Finanical Advive

Hello Fellows,

On the cushion that one keeps it their Bank Accounts is the 10K - 12K range make you feel comfortable.....This is with the Checking and Savings Accounts. Watch Clark Howard and Sussir Osmand....(I think that is her name, Blond Haired Lady).....I do not have a lot of investments, such as others on TV, just the normal fellow in life it seems, or so I think.

Will always help with Charites or someone that is really in need such as a family....Really hesitant to spend much money, it makes me sleep better at night knowing that that money is saved for a rainy day.

Always belive in relieving stress and enjoying life, just very cautions about paying a high interest rate on anything or buying something that I really do not need...

Money advisors are out of the questions for there is a very big risk factor, just try and use comon sense instead......Retired from the Navy in June and being in the Navy I did not have but so much money to spend, now I work and have an income every two weeks....

Thanks for your impute, insight and advice...

TexasCowboy

My first advice is a spell checker... but alas you want financial advice.

I think you realize the first steps. Pay off any credit cards, or other high rate debt.

Next step is to save. I don't recommend a specific number, as the number differs depending on how you live. I recommend having available 6 months worth of liquidity. In other words, what you would need to live on for 6 months, available without needing to sell investments. Some of this could be in short term CD's with staggered maturity dates.

I don't recommend keeping much beyond that in savings, as the interest rate will not even keep up with inflation. Money in savings, is money you are losing money on!

I would recommend a financial advisor. It doesn't seem like you have a real strong sense of monetary savvy. What some view as "common sense", I view as investment stupidity. For example, my parents had a fair amount invested in the market. When things crashed my farther wanted to pull everything out, which would have locked in their losses. Their investment advisor cautioned them how foolish this would be, as did I. My dad wanted to pull out the money and pay off their sub 4% mortgage. Parents are in their mid 60's. The advisor and I were able to get them to wait a bit. They have more than recovered their losses, and are making good returns on their investments. Having a professional that is able to point out the error of your ways is necessary for some people... but you have to listen, and act upon their recommendations without being ruled by emotion.

69er,

Thanks for being open and posting your candid reply....Have a very tough skin so I do not let very many thing in life rattle me....The reason for this posting was so that I could get replies such as yours, thanks for being trurthful and honest.

TexasCowboy

That's the most difficult part about money ... keeping emotions out of the equation.

69er is giving good advice. In addition, I recommend setting up a budget, minimum of 3months in advance ... you know what your "fixed expenses" are per month. Plan those out ... that gives you a snapshot of disposable income. Then you can plan what to do with those funds, including your hobby fund LOL. An investment advisor is excellent advice. You don't have to show up with a million dollars to get their attention ... but you do have to be committed to making decisions without emotion.

I would add that when selecting a financial adviser, do your research and after narrowing your field to two or three possibilities, interview each one of them. Receiving recommendations from friends or relatives is fine, but remember that each one of us and our financial situations are unique and an adviser that works for one person may or may not for another person. Also, steer clear of the advisers that are nothing more than high end insurance salesmen. Different kinds of insurance are an integral part of a long term financial and retirement plan, but pretty much any adviser worth his salt can make solid recommendations in that arena.

OR....

Go find Sherman and Mr. Peabody, have them get out the Way-Back machine, travel back in time (11 years) and buy a shit-load of Apple stock for $18/share.

Just say no to annuities!

Hello Fellows,

Thanks for the responses.....Have a 401K Plan at work where I put in 15% and the company matches up to 4% with Fidelity...The house in Houston is paid off, just keep this for trying to sell would be a big loss....Some very good friends live their and rasing their kids....

What I was asking is the money that is set aside such as what was referenced being in ones Bank Account, this may not make a whole lot of money yet is safe knowing that it will be there when they waking up in the morning is a very big plus and comfort.......

Thanks,

TexasCowboy

Hello Fellows,

Thanks for the responses.....Have a 401K Plan at work where I put in 15% and the company matches up to 4% with Fidelity...The house in Houston is paid off, just keep this for trying to sell would be a big loss....Some very good friends live their and rasing their kids.... Originally Posted by TexasCowboy

Sounds like you have a home you are renting out in Houston. This may or may not be a wise investment. Not wanting to sell something, because you would have to "take a loss" is an instance of emotion getting in the way.

A variety of issues come into play into evaluating a rental property as to it's return. Is the property a positive cash flow? Don't forget to figure in taxes and maintence costs in determining if it is a positive cash flow. I would also suggest calculating the ROI. (Google "ROI on real estate" if you need help.)

