Last month I discussed how valuable Health Savings Accounts are, how they can significantly increase your wealth over time, and why I generally prefer them over 401k accounts. But how do HSAs fare when compared to Employee Stock Purchase Plans (ESPPs)? If you only have enough money to contribute to one, which one should it […]
Are ESPPs better than HSAs? Read More »
According to William Stuart, an HSA expert, author, and consultant, only 4% to 5% of people maximize contributions to an HSA (Health Savings Account). This is a mistake! The IRS does not allow you to typically double dip on tax deductions. For example, in your 401k, you can get a tax deduction when you contribute,
HSAs are One of the Most Powerful Investment Vehicles in the U.S. Read More »
It recently occurred to me that there may be some people out there who are wondering what to do with their current bond portfolio considering that yields are much higher now. In 2021, the vast majority of newly purchased corporate bonds were only yielding around 1% to 2% per year. Government bonds were also about
Replace Your Low Interest Bonds with High Interest Ones? Read More »
Occasionally I’ll get asked whether investing in dividend paying stocks is a good idea. My general response is that the evidence doesn’t support this as a strategy. In other words, there is no empirical evidence that shows dividend investing provides superior returns than the market. One of the primary reasons that investors fall in love
Is Dividend Investing a Good Idea? Read More »
There’s a finance strategy that says it’s wise for you to have at least one years’ worth of cash on hand. That way if your investments decline significantly, like they did with the COVID-19 crisis, then you can take money from your cash account and let your investments recover. While this sounds good in theory,
Is Having One Year of Cash on Hand a Good Idea? Read More »
Value and growth stocks are sort of like the tortoise and the hare. One is more of a roller coaster adventure while the other is more like a long, boring vacation ride. In this article you’ll learn about the two and understand which one you should own in your portfolio. You have 2 investments to
Value vs Growth Stocks – Which is Best? Read More »
If you’re still using Mutual Funds and haven’t explored ETFs, then now may be the time. An ETF is an Exchange Traded Fund. But what does that mean? If you are familiar with Mutual Funds then understanding ETFs will be easy. An ETF is simply just a bucket of stocks or bonds, just like a
ETFs vs Mutual Funds | Which is Best? Read More »
Investing is not always about what you do (i.e. choosing where to invest), it’s equally about what you do not do. In many cases, doing nothing is the best strategy. One of the primary, less mentioned responsibilities of a Financial Planner is to protect clients from themselves, especially in the short term when they are
Many people have aspirations to build up their tax-free investments and do so inside of a Roth 401k. However, you may be surprised to learn that your Roth 401k contributions are not actually going into the Roth (tax-free) bucket, but instead into the Traditional (pre-tax) bucket. If you’ve followed my blog, then you know I
Are You Making Roth 401k Contributions? Think Again… Read More »
In a previous blog post, Is a 401k the Best Place to Save for Retirement, I showed that contributing to a 401k is far superior to a Taxable Account even if a person is in a very high tax bracket. But today, I want to compare the 401k vs IRA. If you only have so
401k vs IRA – Where Should You Invest? Read More »
Most people understand the importance of investing in their 401k, but I’d venture to say that many do not understand how to properly update the investments inside of their 401k. In fact, it can be very confusing (and frustrating) since there are actually three places that you need to make updates, not just one! And
Updating Investments in Your 401k: 3 Important Things to Know Read More »
Have you ever wondered whether or not a 401k was the absolute best way to save for your retirement? The conventional advice has always been to save toward tax deferred accounts (i.e. 401k’s) and tax free accounts (i.e. Roth IRAs) first and then to taxable accounts afterwards. But is this actually good advice?
Is a 401k the Best Place to Save for Retirement? Read More »
