Financial Health Assessment
Bryan and Brenda: Internal Medicine Pediatrics Household Scores 49 Out of 100
By Ryan Inman
Published · Updated
Internal medicine pediatricsResident · PGY-2Couple, no children yet
Financial Health Assessment score
49 out of 100
Corrections
- Needs a workup 0 to 39
- Corrections 40 to 69
- Stable 70 to 84
- Healthy 85 to 100
The score grades the household on 19 measures across seven frameworks. Bryan and Brenda lands at 49, in the Corrections band, score 40 to 69.
Bryan is a second year internal medicine pediatrics resident with take home pay of $3,100 a month. Brenda is a speech language pathologist working full time, with take home pay of about $3,200 a month plus a couple of hundred a month from a variable side engagement. Combined take home pay is about $6,300 a month. Gross incomes are not stated. They rent at $975 a month in a low cost of living area, with one dog and no children yet. The assessment scores the household 49 out of 100, in the Corrections band.
The saving system runs automatically. Of about $6,300 a month of take home pay, $2,000 a month moves automatically, $1,000 to two Roth IRAs, both maxed, and $1,000 to savings split $600 to the emergency fund, $300 to travel and $100 to a travel sinking fund, about 32 percent of take home pay. His 401a takes about $1,000 a month in total contributions and stands at $15,530. Her 403b takes $554 a month and stands at $2,508. The Roth IRAs hold $17,963 combined. The hosts note that part of the $2,000 is deferred spending, travel and sinking funds, rather than wealth building.
The open items sit on one spouse's side of the file. Bryan's cover is in force: an individual own occupation disability policy through Principal with a residual rider, and $2,000,000 of term life. Brenda's individual disability policy and her individual term life are both in process and not yet in force. The household states it carries no umbrella policy, and the only estate document is Bryan's healthcare directive. The traced path runs from 49 to a target of 57, and the prescription section shows the three steps that trace.
$270,700
Student debt · federal, on PAYE inside PSLF
$2,000
Saved automatically per month · about 32 percent of take home
$705
Given to charity per month · inside the fixed expenses
About $6,300
Take home pay per month · gross incomes not stated
57
Score with the three traced fixes · Corrections band
The short version
- The score: 49 out of 100, in the Corrections band. The Transition framework earns the full 10 of 10 and the Physician Wealth Equation the full 6 of 6, while the Protection Stack earns 4 of 22.
- The only debt is Bryan's $270,700 of federal student loans, on PAYE inside PSLF with employment certification forms submitted and a calculated payment of $344 a month, paused under the CARES Act at the time of the intake.
- Saving is automatic: $2,000 a month, about 32 percent of take home pay, with both Roth IRAs maxed. Charity takes $705 a month inside the fixed expenses and the saving still runs.
- His cover is in force, hers is in process: his own occupation disability and $2,000,000 of term life stand in force, while her individual disability and term policies are not yet in force.
- Three traced fixes are worth 8 points and take the score to 57: her disability in force (+2), her term life in force and his level term replacement (+2), and the full estate document set written early (+4).
A budget that gives $705 away and still cannot find $900.
What They Did Right
A resident's and a clinician's take home running a full saving system. This is the machinery already running.
- Saving that runs itself $2,000 a month moves automatically, about 32 percent of take home pay. The floor and the automation boxes both grade full.
- Both Roth IRAs maxed $1,000 a month across the two Roth IRAs, maxed on a resident and a clinician salary, with $17,963 already held.
- The loan file is current $270,700 of federal loans on PAYE inside PSLF, employment certifications submitted, the calculated payment affordable.
- Charity inside the budget $705 a month of giving sits in the fixed expenses, and the saving system runs at full marks beside it.
- His disability cover, own occupation An individual own occupation policy through Principal with a residual rider.
The Score: 49 out of 100
The Financial Health Assessment grades a household across the same seven frameworks and lands the total in a band. Bryan and Brenda scores 49, in the Corrections band. This household is scored on the resident and fellow rubric path, driven by Bryan's residency.
19
Measures graded
7
Frameworks
49
Bryan and Brenda's score
The 3 Bucket Framework earns 5 of 26. Milestones earn 0, because the milestone net cannot be determined from what the intake states. The emergency fund earns 0: $7,269 is about 2.2 months against the household's own $10,000 three month goal. Named lanes earn 2, on a detailed budget and named buckets, with variable spending running over the planned difference. Goals funded earns 3, with retirement flows running while the house down payment and future college goals carry no stated flow.
The Physician Wealth Equation earns the full 6 of 6 on the resident stretch box: automatic saving of $2,000 a month is about 32 percent of combined take home pay, above the 25 percent full bar. Residents are never scored on debt to income. The $270,700 loan is graded through the loan strategy box instead.
