Heidi and Spencer
Financial Health Assessment · OB/GYN case
Heidi, 33, is an OB/GYN in her first year as an attending. Spencer, 35, teaches high school. Their household earns about $400,000 in the Portland metro, and the assessment scores them 54 out of 100, in the Corrections band.
The engine runs. The loan plan is executing on a PSLF track with 24 of 120 payments made, saving runs at about 12 percent on its own, and total debt sits at about 2.0 times income, inside the new attending bar.
The picture was never assembled. About $100,000 sits in six accounts with no jobs, disability coverage is the group policy only, there is no umbrella policy, and four written goals have no money flowing to them. Five fixes take the score to a 67.
Financial Health Assessment score
54 / 100
CorrectionsThe score grades the household on 20 measures across seven frameworks. Heidi and Spencer land at 54, in the Corrections band, score 40 to 69.
Key takeaways
- The score: 54 out of 100, in the Corrections band, and the shape is the story. The Transition framework earns a perfect 10 of 10, while the 3-Bucket Framework earns 2 of 20.
- The loan plan is the strongest part of the file. Heidi is on a Public Service Loan Forgiveness track at a qualifying employer, with 24 of 120 payments made, and an attorney reviewed her contract before she signed.
- The accounts are the mess. About $100,000 sits across about six accounts, and the household cannot sort its dollars or say what each account is for.
- Protection has real holes. Disability coverage is the employer's group policy only, there is no umbrella policy against about $750,000 of assets, and the estate plan is a will only, with no power of attorney and no healthcare directive.
- Five fixes move the score 13 points to a 67: three accounts with named lanes, a six month emergency fund, an individual disability policy for Heidi, a $1 million umbrella policy, and the four written goals funded.
The plan runs. The picture was never assembled.
The Household
Heidi is 33 and an OB/GYN in her first year as an attending, earning about $320,000. Spencer is 35 and teaches high school, earning about $80,000. They have been married six years, they have one child, age 2, and they live in the Portland metro.
Heidi carries about $280,000 in student loans on a Public Service Loan Forgiveness track, with 24 of 120 payments made. The mortgage is about $500,000 on a home worth about $650,000, and about $25,000 is left on car loans, so total debt is about $805,000.
Asked what each of the six accounts is for, Heidi could not say. The accounts are kind of everywhere.
Investable assets are about $100,000, spread across about six accounts with no assigned jobs. The emergency fund is about $35,000, about three months. Saving runs at about 12 percent of income, and it happens automatically, before spending.
Spending is not tracked. Four goals are written down, all vague, and none of them has money flowing to it. On taxes, the household does not know its federal bracket, and the 403(b) contributions run pre tax because that was the default at sign up.
Protection is partly built. The employer health plan covers all three of them, and a $750,000 term life policy is in force. Disability coverage is the group policy only, there is no umbrella policy, malpractice is claims made with the tail covered by the employer, and the estate plan is a will only.
| Careers | OB/GYN, first year attending, and high school teacher |
|---|---|
| Ages | 33 and 35 |
| Household income | About $400,000 a year, about $320,000 plus about $80,000 |
| Where they live | Portland metro |
| Family | Married 6 years, one child, age 2 |
| Student loans | About $280,000, on a PSLF track, 24 of 120 payments made |
| Other debt | Car loans about $25,000; no credit card debt |
| Mortgage | About $500,000 on a home worth about $650,000 |
| Emergency fund | About $35,000, about 3 months |
| Investable | About $100,000 across about 6 accounts, no assigned jobs |
| Saving | About 12 percent, automated |
| Spending | Not tracked |
| Taxes | Federal bracket not known; 403(b) contributions pre tax by default |
| Disability | Group policy only; no individual own occupation policy |
| Life insurance | $750,000 term, in force |
| Umbrella | None, $0 against about $750,000 of assets |
| Malpractice | Claims made, tail covered by the employer |
| Estate documents | Will only; no power of attorney, no healthcare directive |
| Goals | Four written, vague, none funded |
The Score: 54 out of 100
The Financial Health Assessment grades a household across the same seven frameworks and lands the total in a band. Heidi and Spencer score 54, in the Corrections band. This household is scored on the attending rubric, new attending fork.
