Category: Tips

For many older Americans, retirement is shaping up to not really be retirement at all. In addition to those who continue working full-time well into their 60s and beyond, many who do leave 40-hour workweeks behind end up taking on part-time work even if it wasn't part of their initial retirement plan. "We're seeing a trend of people retiring from a long-term career … and a while later deciding they want a part-time job," said certified financial planner Julie Virta, a senior financial advisor with Vanguard. "I still see people working at age 70, 71 or 72," Virta said. "It brings them a sense of value that they had in their long-time professional career." More than half (54.7 percent) of people age 60 to 64 were working at least part-time in 2017, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In the 65-to-69 crowd, nearly a third (31.2 percent) were in the work force last year. If you find yourself among those who return to work for any number of reasons — i.e., personal fulfillment, financial necessity — it's important to be aware of the impact that the extra income could have on other areas of your financial life. "If you choose to go back to work, there are probably a whole bunch of reasons it makes sense," said DeDe Jones, a certified financial planner and managing director at Innovative Financial. "You just should know what to expect." Effect on Social Security If you tap Social Security before your full retirement age (as defined by the government) and are still working or return to work, your wage income could reduce your benefits. “You do not want to give Jeff Bezos a seven-year head start.” Hear what else Buffett has to say While delaying Social Security for as long as possible means a higher monthly check, many people take it as soon as they can — at age 62 — or soon thereafter. If you do start getting those monthly checks early, there's a limit on how much you can earn from working without your benefits being affected. For 2018 that cap is $17,040. If you earn more than that, your benefits will be reduced by $1 for every $2 you earn over that threshold. Then, when you reach full retirement age around age 66 or 67 — the exact age depends on your birth year — the money comes back to you in the form of a higher monthly check. At that point, you also can earn as much as you want from working without it affecting your Social Security benefits. Also, if you are one of those early takers who is working and you reach full retirement age during 2018, $1 gets deducted from your benefits for every $3 you earn above $45,360. Beware Medicare Surcharges In addition to more income potentially pushing you into a higher tax bracket, it also could trigger additional costs for Medicare. Basically, higher earners pay a surcharge for Medicare Part B (outpatient coverage) and Part D (prescription drugs). The extra charges start at income above $85,000 for individuals and $170,000 for married couples who file joint returns. "If you're a professional and you continue to work, you can be subject to the surcharges pretty easily," Jones said. "It's good to at least anticipate it if it's unavoidable." Medicare Part B Premiums Don't Overlook RMDs When you reach age 70½, you face required minimum distributionsfrom certain retirement accounts. When you're employed, it can be easier to forget those RMDs. "If you're working, you might not think of yourself as retired, but you still have to take the distributions," said Virta at Vanguard. If your work includes participating in a 401(k) plan, you generally are still allowed to make contributions and not take the RMDs from that workplace plan. However, you would still have to take those distributions from any traditional individual retirement account you have. If you don't, you'll face a potential 50 percent penalty tax. Roth IRAs do not have RMDs while the original owner remains alive. Source: cnbc.com

The loss of a spouse can be one of the most difficult times in a person’s life. Living through my own loss, I have learned from others and appreciate all those who dedicate themselves to helping individuals in their state of bereavement. In our work with widows and widowers, we typically encourage them to build a “circle of support.” Experienced, caring professionals can have helpful advice before and after a death. The following is professional advice from two experts I count on with helpful tips for someone who might have recently lost their significant other. 1. Follow the money trail. The loss of your spouse is difficult enough, but now you are faced with the aftermath of the things you need to do to continue on with your life and your grief simultaneously. If you were not the one handling the family finances then start by going through the various expenses paid and the income received. Make sure you understand each expense and income item and whether it is a one-time or recurring income or expense. Make sure you have enough cash on hand to cover your recurring expenses over the next several months. Be sure to cancel unwanted recurring expenses of your spouse, such as medical insurance, subscriptions and club dues, seek partial refunds, if available, as soon as possible. Keep a joint checking account open for at least one year to accommodate potential odd refunds and expenses.  — John Muldoon, CPA, MST 2. Practice sorting and prioritizing to-do lists. Make a list of everything on your mind. Include everything you think you need to do, everything you’re worrying or thinking about, and everything other people seem to think you should do. Then prioritize the items on that list. The only urgent items on your list are those that will damage some part of your well-being if you don’t do them right this minute. While some other tasks may feel urgent, they can and should be deferred, leaving you room to back up and turn around. Focus initially only on the few items that are truly urgent and immediate. All the rest can be divided between a soon list and a later list.  — Susan Bradley, founder of the Sudden Money Institute 3. Gather critical documents. Bank accounts, brokerage and retirement accounts, credit card statements, tax returns, life insurance policies, motor vehicle titles, birth certificates, death certificates (you will need several duplicate copies of the death certificate for financial and tax matters to facilitate change of ownership), your marriage certificate, Social Security numbers and estate planning documents, such as a will, trusts and any powers of attorney executed. Appraisals for real estate, businesses owned and substantial personal or unique assets may be required for tax purposes. If your spouse was employed, review company benefits plans and understand your responsibilities and benefits available to you via your deceased spouse. There may be pension benefits, 401(k) plan (possibly roll it into your own IRA), life insurance, vacation or sick pay, bonus or stock options or funds left in flexible spending accounts available to you. If you were covered by your spouse’s company medical plan, you can likely continue to be covered under COBRA for a monthly premium. If your spouse was collecting Social Security, the agency should be notified of his or her passing. You will no longer receive a benefit payment the following month, but if you do (because of timing) you will be required to return the payment at a later date.  — John Muldoon, CPA, MST 4. Customize meetings with your adviser. It’s normal to feel exhausted by all that you’re suddenly facing both personally and financially. And when you’re tired, focus, information processing, recall and decision-making all suffer. Make a list of areas of your financial life that are making you feel most afraid or least confident. Tell your adviser that during this time you can only handle relatively short meetings, during which you learn about the most important aspects of your new financial situation one (or perhaps two) topics at a time.  — Susan Bradley, founder of the Sudden Money Institute 5. Seek professional help. This is especially true if significant financial assets have been accumulated in the marriage, such as real estate, investments or a business that was owned or partially owned by your spouse. While you can still elect to file a joint tax return with your deceased spouse in the year of death, an additional income tax return (Form 1041) may be needed for your spouse’s post death activity for the remainder of the calendar year. And if assets involved are valued in excess of $11.2 million (2018) at the date of death, an IRS Form 706 may be required nine months from the decedent’s DOD.  — John Muldoon, CPA, MST 6. Remind yourself that what you’re experiencing isn’t forever. Many widows say the first two years are the most difficult; they caution first-year widows to be prepared for the second year when it may feel like there is no end. But, believe it or not, like spring finally emerging after a long, hard winter, eventually the grief and confusion will fade enough that you can begin to look forward and dream again. You will sense the change as it approaches, and you will feel it as it grows. If you have the right advisers, you can ask for some help dreaming and maybe financially testing ideas and possibilities. Take your time; you and your dreams may need room to grow.  — Susan Bradley, founder of the Sudden Money Institute On a personal note, unlike most people who have lost a spouse, I did not need financial planning advice, however, I found the care and support I received from both John and Susan invaluable. Source: Kiplinger.com

If you go by the book, you would shoot for 10% to 20% of your gross income. But that ballpark figure can be deceiving. Savings and retirement estimators are helpful, but often misleading, tools. These calculators can be insufficient to determine how much money you should be saving based on a few calculations. It’s not wise to solely trust calculators to tell you if you’re adequately prepared for an emergency or retirement. In addition, some people trying these calculators may be so discouraged by the numbers they see that the tools end up not helping at all. If you looked in a financial planning textbook, an individual should be saving 10% to 20% of his or her gross income. However, that number, in and of itself, doesn’t tell the entire story. To estimate how much money you should be saving you can’t rely on general advice. And maybe that isn’t the right question to be asking anyway. Maybe instead of asking how much should you be saving, you should ask yourself how much can you save? Are you saving as much as possible? In a time when many Americans live without an adequate safety net, prioritizing savings is increasingly difficult for many people. Here are a few things to consider as you start thinking about your savings goals and how to ramp them up. Lifestyle Choices Affect Savings One of the biggest obstacles to savings is living outside of one’s means. Acquiring debt, installment payments and frequent “Keeping up with the Joneses” spending binges consume funds that could otherwise be saved and earn interest. That probably doesn’t come as a surprise to you, but what if you are living within your means? Your money decisions money can still have an impact on your ability to save. We all can do better. Not being purposeful in aligning your current spending with your priorities will undoubtedly leave you falling short of achieving your goals. I have seen many people who say being prepared financially for retirement is extremely important to them. However, when you look at their finances you quickly see that they’re spending a major portion of their income maintaining their current lifestyle. For example, I knew one man who was saving 6% of his gross income in a retirement account, while also receiving a 3% match from his employer. The problem was that he was also