Losing weight and improving one’s finances are almost always at the top of most people’s lists of New Year’s resolutions. It makes sense to look out for your physical and financial health so you can enjoy life to the fullest. Following through on your resolutions is usually the tough part — it takes changes in certain behaviors, discipline and time to experience and maintain the results. This is as true for financial planning as it is for losing weight.

If improving your finances is one of your New Year’s resolutions, here are five steps you can take starting Jan. 1:

Immediately Pay Down Holiday Bills and Credit Cards.

Many people splurge on holiday gifts, parties and travel in December, but the bills will come due in January. Resolve to pay down those debts quickly to avoid large interest charges on your credit cards.

Set a goal to pay off the total amount on one card within a few months, if not sooner. If you or your spouse expects a bonus check from your employer in early 2018, use at least some amount from this check to pay down debt. Finally, start by paying off the credit card with the smallest balance. Even though this card may not have the highest interest rate, paying off the total amount on one card will provide the motivation to keep paying off the others.

Build an Emergency Fund.

Everyone should have at least three to six months of their living expenses set aside in a cash savings account. This number should be higher when you are retired, such as one to three years of spending needs, and should be coordinated with your overall investment mix. In order to accomplish this goal when you are working, set up an automatic draft from your paycheck into a separate savings account. This account can be used for emergency car and household expenses and will help avoid piling up new credit card debt on top of the existing debt from the holidays.

I personally use an online bank for my savings account. Online financial institutions often pay higher interest rates on cash and CDs than traditional brick-and-mortar institutions. Here’s another tip: Consider using different banks for your savings account and your checking account. It’s a little less tempting to access your savings account when the spending impulse strikes if it’s not at the same place as your checking account.

Increase 401(k) Retirement Plan Contributions.

The amount each person can contribute to a 401(k) retirement plan is increasing by $500 in 2018, to $18,500 for individuals under age 50 and $24,500 for people 50 and older. Everyone who is working should resolve to save an extra $500 for retirement this coming year.

If you are getting a raise going into 2018, increase your 401(k) savings rate by the amount of your raise if you are not funding your 401(k) to the maximum already. This is a discipline I have followed since receiving my first paycheck at age 22 — I kept increasing my 401(k) savings rate each year until I was able to reach the savings limit, and I’ve never looked back.

Let’s say you are getting a $5,000 raise in 2018. If you save this amount annually over the next 10 years, and at an average annual investment return of 5%, your retirement savings can be over $60,000 higher. That could buy you a shiny new car in retirement.

Rebalance Existing 401(k) and Retirement Account Investments.

In addition to adding to your retirement account, review your existing investments in January to ensure a reasonable mix of stocks and bonds. With equity markets at all-time highs, the percentage of your funds in stocks may now be higher than you planned. Over time, an investment account that is overweight in stocks can grow substantially, but during a recession or stock market downturn your balance can suffer, too.

If retirement is right around the corner for you, it’s especially important to consider the amount of stocks or stock mutual funds you are comfortable owning. Finally, while you are logged into your retirement accounts, check to see that your beneficiary designations are correct and up to date.

Review Home and Car Insurance Policies.

Over the last five years, the consumer price index for auto insurance has gone up over 20%, compared with the overall CPI of 4.5% during this period. Many insurance companies raise auto and home insurance premiums each year, and even small increases can add up over time.

I recommend sitting down with your insurance agent every three years to make certain you are taking advantage of any discounts available, and that you have proper coverage, given changing asset values. Managing risks and protecting your assets is an important part of financial planning. Also, review the deductible amount on each of your auto and home policies. This move can significantly lower premiums now. If you have an adequate emergency fund built up, you should be able to cover a higher deductible in the event of a loss.

It’s time to make New Year’s resolutions stick. Look out for your personal and financial well-being this coming year. You’ll find that making small progress will empower you, and motivate you to reach your goals. And the following year you may just resolve to keep your 2018 resolutions going!

Det finansielle chok, tilføjer en teenager til en familie bil forsikring bliver mindre chokerende — i det mindste noget.

En årlig analyse af insuranceQuotes, en sats sammenligning site, viste, at tilføje en teenager stadig øget årlige præmier betydeligt, men omfanget af stigningen har været faldende i de sidste par år.