The 3-Bucket Framework earns 2 of 20, and both points come from the emergency fund. Milestones earn 0 on a net of 1, named lanes earn 0 with no dollars sorted, and goals funded earns 0 with nothing flowing to the four written goals.
The Physician Wealth Equation earns 12 of 14. The Debt Anchor earns the full 10 at about 2.0 times income, under the new attending line of 3.0 times. Stretch saving earns 2: at about 12 percent with under $1,000,000 invested, the partial line is where this household sits.
The Transition framework earns the full 10 of 10: an executing PSLF track earns 6, and an attorney reviewed contract earns 4. The Protection Stack earns 14 of 22, the Tax Ladder 2 of 8, the Decision Filter the full 4 of 4 on four written goals, and the Lifestyle Guardrails 10 of 22.
| Framework | What earned what | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 02 · 3-Bucket Framework | Milestones 0, emergency fund 2, named lanes 0, goals funded 0 | 2 of 20 |
| 03 · Physician Wealth Equation | Debt Anchor 10 at about 2.0 times income, stretch saving 2 at about 12 percent | 12 of 14 |
| 04 · Protection Stack | Health 4, disability 2, life 4, umbrella 0, malpractice 2, estate documents 2 | 14 of 22 |
| 05 · Transition | Loan call 6 on an executing PSLF track, contract clarity 4 | 10 of 10 |
| 06 · Tax Ladder | Roth against pre tax 2, bracket plus moves 0 | 2 of 8 |
| 07 · Decision Filter | Goals written 4, four goals on paper, all vague | 4 of 4 |
| 08 · Lifestyle Guardrails | Savings floor 6, the leak 0, wealth first automation 4 | 10 of 22 |
| Total | Corrections band | 54 out of 100 |
Read the shape, not just the total. The earned points sit in the plan that is already running: the loan track, the reviewed contract, the automated saving. The missing points sit in the picture nobody assembled: the accounts, the protection layers, and the goals nobody funded.
The Two Frameworks Behind the Score
The score grades 20 measures across seven frameworks. Two of them carry this case: the 3-Bucket Framework, which earns 2 of 20 because no dollar has a named job, and the Protection Stack, which earns 14 of 22 with three layers missing or thin.
Framework one
The 3-Bucket Framework
Every dollar gets a job, in three buckets: the Safety Net, the Wealth Engine, and the Accelerator. This household holds about $100,000 across about six accounts and cannot say what each one is for, and the framework earns 2 of 20.
Named lanes
Asked to sort dollars into buckets, Heidi could not. No lanes are named and no account has a job, so the box earns 0 of 4.
Goals funded
Four goals are written down, and none of them has money flowing to it. Goals on paper with nothing behind them earn 0 of 6.
The Safety Net
The emergency fund is about $35,000, about three months. At 3 to 5 months the box earns 2 of 4, the framework's only points. Six months is about $70,000.
Framework two
The Protection Stack
The Protection Stack is six layers, health, disability, life, umbrella, malpractice, and estate documents, and the stack is only as strong as its thinnest layer. This household earns 14 of 22, with three layers at full marks and three missing or thin.
Disability, group policy only
Heidi's income carries the loan plan, and disability coverage is the employer's group policy only, with no individual own occupation policy on either earner. Group only earns 2 of 4.
No umbrella policy
Coverage is $0 against about $750,000 of total assets, the home plus the investable accounts. With no policy in force, the box earns 0 of 4.
Estate documents, a will only
A will is in place. There is no power of attorney and no healthcare directive, so the document set earns 2 of 4.
What They Did Right
A 54 in year one has real machinery under it. This is what is already built.
The loan call was made
Heidi is on a Public Service Loan Forgiveness track at a qualifying employer, with 24 of 120 payments made and about eight years to run. An executing forgiveness plan earns the full 6 on the loan call.
The contract was reviewed
An attorney reviewed Heidi's contract before she signed it. Professional review earns the full 4 on contract clarity, and the Transition framework lands at a perfect 10 of 10.
