them forget just how easy it is to save money in the future by making wise decisions today. 

One of those wise decisions involves seeing the dentist regularly. You might think it costs you money to see the dentist when you could just skip out on those appointments and save a copay, but you’re mistaken in thinking this. 

Seeing the dentist regularly actually saves you more in the long run. 

You Catch Problems Earlier

When you make it a habit to see your dental professional at least twice a year as recommended, you save a lot of money in the long run. The more often you see your dental professional, the more likely they are to find issues within your mouth before they have a chance to get worse. 

When your dentist is able to locate and identify dental issues inside of six months, you get a chance to have them cared for now for a lot less than they might cost later.

For example, if your dentist locates a cavity before it even has a chance to break through the tooth, they can get rid of it for a lot less money now than they can after it’s had time to get into the tooth and cause major damage. The longer dental issues sit without resolve the more expensive they become to fix. 

Cleanings Prevent Health Issues

Imagine how much money people spend when they spend weeks in the hospital following a heart attack, or how much money they spend on prescriptions when they’re diagnosed with heart disease or diabetes. Imagine the cost of fighting cancer. 

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Every time you skip a trip to the dentist, you increase your risk of being diagnosed with one or more of these health issues. This means you might be the person spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on medical bills to fight a life-threatening disease if you forgo the dental office visits recommended.

According to River Region Dentistry, a Montgomery dental clinic, every time your teeth are cleaned your dentist makes it less likely that you will develop gum disease or periodontal disease. 

It’s a lot better to go to the dentist now and pay a small copay than it is to pay for major disease treatment later. Think of every visit as investment in your future.

You’re Educated

The more you visit your dentist, the more you learn. When you learn more about your oral health, you learn a lot more about your good health. It’s easy to care for your teeth when you have the help of someone who is familiar with dental health helping you along the way. 

Your dentist is going to help you find your weak spots, and he or she is going to provide you with tips and tricks that might make it easier for you to brush and floss and maintain better oral health.

Dental insurance is relatively affordable for many people, and it helps offset the cost of dental procedures. If you don’t want to see the dentist when you’re scheduled, just remember that you might really pay for that decision later. Your overall health is not worth the few dollars you might save now. 

Call the dentist to schedule an appointment. Your health depends on making this call, and so does the bottom line in your financial future. Good health and good financial decisions come with making the right decisions now. Don’t do what’s easy. Do what’s right.

Forex Trading: Ways to Supplement Your Retirement Income

“You can be young without money, but you can’t be old without it.” - Tennessee Williams

Many people dream of the day that they can retire and relax, spending time doing what they currently do not have the freedom to do. However; the challenge is to ensure that they have saved enough to retire on. The combination of living longer, as well as reduced savings, are forcing people to work longer or retire on less than they originally anticipated.

Peter Vanham in his article titled "Global Pension Timebomb: Funding Gap Set to Dwarf World GDP" notes that "the world’s six largest pension systems will have a joint shortfall of $224 trillion by 2050, imperiling the incomes of future generations and setting the industrialized world up for the biggest pension crisis in history."




Many solutions to this problem are being touted such as increasing the retirement age as well as providing people with 70% of their pre-retirement income. However, this goes against the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) guidelines for providing people with a similar standard of living during retirement as before retirement.

Therefore, the question that begs is what do you do to supplement your retirement income? 

Supplementing your income through currency market trading

You might be financially stable, and you don’t need to earn extra money. However, you have a lot of time on your hands, and you enjoy a new challenge and thrive on the chance to learn a new skill. Therefore, why don’t you consider Forex or currency market trading? 

By way of backing up the validity of considering Forex trading as a viable retirement side hustle, let’s look at the psychological advantages of being a financially stable investor. As a financial advisor from Weiss Finance notes: “The easiest psychological situation for traders is when there is little or no pressure to make a profit immediately or regularly. 

This situation allows them to make decisions when they are not stressed; ergo, they do not rush trading decisions and take the time to research and investigate potential trades thoroughly.”

THE BASICS OF FOREX TRADING

The Forex market

Investing in the global foreign exchange market is slightly different to conventional stock market trading in that the world’s currency market is not housed in one brick and mortar building. It is a decentralized market, where financial centers in London, Paris, New York, Hong Kong, as well as Zurich are all electronically linked together. 

All aspects of currency trading such as buying, exchanging, and selling currencies at current or predetermined prices are conducted through this network of global financial centers.

Currency pairs

Currencies are also always traded in pairs. The world’s four major currency pairs being the US Dollar and the British Pound (USD/GBP), US Dollar and the Euro (USD/EUR), US Dollar and the Swiss Franc (USD/CHF), and finally the US Dollar and the Japanese Yen (USD/JPY).

Currencies are quoted in amounts up to four decimal places, and the value of both currencies in a currency pair is quoted in relation to each other. For example, the USD/GBP exchange rate is quoted as 1 USD = 0.7767 GBP. 

These figures mean that 1 USD will cost you 0.7767 GBP to buy. Conversely, if you have GBP to exchange for USD, you will receive $1.30 for every £1 that you have.

In conclusion

This is just a basic introduction to investing in foreign currencies. Apart from learning the technical aspects of monitoring currency pair movements, overall market movements, as well as learning to understand the impact that the global geopolitical events, as well as the corresponding socioeconomic conditions, can have on the world’s currencies, it is important to trade carefully and practice risk-aversion strategies. 

The older you get, the less you should risk losing your retirement savings. The caveat here is that all financial market trading has an element of risk attached to it. Without risk, there will never be any gains. 

