Your Money, Your Wealth

How often do you come out on top if you try to beat the odds? Most active-fund managers fail to beat the market. Joe Anderson, CFP® and Big Al Clopine CPA share a more reliable way to invest for your future in YMYW podcast episode 50. Original publish date July 23, 2016 (hour 2). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed.

00:00 - Intro

04:12 - "As the market declines, we are buying the same great companies at a discount, so now is the time to invest."

06:24 - "You want to make sure you're diversified."

07:03 - "Small companies and value companies tend to outperform large and growth companies over the long-term. But we haven't seen that the last few years. Does that mean we abandon that strategy? No, it still works if you give it enough time – that's where patience is really important."

11:01 - "We have all-time lows for the 10-year treasury…"

12:29 - "If you're a U.S. investor and getting 60% of your portfolio going to return 6% and 40% going to return 1%, you're talking about a 4% return which is half of the nominal return that the typical 60/40 portfolio has earned over the last 90 years. That's a real problem for many investors who make the mistake of relying on historical returns; they're likely to end up alive with no money."

13:20 - "Clearly there are problems in the global economy. The credit markets are telling us a different story than the stock markets. They think that economic growth is very weak and likely to continue to be very weak. The stock market, on the other hand – at least in the U.S. where stock valuations are high – one assumes then that the market thinks growth will be somewhat reasonable."

17:27 - "Bonds are not for return. They are to dampen the risk of the overall portfolio to an acceptable level…"

20:00 - "Whatever your political views are, I think it's important that you hear this message. What the academic research shows is the following: when the party you favor is in power, you earn higher returns than the people in the opposing party."

22:25 - "It's important to not let your political biases or your political views influence your [investing] decisions."

29:47 - "REITs (Real Estate Investment Trust), to me are the riskiest investments – or at least among them right now – as you can get a higher expected return by investing in a 10-year CD with a hell of a lot less risk."

32:50 - "Get realistic on your budget; take a look at your bank statement… try to figure out where that money is going, what kind of retirement lifestyle you want and then start figuring out a savings plan and start early."

Markets are at all-time highs despite recent events. In episode 49 of the YMYW podcast, Joe and Al share smart investment strategies you can learn from past performance and give advice for investing in a bull market versus a bear market. Original publish date July 23, 2016 (hour 1). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed.

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00:00 - Intro

02:33 - "If you're invested in the stock market today, the question is: now what? Should you keep your money in the market? If you've been sitting on the sidelines sitting in cash, is it a good time to jump in?"

03:23 - "Trying to time the market is a fool's game, not to mention pretty dangerous."

05:36 - "By being fully invested when you need to be fully invested – that's the appropriate way to do it. Get invested properly and stay invested."

09:02 - "Because the stock market is volatile and you can lose money, over the long term you make a lot more money and that's the premium that you have to pay to make that extra return."

16:42 "Most of you have assets inside your 401(k) plans, IRAs, 403(b)s – that's where a bulk of your retirement assets are. Guess what? There's a tax risk there because every dollar that comes out of that plan is taxed at ordinary income rates."

21:59 "Donald Trump would like to change our tax structure with four brackets, starting at 0% and the highest bracket being 25%...the highest bracket right now is 39.6%."

27:21 "When's the last time you fully reviewed your portfolio? Are you having conversations about Social Security, taxes and Medicare?"

31:32 "No one knows when these asset classes are going to perform so you want to have some of each. People chase near term performance all the time…that's not a good formula."

Your generosity can pay off in more ways than one: when you give a charitable gift, the IRS will forgive a tax. In episode 48 of the YMYW podcast, Joe Anderson, CFP® and Big Al Clopine, CPA share how to make tax-smart charitable donations. Original publish date July 16, 2016 (hour 2). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed.

00:00 – Intro

02:47 – "Here's what does create a tax deduction for volunteering: your mileage to and from some type of charitable event you go to…supplies you purchase directly for charity, and there are some fundraising expenses that will qualify for tax deductions. A lot of people miss those deductions. Those deductions reduce your taxable income which ultimately reduces the amount of taxes you pay."

04:36 – "If you're spending money for charitable purposes or for a specific charity, then those expenses may be tax-deductible."

07:00 – "Give appreciated stock directly to charity because the tax deduction you get is the current value of the stock on the day you donated, and you don't have to pay tax on the gain."

12:04 – "If you can get a little more sophisticated in your tax planning and combine a couple of these different strategies together, you can save money in tax and actually create more income."

14:00 – "It's called a donor-advised fund. You can actually set up a fund at a brokerage firm, it's a special account where you control the investments and then you decide which charities get what amounts…here's the key: the key is that the year you set up the account and put the money in the account – that's the year you get the tax deduction."

20:02 – "You can take money out of your IRA and give it directly to charity."

25:42 – "There's no harm in getting a tax benefit. The IRS encourages it; you just have to know what's available and what to do."

29:44 – "Once you get a better picture on how all of this looks, you'll make better decisions."

35:07 – "You have more control over taxes now than any other time in your life."

The landscape of retirement is changing. The cost of living is rising and we are living longer than ever before. In episode 47 of the YMYW podcast, Joe Anderson, CFP® and Big Al Clopine, CPA share financial tips for this new age of retirement and they welcome Medicare expert, Dr. Katy Votava to share her best ways of coping with rising Medicare premiums in 2016. Original publish date July 16, 2016 (hour 1). Note that content may be outdated as rules and regulations have changed.

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00:00 - Intro

01:57 - "When you turn age 62 or 63, the income that you make is going to determine what your Medicare premiums are."

07:58 - "A lot of you are probably overspending or will overspend for your Medicare coverage and healthcare coverage so we want to talk to Dr. Katy to figure out what the solution is there to make sure you keep a little more money in your pocket."

12:11 - "We see five different expenses on the horizon that can threaten your lifestyle in retirement and that could dramatically impact anyone who's thinking about retiring over the next five years."

15:13 - "When you look at spending money in retirement you have to take a look at a lot of different factors and risks, and one of them is healthcare."

16:32 - "Having an income strategy is key and look at all the potential risks in front of you."

18:23 - Start of Interview with Dr. Katy Votava

19:22 - "People don't know when to enroll and when they don't have to. You need to get in at certain times - there are windows to get in and if you don't when you need to, then you'll have lapses and gaps in coverage and penalties down the road…enrollment periods are really key."

21:45 - "I always say it's important not to leave money on Medicare's table because if you don't tell Social Security about your change in circumstance, they won't know. But if you meet the criteria, you can do your own reporting and then most people are granted that lower premium during that current year."

23:32 - "At what age do you think people should start thinking about planning for Medicare?"

23:55- "It's a really good idea to start planning by the time you're 62."

28:10 - End of Interview with Dr. Katy Votava

29:20 - "Medicare premiums are based upon your income level because different people pay different amounts to Medicare."

34:17 - "A lot more people should be converting [to a Roth IRA] than you might think, and the reason for that is when you look at your future tax brackets in retirement, in many cases it's higher than you think because of the income you're going to be receiving."