Where to invest for the coming Year of the Vaccines?
No one knows what will happen in 2021. Every advisor in town
has an opinion—either from their firm’s analysts or their favorite
wholesaler—but they don’t know. So should you keep paying them a quarterly fee
of 1-2%? You could lose up to 62%
of your total possible nest egg that way. Or you could go with the best
advice master-investor Warren Buffett offers. You could double your money in
10-12 years. Buffett’s advice is different because he doesn’t take your money.
He’s different because he knows he doesn’t know. His strategy is pretty simple.
First, invest in a broad market index fund like the Vanguard 500
Index. He even recommends it for retirement
investing. Second, use a low-cost fund like those run by Vanguard which has no
outside owner. Third, don’t try to out guess the market by trading ETFs
or individual stocks or sectors. They are easy to trade but that assumes you
know what will happen. You and millions of
‘professional’ traders don’t know. Get used to the uncertainty. All we
really know is that the 500 stock index has outperformed other assets over
time: 11%
a year on average. It does better leaving your money alone. Fourth, Buffett
credits compounding for his success: buy and hold. If you are new
to index investing, give it a chance with only 10% of your retirement
money.
Earn more by paying less. https://www.amazon.com/Warren-Buffett-Your-Investment-Advisor/dp/1518690963
Will you have enough retirement income?
You can afford retirement starting now. There are a few
rules to follow but in time you will have enough. If you start now, using low-cost
stock index funds inside a tax-FREE account, you can make it. There are
easy ways to track your progress that paid advisors use that you have access to
also. Over time, you can have enough saved to live well. How much can you accumulate
in your investment account? Answer: $1
million at $250/mo; $3,000/yr; 35 years. Track progress here: https://investor.vanguard.com/calculator-tools/retirement-income-calculator.
Don’t panic: expect your low-cost stock index fund like the Vanguard 500 Index
to go up and down: a +31% and a -37%:
average +11%.
Start now: https://www.amazon.com/You-Can-Afford-Retirement-FEE-FREE/dp/1517738253
Let compounding build your child’s future
Make sure you teach your kids how to create wealth the easy
way. My parents were not investors. At my first job, I had no clue which
investment option to use for my 401k contribution and company match. The HR
person told me to put it into the 'safe' stable value fund. That was the worst
choice at my age I learned later when I got my securities licenses. If I had
followed their advice I would have ended up with $150,000 instead of a Wealth
Reserve of $877,233 about 33 years later. We have used this 'Wealth
Reserve' as I call it to have funds to use low-cost high-deductible
insurance, to buy two homes and 5 cars with higher down payments or cash, and
now to receive $2,500 a monthly in a retirement supplement.
https://www.amazon.com/Give-your-child-leg-up-manage/dp/1096505355
Why is it wise to diversify?
Readers have asked about holding the stock of their company
in their retirement plan. Take a moment to compare the percentage of that stock
to the total of all investments. Most often anything over 10% in the stock of
one company is considered risky. Unless you are a company executive you are
unlikely to know when to sell to avoid a loss. Some stocks do
better than others but you and your advisor just don’t know which. Buy
all. Consider that if your employer
should change stock value and your account drops by 50%, would you feel like
holding on thru the next 10-20 years with all that stock. If you work for a
company in the S&P 500 you may feel safe but don’t assume growth will last
forever. Plan ahead for a time when the value of your holdings falls—will you
panic and sell then? Keep
an eye on a market index fund: 2020 up 16% and over 11% long-term.
Stay diversified: https://www.amazon.com/Buffett-Bogle-Holy-Bible-Investment/dp/1523693045
Is an “advisor matching tool” right for you?
“SmartAsset's matching tool lets you compare and interview
up to 3 financial advisors,” for free. See your 3 financial advisor
matches. You will need to complete a 12 question on screen survey and then give
your contact information in order to obtain “3 financial advisor matches.” You don’t
actually get to “see your matches.” Now advisors have your email and you
have given an info-laden lead to a broker/advisor. I happened to know the
availability of local advisors and none of them offer financial planning for a
set fee. This ad promises “objective advice from a local fiduciary on your
budget” but there are none. Most
local advisors are not fiduciaries. I researched. All but one provides ‘planning’
but it costs you an annual fee and commissions. All but one needed over $1
million in “investable assets” to start. Usually this means your account money
must be moved to their firm so they can take their quarterly fees whether they
make you money or not. Better to use a salaried fiduciary from one of the large
online fund firms.
https://www.amazon.com/Fiduciary-Rule-BEST-dont-pay-fees-anymore/dp/1530980275
Save $3,000 a year for a $1 million retirement fund
We are living longer. We will need more savings for up
to 30 years in retirement. Even if we work after age 67, we will eventually
not be able to work. Planning for more income later requires we save more now,
while we can. Compare what you spend to the US
average
household spending standard to see where you might save $3,000 a year.
