Your personal and mental health are extremely important. Right before those two, we’d have your financial health. It matters. How do you know if you’re financially healthy? 

Start with a Credit Score

Start your quick checkup with your credit score. The higher your credit score, the healthier your finances are. This indicates to lenders that you can handle debts and are creditworthy. The better your score, the better deals and rates you may qualify for.

Retirement Savings

Use a retirement calculator to make sure you are healthy in this category. Remember, even if you can’t save a lot, every little bit helps. You can’t depend solely on Social Security alone during retirement.

Debt-to-Income 

Almost everyone has some form of debt, from what is considered good debt (mortgage) to bad debt (credit cards).

• What is DTI? The thing to watch for your financial health is your debt-to-income ratio. This refers to the percentage of your monthly income that is spent on paying debts.
• How is DTI Calculated? All you have to do to find your ratio is divide your monthly debt payments by your gross monthly income. You want your ratio to be 35 percent or less.

Short Term Savings 

If you want to be financially healthy, you must have a short-term savings and/or emergency fund. Ideally, you want to have saved enough to cover six months of fixed expenses. 

Take the Next Step Toward Financial Health

Just like your physical and mental health, your financial health deserves regular checkups. Understanding your credit score, managing debt, saving for retirement, and building an emergency fund all work together to create long-term financial stability.

The good news is you do not have to figure it out on your own. Solidarity offers SavvyMoney, a free credit score and credit monitoring tool that allows you to check your credit, track changes over time, and access personalized tips to help improve your financial standing—all without impacting your score.

Log in to online or mobile banking to use Solidarity’s SavvyMoney credit checker today, or stop by one of our branches to speak with a team member. We are here to help you take control of your financial health with confidence.