spending, on average, 20% more a month than what he made, running up credit card and home equity debt while depleting his savings. While he was saving for his future, at the same time he was destroying his current wealth and on the path to financial distress. The Curse of Instant Gratification Another problem many families face is the drive for instant gratification. Instant gratification is a curse to savings, in part because of the ease and convenience of both online shopping and digital banking. Advancing technologies facilitate spending money, and consumer demand drives technology’s march forward. More than simple wasteful spending, instant gratification may sometimes include necessary and functional purchases — just at the wrong time. For example, many people like driving a new car with the latest technology, but do you really need it? You may need a car because of where you live or your job, however do you need to purchase the latest model factory delivered with all of your specifications? Ways to defer gratification include: Make a list of wants, and save toward large purchases so you can pay in cash. These don’t have to be major purchase like a home or car, but could be a family vacation, a new washer and dryer or that new Ultra 4K TV. Use a debit card for purchases, not a credit card. If the money isn’t in the account, don’t make the purchase. Leave credit or debit cards behind completely and use only cash. Basically, don’t blow your money. Simple enough, right? But even the rich and famous can have trouble with that concept. Take Johnny Depp. His business managers, whom he is suing, say his “lavish spending” — $30,000 per month on wine, $200,000 per month on private jets and reportedly $75 million to buy homes, a horse farm in Kentucky and several islands in the Bahamas — has put him in dire straits. Saving enough for wants, emergencies and other unpredictable expenditures means having enough money left over from paychecks to save. For many this will be a difficult change to make. It will mean that you are willing to exercise financial discipline and delay purchases until you can afford them while also meeting your savings goals. Conclusion No calculator or estimator can come up with the exact amount for any one person to save. Knowing what to prepare for is personal to each individual situation. Every person who wonders how much to save must first examine a larger picture that includes long-term financial goals, lifestyle choices, spending habits, wants, desires and necessities. It is a personal decision that deserves thoughtful contemplation and strategic financial planning. If you are currently wondering how much you should be saving to reach your version of financial success, you can always reach out to a Certified Financial Planner. The time you take now to prepare for your financial future can make all the difference in your long-term quality of life. Source: Kiplinger.com

Many records are no longer needed three years after filing your tax return, but you may have to keep documents involving the purchase of a house or investments for years longer. Q: Now that I've filed my income tax return, I'm going to clean out my old files. What tax records can I toss, and what do I need to keep? How long do I need to keep them? A: The IRS generally has three years after the due date of your return (or the date you file it, if later) to initiate an audit, so you can toss many of your tax records after that time has passed. But you should keep some records even longer, and it's a good idea to hold on to your tax returns indefinitely. Here's how long you need to keep your tax records—and when you can send them to the shredder. After One Year You can shred pay stubs after you've checked them against your W-2s, and you can generally shred monthly brokerage statements after they match up with your year-end statements and 1099s. After Three Years Keep the following documents with your tax files for at least three years after the tax-filing deadline: Form W-2s reporting income Form 1099s showing capital gains, dividends and interest on investments Form 1098 if you deducted mortgage interest Canceled checks and receipts for charitable contributions Records showing eligible expenses for withdrawals from health savings accounts and 529 college-savings plans Records showing contributions to a tax-deductible retirement-savings plan, such as a traditional IRA After Six Years The IRS has up to six years to initiate an audit if you've neglected to report at least 25% of your income. For self-employed people, who may receive multiple 1099s reporting business income from a variety of sources, it can be easy to miss one or overlook reporting some income. To be on the safe side, they should generally keep their 1099s, their receipts and other records of business expenses for at least six years. Special Situations You'll need to keep some records for as long as you hold the investments, plus another three years after you sell. For example, keep records of contributions to a nondeductible IRA for three years after the account is depleted. You'll need these records to show that you already paid taxes on the contributions and shouldn't be taxed on them again when the money is withdrawn. Keep investing records showing purchases in a taxable account (such as transaction records for stock, bond, mutual fund and other investment purchases) for up to three years after you sell the investments. You'll need to report the purchase date and price when you file your taxes for the year they are sold to establish your cost basis, which will determine your taxable gains or loss when you sell the investment. Brokers must report the cost basis of stock purchased in 2011 or later, and of mutual funds and exchange-traded funds purchased in 2012 or later. But it helps to maintain your own records in case you switch brokers. (If you inherit stocks or funds, keep records of the value on the day the original owner died to help calculate the basis when you sell the investment.) Keep home-purchase documents and receipts for home improvements for three years after you've sold the home. Most people don't have to pay taxes on home-sale profits—singles can exclude up to $250,000 in gains and joint filers can exclude up to $500,000 if they've lived in the house for two of the five years prior to the sale. But if you sell the house before then or if your gains are larger, then you'll need to have your home-purchase records to establish your basis. You can add the cost of significant home improvements to the basis, which will help reduce your tax liability. See IRS Publication 523, Selling Your Home, for more details. For further information about how long to keep tax records, see the IRS's Recordkeeping fact sheet. Source: Kiplinger.com

