As we get closer to getting back to normal after the COVID-19 travel pause, we need to think about a travel budget. This inevitably means that trips simply do not happen or that financial stress makes them less enjoyable. Learning how to budget properly for your trips is essential if you want to enjoy them fully. Add Traveling Expenses to Your Budget The first step to take when planning for trips is to properly fund them. One of the easiest ways to accomplish this is to incorporate traveling expenses into your regular budget. Many retirees create an annual budget and …
Be Ready For the Next Market Correction
Many retirement investors have a considerable percentage of their investment in stocks and this has generally served them well. Stocks have recently been on a roll – indeed booming – at or near all-time highs. Some pundits think the market is a bit extended. So what should you do to prepare your retirement nest egg for the next downturn? How a Market Crash – or Even a Downturn – Can Wreck Your Plans Here’s a scenario that may be more common than you think: Sam, aged 54, has been working for 30 years and is closing in on his retirement. …
You Still Have Time For Retirement Resolutions
A few weeks into a New Year and many think about various aspects of their lives. One of the primary areas that are commonly reviewed is personal finance. If you are thinking about retiring within the next few years or longer, you may want to create a resolution or two so that you can plan better for your non-working years. However, some people believe that it is simply too late for any type of plan to be effective or beneficial. While it is better to start preparing for non-working years early in your adult years, starting now is better than …
Adding Stepchildren to Your Estate Plan
As we look ahead to a new year, we think of our goals and priorities. Some of these goals can involve getting an Estate Plan together. If you want to leave part of your estate to your stepchildren, you are required to specify that in your will. If a stepparent dies without a will, the children will not get any part of the estate even if the deceased stepparent wanted them to. Stepchildren do not have automatic inheritance rights possessed by adopted and biological children. Legally speaking, stepchildren are not entitled to any inheritance unless they are specifically named on …
Could Your Retirement Be Delayed?
As we watch 2020 in the rearview mirror, we look ahead with the scars from the year. And while many people spend years dreaming about the day they will retire, for some, this vision may not become a reality as soon as they would want. If you have a sneaking suspicion that you may be a person who needs to delay retirement, then here’s what you need to know. Many factors contribute to a delayed retirement. Here are three of the most common ones. 1. You Have Too Little Money Saved If you retire at age 67 and live until …
Your New Year’s Retirement Resolutions
As we head into 2021, it is a good idea to consider the resolutions you might be planning. You might want to do things like exercise more often or drink more water. However, you ought to also consider saving for retirement and reaching any other financial goals that you might have as well. Remember, this is the time of year when you get a clean slate to become a different person and do better in areas that you may have struggled with in the past. Think About the Vital Documents You Need to Work On It is not the most …
So, You are Retiring In A Few Years
After a stressful 2020, you’re thinking more and more about retirement. While the bulk of your retirement prep work and heavy lifting has been completed by the time you are a couple of years away from retirement, there are still a few boxes you will want to check off before finally saying adios to the workforce. Let’s go through them. 1. Social Security Decision You will need to decide when to collect Social Security benefits. The earliest age is 62. Unless you are retiring early and need the benefits to help cover expenses like health insurance, it’s advantageous to wait. …
Reasons For Inflation And Why You Should Plan For It In Retirement
Inflation is a reality in all economies, and generally occurs for one of two reasons, know as “cost-push” or “demand-pull.” Businesses and companies that want to retain their employees have to insulate them to some degree against the rising and falling of the value of a dollar. This means that few people will generally feel the full effects of the rising costs of living throughout the course of their working lifetime. The people that do generally feel and understand its full effect are elderly or people living on a fixed financial base of some kind. Here is a brief overview …
The Good and Bad of Retiring Early
This year has forced some to think about retiring early. When it comes to retiring early, some of the benefits are obvious: you get to live your life without the constraints of work, and you are able to pursue your own interests. But there are other good reasons for retiring early, and there are some reasons why retiring early is not the greatest idea. Your Dedication is GoneOne of the good reasons to retire early is that you are simply not dedicated to working anymore. When you are no longer emotionally interested in working, your performance deteriorates and your company …
HOW TO INVEST YOUR HOUSE DOWN-PAYMENT
I often get asked how to invest the down payment for a home purchase. If you live in a high cost of living city like Los Angeles, San Francisco, or New York, like many of my clients do, then the down payment is often hundreds of thousands of dollars, and it takes more than a few years of savings to accumulate. Home prices have skyrocketed over the past several years, and even more so during 2020 where buyers got cabin fever during the covid-induced quarantine and bid up home prices more than usual. A lot of people feel like they are …