Are You Gambling with Your Retirement?: Sunday Morning Thoughts 04 November 2012

Gambling while in retirement is not the same as gambling with your retirement.  

When you enter the field of stock market investing, i.e. with a 401k, Keough, IRA, etc. the first person placed in front of you is an adviser.  They help you create a retirement model that may or may not work.  Most models look at the upside of saving and not the down side of the economy.

If you only know that your retirement will be a certain amount of money by the time you retire, and the estimated probability of having a comfortable retirement is at least 95% then you may want to ask more questions.

Occasionally the retirement models only tell of the shiny side of the coin.

But taking charge of your retirement and investing it ‘willy- nilly’, is not any better.  A balanced portfolio may prove to be better than having one in all aggressive investments, or on the flip side, in too conservative of investments.

Too aggressive opens your investment to high risk, and too conservative may not yield decent returns.

Finding the right balance for you tolerance level and growth strategy may prove to be what will get you to your retirement safely and comfortably, without the thought of outliving your money.

A few things to consider:

• How much do you want to live off of yearly? $70,000+-
• How long do you think you will live?   Many people are making it over the 100 mark these days, just ask Willard Scott.
• What type of savings do you currently have?
• Do you have an IRA, 401k Keogh, if not will you begin to save and open one and when will you open it?
• How much will/are you putting away currently?

Here’s a retirement calculator to get you started.

http://cgi.money.cnn.com/tools/retirementplanner/retirementplanner.jsp

Keeping these tips in mind may aid in the reaping of the rewards on your investment. 

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An Introduction to Retirement Investing: Sunday Morning Thoughts 28 October 2012

Investing in a 401k is the way many people invest for retirement.  You make a set amount of contributions from your pay check.  A 401k, as we have seen in recent years, is not an economy proof method of investing.  A 401k has a tendency to follow the stock market.

So when the market is up, your 401k is up, but when the market has turmoil so will your 401k.

No one is telling you to not have a 401k, what we are telling you, be more proactive in your investing.

A self-directed IRA is a proactive vehicle for investing.  Although there are fees associated with execution of an investment, but fees are a reality when investing.

With a self-directed IRA you can invest in real estate by being a private lender.   The untaxed interest you earn on the investment goes back to your self-directed IRA.

The Warren Buffett way,  is compounded interest which is what an investment from a self-directed IRA will gain.

2012	$0.00	$0.00	$10,000.00
2013	$0.00	$511.64	$10,511.64
2014	$0.00	$537.79	$11,049.43
2015	$0.00	$565.30	$11,614.73
2016	$0.00	$594.23	$12,208.96
2017	$0.00	$624.63	$12,833.59

In the above chart, if you invest $10,000 and had a five-year contract at 5% interest, at the end of the  5 years your investment would grow by $2,833.59.

Ask yourself this question, has your 401k in the last five years earned $2,833.59 or more?

This is just an example, and an investment in real estate does have some risk involved.  In the investor packet we will provide information on the property to help you make a decision.

Real Estate Retirement Investing Part 2: Sunday Morning Thoughts 09 September 2012

Retirement (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Instead of wracking your brain over how long your retirement will last, why not give a lot of thought to understanding how you can use other non-conventional investments to make your money for retirement work for you.

Everyone either understands or pretends to understand how their 401k works. 401ks have been an investment vehicle for a long time, but there are many options for your 401k investment.

You can invest aggressively, moderately, or very cautiously, but will you still be able to have returns that will be viable when you retire?

Not necessarily.

You have to consider all of your fund options, and a diverse account is normally the best route.

What about if you are already in retirement, and your account is not going to last you for much longer and your greatest fear is out living your money?

No one should be afraid to live.

Precautions before your money runs out is best, whether you are safe guarding what you have, or you are trying to make what you have grow larger; sound investments are your key to living in a happier state of being, without the worry of your money running to low or out altogether.

Diversifying your portfolio to include real estate investments may prove to be a great option for growing and/or maintaining your retirement nest egg.

Being a private lender, also known as being the bank, is a way of earning interest without the risk of owning a property.

As a private lender you are investing in the vision of someone else, but only the vision is backed by real property, something tangible, sellable, and if calculations are done properly can also be profitable.

So even if a borrower defaults on the loan you have given them, you will still have an asset that you can resale or keep for yourself as an investment.  Of course, you will already know from the documentation given to you in the initial evaluation of the loan, if the property is worth equal or more than your initial investment.

Retirement does not have to be bleak future/present if prepared for and maintained properly.

Related articles

• Real Estate Retirement Investing Part 1: Sunday Morning Thoughts 02 September 2012 (backedbyrealestate.com)
• Real Estate Retirement Investing Part 2: Sunday Morning Thoughts 09 September 2012 (backedbyrealestate.com)
• What Is A 401k Retirement Plan? (answers.com)
• Residential and Comercial Real Estate Investing: Sunday Morning Thoughts 5 August 2012 (backedbyrealestate.com)

Real Estate Retirement Investing Part 1: Sunday Morning Thoughts 02 September 2012

With the recent economic downturn many people have seen their retirement almost go up in smoke. From 401k to savings accounts to buying stocks and bonds, this recession-depression has taken its toll on all investments. Many people who have already entered into retirement have noticed the sharp decrease in the money they use to have.

Racking their brains with, how long will my funds last? Can I sustain my lifestyle?

So how do you recoup your retirement in a down turn economy?

The easy answer, make better investments.

Money market and 401k accounts depend on a fund manager to make decisions for you for a certain type of product. So if the fund is invested in for instance, green energy or emerging markets then that’s the only type of investment the fund is allowed to invest in, without regard of market performance.

So if another type of investment would prove to be more lucrative for you, the fund manager is not allowed to change the investment strategy but is bound to the specific type of fund investments.

So, you will never receive a call telling you that there is a better investment on the horizon. This is why many funds can be poorly producing funds when compared to individuals who invest in stocks on their own.
But what about investing in real estate?

Some people believe that real estate investing is a thing of the past and has seen its prime, but as long as there are people on earth, real estate will always remain a sound investment.

Related articles

• What’s Your Investing Strategy: Sunday Morning Thoughts 19 August 2012 (backedbyrealestate.com)
• What Is A 401k Retirement Plan? (answers.com)
• 5 Mid-Year Tuneups for Your 401k (bargaineering.com)
• Jill on Money: Index funds, retirement, inheritance (cbsnews.com)