Føje en enkelt teenager til en politik, der forårsagede årlige præmier at øge et gennemsnit på 78 procent eller $671. Men renteforhøjelser har været faldende siden 2013, hvor den gennemsnitlige stigning var 85 procent.

Laura Adams, forsikring senioranalytiker med insuranceQuotes, sagde, at faktorer i tendensen kan omfatte sikrere biler teknologi, en dukkert i antallet af teenagere får kørekort og den fortsatte virkning af "graduerede" drivende programmer, der restriktioner på nye drivere, indtil de får mere erfaring på vejen.

Men virkningen af tilføje teenagere en politik er stadig et ryk til familier, især de tilføje drenge. Sætte en mandlig teenager på din forsikringspolice steg priser gennemsnitligt 89 procent, sammenlignet med 66 procent for en kvindelig teenager, analyse fundet.

Ms. Adams sagde præmier øges, når en teenager blev tilføjet fordi, statistisk, yngre bilister — især drenge-har flere ulykker end ældre, mere erfarne chauffører, og fil mere forsikringskrav.

Næsten 1.900 drivere i alderen 15 til 20 døde i bilulykker i 2015, ifølge den National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, op 9 procent fra 2014.

Motordrevet køretøj nedbrud er den hyppigste årsag til dødsfald blandt teenagere, Ifølge Centers for Disease Control og forebyggelse.

Som med de fleste forsikringsudgifter varierer virkningen af tilføjer en teenager efter stat. Tilføje en teenager i Rhode Island bump op præmier med mere end 150 procent, mens forældre i Hawaii får omkring en 8% stigning.

Til analysen hyrede insuranceQuotes kvadrant Information Services, en forsikring data firma, til at beregne prisstigning på tilføje en driver i alderen 16 til 19 til en familie bil forsikringspolice. Gennemsnittene er baseret på en hypotetisk par — en mand og en kvinde, både 45 år gammel, gift og beskæftigede — der hver drive 12.000 miles hvert år og har god kredit og drivende poster. Politikken testet inkluderet $100.000 for skade ansvar, $300.000 for alle skader, en $500 selvrisiko på kollision og omfattende dækning, og uforsikrede bilist dækning.

Her er nogle spørgsmål og svar om teenagere og auto forsikring:

Hvordan kan jeg reducere omkostningerne ved at have en teenage driveren på min politik?

Kathy Bernstein Harris, senior manager for teenage drivende initiativer på den nationale sikkerhed Råd, en nonprofit, sagde, at nogle forsikringsselskaber tilbydes rabatter for studerende, der får gode karakterer (selv om det har ikke nødvendigvis klart, at det at være en god elev. korrelerer med sikrere kørsel). Rabatter er også ofte tilgængelige for nye bilister, der tager driverens undervisning klasser.

Ms. Harris sagde den bedste måde at reducere fordringer og holde omkostningerne nede – og holde dit barn sikkert — var at fastsætte regler og bruge tid på at køre med teenagere og coaching dem langs, selv når de passerer deres førerens licens tests. Ikke "bare at komme et stykke plastic betyder, de er helt forberedt på den åbne landevej," sagde hun. "Det første år af uafhængige kørsel er de farligste."

Mange statslige programmer angivelse af begrænsninger for teenage chauffører, som udgangsforbud for nat kørsel og begrænse antallet af andre mennesker, især andre teenagere, der kan ride i bilen med dem. Ms. Harris opfordrer forældre til at følge disse regler. "Med hver teen passager, du lægger i bilen," sagde hun, risikoen for et nedbrud øger.

Rådets DriveitHome websted tilbyder ressourcer til forældre og teenage chauffører, herunder interaktive sikkerhedstest.

Er nogle biler sikrere end andre teenagere til at køre?

De Insurance Institute for Highway Safety offentliggør hvert år en liste over sikre og overkommelige biler for teenagere. Generelt er er større, tungere køretøjer bedst.

Ms. Harris tyder på, at forældre ikke købe en ny bil specifikt for deres nye teenage driver — eller, hvis de gør, at de gør det klart, at bilen er familiens bil i stedet for teenage-førerens personlige køretøj. Ved at give bilen en "familie" bil, sagde hun, kan forældre bedre regler for dens anvendelse og taler om hvor deres barn er overskriften og der forventes at gå.

