First,Ihavetworealstoriesaboutafamilywithlifeinsuranceandafamilywithoutlifeinsurance.Thetwofamilies'outcomesaretotallydifferentaftertheprimarybreadwinnerdied.
Thefirststoryisaboutafamilywhenthehusbanddiedinhis40ssuddenlyfromaheartattack.Becausehehadpurchasedseveralmilliondollaroflifeinsurance,hisfamilydidnotsufferfinancially,theywereabletokeepthehouseandtwochildrenwenttoprivateuniversities,...[
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Investmentisveryimportantforraisingfamily,kids'education,andretirement.Formostofuswhoearnanincomefromworkingforacorporation,investmentdoesnotneedtobeacomplicatedthing.Hereisasetofquestionsandanswerstohelpyouinyourinvestmentjourney.
Doyoumaxoutyour401(k)?
Youshouldmake401(k)contributionsassoonasyoustartworking.Ifyourcompanyhas401(k)contributionmatching,thatisfreemoneyandyouaregettingarais...[
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REITstandsforRealEstateInvestmentTrust.REITisatypeofsecuritythatinvestsinrealestate.Theyaretradedin3differentmarketsandregulateddifferentlybySEC(SecurityandExchangeCommission).
PublicREITs:tradedinmajorexchangesandregulatedbySEC.Thedailypricesarepublishedinmajorfinancialpublicationsandwebsites.
Publicnon-listedREITs:nottradedinexchanges,butregulatedbySEC.
PrivateREITs:nottradedinmajorexch...[
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401(k),403(b),457(b)etchavebecomeaverywidelyusedsavingandinvestmentvehiclesformostofAmericanswithitstax-qualifiedandcompanymatchingfeatures.Intheseplans,therearewideselectionofmutualfunds,ETFs,andcompanystockstochoose.
Iwouldsuggesttochooseindexmutualfundssincetheriskislowerthanthesectorspecificmutualfundsandalotlowerthananyindividualstocks.Ifyouwanttoownsomeofyourowncompany'sstock,theruleo...[
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Whenwearetalkingabout$2Mforretirement,weassumethat$2Misinvestableasset,notincludingyourprimaryresidence.Thereasonbeingisthatweneedtheassettogenerateincomeandyourprimaryresidenceispartofyourasset,butitdoesnotgenerateincome.Theassumptionisthatthe$2Misnotbeingtouched,youwillliveofftheincomegeneratedfromthat$2M.
Ifyouinvestthis$2MinS&P500,thatwillgenerate$200Kincomebasedonhistoricalaverageannua...[
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Beingalandlord.Therearemanytradesforwhichyouneedtoknowsomethingaboutthehousestructure(civilengineering),electric(electricalengineering),plumbing(civilandmechanicalengineering),HVAC(mechanicalengineering),etc.Thiswillhelpyoutomaintainyourrentalpropertiesanddealwithcontractorssothatnocontractorscantakeadvantageofyou.Thereareplentygoodandhonorcontractorshttp://bbs.wenxuecity.com/tzlc/1187631.html,but...[
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Inagrowtheconomy,wewillexpectvacancyrategoingupsincemorepeopleareopttobuyhousesinsteadofrenting.Wewillexpectthiswillbethetrendinthecitieswithhealthyeconomy.Startingfrom2010,wecanseetherentalvacancygoingup.Thiswillputpressureonrentalmarketsaroundthecountry.Therentincreasewillslowdown.Itisagoodnewsfortherenters,notsomuchtothelandlords.Viceversa,inarecessionaryeconomy,peoplelosingjobsandincomegoingdo...[
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Yes,Iwouldhireafee-basedfinancialadvisortoreviewmyinvestmentportfolioandprovidesomesuggestions.Thisway,youareonlypayingone-timefeefortheadvice,notcontinuousmanagementfee.Iwillusethefee-basedadvisorwheneverIneedthehelponmyassetallocationoranyfinancialmatters.
Therearesomeprofessionalswithhighincomes.Theyliterallyhavenotimetomanagetheirownmoney.Theyneedafinancialadvisortohelpthemmanagingtheirmone...[
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401(k)isalongterminvestmentforretirement.Thequestionoftransferingmoneytobondshouldbelookedthisway.Itshouldbeanassetallocationquestionbasedonyourage.Asyouareclosertotheretirementage,youshouldhaveallocatedmoreassettobond.TheallocationthatIwilluseis70%equity/30%bondwhenyouareinyour40s,60/40whenin50s,and50/50in60s.Buttheseallocationsarejustageneralguideline,youcanholdmoreequitythanbondifyouhavemoreris...[
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Thetarget-datefundsin401(k)aregoodchoisesforfirst-timeinvestorsorforsomeonetoobusytomanagetheirretirementaccounts.Theyhaveabalancedapproachtotheretirementages.Insteadofdoingtheassetallocationyourself,thetarget-datefundswilldothatforyou.
Youjustneedtoselectyourretirementyear.Thefundswillrebalancebetweenequityandbondmarketsbasedonyourretirementyear.Forexample:ifyouareinyour30s,thetarget-datefundw...[
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