Therefore, you cannot and should not avoid risk; however, you must mitigate your risk of losing large sums of money by trading cautiously, only risking small amounts on each trade, and by choosing an appropriate trading strategy based on the current global conditions.

4 Apps to Help You Manage Your Money

When it comes to handling money, it can be a struggle to remember to save a percentage of your paycheck every month, figure out how and where to invest your money, and budget how much money you spend on fast food and going out every month. The vast majority of American adults report that money is among their top three stressors.

However, technology can change that. While it might be difficult for you to sit down regularly and crunch numbers on a spreadsheet, apps have made it easy to make smart money management a part of everyday life. 

It’s just one way that an app outweighs a computer program when it comes to habit management and convenience. There are a few apps that can make budgeting, saving, and managing money a breeze. Here are a few of my favorites: 

Digit

This app helps you save money every single day. The first month is free, and then after that it’s $5 a month. You connect this app to your bank account, and then it uses an algorithm to figure out how much money you can afford to save that day. 

It takes into account all of your spending habits, and also the total amount you have in your bank account that day. Some days it may only save $0.20, and other days the savings may be closer to $20.

You can set your preferences within the app. For example, you can put a limit on how much it saves every day, and then also tell it to never save money if you have less than a certain amount in your bank account. 

Digit is an easy way to save money without even thinking about it. Before you know it, you’ll have a few thousand dollars saved away and you won’t have even noticed. This is perfect if you’ve been trying to save for an emergency fund, but haven’t been able to put very much away. 

Acorns

If you’re having a hard time figuring out how to invest your money, Acorns is the app for you. This app works in the same way as Digit where it makes the most of your spare change, or the leftover money that you won’t miss. 

You simply connect your credit or debit card to the app. Any time you make a purchase, it will round the purchase up to the next dollar and invest the leftover cents. It invests in over 7,000 different stocks, to reduce risk and make the most out of your spare change. 

Using Acorns means that you don’t have to spend time trying to figure out how the stock market works. You can just go to happy hour and grocery shopping like normal, and suddenly you’re investing. 

Mint

This app helps you budget your money. You connect it to your checking account, so you have a real time balance of how much money you have available to spend. After entering in the amount of your necessary bills and expenses every month, it will tell you how much you have left to budget out however you want. 

It also tracks your spending, so if you exceed your set budget one month, it will alert you. Mint helps you be more aware of your spending, because you can very clearly see how much you’re spending on fast food or travel every month. 

Prism

Prism helps you pay all of your bills! It tracks your payday and every single recurring bill that you have. You won’t have to check a dozen different websites to check the balance of your utility bill and credit cards, you can just open Prism on your phone and see everything laid out with the balance and the due dates. 

It can help you schedule when to pay them, so you’ll never have a late fee again. Not only will this app help you keep track of every single one of your bills, it also makes paying your bills a breeze. Your credit score will stay safe because you’ll never forget about a bill ever again.

5 Ways to Manage Your Finances During A Divorce

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Divorce is not only a devastating experience for families, but it can be a costly one as well. The average cost of divorce in the U.S. ranges from $15,000 to $20,000, and the majority goes to divorce lawyers’ fees. 

Apart from legal fees, there are also alimony payments, the division of assets, and possible taxes, and costs can go even higher. For your peace of mind and to get your life back on track, it’s important to find ways to manage your finances and pay the bills during a divorce.

Common financial issues of divorce

There are several financial issues that need to be resolved during a divorce. First is the division of property, and both you and your ex will have to come to an agreement over who gets which items. Another is the division of debt. 

Often, this issue is one of the most difficult things to resolve as couples can find it hard to determine who is responsible for certain debts incurred during the marriage. You’ll also need to agree on tax issues such as who gets to claim Head of Household status or who gets tax exemption for dependents once you’re divorced. 



Divorce itself can be emotionally stressful, but it’s imperative to take concrete steps to resolve these financial issues during this trying time. Here are 5 ways to manage your finances during a divorce.

Consult with a reputable divorce attorney

Consulting with an experienced divorce attorney can provide you with the financial guidance that you need during this challenging time. 

Even if you are in good terms with your soon-to-be ex, you will need a lawyer to help you avoid making typical financial mistakes during a divorce. Moreover, your lawyer can help you in case a financial dispute arises.

Create a new budget

You will need to figure out how much income you should make for you to live on your own. To do this, list down your expenses, utility bills, credit card bills, investments, tax records, family life insurance policies, and the like. 

Determine which items you and your ex can pay off during your divorce and pay your debts. You should also make sure that your ex pays the bills that he or she promises to pay.

Open your own personal credit card

During the divorce, Katherine Grier, PC advises that you close any joint accounts to avoid financial disputes and problems from coming up. This way, you and your ex can work on paying only the debts that you incurred during your marriage. After you close your joint accounts, you should open your own personal credit card or other lines of credit.

Monitor your credit score

During your divorce, it’s likely that your credit scores will drop as you close accounts and make other changes in your finances. Check if any mistakes were made by a creditor which contributed to your lower credit score or if there’s any debt on certain accounts that were incurred without your knowledge.

Be prepared to make a lifestyle change

Now that your income will be drastically different, it’s important to be prepared for a lifestyle change during your divorce. Keep in mind that divorce will bring in new expenses and you will no longer be sharing household overhead costs with another person. It’s also important to talk to your children about the lifestyle changes that may take place during this time.

Divorce is tough enough without having to worry about your finances, but it’s one of the major hurdles that you have to get through to get your life back on track. Remember to consult your lawyer, keep track of debts and expenses, and be ready to make a few lifestyle adjustments to manage your finances well during your divorce.