Financial Wellness Checkup Guide for 2026

The beginning of each year is a great time to sit down, look at your finances, and take stock of what you’d like to accomplish for the year. It could be the perfect next step to uncover ways to strengthen your budget and prepare for future milestones.

What does Financial Wellness mean?

The key to financial wellness is how you feel about being in control of your finances. The Consumer Finance Protection Bureau defines financial wellness as the extent that you feel that you:

• Have control over day-to-day, month-to-month finances,
• Have the capacity to absorb financial shock,
• Are on track to meet your financial goals, and
• Have financial freedom to make the choices that allow you to enjoy life.

While you don’t need to have all these things in place to be considered “financially well,” these are great goals to strive for.

Why a Financial Wellness Checkup is important

Reading this blog post is the first right step in the direction of financial wellness, as education will empower you to make informed decisions about your financial future. The more you know, the more you can be proactive.

When you decide to initiate a financial wellness checkup, you’re essentially doing an overview of certain aspects of your finances, such as:

• Your credit report
• Debt, and calculation of your debt-to-income ratio
• Cashflow
• Savings goals
• Long-term financial planning
• Anything else you think is important to review

You can choose to conduct your own financial wellness checkup at home, or to assist you for free. A team member can also refer you to experts on a specific topic that you may be interested in, such as financial counseling (for a deeper dive into your finances), lending, financial recovery planning, and more.

Just like a regular tune-up keeps your car or bike running smoothly, a financial wellness checkup helps ensure your money is working for you.

What an in-person Financial Checkup is like

Sometimes, having a financial professional on your side who is invested in your success can be the confidence you need to set goals and achieve them. EastRise offers free Financial Wellness Checkup appointments, as may other financial institutions.

At your Financial Wellness Checkup appointment, you’ll inform the team member of the goals that you would like to accomplish.

Financial goals that you are working toward can include things like how to earn interest on your savings, reviewing your credit report and learning ways to improve it, how to consolidate debt, or adjusting current loans because you’re feeling tight financially. Every person has a unique financial situation, and the team member who you work with will address your unique financial standing with you.

Bringing a list of documents is not required to attend the appointment, but it is helpful. Here are a few items that you can consider bringing:

• Information about any debt you’d like to discuss (payment amounts, interest rates, length of debt term).
• Most recent bank statements, credit card statements, or any other statements that you’d like to review.
• A copy of your full credit report from annualcreditreport.com
• Income information (most recent paystub).
• Your goals for your finances.
• Anything else that you think is important to mention.

How to do your own Financial Wellness Checkup

For some people, finances are a private matter. A recent Bankrate survey revealed that approximately 40% of U.S. adults have kept a financial secret from their partner. You may feel more comfortable doing your own review at home than having someone look at your finances, and that is OK, too.

Here are a few helpful ideas to get started on your own. If you find that you get stuck at any point, you can always talk it through with someone.

A Financial Wellness Checkup begins with data collection. Here’s a checklist of items to collect data about:

Debt

• Make a list of all your debts and the interest rates for each one. Then, assess how much of your debt payments are interest, and how much go to the principal amount. Note if any interest rates have increased on variable rate products.
• See how much of your gross monthly income goes towards things like housing and transportation. I always suggest to members that the max you should allocate toward transportation is 15%, as anything else may be difficult to manage. When you look at your housing debt, this should include things like payment, taxes, and homeowners’ insurance. I suggest that housing should not take up more than 30-35% of your gross monthly income.

Credit history and score

• Head to annualcreditreport.com and pull your credit report. Review it page by page and be on the lookout for any items that could potentially reduce your credit score, such as credit card debt, late payment history, charge-offs/collections, fraud/ID theft that you don’t recognize, foreclosures, and bankruptcy.
• It is important to make sure that your credit report is accurate. Do you recognize all the items on your credit report? At this stage you are just collecting data to know what is on your report, but if there is anything inaccurate, it could warrant action.

Cashflow

• Take a look at the money you have coming in and calculate how much of your income is going toward debt and expenses. Do you have the ability to put a little extra money on the side into savings?
• You should also consider the need for extra cashflow to save for non-monthly expenses that are needed, such as a new winter coat, or wants that could be coming in the future, like a tropical vacation. Your cashflow should be able to cover a small financial emergency if it arises. Now is the time to put a plan in place in case that emergency happens.
• Also, be on the lookout for areas where you can cut back on spending. Do you really use that gym membership or extra streaming service?
• Insurance is also something that I recommend members shop around every 2-3 years. There could be cheaper rates out there that still meet your needs.
• The last step is to consider your future self. Make sure you are allocating a portion of your income to retirement and have a plan for yourself when you won’t be able to work one day.

Beneficiaries and Security

• Make sure that all of your accounts have a beneficiary listed.
• Designate a person to handle your finances in the event that you become hospitalized or unable to manage your money. Also be sure to have a list of your financial status if someone does need to step in.
• If you are married, that does not grant you full access to your spouse’s accounts. If you would like your spouse to have access to an account, consider a joint account that you can both access. Beneficiaries can only access account funds when someone passes away.
• Ensure that all of your financial accounts have a good password to protect yourself from fraud.

Final Thought

Your financial future starts with the choices you make today. Taking time for a financial wellness checkup is one of the most effective ways to stay in control of your money this year. Whether you choose to review your finances on your own or meet with someone, this simple step can help you uncover opportunities and set realistic financial goals.