The Debt Anchor is light
About $805,000 of total debt on about $400,000 of income is about 2.0 times, inside the 3.0 times bar for a new attending. The anchor earns the full 10 of 10.
Saving runs itself
About 12 percent of income moves automatically, before spending. Wealth paid first earns the full 4 on automation, and the rate itself earns partial credit on both savings boxes.
Four goals are written down
Four goals sit on paper, which earns the full 4 of 4 on the goals written box. The start exists. The funding behind them is the prescription.
Six Accounts, No Jobs
The first deep dive is the 3-Bucket Framework, and the finding is a missing picture. About $100,000 sits across about six accounts, and if you asked Heidi what each one is for, she could not tell you. Her own summary of the file: the accounts are kind of everywhere.
The framework gives every dollar one of three jobs. The Safety Net is cash reachable tomorrow for shocks, with a target of six months of expenses. Their fund holds about three months, about $35,000, so the Safety Net target is about $70,000.
When accounts are scattered, no one can tell whether the Safety Net is full.
The Wealth Engine is the long term money, retirement accounts invested and left alone. The Accelerator is money with a date on it: each written goal gets a dollar amount, a date, and a monthly contribution, and money moves toward it on its own.
Four goals are written down in this house, and none of them is funded. Nothing flows, so the goals stay on paper while the accounts sit in a pile. The milestone checklist nets to 1, under the line that earns any milestone points.
The fix is one page and three homes. List all six accounts with balance, type, and intended job, roll the old training accounts together, and move stray cash into its bucket: the Safety Net, the Wealth Engine, and the Accelerator. Then fund the four goals.
A Stack With Three Thin Layers
The second deep dive is the Protection Stack, and the finding is a stack with holes at the layers this household leans on. The plan runs on Heidi's attending income for about eight more years of loan payments, and the layer that protects that income is the thinnest one in the stack.
Disability coverage is the employer's group policy only. There is no individual own occupation policy on Heidi, and none on Spencer either. Group coverage usually ends when the job ends, and it is the only layer standing under a $320,000 attending income.
The stack is only as strong as its thinnest layer.
There is no umbrella policy at all: $0 of coverage against about $750,000 of total assets, the home plus the investable accounts. One bad accident can reach everything the household has built so far.
The estate layer is a will only. There is no power of attorney and no healthcare directive for either spouse, with a two year old at home. The will earns partial credit, and the missing documents are the rest of the layer.
What is built is real: the employer health plan covers all three of them, a $750,000 term life policy is in force, and malpractice is claims made with the tail covered by the employer. The fix adds the three missing layers: an individual disability policy for Heidi, a $1 million umbrella policy, and the two missing documents.
Milestones: A Net of One
Inside the 3-Bucket Framework, the milestone checklist is where a household shows its momentum. Heidi and Spencer net 1 on the checklist. On the attending scale, a net of 2 or less earns 0 of the 6 milestone points, and a net of 5 or more would earn the full 6.
The rest of the bucket picture sits around that net. The emergency fund, about $35,000 at about three months, earns the framework's only 2 points. No dollars sort into named lanes, so named lanes earn 0, and nothing flows to the written goals, so goals funded earns 0 as well.
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The Prescription
Five moves, in the order the episode runs them.
Consolidate to three accounts, one per bucket.
This is the 3-Bucket Framework, and it gains 2 points, moving named lanes from 0 to 2. Six accounts hold about $100,000, and none of them has a job.
List all six accounts on one page with balance, type, and purpose. Pick three homes, one for the Safety Net, one for the Wealth Engine, and one for the Accelerator, roll the old training accounts together, so the household's money starts moving through lanes the couple can name.
Build the emergency fund to six months.
This is the 3-Bucket Framework, and it gains 2 points, moving the emergency fund from 2 to 4. About $35,000 is about three months, and six months is about $70,000.
Automate the transfer into the Safety Net until it lands at about $70,000. Then redirect the same transfer to the goals, so the habit built for the fund starts funding the Accelerator.
Get Heidi an individual own occupation disability policy.