Many people don’t quite know what to look for in an adviser. A Harris Poll found that more than a third of Americans don’t even know what a financial adviser does. Choosing the right financial adviser for your needs is crucial. It’s not just your money that’s at stake. Your ideal future is, too. Any good adviser will take as much time as needed to help you feel comfortable with their services. However, the best way to learn how your money will be managed and if you can trust your adviser is to ask questions. The Greek philosopher Socrates is quoted as saying, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” When it comes to finding financial help, I say, “The unexamined adviser is not worth hiring.” The caveat? You should also fully understand the answers to your questions before signing on the dotted line. Here are 10 questions we would ask and the reasons why. 1. What are all the costs and fees associated with investing? When it comes to investing, there are always costs. There are costs associated with owning investments, such as mutual funds and ETFs, as well as transaction fees for trading. If an adviser tells you there are none, proceed no further — except for the exit. The financial industry is creative when it comes to fees though, so this is a question you may need to ask several ways. Ask if you will be charged front-end or back-end commissions. Also, find out if any of the investments charge 12b-1 fees, which are fees charged by mutual funds to shareholders for marketing and distribution purposes. Essentially, these fees don’t directly benefit you, but instead lower your return. Remember, the more you pay in fees, the less you get in return. Some advisers also sell annuities. Be careful. Annuities are often wrapped in layers of fees. If you’re considering an annuity, ask for a complete summary of the fees, including any optional riders and benefits, mortality and expense charges, administration fees and investment fees. Further, make sure you understand the annuity’s surrender fee schedule. 2. How will you and your firm be compensated? The fact is, we advisers don’t work for free. Sorry. We charge for our services just like everyone else. The tricky part is that advisers can be compensated for their services in different ways. Some charge a flat dollar amount or a percentage of assets under management. Others are compensated by the investments they sell in the form of commissions and 12b-1 fees. This is an important difference. It’s better to have an adviser who is compensated for the work done for you and not for the investments sold. Advisers should not be compensated extra for making changes to your account or selling you more products. 3. Are you a fiduciary? Fiduciary is the highest legal standard to reach. It means those providing financial services are legally obligated to act in the best interests of their clients. Registered investment advisors (“RIAs”) are regulated under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, which binds them to the fiduciary standard. This is a higher standard than the “suitability” standard that is followed by registered representatives, such as stockbrokers. Therefore, you should be aware that the advice you receive from one adviser to the next can differ depending on how they are registered. However, one thing to keep in mind is that advisers are technically not fiduciaries on the investments they don’t manage. For example, an adviser helping a client with an active 401(k) or providing advice on purchasing a car is not in those instances held to the fiduciary standard. When interviewing an adviser, ask what standard would apply to the investments he or she manages and any others you need help with. 4. Who’s your custodian? You should never be required to give the money you’re investing directly to a financial adviser. Think Bernie Madoff. Instead, there should be a third party, the custodian, who holds your account and the assets in it. This should be a reputable company that sends you regular statements and provides online access. 5. Are you credentialed? The financial industry is home to an alphabet soup of letters. Arguably, the three most respected sets of letters are CFP (Certified Financial Planner), CPA (Certified Public Accountant) and CFA (Chartered Financial Analyst). Advisers are required to undergo rigorous testing and continuing education to earn and maintain these designations. For personal finance help, look for a CFP. 6. How long have you been a financial adviser? Along those same lines, if applicable, you might also ask how long have you been employed with your company? Further, what’s your future look like? It’s good to know that your adviser has a history with a reputable firm and has every intention of sticking around. It takes time to build a trusted relationship, which is an investment on your part that you don’t want to go to waste if your adviser leaves in 12 months. 