Hun rådgiver også, at få unge involveret i forske i sikkerhed og prisen på en ny bil, som en måde at lære dem lektioner om budgettering, og understreger behovet for sikker kørevaner.

Er der apps, der kan medvirke til at reducere distraheret driving?

Teknologi er ved at opstå, kan deaktivere SMS-beskeder og sociale medier på mobiltelefoner, mens bilen er i bevægelse. Ét system, Cellcontrol, blev for nylig positivt gennemgået af Consumer Reports.

Organisationen tilbyder også andre tips til at reducere distraheret driving og øge sikkerheden for teenage drivere på sin hjemmeside.

Vores mission er at beskytte og forbedre de finansielle ressourcer for vores kunder, således at sikre deres sikkerhed og livskvalitet, ved at levere lyd professionel ledelse service.

Donavan Insurance Group Services Inc. blev etableret i 1986 som et uafhængigt forsikring agentur med et ry for overlegen Service. Donna Martin-Boseker, der har været i branchen siden 1976, havde tidligere arbejdet i agenturet, når det var kendt som Domex forsikring. Hun købte virksomheden i 1986 og omdøbt det Donavan Insurance Services Inc. Vi repræsenterer vores kunders bedste interesser og skræddersy løsninger for deres særlige forsikringsbehov. Vi tilbyder en bred portefølje af forsikringer luftfartsselskaber med yderst konkurrencedygtige priser. Vores dækningsområder omfatter alle former for forretnings- og personlige forsikring.

How you can use car insurance firms' own tricks against them to lower your car insurance premium and get a cheaper quote - 6 secrets revealed

Sometimes car insurance premiums make sense. People living in places with more car crime or who have more expensive cars pay more, for example. But they're far from the only thing insurers up your premium for.

Insurers have gone as far as working out surgeons normally have more accidents where they were to blame than any other profession and building society clerks the fewest. They know Virgos were worst for accidents last year, but Pisceans had more convictions.

That means they will up your premium based on age, sex, job, post code and where you park as well as what you drive.

But car insurance providers don't have to have to have it all their own way – we’ve found six ways to get cheaper car insurance that they’d really rather you didn’t know.

1. Use the right job title

If you describe yourself as a “chef” when filling in your car insurance application your average quote is £98 higher than if you write “kitchen staff” comparison site GoCompare.com found – and it’s not just cooks that have this problem.

1. Add another more experienced driver to the policy

It’s a crime to say someone who isn’t the main driver of a car is, but adding a secondary driver is perfectly legal - and more than that, it can save you money.

1. Never leave it till the last minute

Searching around and switching car insurance three weeks before your renewal date, rather than on the day, saves you an average of £280, comparison site Comparethemarket found – with even bigger savings available for younger drivers.

1. Get some cash back

Comparison sites make money because when you switch products with them they get a referral fee from the insurer. But if you’re clever, you can get that money yourself.

1. Pay up front

Did you know that many insurers charge interest on your payments if you spread the cost over the year? Well, they do. an average of £62 more Moneysupermarket worked out. So if at all possible, pay up front.

1. Cut your extras and boost your excess

What’s included in your car insurance quote? Breakdown cover? Windscreen cover? Theft from the car? Driving abroad? Personal accident cover? A courtesy car? Every extra adds to the premium. More than that, a lot of them might already be covered by things like your travel insurance, AA membership, home insurance or even your bank account.

Our mission is to protect and enhance the financial resources of our clients, thus ensuring their security and quality of life, by providing sound professional management service.

Donavan Insurance Group Services Inc. was established in 1986 as an independent insurance agency with a reputation for Superior Service. Donna Martin-Boseker, who has been in this industry since 1976, had previously worked in the agency when it was known as Domex Insurance. She purchased the business in 1986 and renamed it Donavan Insurance Services Inc. We represent the best interests of our clients and tailor solutions for their specific insurance needs. We offer a broad portfolio of insurance carriers with highly competitive rates. Our coverages include all forms of business and personal insurance.