Physician Finance Minute

If there’s one bit of financial advice that most folks agree on, it’s that you need to have a minimum of three to six months of salary stashed away for an emergency fund. In theory this is a great idea, but how do you set this money aside when you can barely cover the cost of your ramen noodle dinner? Ok maybe an exaggeration for new attendings or residents, but you get the idea. An emergency fund is especially important for a physician and here’s why.

Are you working towards qualification of forgiveness of your federal student loans through the PSLF program? Maybe you are one of the many physicians who are just now realizing the potential advantages of participating in the federally funded program. You may also have recently heard about the latest set of statistics released by the government regarding participation within PSLF.

When your patient present their symptoms to you, you immediately establish the first line of treatment that makes the most sense for them. The same is true of your nest egg. There are several items that should be considered as part of your first line treatment for financial growth – even during the ultra lean years of residency.

If I were to tell the average person they could secure a home loan without putting any money down, and they wouldn’t have to pay the PMI, AND their student loan debt might not be factored in, they’d probably jump all over the chance. Since this is the case with Physician Mortgage Loans, it almost seems like a no brainer if you’re a resident or just starting your medical career.

A little research on the subject can go a long ways in making sure you are covered financially. So what is umbrella insurance? Also known as personal liability insurance, umbrella insurance is a back-up insurance plan that kicks in after your other insurance coverage has been paid out or covering accidents that occur on your premises.

Planning for life after your gone is not exactly the easiest topic to discuss. If I had to guess, it probably ranks at the bottom of your to-do list. But as a doctor, it’s critical for you to think about what would happen in case you’re no longer here. This becomes even more important as your medical career grows, your income increases, and your family expands.

We’ve have mentioned before living off a resident’s salary is no easy feat. It’s hard to set aside time to research financial strategies or cut out unnecessary expenses. But there are a few painless ways you can stretch your resident’ salary as far as possible. For instance, have you considered getting a side hustle? No, you don’t have to go door to door anymore. There are plenty of opportunities to earn extra income on the side that are legitimate and don’t take a lot of time.

A physician mortgage loan can make the dream of owning a home a reality, even when your finances are less than ideal, but you need to be careful. So there are actually several advantages of a physician mortgage loan. The first is an ultra low down payment. And by low, I mean it could be zero.

Name something that you automatically pay for each month without giving a lot of thought to what you’re paying. If you think long enough, I bet car insurance is one of those items that you try not to worry about too often, as long as it’s getting paid on a timely basis. Truthfully, as a physician, you should put a little more research into car insurance than you might think. Physicians actually should consider carrying more insurance than the average person.

No doubt your brain is already filled with more acronyms and terminology then you ever thought possible. Between the medical terms you have to memorize and symptoms you have to diagnose, your brain may feel ready to explode. Well today I want to give you one more abbreviation to learn-but this one will be one you really want to hear. It’s the term PSLF.