Free Weekly How-To's on Saving More Money and Taking Charge of Your Personal Finances!
In this free weekly e-mail newsletter, I share simple, practical, results oriented and proven tips that help my clients save more money, spend smarter, learn about mutual funds, investing and retirement from an independent expert (Valued at $110 per year).
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Some recent e-mail newsletters:
Are You Saving Too Much?
I recently spoke at Barnard Alumni group. It was so exciting to see a room full of young women asking such serious questions about their investments and savings. Even if you haven't gotten started, there is so much you can do; it doesn't matter where you are. Spring is here and I am so thankful I can leave the house without putting hats and mittens on my little girls. Try reasoning with a 15 month old she needs to wear her hat!
There have been a few articles recently, including the New York Times, discussing if you are saving too much. A few smarty-pants clients couldn't wait to forward it to me—thanks! While I appreciate the article's good intentions, I wanted to address a few key points.
- Understanding wall street. The main argument is that Wall Street wants you to amass assets so they can make money. You can defend yourself against by finding out exactly what you are paying and keeping your fees as low as possible. Suggestions:
- Buy and Hold investments
- Low cost Index mutual funds
- No-load mutual funds
- Online calculator. The articles report that financial firm's online calculators state you should save 78% more than you actually need. If you believe this, then do a checkup with an independent online financial calculator at www.money.com or www.kiplinger.com or in the PFT to get an unbiased opinion.
- Focus on income. The articles continue to say you should focus on income from pensions. Most of us don't have a pension! Buy they do give some solid suggestions:
- Pay off your mortgage
- Live debt-free
- Downsize your home and expenses
- Move to a cheaper region when retired
Your Personal Money Plan
I visited my sister in Colorado this weekend. It was the first time she and I had a sisters weekend in over 3 years. Long overdue! We had a blast. Let's face it money is so personal. Sometimes we just need a nudge in the right direction to get us started. Follow these easy 4 steps to create YOUR PERSONAL MONEY PLAN. Also, if you want to start your own business but don't know where to start, check out the Small Business Association. They have FREE Business Plan classes.
- State Your Money Goal Pledge. "I will increase my automatic monthly savings to $500." Write it on a piece of paper and tape it to a mirror.
- When you have success for a month, reward yourself (i.e. manicure). Just don't spend a lot.
- Get support. Call an Independent Financial Advisor, register for a seminar, find a money buddy or buy the PERSONAL FINANCE TOOLKIT!
- Don't beat yourself up. If you fall off the horse (we all do!), dust yourself off and get right back on.
- Repeat steps 1 - 4.
Bright Fresh Money Ideas
Winter is officially here and it could not have come at a better time. Last week, I had my first beach vacation in years (without kids)! The fruity cocktail tasted even better knowing it was 20 degrees in New York City! While you are finally getting out those sweaters, why not do a quick house-cleaning on your budget? I recommend one every six months. Find FIVE places to plug in your budget. If each saves you $25 a month (or more!), that is an easy extra savings of $125 a month. Then setup an automatic savings to a mutual fund yielding 7% (on average) and in five years you have almost $9,000. In twenty years, you have $65,000. Imagine, by just finding five places to plug. Here are some suggestions on where to look.
- Your cable bill. I just realized that I was not using Netflix. It made more sense to either downgrade my service or cancel it and just go to the video store. At the same time, I checked my cable bill and realized I didn't need all those channels as well. $40 monthly savings.
- Insurance. If your home-owner's premiums are high, consider increasing your deductible. Just make sure you have some money set aside in an emergency savings account to protect yourself for small emergencies. This will make a big difference in your monthly premium. $50-100 monthly savings.
- Newspaper and Magazines. Are you guilty of buying People or US magazine at the supermarket? If so, maybe it's worth investing in an annual subscription. On the other hand, do those daily newspapers or magazines pile up? Consider canceling those subscriptions or getting the newspaper delivered on the weekend only. $30 monthly savings.
- Keep your cell phone number, but change the service. Start by calling your cell phone provider and see what they can do for you. I always save money when I make those calls. At the same time, perhaps the company you have had for years isn't the best one. Shop around. $20 monthly savings.
- Lower your rates. Call your credit card company today and ask for a lower rate. It usually works! $25 monthly savings.
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—Valerie A.
Perhaps the most valuable lesson we learned from Galia is this: She taught us that getting our financial house in order isn't rocket science. That knowledge erased our fears and instilled a confidence in us to take control of our money and dream.
—Evantheia Schibsted and Dan Ouellette