The Financial Answer

Halloween Spending and Retirement

Halloween is rapidly approaching and it’s a holiday that generates a lot of spending in our country. We’ll take a look at the numbers behind the holiday and how it impacts our economy. Of course it will all tie back into retirement planning and BOOdgeting budgeting
On this episode: 
0:47 – Nathan is back from vacation.
1:47 – Halloween is approaching so that’ll be the theme for the show.
3:23 – We have seven facts that show how Halloween boosts the economy.  
4:33 – How much we spend on average on Halloween and how much that adds up to.  
5:19 – 2018 we saw fewer people celebrating but a higher average spend.  
5:57 – The average American says they don’t have enough in savings to cover a $500 emergency yet we set aside $100 for Halloween.
7:19 – The top five candies.
8:45 – Make sure you think about your plan when you’re budgeting for holidays.
10:53 – Do you recommend clients practice budgeting for retirement before they get there.
12:28 – You’ll have to adjust your budget in retirement because of inflation and other factors.  
Show notes: https://thefinancialanswer.com/podcasts/halloween-spending-and-retirement/

4 Types of Spenders

Do you spend like there’s no tomorrow? Or do you hoard more money than you could possibly need? Or are you somewhere in the middle? Find out which type of spender you are and what to look out for.
Show Notes: https://thefinancialanswer.com/podcasts/4-types-of-spenders/
0:55 - What kind of spender are you?
1:20 - Type #1 - The emotional spender.
3:35 - This can translate into emotional investing, which may cause a shift in goals or decisions.
5:31 - Type #2 - YOLO! You only live once, so let’s spend it all while I’m here.
5:57 - This type of spending can get you into a lot of debt.
7:37 - Type #3 - The savvy spender.
10:38 - Type #4 - The miser.
11:10 - This type feels like they will never have enough and cut corner to hoard it.

Planning The Ultimate Road Trip: Your Retirement

Believe it or not, planning for retirement is a bit like going on a road trip. Are you ready to rock out to some tunes and hit the road? Or are you stuck in the planning process or facing roadblocks? Find out how you can plan the best route possible on your way to retirement.
Today's rundown:
4:54 - Decide where you want to go. What do you want retirement to look like? 
7:09 - How do you get there?
9:36 - What happens if your plans fail? 
10:47 - What are you listening to along the way? What are your sources of information?
14:30 - When is it time to turn off the cruise control on your way to retirement?
Get the full show notes and additional resources by clicking here: https://thefinancialanswer.com/podcasts/planning-the-ultimate-road-trip-your-retirement/

Reading Between the Lines Of Financial Fake News

Ever read a headline and think, “Is that true?” There are several headlines that make their way into the news from the financial world, but before you get in a panic, let’s look at them logically to figure out if they are real or fake.
On today's show:
1:29 - In the News: Jim Cramer, host of Mad Money, is shifting more toward education on his show and now agrees with the value of index funds.
5:59 - Fake News: Social Security going broke. But does that mean you will stop receiving funds?
8:47 - Fake News: The dollar will crash--buy gold now!
11:33 - Fake News: Recession is coming.
13:16 - Every few months we see market fluctuations.
16:05 - You can’t let a headline throw off your retirement plan.
Get the show notes and additional resources here: https://wp.me/paIiUZ-cl

Decision-Making Roadblocks in Financial Planning

No matter how hard we try to stay on top of our finances, we’re sure to come across roadblocks that interfere with our decision-making process. Does this sound familiar? Let’s talk about the common scenarios we see in retirement planning and how you can deal with them. 
Today's rundown:
0:58 – In the news: What’s going on with small cap stocks?
2:50 – How to check your mutual fund to see what investment style it uses.
3:55 – Should you be making changes to your portfolio?
5:10 – Confidence Corner: Decision-making roadblocks.
6:00 – Roadblock: too many decisions to make.
8:31 – Roadblock: Doing research yourself can overwhelm you in a hurry.
10:14 – You need someone that can hold your feet to the fire.
12:19 – Experience is the main educator that we have.
14:22 – Roadblock: You just don’t like talking about money.  
16:58 – Roadblock: Traumatic life events.
20:18 – Fun fact of the week.
Get the full show notes and additional resources by clicking here. 

Discussing the Laws of Investing, Part 3

Just why do you make the decisions that you do? You may think it has to do with facts and figures, but your behaviors and how you respond to risk and reward determine a lot of your actions. This is part three of that discussion.
Click here to see the full show notes for this episode.

Discussing the Laws Of Investing, Part 2

Do you truly know why you make the investment decisions you do? Many of them are based on mainstream beliefs but how much do you know about where they are rooted? Are you following these laws of investing (knowingly or not)? This is part two of that discussion.
Check out the full show notes by clicking here.

Discussing the Laws Of Investing, Part 1

Stop to consider why you do what you do. Now, consider why you make the financial decisions you make. Are you following these laws of investing (knowingly or not)? This is part one of that discussion.
Check out the full show notes by clicking here. 
You can also access the Laws of Investing PDF mentioned during the show here.

Understanding The SECURE Act, Part 3

We’re back to breaking down the SECURE Act once again on the podcast. Back in July, we covered a couple of the provisions under the proposed act like penalty-free distributions for the birth or adoption of a child, tax credits, and the lifetime income disclosure for defined contribution plans. But we only briefly touched on the removal of provisions for the Stretch IRA. On this episode, we’ll spend some more time on the Stretch IRA and how the SECURE Act could reshape it if it passes into law.
https://thefinancialanswer.com/
 
1:32 – A refresher of what the SECURE Act is.
2:10 – Myth: The Stretch IRA isn’t being fully “shut down”. It’s being changed, but not necessarily eliminated.
3:23 – It really impacts high earners because of how quickly you’ll have to withdraw large sums.
5:10 – Does this also impact inherited IRAs?
5:56 – The rule could go in place by end of the year.
6:38 – Could people still do a spousal rollover?
7:18 – Nathan & Marc play out a hypothetical situation of what someone will need to do once the law passes.

How to Handle Stock Market Declines

If you’re someone that keeps a close eye on the stock market, it’s going to be impossible to miss the dips. That’s especially true when the market drops close to 10 percent, which happened recently. This is never easy to stomach but understanding how common this is and what you can do to offset these losses will ease your mind.
Check out the show notes by clicking here.
Today's rundown:
0:54 – It’s been a big week in Nathan’s life.
1:47 – Ways to fight the fears during a market decline.
2:38 – Loss of money creates a stronger reaction than earning money.
3:41 – Market declines are part of investing.
4:41 – 10% dips every year are common, even during this 10-year bull run.
5:33 – You only have to go back to December 2018 to see the last big dip.
7:12 – Diversification matters and this is a time you really see why.
9:03 – Best performing assets vs the worst performing in recent years.
10:33 – How to counter-balance your stocks with something less volatile.
11:33 – Why every portfolio should have fixed income.