Betterment offers the best combination of investment options, tax-loss harvesting and low fees of any robo-advisor – with no minimum investment requirement.
The post Betterment Review: The Original Robo-Advisor Service appeared first on Bible Money Matters and was written by Peter Anderson. Copyright © Bible Money Matters – please visit biblemoneymatters.com for more great content.
Learn how to set up a trust and make smart money decisions with this step-by-step guide for Gen Zers. Understand the tax implications, cost, and responsibilities of being a trustee.Learn how to set up a trust and make smart money decisions with this step-by-step guide for Gen Zers. Understand the tax implications, cost, and responsibilities of being a trustee.
The post How to Set Up a Trust: A Step-by-Step Guide appeared first on Money Under 30.
Stay calm and let the bear back down.
What does it take to earn $100,000? These six Millennials have landed six-figure salaries and have some helpful tips to help you do the same.What does it take to earn $100,000? These six Millennials have landed six-figure salaries and have some helpful tips to help you do the same.
The post How to make $100k+: Advice from 6 millennials who’ve done it appeared first on Money Under 30.
Creating an estate plan, writing down your last will and testaments, and identifying a healthcare proxy donât seem like a fun way to spend a weekend. However, organizing your end of life paperwork and making sure you have a plan for your finances are some of the most important tasks you can complete as an […]
The post Your Last Will and Testament appeared first on Good Financial Cents®.
Everybodyâs financial situation — age, income, saving rate — is different.
But every retiree, early or late, aspiring or actual, has the same, simple investing imperative: We must preserve and grow our purchasing power in real terms in order to finance decades of future consumption.
This sounds simple (which it is) and obvious (which it isnât).
Let’s assume you’re forty years old. Every week, you buy a six-pack of your favorite microbrew for $10. You have $520 in savings that will buy you your weekly six-pack for all of 2019. Life is good.
Here, for instance, is GRS founder J.D. Roth with a $10.19 six-pack of his favorite beer, which he’s drinking while he edits this article:
Now, let’s assume that the cost of this six-pack increases by 3% annually — which is a reasonable estimate of inflation. Every year, your $520 in savings buys you 3% less beer.
In thirty years, when youâre seventy and still enjoying your suds, that six-pack that costs you $10 now will cost you $24.27, which is a $1,262 annual expense if you continue to buy a six-pack a week.
In other words, your $520 in savings has to increases by nearly 145% to $1,262 over the next thir[s]ty years to merely maintain — let alone increase — your current beer consumption.
It gets worse.
Even if everything goes according to plan and your beer money grows from $520 in 2019 to $1,262 in 2049, youâll need to sell $1,262 worth of your investments to get the cash for your beer. That will trigger a $750 taxable gain, and at a 25% federal and state tax, you’ll have to pay approximately $188 in taxes. Your beer money is now approximately $1,074. This only buys you 44 six-packs of beer in 2049, whereas you were consuming 52 six-packs in 2019.
In other words, due to inflation and the taxation of nominal gains, youâll be poorer, with a lower standard of living, thirty years from now.
This bears repeating: A 3% pre-tax return on your investments will not preserve, let alone grow, your current standard of living.
Risk and reward is the basic relationship in investing. Learn how to apply it to your financial life.
“When are you going to write about your hot tub?” readers have been asking. “We want photos of you in your hot tub.” Fine. Here’s a typical scene on any given afternoon. (This photo was taken with my iPad, and I can’t figure out where the camera lens is…)
The cats like the hot tub too, but only when the lid is closed. I suspect they’ll live on top of this thing during the winter.
These are two very different investment styles. See which one is right for you.
My thoughts on investing have shifted over the years. New ideas consistently challenge me and force me to question my assumptions. The biggest: is there skill in investing?