A Roadmap to Financial Success:

NEW YORK, March 20, 2007 — What would happen if you became ill and couldn’t make financial decisions to safeguard your family? Or if your family were unable to find vital records after your death? Have you done all you can to reduce your debt while saving for the future? To help you put your financial house in order, the Insurance Information Institute (I.I.I.) now offers free, downloadable personal finance software called My Financial House. The new software provides easy-to-use tools to create a financial inventory and effectively chart long-term financial goals.

My Financial House – Personal Finance Software can be downloaded at http://www.myfinancialhouse.org . The software helps consumers:

• Organize and create a picture of their current financial situation

• Work more effectively with financial advisers

• Identify gaps or overlaps in their financial circumstances

• Guide heirs and beneficiaries when filing claims

“This software was created to help people take control of their finances and prepare for their future,” said Dr. Steven Weisbart vice president and economist at the I.I.I.

“Too often consumers underestimate the money needed to pay for such large expenses as college tuition or buying a home. They don’t purchase sufficient life insurance to cover a family’s day-to-day expenses if the household’s primary wage-earner were to die in the prime of his or her working life. This software helps consumers plan for and manage their personal income and gain control over their finances.”

People often fail to reach their financial goals because they don’t really understand their financial situation. Collecting financial data in this software program will enable users to get a picture of their current circumstances, and allow them to clearly set, and attain, their financial goals.

My Financial House allows users to enter information about the current estimated value of their property, 401(k) and college savings plans, stock portfolio, and other assets such as life insurance policies. Users download the software onto their own computer; the I.I.I. does not store personal information. Instead, users are encouraged to save their data in a secure location and share it only with selected family members and financial advisors. It is advisable to download the information on a disk and store it in a safe deposit box or another safe location.

My Financial House helps users identify areas they may want to focus on in the context of their stage in life and future anticipated expenses. For instance, couples planning on getting married, having children or who are nearing retirement will have specific financial goals and objectives. For further assistance, a Life Stages tool can be found on the home page of the I.I.I. Web site ( http://www.iii.org ).

In addition to My Financial House, I.I.I. offers another free, downloadable software called Know Your Stuff, which helps consumers create an inventory of all their personal belongings. Found at http://www.knowyourstuff.org , this program has been downloaded by well over a quarter of a million people.

“The I.I.I. software can also function as a disaster preparedness tool,” said Jeanne M. Salvatore, senior vice president and consumer spokesperson at the I.I.I.

 “Consumers can inventory financial documents and property to safeguard them from a disaster. Having a record that documents all their personal possessions, their financial information and contact information, can make filing a claim or applying for aid much easier.”

( "My Financial House"  4Video)

See also:

For information about insurance, visit the I.I.I. Web site: http://www.iii.org

I.I.I. is a nonprofit, communications organization supported by the insurance industry.