Biggest savings: $3,000 a year in money management fees/commissions. Example: $200,000
nest egg advisor fees 1.5% per year: Save $3,000 by moving to low-fee index
account. $3,000 per year savings can add $350,000 to your funds in just 25
years.
Avoid nursing home later: https://www.amazon.com/Stop-wasting-000-every-year/dp/146108394X
Robo advisor rates high in customer satisfaction
Covid pandemic has helped reshape the retail financial
services model. Robos have become popular as most services must be delivered
virtually now. JD Power survey data shows young
investors are satisfied with the robo advisor services model. Investors
between the ages of 31 to 45 had the greatest satisfaction with their advisor.
That represented 46% of traditional investors and 69% robo-investors.
Traditional investors ages 46 to 75 had relatively low satisfaction ratings
with their advisor, according to the Investor Insights: COVID-19 and
Robo-Advice study. Even Warren Buffett, leading hands-on advisor,
believes in allowing your money to grow without human interference.
Best Robo: https://www.amazon.com/Best-Robo-Advisor-Ultimate-Automatic-Management/dp/1537111957
**********ACCOUNTABILITY**************
Like 1776, this
period is a test
of democracy—We
rejected the "American
fascist"
17
states want to end our democracy: TrumpWorld
PA Court: “Voters,
not lawyers, choose the President”
Supremes crowned Bush II:
Scalia stopped
vote counts
Trump’s
war on virus: 300,000+ KIA
Celebrities
get cures
Our ‘Truth
and Reconciliation Commission’
Dictator
wants to pardon his own criminal activities
Dictators
move residence to avoid prosecutions
Dictator’s Last
Words
Insanity:
“doing the same thing
over and over again, but expecting different results.”
How Govt wastes our money: Our
Representatives gave 3.7 Trillion to the wealthy!
$1
million in PPP loans for small businesses to survive went to Tom Brady multi-millionaire
Melania
proud of her new tennis courts: Trumps play? “private
space” for Mel & friends
Census: 42
million Americans live below the federal poverty line: $7.25/hr same 10
years
Most
NYC firefighters won’t take vaccine we paid $ millions for. Choice or
misled?
Trump
turned down additional vaccine from Pfizer: July
shipment will cost us more lives
GOP
never feared spending over $1 Trillion for their tax cut: now
punishing Blue states
Coup: 100
lawmakers sign Trump’s plan to illegally oust Biden as president. ’24
job set?
SCAMS/SPINS:
Last
pandemic killed 675,000: masks guarantee fewer deaths: 2020 saw 300,000 and
counting
Can
domestic
terrorists become force for good after their Leader moves to TV show?
Trump
ends cultural exchange programs with China to isolate us; grow animosity
Jared
selling F-35 fighters to Arabs (transferred
to Yemen fighters) buy
Ivanka new island home
Trump creates GOP
‘enemies list’ for revenge: political loyalty for future GOP members
Trump
has his FBI and IRS go after Biden through son: old mafia strategy to force
deal
Refusing to go along
with Trump's lies: "get my house bombed": GOP
can’t stand up
Trump: vote in GA
election despite warning election
is rigged: 2 recounts say NO rigging
Texas
asks GOP Supremes to help Trump win like Bush: democracy
in 6 hands Coup?
GOP
reduces voting places so GA Dems must stand in line for runoff vote
Judge: Tromper General
Flynn
does not have to go to jail but still
confessed criminal
Ivanka
takes credit for access to food after Daddy tried to cut food vouchers to poor
Millions Americans
hungry: wait
in lines for hours for bag/box of basics donated by us.
FL
uses guns drawn police to attack virus tracker in home: stole her proof of
FL deniers.
FBI
lets its sex abuse candidates go free: you just have to be senior enough to
get away
Post
Office head who tried to subvert our election still not arrested: violated
court order
Trump makes his
Christmas ‘pardon
list’: pardon "every person who ever talked to me."
