Renewing Your Retirement Savings Plans
Everything works out in the end, as the old adage goes.... Every once in a while, we hit a wall and have to start all over. Making a fresh start with your retirement savings isn't as daunting as you might think.
Being an active participant in the process is the one piece of advise I would give anyone facing the prospect of starting over with retirement preparations.
When I was in a similar position not long ago, I knew I needed to arm myself with information.
Listen, there was a time in my life when my family and I enjoyed a comfortable six-figure income and a sizable financial account.
In essence, my husband delegated all financial planning responsibilities to a "expert" advisor.
I opted to educate myself on the subject so I wouldn't need to depend on this expert in the future because their performance was adequate but unremarkable.
Having said that, I am familiar with the fundamentals of investing and have discovered that a lot of the advise we receive is actually not sound.
Having this information at my disposal will allow me to sit down with my financial advisors and evaluate its validity.
In recent years, a friend of mine has had a substantial chunk of her investment account eroded.
What many "experts" advise when the market begins to fall is to simply wait it out; this is what her "expert" said.
When the market recovers, you'll be able to get your money back, or so they say.
Although that could be accurate, what they fail to mention is that you have the option to sell a portion of your stocks and redirect the funds to a more secure investment when the market becomes excessively hot.
Not only will you be able to keep making money even when the market is down, but you won't even have to wait years for it to recover.
That seems more reasonable, doesn't it? I thought it did. Putting money into a collapsing market with the hope of recovering losses at a later date is an idea I've never grasped.
When it comes to investing, I am quite cautious. Instead of getting greedy and holding on to my money for too long and losing some, I would rather to sell off early and potentially lose some profit.
I don't pretend to be an expert here, but ultimately, this is your money, so it's in your best interest to educate yourself on personal finance so you can collaborate with your planner.
Also, think about this before you bring in a financial planner: if they are that skilled, why don't they just invest for a living?
Being an employee has many advantages. These financial planners often work as commission-based salesmen.
While that may not be inherently negative, you should be aware of it before giving them any of your money.
It is possible to start over with retirement savings plans, but before you do, please do yourself a favor and keep in mind that nobody will ever value your money more than you do.
