The advantage of using buckets for short-, intermediate- and long-term goals is that you can keep clear and specific tabs on the risk-return profile of the types of investments you use to fund them. If you know you’ll need a certain amount of money within 12 months to meet a certain goal, you’re not likely to invest in stocks within that bucket, because stocks are susceptible to short-term volatility.
Archive for June, 2018
Think Of Buckets, Not Budgets When Saving For Specific Goals
Thursday, June 28th, 2018How Do I Handle 401 (K)’s Of People Who No Longer Work For Me
Tuesday, June 26th, 2018
Trying to find people who no longer work for you, or moved and didn’t provide a forwarding address can be a daunting task.The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) may be able to help. Although the PBGC is primarily about safeguarding DB plan benefits, they said in December 2017 that they will now grant access to their missing-participant database to defined contribution plans terminating in 2018 or later, and to affected participants.
Planning For Your Child’s Education
Thursday, June 21st, 2018
As parents, you want to make sure your children have the best education possible, yet the cost of schooling and university can be extremely high. The money that you spend on your children’s education can be one of your largest lifetime expenses, so saving early is key.
Starting to save early will enable you and your child to select an excellent school or university based on the programme and their academic ability, rather than your financial situation. (more…)
2018 Retirement Trends to Watch
Wednesday, June 13th, 2018
In-plan spending strategies becoming more important
Among retirement industry trends to watch in 2018, along with how to save money in a 401(k) plan and other retirement accounts, is how to spend those savings.
A retirement industry think-tank expects a growing number of plan sponsors and industry stakeholders to evaluate retirement income solutions and de-accumulation strategies for DC plans. The expectation is that, with the growing impact on the workforce of an aging population, increased emphasis will be placed on the distribution of plan assets.
Five Money Rules to Live By
Tuesday, June 5th, 2018
It’s not simply a matter of working harder; it’s much more about using your non-financial skills and talents in new ways to bring you prosperity and a greater sense of personal satisfaction. Here are five tips to follow when seeking balance in your finances. (more…)
Jumbles of Numbers
Monday, June 4th, 2018Without setting your life goals, saving and investing can seem like a bunch of disconnected facts and figures
For many investors, the process of monitoring progress to retirement can seem to swirl around a bunch of numbers: portfolio performance, market index returns and portfolio rebalancing percentages, to name a few.
These are important figures to keep in mind, but they miss a key critical element: how you go about defining and prioritizing your unique life goals, and then tracking your progress toward them. Here are five ways to make sure that the numbers don’t sidetrack you from what’s really important — living the personally enriching life you have imagined for yourself.
Start with the big picture. The way you view your long-term financial picture generally can be segmented into three goal “buckets:” your needs (think housing, health care), wants (hobbies, travel) and wishes (fishing boat, new outdoor kitchen). (more…)
Attract Millennials with Values-Based Investment Options
Monday, June 4th, 2018
It isn’t surprising that average contributions are generally lower for younger 401(k) plan participants. Not only is retirement much farther down the road for them than it is for their Generation X and baby boomer colleagues, many of them struggle with more debt and less income. On average, they contribute about 5.3% of pay to their retirement plans, compared to 6.6% for Gen Xers and 8.6% for baby boomers. (more…)
Taking Advantage of the New Tax Law
Monday, June 4th, 2018
The dust hasn’t yet settled, but a few things about the new tax law seem clear. Employees will likely begin to notice a difference in their paychecks as early as February, and some projections put the average worker’s additional spendable income at about $2,000 per year.
What they will do with that income remains to be seen. While many will be tempted to improve their standard of living through purchases, you may be able to encourage them to take a longer view. As the increase in take-home pay is beginning to kick in, now could be the perfect time to point out reasons to increase retirement savings. Better yet, it might be the right time to amend the plan to allow for automatic increases in deferral amounts. (more…)
2018 Retirement Trends to Watch
Monday, June 4th, 2018
In-plan spending strategies becoming more important
Among retirement industry trends to watch in 2018, along with how to save money in a 401(k) plan and other retirement accounts, is how to spend those savings.
A retirement industry think-tank expects a growing number of plan sponsors and industry stakeholders to evaluate retirement income solutions and de-accumulation strategies for DC plans.