7. Do you have any disclosures? If your adviser has any rulings against him or her, it’s important to know what they are. You can also find this information on your own. Search through government websites such as the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Central Registration Depository and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s BrokerCheck. Simply type the adviser’s name in the search field and you’ll find any past disciplinary action, registrations or licenses and educational and career histories. 8. How will you invest my money, and what’s your investment philosophy? You don’t necessarily need to know how the sausage is made, but you should be comfortable with what’s served to you on the plate. You and your adviser should come to an agreement on the appropriate asset allocation in your portfolio based on the level of risk you’re comfortable with and your long-term financial goals. You should also understand what types of investments your adviser recommends. Will your adviser use mutual funds and ETFs, individual securities, insurance products, etc.? And, how often might changes be made? Few investments perform well indefinitely, so it’s inevitable you will need adjustments in your portfolio from time to time. However, frequent investment changes can hurt more than help. Learning how often an adviser buys and sells investments will provide some indication of what you could experience. It’ll tell you whether he or she is trying to help your money grow over the long term or constantly trading in hopes of hitting a home run. 9. How often will we communicate? Perhaps you’ll need a lot of hand holding or want continued comprehensive planning. Or, maybe you just want someone to manage your money while you concentrate on living life to the fullest. Either way, make sure your new adviser will provide the level of attention you desire via written correspondence, phone, email and in-person meetings. 10. How will I fit in among your clients? The last thing you want from an adviser is to be treated as just another number. Nor do you want to have financial needs your adviser isn’t able to help you with. One way to get an idea of where you stand with your adviser is to ask how many clients he or she services. After all, there’s only so much of one adviser to go around. Further, ask how your account size and financial goals relate to other clients. Lastly, what other aspects of your financial life — beyond investing your money, planning for retirement, etc. — can you get help with. If you feel like small fish in a big pond with important financial needs unmet, then it’s a sign you need to find another adviser. Source: Kiplinger.com

Parents know all too well that getting food on the table doesn't come cheap. If you're not careful about your expenses, you might just blow a good portion of your paycheck on a routine stop at the supermarket. To help you figure out if you're overspending on food for your family, budgeting website Growing Slower created a monthly grocery spending guidelines chart. The guideline, which was shared by The Real Deal of Parenting Facebook page, uses data from the USDA's Cost of Food report to make recommendations for a thrifty monthly grocery budget based on family size. The chart starts with a family of one and goes up to a family of 11. For just a mom, dad and child, for example, Growing Slower suggests dedicating between $475 and $558 a month on groceries. For a family of six, the range is $768 to $999 per month. The chart can be seen here or below: Family Size (Total) Thrifty Monthly Grocery Budget 1 $200 - 227 2 $392 3 $475 - 558 4 $557 - 707 5 $633 - 882 6 $768 - 999 7 $870-1089 8 $1013-1216 9 $1166-1343 10 $1355-1442 11 $1543-1536   When the chart was shared on The Real Deal of Parenting's Facebook page, a lot of parents were surprised at how they actually spent less than the range given for their size family. Though, it's worth noting that a family of four that includes a toddler and a breastfeeding baby is very different than one that includes two voracious middle-schoolers. It's also not a complete science — it doesn't account for the cost of groceries in more expensive cities, and it doesn't account for extra spending on meals out of the house. So take it with a grain of bargain salt, and see if your family's spending is on track. Source: PopSugar.com

Check out this article by Ian Maxwell that discusses what everybody needs to know about investment fees. I recently read an article in The Wall Street Journal where a reporter went on an epic quest to discover exactly what fees she was paying within her employer 401(k) plan. Unfortunately, the difficulties encountered, and the time invested, only led her back to where she started — confused and unclear. This is an all too common experience for investors today. I was moved by her story and reached out to see if she ever found answers to the valid questions she was asking. Her response was telling. She was receiving so many emails in response to her article, more response than she had received from anything else she had ever written, that she felt she did not have time to even set up a quick call. This got me wondering, why are fees such a hot topic, consistently generating significant attention and emotional turmoil? I think it comes down to one key concept: value. Most people are OK paying for something if they can perceive an appropriate amount of value in it. Based on the complexity and confusion often encountered when trying to clearly understand how much you are paying in fees, how can anyone decide if they are getting value? If you have no idea what you are paying, how can you make this important decision? No one likes the feeling of being confused or that feeling of being kept in the dark, especially when trying to decide if they are willing or unwilling to pay for something. We live in the “information age.” We have access to more technology and more information on our phones today than NASA scientists had when launching rockets into space 30 to 40 years ago, and this is also true of professionals in the world of financial