Jim Lorenzen, CFP®, AIF®
Guess what?
The government require Americans to take financial literacy courses in college. The Financial Literacy and Education Commission, chaired by U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, released a report earlier this year with the recommendation that financial literacy be emphasized in school, even suggesting “mandatory financial literacy courses.” Considering how ill-prepared most people are for retirement, this may not be a bad idea!
The report also suggested providing those needing to improve their financial literacy with actionable financial information. “A body of evidence indicates that financial education alone has had a small impact on financial behaviors, in part because financial knowledge decays within two years of the lesson,” the report noted. “Behaviorally based strategies,” for example providing Social Security benefit estimates to individuals near retirement age, instead of arbitrarily providing that information, tends to be more helpful for individuals. So, relevant information – the kind they can actually use – may be just the ticket!
You can see the report here.
Jim
Jim Lorenzen is a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® professional and an ACCREDITED INVESTMENT FIDUCIARY® serving private clients since 1991. Jim is Founding Principal of The Independent Financial Group, a registered investment advisor with clients located across the U.S.. He is also licensed for insurance as an independent agent under California license 0C00742. The Independent Financial Group does not provide legal or tax advice and nothing contained herein should be construed as securities or investment advice, nor an opinion regarding the appropriateness of any investment to the individual reader. The general information provided should not be acted upon without obtaining specific legal, tax, and investment advice from an appropriate licensed professional.