The question is then, is the ROI on your rental property, above what you could be making in another investment? If the ROI on the rental property is lower, then you should sell, and take the loss. If the ROI on the rental is higher, then you keep it.

The thing to remember is that your pride, identified by statements like... "I won't sell it, because that would be a loss." can get in the way of you making the most of your money in the long term.

What I was asking is the money that is set aside such as what was referenced being in ones Bank Account, this may not make a whole lot of money yet is safe knowing that it will be there when they waking up in the morning is a very big plus and comfort.......

Thanks,

TexasCowboy

Again, depending on how much money you need for those 6 months of living expenses, it may make sense to do things other than park that in a bank account. Keeping more money than necessary liquid, will have a large effect on your ability to amass wealth over the long haul.

I will say that the most important characteristic of most people I know that have money, is they started saving early in their lives, and they made saving a priority. I am a firm believer in the first check being made out to the investment account each month.

Hello Fellows,

...

Thanks for your impute, insight and advice...

TexasCowboy Originally Posted by TexasCowboy

well, i understood everything you wrote and then went back and re-read it.
but i still cant see what your question is?
are you looking for info on how to save for retirement, save for hobbying, save for emergencies, ???
how to allocate money to various asset classes??

your followup post clarified it a bit.
"What I was asking is the money that is set aside such as what was referenced being in ones Bank Account, this may not make a whole lot of money yet is safe knowing that it will be there when they waking up in the morning is a very big plus and comfort......."

most of the advice i've ever read says to keep money you need w/in the next 6-18 months in highly accessible accounts: checking acct, savings acct, money market, 6 month CD, etc. since bank savings accts are paying nil these days, i park my short term needs in http://home.ingdirect.com/ while it's only paying 0.80% [compared to 0.13% for most money mkt accts], it's easy to put money in and get money out [you associate it w/ a bank acct and then request xfers in or out, on-demand or on an automatic schedule].

moving up the risk ladder, you can invest in short term bond funds [paying anywhere from 0.22% to 1.5% - check out Vanguard.com or Fidelity.com] or short term tax-exempt [0.41%] or high-yield tax-exempt [2.7%]. the advantage of the tax-exempt is that all dividends are exempt from federal taxes, so you dont get hit on the paltry income you make.

i have about $1500 in ING. i xfer in money each month so i can pay my long-term care premium each year and then have some left over for a small cushion or an intimate "consultation" w/ an eccie woman financial advisor :^). i have about $15k in vanguard short-term tax exempt [remaining inheritance money; true emergency fund]. since 8/2011, the price per share has fluctuated from $15.95 to as low as $15.90 and now is at $15.92 - so pretty stable. i dont get much interest, but it's all mine.

sine both of these are very stable, i sleep comfortably knowing that i can get my hands on sufficient cash for 3-6 months of living expenses. the majority of the rest of my money is in traditional and Roth IRAs and in my employer's 401k plan. i dont worry about it much - it's pretty diversified and has done well over the past 10 yrs. i only took a 25% hit in the first stock mkt drop when most indices went down 40%. in 2008, it only took a 10% hit, again less than the indices.

wrt a financial adviser, depending on your level of understanding of cash, bonds, stocks, mutual funds, exchange traded funds, etc, you may only want to work w/ a financial adviser to help you set up your allocations. or to plan out long term for retirement, specific goals, etc. i've worked w/ a few advisers and their recommendations were not in line w/ what i wanted. i've researched and researched and settled in on my allocations on my own.

pm me if you want to discuss this more.

best to you...
pmd


wrt your home in houston, i'll 2nd what 69er posted..."The thing to remember is that your pride, identified by statements like... "I won't sell it, because that would be a loss." can get in the way of you making the most of your money in the long term."
that is along the lines of what Suze Ormand suggests - look at investments and money as things, not as emotions.

TC let me give you some really basic advise.

1.know the difference between "wants"& "needs" (Porsche vs.Honda Civic)

2.Tear up any creditcards you may have,pay cash,so that you can see,where you're spending your $

3Keep a daily journal of your expense

4 Get a copy of a little book named "The Richest Man in Babylon", quick read.

Once you feel comfortable follow the advise, others have given you here,but only when you feel ready.

I have a degree in finance and was an analyst, so I can offer some input, but I'm not sure I understand what you're looking for.