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Get a Jump on Retirement

SHOULD I HAVE A MORTAGAGE IN RETIREMENT?

Planning the details of your retirement and considering the pros and cons of paying off your mortgage?  Here are some considerations to think about.

1. You value the security and peace-of-mind of having your house paid off.
2. You are paying a higher mortgage rate than your money is earning…your mortgage is at 5% and your savings are earning 3% in a CD.
3. You are in a lower tax bracket and you have only a few years left on your mortgage payments.
4. You are planning to downsize or move to another less expensive area.

Retirement planning needs to begin long before your last day of work.  Call Brooks Financial Planning for a real time review of your specific situation.  We can help you evaluate the pros and cons of this important decision.

Smart Moves for Life’s Big Events: Easing Into Retirement

Fee-Only Financial Planner: Jane Bryant Quinn’s Insights

I came across this wonderful article by the well-known expert on the subject, Jane Bryant-Quinn.  Here is the article in its entirety.  Share your thoughts!

How can I find a good fee-only financial planner?

by Jane Bryant Quinn

You can find a good fee-only planner through one of the following Web sites:

• National Association of Personal Financial Advisors, about 1,270 planners in all states. To see if there are any near you, go to its Web site and type in your zip code. When names pop up, click on their profiles, where they announce their specialties. Some look for clients of high net worth. Others say they serve “middle income client needs.” If you don’t see the “middle income” phrase, email local planners, explain the services you want, and ask if they offer advice by the hour or by the job. Some take hourly clients without advertising it. You can also get names of fee-only planners by mail. Call NAPFA at 800-366-2732.
• Garrett Planning Network, a group of about 300 planners in 41 states. They work on an hourly basis, with no minimum required. Fees range widely — at this writing, the majority charge $180 to $210 an hour. Middle-class clients are their specialty.
• Alliance of Cambridge Advisors, a group of about 145 planners in 33 states, also specializing in middle-class clients. They usually charge annual retainers covering all their services, although some of them might give you a onetime financial tune-up for a fee.
• Personal Financial Planning Center the site for certified public accountants who are personal financial specialists. Enter your zip code to get the names of local planners. Click on their names to see if they charge only fees. A few of these planners sell products on commission, so ask about it.
• Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards. Click on “Search for a Certified Financial Planner” to find CFPs in your area. Some will be “fee based” or “fee offset,” others are “fee only.” Go to their Web sites to find the true, fee-only planners.
• Financial Planning Association. The majority of these planners charge commissions, but the group includes some fee-only planners too. Go to Planner-Search, search for local names, and inspect their listings. Those who advertise as “fee based” or “fee offset” charge commissions. You want the planners who are “fee only.”

Plan and Plan Again!

The last several years have given us much to be concerned about and more than enough to worry over.  Of course there is much to be concerned with but the news headlines are seldom, if ever, about GOOD news.  It is important to note that all business cycles move up and down.  We had a lovely long upward business cycle which had us spoiled.

When the downturn came it was beyond the memory of many.  Those of us who were around in the 1970’s remember a downturn that was unsettling, to say the least.  The current economic cycle has brought out the best of the doom and gloom writers and it is time to take control of our own thinking and our own financial destinies.  For specific details of just how to do that, click below….

1.     Have a monthly cash flow plan.  (Budget is such a disagreeable word).  When you have taken control of your spending and know where your money goes, your sense of accomplishment is enhanced and you are empowered by that control.

2.    Check on your life and disability insurance policies.  Many have disability coverage through employment and think nothing about it, beyond that awareness.  Know what is covered and how it will work if it is needed.  Same thing is true for life insurance.  The information you glean will be a source of comfort and security.

3.    Know what your assets and liabilities add up to.  There are percentages that are recommended you not exceed when determining your debt burden.  It is good to know what those guidelines are.  That information will allow you to feel confident about your decisions and options.

4.    Establish specific short, intermediate, and long term goals.  Review your options for saving for these good purposes.  Using tax deferred investment options will enhance your progress.  Remember to measure your savings success by the progress toward your goals, not the day-to-day view.

Do these 4 things and you will find a sense of empowerment, comfort and security, confidence, and success for yourself.  Clearly your world can be a source of very good news for you!

Do you know where you stand with your finances?

Something has triggered you to do some searching for a Colorado Springs financial planner. Maybe you’ve decided it’s time to start contributing to an RRSP, or maybe you’re tired of never having any money left over for savings.

Whatever the reason, I’m glad you’re here and I have some preliminary advice for you.

The first thing you have to do before you ever start doing any real work with me or any financial planner, is to figure out where you’re starting from. You will be asked to do this exercise at our first meeting, so if you do this leg work before you contact us or a financial planner in your area, you’ll be able to get to the meaty stuff quicker.

Now, to put it plainly, there isn’t any point in making a financial plan before you know your current financial situation. If you don’t know where you’re starting from, I can’t tell you where we’re going to go.

Many of us simply guesstimate our monthly expenses and our monthly income but that does not cut it.

This exercise isn’t any fun at all, but it has to be done.

Sit down with a piece of paper and a pen if you aren’t savvy enough to fire up a new Excel spreadsheet. I want you to gather up a few months worth of bank statements and credit card bills and start writing it all down or plugging it into your worksheet.

Figure out all of your monthly expenses, assigning a category to each; gas, vehicle maintenance, groceries, dining out, entertainment, etc.

Add up interest you’re paying on debt and don’t forget to assign a category for it too!

Then you’ll want to add up your monthly income and come up with an average that will tell you whether you spend less than what you make or not!

This exercise is painful and it isn’t any fun at all. But it’s a necessary evil if you want to start a relationship with a financial planner. If you want to skip this for now and call me so we can do it together, that’s fine with me!

And please remember, you don’t have to be wealthy to work with a financial planner. My services can help anyone in the Colorado Springs area find wealth they didn’t know they had!