Below are four simple suggestions that can help you increase your financial confidence.
1. Get organized. Not too long ago, it didn’t take much work to organize your finances. Unless you were very wealthy, money matters were fairly
straightforward. You could easily store all your financial information in a single accordion file. Today, things are more complicated. Credit cards, home equity lines of credit, student loans,
401(k)s and IRAs, 529 plans for college
expenses — the list of information to keep track of seems endless. There are numerous strategies for getting organized. Some people stick with that old-fashioned accordion file. Others go completely digital. Whatever solution you choose, you need to know all the details of your finances.
2. Get educated. Simply taking the time to learn more about finances and managing your money can do wonders for how you feel about your life. Basic financial literary isn’t really covered in
most school curricula, so many otherwise savvy adults are clueless in this area. Many community colleges, churches, and nonprofit groups offer classes, or you can sign up for a class online. If you don’t want to go back to school, consider
watching videos or reading articles that review financial concepts.
3. Get a financial plan. Setting goals and making meaningful progress toward those goals will do wonders for your financial self-esteem. In fact, people who engage in financial planning are more
likely to report they live comfortably and are on track to meet their financial goals. A financial plan brings together all the threads of your financial life. Having a solid plan in place that covers everything from preparing for emergencies to planning for retirement is key to boosting your financial confidence.
4. Get help. Getting reliable advice from an outside expert can do wonders for your financial confidence. Just like a doctor supports and guides you in making decisions about your health, a financial advisor is there to make sure you’re
sticking to your financial plan. There are many decisions that are difficult to make on your own, from deciding how much to save for retirement to choosing investments for your portfolio. If you’re
unsure about what to do next, please call.
Consider Maturity Dates
Bonds can be purchased with maturity dates ranging from several weeks to several decades. Before deciding on a maturity date, review how that date affects investment risk and your ability to pursue your goals.
Interest rates and bond prices move in opposite directions. A bond’s price rises when interest rates fall and declines when interest rates rise. The existing bond’s price must change to provide the same yield to maturity as an equivalent, newly issued bond with prevailing interest rates.
Bonds with longer maturities are more significantly affected by interest rate changes. Since long-term bonds have a longer stream of interest payments that don’t match current interest rates, the bond’s price must change more to compensate for the rate change. Although you can’t control interest rate changes, you can limit the effects of those changes by selecting bonds with maturity dates close to when you need your principal.
In many cases, you may not know exactly when that will be, but you should at least know whether
you are investing for the short, intermediate, or long term.
Financial Thoughts
About 69% of Americans say they are concerned about cybersecurity in the wider adoption of technology. Yet, 78% of Americans agree that the widespread adoption of technology within financial services is a positive development (Source: Personal Capital, 2019).
Approximately 80% of adults over age 50 want to remain in their current home as they age, but only 50% expect that they will be able to do so (Source: Barron’s, June 3, 2019).
About 40% of families believe they are paying the right price for college costs (Source: Sallie Mae, 2019).
About 51% of Americans expect to inherit money from older family members. Of that group, 25% believe the inheritance will largely or entirely fund their retirements (Source: WealthManagement.com, June 2019).
About 20% of baby boomers, 36% of gen-xers, 32% of millennials, and 63% of generation z (ages 18 to 22) expect an inheritance from older family members
(Source: WealthManagement.com, June 2019).
Almost 92% of United States taxpayers e-filed their returns in 2019 (Source: eFile.com, 2019).