services. There is no reason why it should be so hard to clarify and clearly explain investment fees so that the investor can decide if the options being presented provide the desired levels of value. Especially when considering the push for fiduciary standards across the financial services industry, clients and investors should come to expect 100% disclosure and clarity when it comes to understanding the investment fees they are going to pay. Getting back to the question of why fees are such a hot topic, I do not think it is because fees are inherently bad - this is how many financial services professionals get paid, and there is nothing wrong with that as most provide a valuable service to their clients. The issue, I think, is feeling a lack of control and awareness when a client or investor wants to know what they are paying, and finding that no one is able to quickly provide an exact answer. That is anything but comforting. How can an adviser uphold his or her fiduciary commitment to clients if they can neither understand, nor clearly explain fees? How can an adviser be sure they are doing what is in the client’s best interests? Again, it is not the fees that are inherently bad, it is the lack of clarity surrounding them. It is the complete inability to decide if the fees are fair, if they make sense, if the services being provided for the fees are helping to reach defined goals, and if they are providing value. When starting your investigation into investment and advisory fees, there are a few basic categories you can use to help clarify who you are paying and exactly what you are paying for. I encourage people to have a clear understanding of their “All In” number so they can understand the total they are paying in fees. See the categories below: Adviser Fee This is the fee that is charged by your financial adviser if you have decided to hire someone for additional help. This can range widely based on different pricing structures, but annual averages should be somewhere around 1% - 1.5% of assets under management, depending on account size. Other advisers charge by the hour. The adviser fee is sometimes mistaken for all the fees the client is paying, but this is not usually the case. Investment Management Fees These are the fees charged by money managers to manage the funds and strategies being used to invest client money. These can range widely and can drive up the “All In” number behind the scenes without proper disclosure and close monitoring. Investment management fees can range from 0.3% - 2.5% per year levied on the amount invested. Platform Fees Depending on how the adviser is setting up his or her investment models, there may be added fees for the investment platform being used. These fees can range in the area of 0.5%. These can be harder to spot and often relate to different custodians and/or TAMP-UMA services. Transaction Costs These also happen behind the scenes and can cause the most difficulty when trying to find them out. Depending on the investment style of the funds being used, there can be costs for buys and sells executed to adjust the holdings of a given fund or strategy. They vary from year to year. An efficiently run fund could cost a few hundred dollars per year in addition to adviser, platform and management fees. Use these criteria to guide your search for understanding your fees and add them all up to get your true “All In” number. With this number in mind, now you can properly assess if it is worth it or if you want to look around to find better value elsewhere. Keeping everything at or below 2% is a decent general benchmark to keep in mind. For example: A 1.2% adviser fee, investment management fees of 0.5%, and a platform fee of 0.3% would give you an “All In” total fee of 2% before counting transaction costs. It should take no more than 10 to 15 minutes to find an answer to the simple question, “What am I paying in fees?" If it takes more than 30 minutes of actual research, or no one can get back to you within a few hours with a clear answer, you may want to reconsider who you are working with when seeking financial advice. Source: Kiplinger.com

Do you feel hesitant to put more of your money in the market because it feels like a gamble? Even seasoned investors can get nervous about investing their hard-earned money, because all investments come with risk. And for most people, the thought of losing the money you worked hard to earn is far more painful than the chance of possibly earning more. But here’s the thing: If you’re investing wisely, you can mitigate your risks through the right strategies, like appropriate asset allocation and diversification. You still risk experiencing temporary losses, but it’s not the same as taking your cash to the blackjack table. Some people, though, treat investing that way. They throw money into the market without a plan, without a strategy, and without the proper safeguards in place to protect against unnecessary risks. In other words, they don’t invest at all. They speculate, and they often experience wild swings and major losses in their portfolios as a result. What Are You Doing with Your Wealth? Benjamin Graham wrote about how to identify a speculator in his great investment book, The Intelligent Investor. He explained that “the speculator’s primary interest lies in anticipating and profiting from market fluctuations. The investor’s primary interest lies in acquiring and holding suitable securities at suitable prices.” Graham goes on to write that investors do care about market movements — but only from a practical standpoint, not because they get emotionally involved with volatility. Movements in a market, said Graham, “alternately create low price levels, at which [the investor] would be wise to buy, and high price levels, at which [the investor] certainly should refrain from buying and probably would be wise to sell.” Based on this definition, “investors” are not just