The Protection Stack earns 4 of 22. Health earns 0, because cover is not stated. Disability earns 2: Bryan holds an individual own occupation policy with a residual rider, and Brenda's cover is employer only with an individual policy in process. Life earns 2: his $2,000,000 individual term is in force, and hers is in process and not yet in force. Umbrella earns 0, stated absent. Malpractice earns 0, type and tail not stated. Estate documents earn 0: a healthcare directive stands, and no will or financial power of attorney exists.
The Transition framework earns the full 10 of 10. The loan strategy box earns the full 6: the $270,700 loan is federal, on PAYE, inside PSLF with employment certifications submitted, its calculated payment affordable and paused under the CARES Act at the time of the intake. Cards and other debt earn the full 4: cards are paid in full monthly and no other debt is stated.
The Tax Ladder earns 2 of 8, at 2 and 0: Roth IRAs are maxed and the employer plans are funded, with no bracket reason stated for the mix, and the bracket and deliberate tax moves are not stated. The Decision Filter earns the full 6 of 6 on five stated goals.
The Lifestyle Guardrails earn 16 of 22: the Savings Floor at the full 12 on automatic saving of about 32 percent of take home pay, the leak at 0 because the caller states an unaccounted monthly difference of up to about $900, and wealth first automation at the full 4, on $2,000 a month that moves automatically.
| Framework | What it covers | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 02 3 Bucket Framework | Milestones 0, emergency fund 0 at about 2.2 months, named lanes 2, goals funded 3 | 5 of 26 |
| 03 Physician Wealth Equation | Stretch saving 6 at about 32 percent of take home. Residents are not scored on debt to income | 6 of 6 |
| 04 Protection Stack | Health 0 (not stated), disability 2, life 2, umbrella 0, malpractice 0, estate documents 0 | 4 of 22 |
| 05 Transition | Loan strategy 6, federal loan on PAYE inside PSLF. Cards and other debt 4, cards paid in full | 10 of 10 |
| 06 Tax Ladder | Roth against pre tax 2, bracket plus moves 0 | 2 of 8 |
| 07 Decision Filter | Goals written 6, five goals stated | 6 of 6 |
| 08 Lifestyle Guardrails | Savings floor 12, the leak 0, wealth first automation 4 | 16 of 22 |
| Total | Corrections band | 49 out of 100 |
Read the shape, not just the total. The flow boxes are finished work: a full loan strategy, a full stretch box, a full savings floor and full automation, on a resident's and a clinician's take home pay in a low cost of living area. The drag sits in one stack and one line: the Protection Stack, where one spouse's cover is in force and the other's is in process, and a leak the caller himself names at up to about $900 a month.
The Prescription
Three traced fixes, and the open items behind them.
- Bring Brenda's disability policy in force. This is the Protection Stack, and it gains 2 points, moving disability from 2 to 4. Her individual own occupation policy is already in process over employer cover. The gain lands when it is in force beside his Principal policy.
- Bring Brenda's term life in force. This is the Protection Stack, and it gains 2 points, moving life from 2 to 4. Her individual term policy is in process, and his side of the step is the level term replacement he is seeking for the term 80 policy.
- Write the full estate document set. This is the Protection Stack, and it gains 4 points, moving estate documents from 0 to 4. A will, a financial power of attorney and healthcare directives for both spouses, written early, beside the healthcare directive that already stands for Bryan.
- Find the unaccounted difference. The caller states up to about $900 a month unaccounted against the stated budget. No point gain is traced for this item in the record's target.
Run all three traced fixes and the arithmetic is 49 plus 8, a score of 57. The gains are 2 for her disability policy, 2 for her term life in force and his level term replacement, and 4 for the estate documents. A score of 57 out of 100 keeps the household in the Corrections band.
What This Case Teaches
In process is not in force. Two of this file's three traced fixes are applications already moving: her disability policy and her term life, the second traced together with his level term replacement. The score grades both at half marks today, not because the household neglected them, but because the grade is taken on the file as it stands, and an application is not a policy.
The grade is taken on what is in force today.
The second lesson is the stated leak. This caller names his own unaccounted difference, up to about $900 a month, inside a budget detailed enough to itemize $705 of monthly charity. A stated leak grades at zero and still tells the truth about the file. The number is on the page because he said it.
Behind the score
The Household
Bryan is a second year resident in internal medicine pediatrics, with take home pay of $3,100 a month. Brenda is a speech language pathologist working full time, with take home pay of about $3,200 a month and a couple of hundred a month more from a variable side engagement. Gross incomes are not stated. Combined take home pay is about $6,300 a month. They have no children yet, keep one dog, and rent at $975 a month in a low cost of living area.
