Mitigating Losses in a Bear Market
My favorite joke so far this year (as of June 4, 2022) has been, “When you buy the dip but the dip keeps dipping”. It has helped me feel better as I see all the returns from last year vanish, and probably sourced from my inexperience as I’ve grown up in one of the greatest…
Navigating my Portfolio Through Q1 2022
The day-to-day market volatility to begin 2022 has been a wild ride. I have no idea what’s moving markets on a day-to-day basis or to what extent, and nobody really does to be honest. As a financial advisor, here’s what I’m doing about it for myself. Nothing. Okay, just kidding – kind of. I’m not changing…
How Much Do You Need to Retire?
It’s a tough question and a lot of us just push it aside until it’s too late because it’s overwhelming to try and predict the variables and projections that far out. The challenge is true, but it’s a lot easier than you think to get started with a ballpark answer. Calculating How Much You NeedSimply…
Tax Alpha from a Roth Conversion
Unlike Donald Trump. the tax brackets from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA) have another four years. This was a very popular act that lowered the marginal income tax bracket for many Americans (here’s a before and after comparison. Keep in mind the IRS adjusts these numbers each year to account for…
Starting an Estate Plan
Contrary to what Drake says, it’s actually not a good idea to keep your money in the grave to use in your next life. When you pass, assets need to be transferred to somewhere. Quite simply, estate planning is formalizing a plan for your affairs (assets and responsibilities) and selecting specific individual(s) to execute it…
You Need a Trading Account
A diversified investment portfolio managed to a custom financial plan is what you need and will always be your best friend. This post is just for those times when you hear a stock tip (legally), have an urge to trade YOLO TSLA options, or just to see “what if”. You know this is riskier, but…
Invest and Pay Down Debt
Back in June I wrote about how to decide if you should be saving, investing, or paying (down debt). This post is to supplement that post: if you’re paying down debt, that doesn’t mean you can’t invest until you’re debt free. You can do both via the margin feature on your regular brokerage account. Note:…
Stretch your Base Pay
The end of the year is nearing and thoughts about compensation and bonuses are natural. Unfortunately, that conversation hasn’t always gone my way. But there other ways to increase net pay employer without directly getting a raise. As long as your employer offers a retirement account via a defined contribution or defined benefit plan (for…
You Get More for Less
You don’t get what you pay for in the public stock market. One of the easiest ways to boost investment return is to choose low cost investments. From the compounding effect on returns, the difference is significant over time. Let’s say you wanted to invest in the US Stock Market with an ETF or mutual…
Buy and Hold
“Buy low, sell high” doesn’t work. Yes, we all want to buy at the lowest price and sell at the highest to maximize our return. However, this kind of thinking faults the investor into market timing and trying to outsmart everyone else. It doesn’t work and that’s why most retail investors fail to beat the…
Ride the Wave
Uncertainty is inherent when investing, and that uncertainty is loudest in the short-term. It seems like there is always something to be afraid of, or a new opportunity to get in front of. Whatever it is, many investors try and act at the perfect time to either protect their portfolio against risks, or to get…
Just Buy Everything
Investing can be a be a powerful tool to aid your financial plan. Think of it as a disciplined savings strategy, not something to make you rich overnight- looking at you, Robinhood traders. Don’t overthink it and keep it simple for the best results. The data shows that trying to pick the best stocks doesn’t…
Losses Can Be Good
Sell your losers to boost net returns and reduce your capital gains tax liability Tax loss harvesting should go in coordination with rebalancing your portfolio. The idea is very simple – sell the investments you’re currently losing money on to offset your current tax liability or future tax liability. The taxes we’re talking about here…
Time to Trade
Once a quarter, tend to your portfolio and rebalance to your target allocation You’ve heard the age old advice to buy and hold your investments, remain diversified, and to dollar cost average with every paycheck to invest more. That’s all fine and dandy but even a passive portfolio requires upkeep and maintenance. Maybe you’ve decided…
Savings vs Debt vs Investing
While everyone’s financial plan differs in some way, we’re still united by the common goal of growing our net worth so that we have enough capital to fuel the lifestyle we’ve planned for. Assuming you have excess cash flow net of day to day lifestyle expenses and commitments, there are only three things you can…
Pay Day
Income is liquid fuel to a financial plan. A Cash Flow Table helps guide the Personal Financial Statement in the right direction. The end of the month is pay day for many. This is an exciting time because you’ve earned the opportunity to either invest towards the financial plan, or realize benefits today. In reality,…
Starting a Financial Plan
The first step to creating your financial plan is to create a Personal Financial Statement (PFS) No, this is not a spiritual mission statement – I promise you it’s a real tool you can see and touch. The PFS is simply a current allocation of your assets and liabilities; it looks just like a balance…
Investing for Retirement
Should I invest my Roth or IRA first? Also what’s a 401(k)? These are all accounts you invest in during your working years and spend during your retirement years. The main difference between them is when taxes are paid. Traditional IRAs and 401(k)s are tax deferred accounts while Roth IRAs and 401(k)s are tax free…
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The Means to an End 