A reader asks: How do you plan for major expenses, and is there any rule of thumb we should use when saving for a home, and a wedding? Also is it okay to use our Roth IRA accounts to save for a home? The average wedding in the U.S. is estimated at more than $33,000 so unless…
Personal Finance
Good News & Bad News About Saving For College
I was having drinks last week with a group who were all in a similar situation as me — working in the wealth management field with young children at home. The topic of saving for college came up since many of us have multiple little ones to plan for continuing education some day. We all…
Your Household CFO
I liked this from The Next Millionaire Next Door by Thomas Stanley and Sarah Stanley Fallaw: WANTED: Household CFO Description: The role of Household CFO is to ensure his/her household is building wealth in order to ultimately achieve financial independence. The Household CFO will oversee the household’s budgeting and financial planning. He/she will be required to create, manage,…
The Biggest Myth in Retirement Savings
Congress passed the Revenue of Act of 1978 to lower tax brackets on individuals. Within that act, there was a short 900-word section 401(k) which was added with the intent of limiting executive compensation (Narrator: It did not have that effect). Ted Benna, an insurance company consultant at the time, realized this part of the…
Ben’s Holiday Spending Tips
Some random thoughts as we head into one of the busiest spending seasons of the year… Take advantage of credit card sign-up bonuses. The credit card companies are notorious for changing up their rewards systems over time but if you can take advantage of a one-time sign-up bonus it’s basically free money. The majority of these…
Revisiting the 4% Rule
William Bengen first wrote about the 4% rule in a 1994 research paper for the Journal of Financial Planning called Determining Withdrawal Rates Using Historical Data. He proposed a safe withdrawal rate of 4% of a portfolio’s value in the first year of retirement, an amount which is used as a baseline for spending going forward….
Tiny Improvements, Big Results
“Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement.” – James Clear I hear from young people on a regular basis who complain that it’s impossible for them to save money. The list holding them back is a long one — student loans, low wages, rent, the high cost of avocado toast, and the desire to actually enjoy…
A Lost Decade of Dollar Cost Averaging
Investors who dutifully put money into the stock market on a periodic basis over the decade ended in 2009 would have felt dejected when looking at their statements. If you started dollar cost averaging $500/month into the S&P 500 in January of 2000, by December of 2009 you would have invested $60,000 in total. This…
