Retirement Answer Man Show: Retirement Planning That's Fun

In this Plan Well Invest Wisely podcast, I interview Lauren Gaggioli, founder of Higher  Scores Test Prep. We discuss the importance of the SAT and how to help your child select the right school for them. Here are some of the topics Lauren and I covered: * The importance of taking college preparatory tests such as ACT, SAT, PSAT. * Determining which test(s) to take when choosing a college. * The advantages of taking both ACT and SAT tests. * Motivating students to take responsibility in preparing for college. * Why some students should consider taking an intentional "gap" year between high school and college. * With their parents' help, students should examine themselves (passions, strengths, personality) to discover which college may be a best fit for them. * Various kinds of financial aid, including need-based and merit-based. * Why students should diversify their college options. To learn much more about ACT, PSAT and SAT test prep, listen to Lauren's free podcast called The College Checklist. Lauren explained the importance ACT, PSAT and SAT test prep and what you can expect in her six-week online course: * Personalized syllabus * Video tutorials * Workbook * Two practice tests * Free webinars Lauren is offering a FREE video on her website at Higher Scores Test Prep.  

I bought a recreational vehicle (RV) seven years ago.  Here it is, in all of its glory. . . untouched for two years. It's spring and the desire to spend time outside with the family is blooming. An RV, boat and other recreational vehicle can be great tool to help create great family experiences. In the dozen or so times we used our RV, our family had a blast.  In fact, I was going to post a campfire picture, but it's been so long, I can't find any. If you Google RV or boat you'll find plenty of reasons you should buy one. Owing an RV or boat taps into our desire to be in the great outdoors and spend time with our family. Indeed, these recreational vehicles can be a great way to create family memories. One thing you won't find in Google however are very many (if any) resources telling you the DOWNSIDE of owning an RV or boat. In this podcast, I share my story of RV ownership and 10 things you should consider before you follow my path. My family had "RV fever" and did everything wrong. In my practice, I've seen the devastating effects an ill-advised purchase of an RV (boat, vacation home, etc.)  can have on a families financial situation. Long after the dream of the great outdoors has faded, you're left with payments and bills without many options to rid yourself of the glorious albatross. In addition to telling my RV story, I share 10 things you should consider before you purchase an RV. * An RV is expensive. * The opportunity cost of investing those monthly payments could cost you 10's of 1000's of dollars * You'll have to pay to store your RV or boat EVERY year, whether you use it or not. * You'll have to  pay for insurance on your RV or boat EVERY year, whether use us it or not. * You'll need a vehicle big enough to tow your RV or boat. * You'll need to buy lots of "stuff" to keep in your RV. LOTS of stuff. * The RV or boat will break, whether you use it or not. * You won't use it as much as you think you will. Trust me, you won't. * You can rent an RV or Boat anytime you want. * You'll get hardly anything when you try to unload that useless RV or boat. * BONUS: If you own an RV,  you'll have to dump out the poop every time you use it. Click here to join the Plan Well community and receive a FREE financial worksheet each month to help you and your family PLAN WELL & INVEST WISELY.

How do you find the right financial advisor for you and your family?     In this special mid-week edition, host Roger Whitney gives you a framework for how to interview  financial advisor candidates and 15 questions you should ask to help choose the right one. In this episode he covers: * Why it is important to interview multiple financial advisors. * What to look for in a financial advisor. * Prework you can do before you meet a candidate (finra.org & sec.gov). * 15 questions to ask to help you find the right financial advisor for you and your family. For a  Finding a Trusted Financial Advisor worksheet to use in your interview process click here Subscribe to the PLAN WELL INVEST WISELY Podcast in iTunes

This Week, Roger Whitney introduces a new service YOU ASK I ANSWER, where you can ask your retirement planning questions and receive a response. Then he begins to answer the question, will I have enough money to maintain my lifestyle during retirement? The first step to answering this question is to determine what your retirement lifestyle will be. You do this by breaking your retirement lifestyle into three buckets: * Retirement Essentials. Those retirement expenses needed to maintain your household (housing, utilities, food, insurance, etc.) * Retirement Lifestyle. Those retirement expenses for things that enrich your life (travel, entertainment, home improvements, hobbies, etc.) * Retirement Dreams/Legacy. Those special things that you would like to accomplish (major travel, gifting, purchasing a second home, etc.) Breaking your retirement lifestyle into these three buckets gives you the flexibility to adjust your retirement lifestyle each year based on how your retirement unfolds. Once you do this, you need to consider how you will spend during retirement. For example inflation. Consider what your personal inflation rate is based on your spending habits. Also consider closely whether you want to spend more earlier in retirement with the understanding that you will lower spending in later years. In essence, buy yourself more lifestyle now, while you are younger and healthier. Once you've completed this step you are well on your way to determining how much money you will need to maintain your lifestyle in retirement. In future podcasts, he'll address the next steps in this process.

