Mid-Year Money 2025

Wars! Tariffs! DOGE! The Fed! Interest rates! We are just six months into the year and if you are feeling overwhelmed by the news flow, it’s time to address something over which you have some control: your money. If you're like most people, those ambitious financial resolutions you made in January may be gathering dust somewhere between your abandoned gym membership and that meditation app you used exactly twice. Don't beat yourself up, here are six steps to help you make some smart money moves.

Step One: Find the Money

Review your spending from the first half of the year. Pull up bank statements and credit card bills. You might discover that returning to an office five days a week has meant too many lunches out. Or that your streaming services now cost more than that cable bundle that you abandoned. A recent CNET survey found that the average U.S. adult spends $1,080 per year on subscriptions, that’s $90 bucks per month! There are a lot of apps to help, but the goal is to identify the amount available to save more money and/or pay down your debt.

Step Two: Defend Against Junk Fees

Although the Trump Administration maintained most of the Biden era prohibition fees that are designed either to confuse or deceive consumers, with DOGE cuts and the near-elimination of the CFPB, it’s hard to imagine that consumer-facing infractions will garner much attention. That means the onus is on all of us to keep up our guard on everything from bank overdraft and non-sufficient funds fees, credit card late payment fees, hotel resort fees, airline baggage and change fees, service and cable fees. One way to fight these pernicious fees is to methodically review the categories of spending where they usually pop up. Doing this all at once is a bear, so focus on one each month.

Step Three: Review Your Insurance Coverage

Life changes, and so should your insurance. Got married/divorced? Had a baby? Received a new diagnosis? Bought a house? Many of these milestones impact your health, auto, home, and life insurance. Of particular focus should be home/renters’ coverage as well as car insurance. These two categories have skyrocketed since the pandemic, with auto insurance up by more than 50 percent since 2020 (BLS) and home insurance premiums soaring by 24 percent in three years, (Consumer Federation of America).  To defray some of the increase, shop around, consider bundling coverage, educate yourself on ways to qualify for a discount (security systems, paying for a full year vs. monthly, take a defensive driving course), and consider dropping collision and/or comprehensive coverages on older cars.

Step Four: Earn More by Asking for It!

It’s been three years since interest rates peaked and yet many savers are still sitting in accounts that are earning peanuts. Scour the internet and/or ask for higher yielding safe money accounts from the institutions with whom you do business. In many instances, if you don’t ask, you don’t get!

Step Five: Review and Rebalance Retirement Accounts

If you have multiple retirement accounts, try to combine them to make it easier to monitor, manage, and rebalance. If you have a good workplace plan, you may be able to roll old retirement accounts in; otherwise, you can simply choose the financial institution that has a user-friendly platform. Wherever you keep your accounts, be sure to rebalance them once or twice a year. Rebalancing is the action that keeps your desired allocation in check, and it often results in selling some of what's performed well and buying more of what's lagged, essentially buying low and selling high.

Step Six: Revisit Retirement Account Contributions

If your cash flow allows, consider boosting your retirement savings. The employer-based plan contribution limit for 2025 is $23,500, plus an additional $7,500 if you're 50 or older. Even a one percent increase in your contribution rate can make a significant difference over time, thanks to compound growth.

BONUS STEP: Start or Complete Estate Planning

What would a mid-year update be without me nudging you to prepare/update your will, power of attorney, and health care proxy. If you don’t want to hire a qualified estate attorney, there are plenty of online choices.