GA
GOP attacking socialist subsidies to farmers, oil/
gas, mining, Boeing, aerospace, etc
LendUp Loans caught loan
rate over 36%; no disclosures per Military Lending Act
Scam
call to verify online purchases: Don’t push 1 to be connected. Call seller
directly.
NatureWise
fake reviews on supplements, vitamins: free product for review illegal
RAB Performance
Recoveries caught
suing folks for debts without license: fine no jail
BounceBack caught
in deceptive unlawful debt collection acts or practices fine no jail
BancWest Investment
Services caught
selling higher-cost fund shares fine no jail
One-ring scam: scammer
disconnects after one ring in order to get us to call back.
Pet scam: buy
a pet online but never receive it: spike due to stay at home trend
Buy
online with credit card to avoid scam of fake ads: Facebook does not verify
offers
Hackers
hacked the anti-hacking tools used to test client anti-hacking protections:
Sue!
LG
Chem Recalls Home Battery Systems After Reports of Fires
Nationstar Mortgage violated
consumer financial laws: $73 million damages
Video
messages faked to gain viewing: fake virus, fake voter fraud: check other
sources
Scam: $1,200
from COVID-19 TREAS FUND text tricks us bank info. Real
IRS info
Senior scams: popular
scams and how they work so you can avoid them
Borrowing for
divorce: demand
in southern states at all time high: no jobs; homebound?
Merrill Lynch
Charles Kenahan caught
excessive unauthorized trading, commissions
Blue
Flame charged blue state $41,000 for $5,000 ventilators: Trump
gives some away
IRS: Easy Steps to Protect Your Computer and Phone and Avoid Phishing Emails.
IRS: Free special ID
protection PIN goes on your return so scammers
can’t take refund
IRS: Previous tax
returns available online: https://www.irs.gov/individuals/get-transcript
Is it a scam? Check AARP scamline 877.908.3360.
Check
IRS: https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/dirty-dozen-part-1-taxpayers-should-be-on-the-lookout-for-these-scams
https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/dirty-dozen-part-2-thieves-work-all-year-to-scam-taxpayers
Check Social
Security: https://blog.ssa.gov/
Safeguard data:
ConsumerReports help: https://securityplanner.consumerreports.org/
Jobs
Winning
your business-interruption claims: present
danger is key to convince judge
Plastic
surgeons demanded to fix faces on Zoom: now we see what everyone sees: Ouch
26 million need
work: fixing
infrastructure for pay would help more than $600 check
Colleges
with highest paid grads: BA gets you $70K early; $140K later
Starbucks: we don’t
have enough stores so 22,000
new ones need help
Who owns your account now?
Folio
Investing is getting out of the retail brokerage business: to Interactive
Brokers.
Waddell
& Reed brokerage business to LPL and its asset management unit to Macquarie
MetLife’s
U.S. property/casualty business to Zurich Insurance and Farmers Exchanges
Senior
Living Providers Focus on Resident Experience: Ratings by J.D. Power
Dental
Plan Satisfaction Slightly Decreases, J.D. Power Finds
Partnerships
and S corps owners can now avoid the SALT $10K cap if biz itemizes
Vanguard
investors pay low fees and so earn more for their investments
So Sad: Mitchell
SD ignored virus for months: now daily helicopter comes for victims
Giuliani
acknowledged he got “celebrity” treatment: most expensive
drugs we can’t get
Miracles:
While OK Gov prays
for virus victims, Christian
leaders insist on mask mandate now
Her dog Abby missing
3 weeks, finds
her owner at Walmart job on her own miles away
"Bethany's
Happy Bags for the Homeless" 6
yr old wants to help too
Let them eat cookies: we eat more than three cookies per day:
Running out of dough
We
are ‘re-born’ every 7-10 years: sort of; it’s an average of all cells but
still a miracle.
Compound interest: invest
$250/mo; $99K over time for $1 million later
We can apply for
Medicare online: https://blog.ssa.gov/apply-for-medicare-online
We can apply for
Social Security online: https://www.ssa.gov/benefits/retirement/
We can apply for
health care online: https://www.healthcare.gov/
IAN
41 Watchung Plaza,
B242
Montclair, NJ 07042
973.746.2014
www.InsuranceAdvisorsNetwork.com
Alerts available
at http://dankeppel.blogspot.com/