individuals who put money into the market. Investors are people who purposefully, strategically and rationally buy and sell securities. Speculators, on the other hand? Those are individuals who also buy and sell in the market — but they do so emotionally and without a strategy. So, on which side of the spectrum do you fall? Are you investing or speculating? If you’re unsure, consider this list of activities and behaviors. If you’re checking the boxes here, you might be speculating: You think about the short term. You’re trying to earn a big return in a short amount of time. Rather than planning to invest over years or decades, you want to see a return within months, weeks or even days. You act based on hunches, guesses or tips. No one knows what the market is going to do tomorrow (let alone any one individual security in that market). If you base your investments off of predictions, forecasts or what someone else told you was going to happen… that’s speculating, not investing. And yes, this holds true even if the hunch came from a so-called “expert” on a financial TV program! You let your emotions get the best of you. Humans are highly emotional, irrational decision-makers. There’s nothing we can do to change that — but we can plan for it by putting an investment strategy in place and then sticking to that strategy. If you abandon your plan in favor of your feelings, you’re probably speculating. You think you know more than the market. An efficient financial market means that the securities within that market are accurately priced. But speculators think they have some sort of information the rest of the market doesn’t have — and they try to use that information to find mispriced securities. If you think you know more than the millions of other market participants and all the data that flows in and out of that market to determine individual prices … A. you’re probably wrong, and B. you’re speculating. If You Are Speculating … That Might Be Just Fine Here’s the thing: If you realize you’re speculating instead of investing, that might be OK in some circumstances. Speculating isn’t inherently bad, but people run into problems when they leverage all their available wealth to do so or fail to realize they’re not investing. If you use 95% of your available funds to invest wisely, you’re on track to meet all your financial goals, and you have the risk capacity (and tolerance)to be OK losing a small amount of cash on a speculative investment. It might be OK to take 5% of your available funds and go play. The key is to understand you’re doing just that: playing around, or making a gamble, or speculating. If you have the money available, feel free to speculate on the side — and make a distinction between that activity and your strategic investment plans. Of course, some people do not have the capacity to speculate with any amount of their money. A good financial planner can help you determine what’s appropriate for your situation and provide an objective, third-party opinion on how much cash you can safely use to speculate with stocks, businesses or other vehicles like cryptocurrencies. Your adviser might also be able to serve as the voice of reason needed to say, “OK, you’ve made a great return with your speculative investment — now, it’s time to sell.” Even when you’re exploring the possibilities with a small, safe amount of your wealth, it’s helpful to have a logical voice on your shoulder to help you make the most of both your strategic investments and your more speculative ventures. Source: Kiplinger.com

Q: I'm thinking about leaving my job and starting my own business, but I'll lose my health insurance from work. Can I sign up for coverage through HealthCare.gov now, or do I have to wait until open enrollment? A: You usually need to wait until open enrollment to buy individual health insurance, but you can get coverage anytime during the year if you're eligible for a "special enrollment period." To qualify, you must have experienced one of several life changes, which include leaving your job and losing your employer health coverage; moving to a new zip code; getting married; having a baby or adopting a child; or losing health insurance because you got divorced or legally separated. If you qualify for a special enrollment period, you usually have up to 60 days following the event to enroll in a new health insurance plan. See Healthcare.gov for more information about special enrollment periods. To shop for coverage, start by going to HealthCare.gov. Depending on your state, either you'll be able to buy individual health insurance at the site or you'll find a link to your state's health insurance marketplace. If your income is less than 400% of the federal poverty level ($48,240 for singles, $64,960 for couples or $98,400 for a family of four in 2018), then you'll qualify for a subsidy to help pay the premiums of a policy you purchase through HealthCare.gov or your state's health insurance marketplace. Use the tool at HealthCare.gov to see if you qualify for a subsidy. If your income is higher than the cut-off point, you can still buy a policy through the marketplace, but you won't receive a subsidy. You may also want to compare the costs and coverage of policies offered through a health care exchange to policies that are being sold outside of the marketplace, such as directly from an insurer, through an agent or at a website such as eHealthInsurance.com. Your state insurance department may also have information about health insurance available in your state. See www.naic.org/map for links. Another option is to continue your current coverage under COBRA. That's the federal law that allows people to stay on their employer's plan for up to 18 months after leaving a job. COBRA coverage tends to cost more than individual insurance because you have to pay both the employer's and the employee's share of the cost. You would, however, have the same provider network and cost-sharing arrangements that you have now. Ask your employer about your options. People who want to change health insurance plans midyear and don't qualify for a special enrollment period need to wait until the next open-enrollment period to buy a new policy. Open enrollment for coverage starting in 2018 ran from November 1 to December 15, 2017. No open-enrollment period has been set for choosing 2019 coverage, although it may be similar to last year's. Some states also have longer enrollment periods. Source: Kiplinger.com