Cash stands in stated accounts: his checking at $2,109, her checking at $265, a joint savings account at $836, and a Discover emergency fund at $7,269, against the household's own $10,000 goal for three months of fixed expenses, about 2.2 months as stated. A sinking fund holds $17 and a travel fund $11. Retirement balances stand at $15,530 in his 401a, $2,508 in her 403b, and $17,963 across the two Roth IRAs.
A resident's and a clinician's take home, and the giving is a fixed expense.
The saving system is automatic. $2,000 a month moves without a decision: $1,000 to the two Roth IRAs, both maxed, and $1,000 to savings, split $600 to the emergency fund, $300 to travel and $100 to a travel sinking fund. His 401a takes about $1,000 a month in total contributions. Her 403b takes $554 a month. Fixed expenses include $705 a month of charity. The hosts note that part of the $2,000 monthly saving is deferred spending, the travel and sinking funds, rather than wealth building.
Debt is one loan. Bryan carries $270,700 of federal student loans on PAYE inside the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, with employment certification forms submitted. The calculated payment is $344 a month, paused under the CARES Act at the time of the intake. There is no mortgage, both cars are paid off, credit cards are paid in full monthly, and the caller states there are no additional debts.
Protection is in force on his side and pending on hers. Bryan holds an individual own occupation disability policy through Principal with a residual rider, and $2,000,000 of term life to age 80 through Northwestern Mutual, beside employer cover of 1.5 times salary on both spouses. Brenda's disability cover is employer coverage only, its details not stated, with an individual policy in process. Her individual term life is also in process and not yet in force. The household states it has no umbrella policy. The only estate document is Bryan's healthcare directive, naming Brenda as his healthcare power of attorney. There is no will and no financial power of attorney. Health cover and malpractice type and tail are not stated.
| Household fact | Where it stands |
|---|---|
| Careers | Internal medicine pediatrics resident, PGY-2. Speech language pathologist, full time, plus a variable side engagement |
| Household income | Take home about $3,100 and about $3,200 a month, about $6,300 combined, plus side income. Gross incomes not stated |
| Family | Couple, no children yet, one dog. Renting at $975 a month in a low cost of living area |
| Student loans | $270,700 federal on PAYE inside PSLF, calculated payment $344 a month, paused under the CARES Act at the time of the intake, employment certifications submitted |
| Other debt | None. Both cars paid off. Credit cards paid in full monthly. No mortgage |
| Emergency fund | $7,269 in a Discover account, about 2.2 months against a stated $10,000 three month goal |
| Saving | $2,000 a month automatic (Roth IRAs $1,000, savings $1,000 split $600 emergency, $300 travel, $100 sinking), about 32 percent of take home pay. Charity $705 a month |
| Balances | 401a $15,530. 403b $2,508. Roth IRAs $17,963 combined. Checking $2,109 and $265. Joint savings $836 |
| Disability | Bryan: individual own occupation through Principal with a residual rider. Brenda: employer coverage only, details not stated, individual policy in process |
| Life insurance | Bryan $2,000,000 term to age 80 through Northwestern Mutual, plus employer 1.5 times salary on both. Brenda individual term in process, not yet in force |
| Umbrella | None. The household states it carries no umbrella policy |
| Estate documents | Healthcare directive for Bryan, with Brenda as healthcare power of attorney. No will and no financial power of attorney |
| Goals | Five stated goals |
The Two Frameworks Behind the Score
The score grades 19 measures across seven frameworks. Two of them carry this case: the Lifestyle Guardrails, which score 16 of 22 on automatic saving with a named leak, and the Protection Stack, which scores 4 of 22 with one spouse covered and one spouse pending.
Framework one
The Lifestyle Guardrails
The Guardrails grade whether today's lifestyle leaves room for the plan: the savings floor, the leak, and whether wealth is paid first. The floor and the automation are full. The leak is admitted and unmeasured.
- The savings floor Built
- Automatic saving of $2,000 a month is about 32 percent of combined take home pay. The box earns the full 12 of 12.
- Wealth first automation Built
- The $2,000 moves automatically each month, $1,000 to the Roth IRAs and $1,000 to savings. The box earns the full 4 of 4.
- The leak Missing
- The caller states an unaccounted monthly difference of up to about $900 against the stated budget. The box earns 0 of 6.
Framework two
The Protection Stack
The Protection Stack grades the coverage that keeps one bad month from ending the plan. His side is in force. Her side is in process. The documents are one directive deep: 4 of 22.
- Disability, his in force, hers in process Partial
- Bryan's individual own occupation policy carries a residual rider. Brenda's individual policy is in process over employer cover whose details are not stated. The box earns 2 of 4.
- Life, his in force, hers in process Partial
- His $2,000,000 term policy stands in force beside employer cover on both spouses. Her individual term is in process and not yet in force. The box earns 2 of 4.
