need to do financial planning

Financial Planning - Financial planning in general. (Moderated) 

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Subject Author Date need to do financial planning Junkone 09-24-2006  Re: need to do financial planning Elle 09-24-2006  Re: need to do financial planning jIM 09-24-2006  Re: need to do financial planning joetaxpayer 09-24-2006  Re: need to do financial planning Junkone 09-24-2006  Re: need to do financial planning joetaxpayer 09-24-2006  Re: need to do financial planning jIM 09-25-2006  Re: need to do financial planning John A. Weeks I... 09-24-2006  Re: need to do financial planning DFIGTREE 09-27-2006  Re: need to do financial planning John A. Weeks I... 09-27-2006
Posted by Junkone on September 24, 2006, 10:34 am Recently after huge financial losees i have decided to do financial planning and came accross this wonderful group. Here is my situation Income after tax 40 k van lease 525 pm house mortgage 800 pm cash in checking account 20k. I am looking for means to increase the yeild and was looking for security. I am looking for short term investment oppurtuniteis in either bond or mutual funds. but with the stock market swinging up and down, i am a little lost. can someone help please Seede Posted by Elle on September 24, 2006, 12:08 pm What are your financial goals? E.g. Are you saving for retirement, a house, paying off a debt (list all loans)? What is your age? For now, two things in which you can start getting some experience are (1) CD ladders and money markets; and (2) asset allocation. For (1) you should be able to obtain a minimum 4.5% yield on that $20k savings right now, via short term certificates of deposit. Check for what the competition is paying (on CDs and money markets at www.bankrate.com . For (2) spend some time experimenting with the free online asset allocations tools linked at http://home.earthlink.net/~elle_navorski/id8.html . Ask questions about what these tools do. The stock market is swinging, but one has to try to remember that the safest way to invest in stocks is only when one does not need the money for say ten years or more. One also has to be able to emotionally weather ups and downs during that ten years. Smartest thing to do is to invest regularly for the long term, allocate per a plan, and do not mind exactly what the stock investments are doing until close to retirement. Posted by jIM on September 24, 2006, 12:09 pm Junkone wrote: > Recently after huge financial losees i have decided to do financial > planning and came accross this wonderful group. Here is my situation > > Income after tax 40 k > van lease 525 pm > house mortgage 800 pm > cash in checking account 20k. > > I am looking for means to increase the yeild and was looking for > security. I am looking for short term investment oppurtuniteis in > either bond or mutual funds. but with the stock market swinging up and > down, i am a little lost. > can someone help please > > Seede If Yield is what you are after (with safety of principal), I would suggest a money market fund (yielding between 4 and 5%). Short term CDs might be an alternative. Posted by joetaxpayer on September 24, 2006, 1:36 pm Junkone wrote: > Recently after huge financial losees i have decided to do financial > planning and came accross this wonderful group. Here is my situation > > Income after tax 40 k > van lease 525 pm > house mortgage 800 pm > cash in checking account 20k. > > I am looking for means to increase the yeild and was looking for > security. I am looking for short term investment oppurtuniteis in > either bond or mutual funds. but with the stock market swinging up and > down, i am a little lost. > can someone help please > > Seede > You don't mention you age, type of employment, and a few other key points. The cash should be moved mostly to either a money market fund, with instant access, or to laddered CDs, or bonds. Laddering is when you invest say, 1/4 of your funds in each maturity, 1 yr, 2 yrs, 3 & 4. When the 1 year matures, you use the proceeds to buy a new 4 year maturity. Over time, all you funds will be enjoying the rate of 4 year yields with money coming due each year. You can change this so money comes due every 6 months, or the ladder goes out further, as you wish. With the yield curve inverted or close to it, the rates may not be much higher at 3 years than 1, you need to check. I'm sorry you had a bad experience. For the long term stocks do provide superior returns compared to cash (CDs bills notes, etc.) But you do need to find your own comfort zone. Do you have a 401k? Does the company provide any matching? This is a good place to bump your return, and you can choose a fund within the 401 that's conservative if you wish. You can read this group's archives to understand volatility, and how long term stock investing is less risky as your time horizon lengthens. JOE Posted by Junkone on September 24, 2006, 3:52 pm Does it make sense to buy out the van that i am leasign. i am paying out 4.9% lease rate. based on what u state, the bond yield is around 4.5 %. I havev a stable job for the timebeing and 33 years of age. i think retirement is long way from now.? Seede joetaxpayer wrote: > Junkone wrote: > > Recently after huge financial losees i have decided to do financial > > planning and came accross this wonderful group. Here is my situation > > > > Income after tax 40 k > > van lease 525 pm > > house mortgage 800 pm > > cash in checking account 20k. > > > > I am looking for means to increase the yeild and was looking for > > security. I am looking for short term investment oppurtuniteis in > > either bond or mutual funds. but with the stock market swinging up and > > down, i am a little lost. > > can someone help please > > > > Seede > > > > You don't mention you age, type of employment, and a few other key points. > The cash should be moved mostly to either a money market fund, with > instant access, or to laddered CDs, or bonds. Laddering is when you > invest say, 1/4 of your funds in each maturity, 1 yr, 2 yrs, 3 & 4. When > the 1 year matures, you use the proceeds to buy a new 4 year maturity. > Over time, all you funds will be enjoying the rate of 4 year yields with > money coming due each year. You can change this so money comes due every > 6 months, or the ladder goes out further, as you wish. With the yield > curve inverted or close to it, the rates may not be much higher at 3 > years than 1, you need to check. > > I'm sorry you had a bad experience. For the long term stocks do provide > superior returns compared to cash (CDs bills notes, etc.) But you do > need to find your own comfort zone. Do you have a 401k? Does the company > provide any matching? This is a good place to bump your return, and you > can choose a fund within the 401 that's conservative if you wish. You > can read this group's archives to understand volatility, and how long > term stock investing is less risky as your time horizon lengthens. > JOE ======================================= MODERATOR'S COMMENT: Please trim the post to which you are responding. "Trim" means that except for a FEW lines to add context, the previous post is deleted. 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