This is the Protection Stack, and it gains 2 points, moving disability from 2 to 4. It matters most here, because the loan plan needs about eight more years of Heidi's income to run.
Look for own occupation language written around her specialty, a benefit target of about 60 percent of income, and a policy that follows her if she changes jobs. The group coverage stays underneath as another layer.
Put a $1 million umbrella policy in force.
This is the Protection Stack, and it gains 4 points, moving the umbrella from 0 to 4. Coverage today is $0 against about $750,000 of assets.
One call to whoever writes the home and auto policies: what does it cost to go from $0 to $1,000,000, and what liability limits are required underneath it? Umbrella coverage is usually one of the cheaper lines on the whole stack.
Fund the four written goals.
This is the 3-Bucket Framework, and it gains 3 points, moving goals funded from 0 to 3. The goals are already written. What they are missing is money with a date on it.
Give each goal a dollar target, a date, and a monthly amount, the target divided by the months remaining, and automate each transfer out of the Accelerator. A goal with money flowing to it stops being a wish.
Run all five and the arithmetic is 54 plus 13, a score of 67. The gains are 2 for named lanes, 2 for the emergency fund, 2 for disability, 4 for the umbrella, and 3 for goals funded. A score of 67 out of 100 keeps Heidi and Spencer in the Corrections band, at the top of it.
What This Case Teaches
The plan can run while the picture stays missing. Heidi and Spencer automated their saving and locked in a loan plan that earns full marks, and that machinery carried the file to 54. The lesson of this case is that the picture is separate work: accounts with jobs, protection layers in place, and goals with money behind them.
A plan that runs itself still needs a map.
The second lesson is about sequencing. The protection gaps in this file sit under the newest income in the house, in year one, when the fixes are cheapest and the loan clock has about eight years left to run. Layers bought early protect every year that follows.
Questions this case answers
What score did Heidi and Spencer receive on the Financial Health Assessment?
Heidi and Spencer scored 54 out of 100, in the Corrections band. The Transition framework earns a perfect 10 of 10 and the Wealth Equation earns 12 of 14, while the 3-Bucket Framework earns 2 of 20.
Why does the 3-Bucket Framework earn only 2 of 20 for this household?
About $100,000 sits across about six accounts, and the household cannot sort its dollars or say what each account is for. Four goals are written down and none of them is funded. The emergency fund, at about $35,000 or about three months, earns the framework's only points.
What is the household's loan position?
Heidi carries about $280,000 of student loans on a Public Service Loan Forgiveness track, with 24 of 120 payments made and about eight years to run. Total household debt is about $805,000 on about $400,000 of income, about 2.0 times income, inside the new attending bar.
What are the protection gaps?
Disability coverage is the employer's group policy only, with no individual own occupation policy on either earner. There is no umbrella policy against about $750,000 of assets. The estate plan is a will only, with no power of attorney and no healthcare directive. A $750,000 term life policy is in force, and claims made malpractice carries tail coverage paid by the employer.
What would raise Heidi and Spencer's score to 67?
Five moves add 13 points: consolidate the six accounts into three, one per bucket, so the money moves into lanes the couple can name; build the emergency fund to six months, about $70,000; place an individual own occupation disability policy for Heidi; put a $1 million umbrella policy in force; and fund the four written goals, each with a dollar target, a date, and a monthly amount.
Sources and Basis
This assessment is built from the household's record in the show's year end case bank: the build brief, the episode script, and the OB/GYN case file for Heidi and Spencer. Every figure on this page comes from that record, and the score is traced box by box under the locked attending rubric.
The attending rubric weights the seven frameworks at 20, 14, 22, 10, 8, 4, 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. New attendings are scored on the Transition fork: a deliberate loan decision being executed, and a contract understood or professionally reviewed.
Written by Ryan Inman, MBA, MAFM. Last updated October 2026.
About
Ryan Inman is a retired financial planner who worked with about 500 physician families. He created the Financial Residency podcast (about 3 million downloads) and is no longer affiliated with it. Financial Fellowship is his sole focus. This guide is educational. Last updated October 2026.
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