- Umbrella and estate documents Missing
- No umbrella policy, stated. One healthcare directive stands. There is no will and no financial power of attorney. Both boxes earn 0.
The $900 the Budget Cannot Find
The first look is a sentence the caller says about his own budget: after the stated income and the stated lines, a difference of up to about $900 a month is unaccounted. The budget is otherwise detailed, with fixed expenses itemized, charity at $705 a month inside them, and buckets named for the emergency fund, travel and a sinking fund.
The leak box grades exactly that difference, and it earns 0. The rest of the guardrails are full: the savings floor takes the full 12 on about 32 percent, and wealth first automation takes the full 4 on $2,000 a month that moves on its own. A framework can hold two full boxes and a zero at the same time, and this one does.
The system saves $2,000 on its own. It cannot say where $900 goes.
The hosts add the second note that belongs with the $2,000 figure: part of it is deferred spending rather than wealth building. Of the $1,000 that goes to savings each month, $300 is travel and $100 is a travel sinking fund. The Roth $1,000 and the $600 emergency line build the balance sheet. The travel lines build a trip.
None of that changes the shape of the file. This is a household whose stated system saves at full marks during his residency, and whose own caller flags the one line the system cannot see. The record traces no points for closing the leak.
Her Cover Is Still in Process
The second look is the split inside the Protection Stack. Bryan's side is in force: an individual own occupation disability policy through Principal with a residual rider, and $2,000,000 of term life to age 80 through Northwestern Mutual. Brenda's side is pending: employer disability cover whose details are not stated, an individual disability policy in process, and an individual term policy in process and not yet in force.
The boxes grade what is in force. Disability earns 2 of 4 and life earns 2 of 4, and the record traces the missing halves to the two applications: her individual own occupation disability policy in force moves disability toward full, and her term policy in force, beside the level term replacement he is seeking, moves life toward full.
One spouse is covered. The other is in process.
The estate file is one document deep: Bryan's healthcare directive, naming Brenda as his healthcare power of attorney. There is no will and no financial power of attorney, and the household has no children yet. The record traces the full estate pattern at +4 precisely because the set is written early.
Add the traced items together and the path is three landings: two policies in force on her side and one document set signed, 8 points. Health cover and malpractice sit unstated behind them, and the umbrella is stated absent, all carried on this page without points attached.
Milestones: Scored on What Is Stated
Inside the 3 Bucket Framework, the milestone checklist tracks the markers a training household has already hit. This checklist earns 0 for Bryan and Brenda, because the intake never states a milestone list the net can be computed from. The box pays only for stated milestones.
The rest of the bucket picture: the emergency fund earns 0 at about 2.2 stated months against the household's own $10,000 goal, named lanes earn 2 on a detailed budget with variable spending running over the plan, and goals funded earns 3 of 6 on retirement flows that run while the house and college goals carry no stated flow. The framework earns 5 of 26.
Questions this case answers
What score did Bryan and Brenda receive on the Financial Health Assessment?
Bryan and Brenda scored 49 out of 100, in the Corrections band. The Transition framework earns the full 10 of 10 and the Physician Wealth Equation the full 6 of 6, while the Protection Stack earns 4 of 22.
Where does the unaccounted money sit for Bryan and Brenda?
The caller states an unaccounted monthly difference of up to about $900 against the stated budget. The budget itself is detailed, with fixed expenses itemized and named buckets for the emergency fund, travel and a sinking fund, so the leak box grades the admitted difference at 0 while the savings floor and automation boxes grade at full marks.
What is missing for Bryan and Brenda?
Brenda's individual disability policy and individual term life are in process and not yet in force. The household states it has no umbrella policy. There is no will and no financial power of attorney. The only estate document is Bryan's healthcare directive. Health cover is not stated, and malpractice type and tail are not stated.
What do the fixes do to Bryan and Brenda's score?
Three traced fixes move the score 8 points, from 49 to 57. The gains are 2 for Brenda's individual disability policy taking effect, 2 for her term life in force and his level term replacement, and 4 for writing the full estate document set early. A score of 57 out of 100 keeps the household in the Corrections band.
Sources and Basis
This assessment is built from the household's own intake for the Financial Health Assessment and the episode assessment of it. Every figure on this page comes from that record, and the score is traced box by box under the locked resident and fellow rubric.
The resident and fellow rubric weights the seven frameworks at 26, 6, 22, 10, 8, 6, and 22, for a total of 100. The bands are Needs a workup from 0 to 39, Corrections from 40 to 69, Stable from 70 to 84, and Healthy from 85 to 100. Residents and fellows are scored on the Transition fork: the loan strategy, and the state of cards and other debt.
Written by Ryan Inman, MBA, MAFM. Last updated October 2026.