1. Zoe Richardson: A Comprehensive Financial Plan
Debt Management, Savings Strategy, and Long-Term Goals. Rhino Financial Services.
Presentation focus
Judges are expecting recommendations in four areas: debt, savings, insurance, and taxes. The strongest presentation connects every recommendation to Zoe’s goals, cash flow, and timeline.
Image gallery with transcriptions
2. Presentation Roadmap
01 Define Goals; 02 Assess Current State; 03 General Advice; 04 Goal-based Advice; 05 Implementation.
3. 01 Define Goals
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4. Goals
Pay off credit card; Obtain solo apartment; Save for retirement; Afford international travel; Build emergency fund.
5. 02 Assess Current State
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6. Current State
Checking $1,800; Savings $2,400; Roth 401(k) $1,330. Gross salary $4,583; net income $3,788. Taxes $728; health insurance $150; Roth 401(k) $130; car loan payment $280; student loan $310; credit card minimum payment $95; fixed expenses $1,865; housing and utilities $1,180; utilities $160; variable expenses $1,060; surplus $583.
7. Challenges
22% APR credit card debt; no adequate emergency fund; limited cash flow for multiple financial goals; competing priorities including debt, travel, housing, and retirement.
8. 03 General Advice
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9. Consolidate Variable Expenses
Before/after monthly variable expenses: personal expenses $250 to $200; gas $150 to $150; entertainment $60 to $20, using Disney+/Hulu/Max; groceries $350 to $350; eating out $250 to $160, or $40 per week. Total $1,060 to $880.
10. Insurance
Maintain current health insurance; use healthy living incentives; get renter's insurance; keep employer-provided baseline life insurance; ensure auto coverage meets the state minimum; use safe-driving discounts.
11. Tax Consideration
Claim student loan interest deduction; review tax withholdings; consider an HSA if eligible.
12. Additional Streams of Income
Freelance opportunities: copywriter $40/hr; social media manager $800/month; proofreader. Income can vary by month, but this can be treated as an average.
13. 04 Goal-based Advice
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14. Debt Repayment
Avalanche method: credit card debt $3,200 at 22%; car loan $7,500 at 5.5%; student loans $28,000 at 4.8%. Consider 18-month 0 APR balance transfer with a 3% transfer fee.
15. Emergency Fund
Monthly expenses: $3,000. Current emergency fund: $2,400. Target: $10,000. Save $1,000/month for 8 months in a HYSA.
16. Retirement
Keep contributing to Roth 401(k). S&P 500 index fund assumption: 10%/year. Capture full 3% employer match, about $7.5 more/month. Do not increase contributions until high-interest debt is gone.
17. International Travel — Cancun
Goal: $800 for one week in Cancun. Suggested funding: $45 × 18 months in a HYSA. Budget: flight $200; hotel $300; food transport $150; activities $100; total $800.
18. Solo Apartment
Rent: $950/month; utilities: $160/month; additional move-in cost: $1,000. Later estimate: rent $942/month; utilities $210/month.
19. 0–18 Months and 18–36 Months
Projected cash-flow diagrams compare priorities before and after: debt payments, rent/utilities, health insurance, Roth 401(k), emergency HYSA, freelance work, vacation fund, savings/retirement, and surplus.
20. 05 Implementation
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21. Timeline
Year 1: pay off credit card and build emergency fund to $10K. Year 2: solo apartment and international travel. Year 3: maximize retirement and savings; maintain emergency fund.
22. This plan will help you
Eliminate $3,200 high-interest debt; improve credit score; live solo; build a sufficient emergency fund; travel internationally; set yourself up for financial strength.
23. Rhino Financial Services
Closing slide with Rhino Financial Services logo.
Competition tips
Debt
Lead with the 22% credit card because it is the highest-cost problem. Explain the avalanche method, the 0% balance-transfer idea, the 3% fee, and what happens if Zoe does not pay it off before the promotional period ends.
Savings
Show exact monthly targets: reduce variable expenses by $180, add freelance income when realistic, build the emergency fund to $10,000, and separate the Cancun fund from emergency savings.
Insurance
Keep advice practical: maintain health insurance, add renter’s insurance before moving, confirm auto coverage meets legal and personal-risk needs, and avoid overselling life insurance if Zoe has no dependents.
Taxes
Mention student-loan interest deduction, review withholdings, and HSA eligibility. Make clear that tax moves should support cash flow rather than distract from the debt payoff priority.
5–7 minute presentation structure
- 0:00–0:45: introduce Zoe’s goals and your advisor theme.
- 0:45–1:45: summarize current state and challenges.
- 1:45–3:30: debt payoff and cash-flow changes.
- 3:30–5:15: emergency fund, housing, retirement, and travel timeline.
- 5:15–6:30: insurance, taxes, implementation, and closing recommendation.
Judge question prep
Be ready to defend assumptions: freelance income reliability, apartment costs, balance-transfer eligibility, emergency-fund target, and why retirement contributions should not rise until the credit card is handled.
Cloudflare Pages deployment
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