Building and managing your wealth is a lifelong process that can have major implications for you, your children and other beneficiaries. While your path to building wealth should be tailored to your circumstances, this three-pronged approach from Freddie Mac can help you plan for a stable financial future.

1. Understand your money mindset: Understanding your relationship with money can help you identify opportunities to create healthier spending and saving habits. A positive outlook toward money can provide you with a strong base on which to build wealth and achieve goals. Conversely, a negative outlook can make you reluctant to take the steps you need to establish a strong financial history. For example, being overly focused on displaying wealth can lead to overusing credit. Likewise, becoming preoccupied with financial success to the point of anxiety can prevent you from spending the wealth you do have on items you need and want to live comfortably. By recognizing the factors that influence how you spend and save, you can make new choices that better support your financial goals.

2. Set and manage goals: Establishing and maintaining a set of defined financial goals is the next step when building wealth. Think about what you would like to accomplish over the short-, medium- and long-term, and make a savings plan to help you get there. It’s also important to take actions to safeguard your accumulated savings. This includes being mindful of inflation, guarding your information from scammers, and planning for unforeseen circumstances and emergencies.

3. Be prepared: Building an emergency fund can help you maintain financial stability by putting you in a better position to weather unexpected financial circumstances, such as a loss of income, unplanned medical bills or property damage from a storm. Creating an emergency budget can help you gauge how much you need to save, but in general, you should save up enough money to cover three to six months of your typical monthly expenses. Keep this money separate from your other savings, and don’t touch it until it’s needed. Additionally, having adequate homeowners or renters insurance will help ensure that your wealth is protected in certain unexpected circumstances. Familiarize yourself with your coverage so you understand what is and isn’t covered by your policy.

Want to know more about managing money and establishing wealth? Whether you’re renting a home, are on the path to homeownership or saving for the future, Freddie Mac’s CreditSmart, which is available in English and Spanish, offers free personalized financial educational resources. Visit creditsmart.freddiemac.com to learn more.

By adopting a healthy money mindset and setting tangible financial goals, you’ll be well on your way to a stable financial future for you and your loved ones.

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