We soon observe Labor Day, which honors all the hard-working men and women in the United States. As an investor, you’d like to think that all your investments are working hard, too — including the ones that are producing income. But can your income-oriented investments be productive when short-term interest rates are at historic lows? Or can you find other investment possibilities that could potentially boost your cash flow?
If you’re part of “Generation X” — the age cohort born between the mid-1960s and the early 1980s — you’re probably in one of the busiest phases of your life, as you’re well into your working years and, at the same time, busy raising a family. But just as you’re multi-tasking in your life, you’ll also need to address multiple financial goals.
In seeking to accomplish your key objectives, you may be asking yourself a variety of questions, including the following:
If you’re relatively young, and you’ve been investing only a few years, you possess an asset that is invaluable and cannot be replaced — time. And the more time you spend contributing to tax-advantaged investments, the better off you may be.
As an investor, time is your ally for two reasons. First, the more time you give to your growth-oriented investments, the greater their growth potential. And second, the effects of market volatility have tended to decrease over time, though as you no doubt have heard, past performance is not a guarantee of future results.
You’ve got until April 17 to contribute to your Individual Retirement Account (IRA) for the 2011 tax year. That’s not a lot of time, but if you have some money available and you haven’t completely funded your IRA for 2011, consider doing so before the deadline. And once you’ve “maxed out” on your IRA for last year, why not get a jump on 2012?
Actually, you could have started contributing to your 2012 IRA as early as Jan. 2. In fact, if you can get into the habit of fully funding your IRA each January, you’ll give your money 15 extra months of
Late fall marks the beginning of the holiday season, which probably means that you’ll have a lot going on over the next couple of months. However, busy as you are, you’ll want to take the time to review your employee benefits package, since November also is a popular month for employers to offer open enrollment. And the decisions you make now could have a big impact on your financial outlook for years to come.
So, if you are in an open enrollment period, here are some steps you may want to take:
A few years ago, the National Association of Professional Organizers designated the first week of October as Get Organized Week. And while you may have misplaced your notification of this event, it’s nonetheless a good time to see just how organized you are in the important areas of your life — such as your finances.
When you invest in stocks, you want their price to go up. But of course, you can’t control the rise and fall of stock prices. However, there is a key element of investing that you can control — the number of shares you own. And in the long run, share ownership may be more important than rising stock prices in determining your long-term investment success.
Sep 22 2011 | Posted in
Financial Focus |
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As an investor, you may find that bonds can be a valuable part of your holdings. But there’s more than one way to own bonds, so you’ll want to be familiar with the various investment vehicles available — because the more you know, the better the choices you’ll be able to make.
Aug 4 2011 | Posted in
Financial Focus |
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June is a popular month for weddings. If you’re getting married this month, you have a lot to think about, but after the wedding — well, you’ll have even more to think about. And one of those topics should be your investment strategy. In these days of economic uncertainty, it’s important that you and your spouse make investment decisions today that will help you reach your long-term goals.
The school year is coming to a close, which means that, if you have young children, you are now one year closer to college days — and college bills. At the same time, you are moving nearer to your own retirement. Can you save for college while you put money away for retirement? Yes, but it will take planning, patience, and discipline.
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