Smart people sometimes make dumb mistakes when it comes to investing. Part of the reason for this, I guess, is that most people don’t have the time to learn what they need to know to make good decisions. Another reason is that oftentimes when you make a dumb mistake, somebody else—an investment … [Read more...] about Avoiding Common Investment Mistakes
personal finance
Early Mortgage Repayment: Pros and Cons
When you work through the numbers, the savings that stem from early repayment of a loan can seem almost too good to be true. Can a few dollars a month really add up to, for example, $25,000 of savings? Well, sort of. When you save money over long periods of time and let the interest compound, … [Read more...] about Early Mortgage Repayment: Pros and Cons
Financial Planning for a Windfall in Wealth
So I’ve lived in this community for, gosh, nearly three decades. In that time, as a CPA serving thousands of business owners and affluent taxpayers, I’ve seen a pattern repeat itself time and time again when someone receives a big financial windfall. A giant bump in income from Microsoft or … [Read more...] about Financial Planning for a Windfall in Wealth
Determining How Much Life Insurance You Need
When considering life insurance, you’re planning and preparing for an event most of us would rather not think about. But life insurance represents a critical step in managing your personal finances and ensuring your family’s well-being. The Two Approaches to Life Insurance You can use one of two … [Read more...] about Determining How Much Life Insurance You Need
How to Prepare for Retirement
Preparing for retirement doesn’t have to be all that difficult—although it probably is a 25 or 30 year project. To prepare for retirement, you simply need to take the following six steps: Step 1: Start with a concrete retirement income goal For example, if you currently make $100,000 a year but … [Read more...] about How to Prepare for Retirement
How to Be a Smart Investor
A lot of people think smart investing means complicated investing. That’s not true. Smart investing is usually simple investing. In fact, the most important things you can do relate to the way you go about investing, not the specific investments you pick. Here, I offer five secrets that can help … [Read more...] about How to Be a Smart Investor