In the 1930s, the US government began issuing social security cards as a means to track retirement and disability benefits to which individuals were entitled. Very quickly, businesses and agencies started using them for identification purposes. It was just so convenient that every US citizen and permanent resident had one. But with this proliferation of uses for social security numbers came a steep increase in identity theft.  Once a thief has your social security number, it’s easy to start opening financial accounts in your name. So, where is the sweet spot between giving businesses and agencies the information they need and protecting your identity? Who can ask for a social security number – and who can’t? Keep reading to learn more from our financial advisors in LaCrosse. Situations where you legally must provide your Social Security number There are times when you will need to give your social security number. These include: Anything that requires tax reporting, such as employers reporting your income. Banks for monetary transactions such as getting a loan or opening a line of credit. This can include other entities where you open a line of credit such as a phone contract. Real estate transactions. Government agencies (both state and federal) that provide benefits or services such as administration of taxes, driver’s licenses, child support enforcement, Medicaid, food stamps and unemployment compensation, student loans, and workers’ compensation. Making cash transactions over $10,000. When working with an investment advisor. Applying for group health insurance through an employer. Situations where you don’t have to provide your Social Security number Businesses will often ask for your social security number because it’s an easy way to track your account. It’s also an easy way to track you down for collection purposes.  That doesn’t mean they really need it or should have it. Here are some examples. Business over phone or email Refuse to give your social security number when someone representing themselves as an agent of a business, even one you use, asks for it during a call or email you did not initiate.  This is a common way for scammers to steal identities. On a job application Although employers can ask for your social security number, they should not be asking for it on a job application before you are hired. Leave it blank until you accept an offer. The doctor’s office When you visit a new doctor, the staff typically hands you a form to complete. Often, that form asks for a social security number. There is usually no reason that they need it, and you’re better off leaving it blank. School enrollment Public schools cannot require the social security number of a child or their parents to enroll. You can use other documentation for proof of identity. You also aren’t required to provide a social security number to enroll in college.  However, be aware that applying for financial aid of any kind will require a social security number.  Ask these questions The more you spread your social security number around, the more you increase your chances of identity theft. If you’re concerned about whether or not a business can ask for your social security number, ask these questions: Why do you need my social security number? How will you use my social security number? Where and how are you storing my social security number? Is there another form of identification you would accept instead? What will happen if I do not provide my social security number? What may happen if you refuse It’s not illegal for a business to ask you for your social security number, even if it’s not legally required. If they will not accept another form of identification, they may refuse to provide service. Keep your financial future safe with Advisors Management Group If you have more questions about who can legally ask for your social security number or keeping your financial data safe, don’t hesitate to contact us now. A knowledgeable financial advisor in Eau Claire or a financial advisor in Green Bay can answer your questions and help you make sound financial decisions. We have offices conveniently located in La Crosse (608.782.0200), Eau Claire (715.834.9512), and Green Bay (920.434.2192), Wisconsin. Advisors Management Group, Inc. is a registered investment adviser whose principal office is located in Wisconsin. Opinions expressed are those of AMG and are subject to change, not guaranteed, and should not be considered recommendations to buy or sell any security. Past performance is no guarantee of future returns, and investing involves multiple risks, including, but not limited to, the risk of permanent losses. Please do not send orders via email as they are not binding and cannot be acted upon. Please be advised it remains the responsibility of our clients to inform AMG of any changes in their investment objectives and/or financial situation.  This commentary is limited to the dissemination of general information pertaining to AMG’s investment advisory/management services. Any subsequent, direct communication by AMG  with a prospective client shall be conducted by a representative that is either registered or qualifies for an exemption or exclusion from registration in the state where the prospective client resides. A copy of our current written disclosure statement discussing our advisory services and fees continues to remain available for your review upon request.