You can download the report for free by clicking here. Investing in your health may be the best investment you can make to live well in retirement. The quality of your health can have major financial implications on your financial wellbeing in retirement in these three ways: * Healthcare Costs - If you're unhealthy, high healthcare costs can blow a huge hole in your financial plan. * Prevent Alzheimer's Disease - Good health can skew the odds of you getting Alzheimer's and having to pay the high cost of memory care facilities. * Work After Retirement - Good health makes it possible for you to work after you retire.  The additional income allows you to invest in your lifestyle, delay collecting your social security, or continue to pad your nest egg. In this podcast, he also outline the six areas of your Wellness Wheel, highlighting two points in each area, and discuss the financial benefits of investing in them.  When you download the INVEST in Your Health: 72 Tips to Living a Healthier Retirement report, you'll get twelve tips for each of the six areas.  * Physical - Nutrition and exercise are highlighted. * Intellectual - Book clubs and the online brain game site Luminosity. * Emotional - Practice gratitude and be intentional about your relationships. * Social - Volunteer or join a club with others of like interest. * Spiritual - Examine your purpose in life and practice forgiveness. * Occupational - Decide what you're going to do in retirement and plan to stay engaged. Investing in your health NOW can have multiple benefits in your financial life after retirement. Download the free INVEST in Your Health: 72 Tips to Living a Healthier Retirement report here. Subscribe in iTunes Here

In this week's PLAN WELL INVEST WISELY podcast, we talk about Amazon Prime's recent price increase and how having a funded emergency fund helps you make smarter financial decisions. Rethinking Amazon Prime For those who don’t know, Amazon Prime is a membership program which gives members unlimited free two-day shipping on millions of items on Amazon.com and instant access to over 40,000 hit movies and TV episodes streamed directly you TV, computer, or tablet. The benefits of my Amazon Prime membership are clear. Recently, when Amazon Prime increased its annual fee by $20, it made me stop and examine how I use it. I found some negatives. *  It’s too easy. * Amazon Prime is too good at tempting me. * I’m weak. * It’s a family affair. Let's talk About Emergency Funds. Your emergency fund acts as a shock absorber in your financial life. In this podcast, I discuss: * What an Emergency Fund is. * Why some people might not have one. * Why you need one. * What your options are when you don’t have one. * How much you should have in your emergency fund and why. Click here to subscribe to the PLAN WELL INVEST WISELY podcast in iTunes I appreciate your iTunes Reviews!!! Your reviews help build the audience and I truly appreciate your feedback and support. Together, we can help others make smarter financial decisions. Have a topic or issue you'd like me to address on the podcast or blog? Let me know in the form below and I'll do my best to address it.

PLAN WELL INVEST WISELY Podcast Episode #2. Do you struggle to make financial decisions because you can't get a handle on all the complexities of your life?  In this episode's PLAN WELL segment, I show you how to use a net worth statement to make more informed financial decisions. A net worth statement is an essential tool for tracking your financial progress from year to year and for making smarter financial decisions. Your net worth statement reflects the amount by which your assets (what you own) exceed your liabilities (what you owe). If you don’t have a net worth statement, here’s how to create one. * List your assets (what they are, who legally owns them, and their value). I choose to list assets in three categories: a) taxable assets; b) tax-deferred accounts; and c) tax-free assets. Assets include home(s), vehicles, checking and savings accounts, cash, personal property and other investments. When recording your assets, be conservative with estimates. Inflated values of large assets (home and vehicles) might look good on your statement, but these inaccurate figures only skew the net worth figure. * List your liabilities (what they are, who legally owes them, the balance owed). Liabilities may include mortgage, credit card debt, home equity loans, car loans, and/or other loans. (For a complete list, see the Build Your Net Worth worksheet.) * Your net worth is the number you get when you subtract your liabilities from your assets. You should update your net worth statement every six months so you can easily correct your course along the way. Why is it essential to track your net worth? * It virtually gives you your entire financial picture in one place. This quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson says it best: “Your actions speak so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.”  There’s no guessing when you see it in print. * It equals the sum of all of your financial decisions over time. While it’s possible to increase your income and assets in the course of a year, if you spend more or increase debt, your net worth will reveal that. * It allows you to identify opportunities and risks in your financial life. An updated statement helps you balance your investments and liquidity. * It’s a much better tool to track your financial progress over time than your investment accounts. The ups and downs of the value of investment accounts do not always reflect financial health. INVEST WISELY: What is investing really about and what can it do for you over the long term? Over the last 25 years investing has become more about “wealth creation” through investing. This focus led to many people investing too aggressively. Somewhere between the dot-com bubble of the late 90s and the more recent economic crisis, we became disillusioned. Historically, the creation of wealth came from hard work, enterprise, creativity, disciplined spending, and savings. The purpose of investing was to preserve and grow the wealth WE had created through our efforts and disciplines. To INVEST WISELY, this historical perspective is important for you to consider for these reasons. * It keeps the focus on the true driver of wealth creation—YOU. It’s about how you develop your career, how you serve in the marketplace, what value you create, what you do with the rewards from your enterprise, how you spend monies and how disciplined you are in your savings. * It allows you to be a less aggressive and more consistent investor. Instead of looking to your investments to drive wealth creation, you can be less aggressive and more balanced and consistent in your investments. * You’re more likely to benefit from the true power of investing. Investing done right should not be exciting. Prudent investing reflects the power of natural growth. It positions you better to invest more consistently ov...

Welcome to PLAN WELL INVEST WISELY, the podcast dedicated to helping you make smarter financial decisions so you can live well today without sacrificing tomorrow. Each of these 30-minute weekly podcasts will be posted on Tuesdays. All the episodes will have two separate segments: 1) PLAN WELL - This segment will include basic financial planning concepts to help you make smart financial decisions that are aligned with the things you care about most and the flexibility to adjust as your life unfolds. And 2) INVEST WISELY - This segment will show you how to grow your assets and work towards your objectives. Our INVEST WISELY process gives you the framework to make smart investment decisions that are aligned with your long-term objectives. Episode #1's PLAN WELL segment covers creating an ICE Plan (in case of emergency plan). Here is a free worksheet to help you do that. You'll also learn more about secure password managers like 1Password. Episode #1's INVEST WISELY segment covers four reasons why you should ignore extreme market predictions. If you’d like to receive my podcasts automatically, go to iTunes.com and subscribe.