Welcome to Utah Financial Planner. Our purpose is to keep you educated about financial planning and to keep you in touch with all that’s happening in the Utah Financial Planning community.
If you are a Utah financial planning company or adviser, please send us news about your company using the contact form.
Here are some of the topics covered on this web site:
- What is a financial planner?
- How do you find a good financial planner in Utah?
- Questions to ask a financial planner.
- How does a financial planner get paid?
- Certified financial planners in Utah
No matter what you income, building wealth starts with a plan and keeping more than you spend. According to a study of over 9,000 people:
- Saving increases optimism about your finances.
- As the ratio of savings to debt goes up, so do your feelings of security.
- Confidence in your finances grows when you have a financial plan.
We hope to encourage you to plan your financial future – in a bad economy or a great one – it’s smart to make and follow a financial plan.
Written by admin on October 15th, 2008 with no comments.
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This article honors women veterans who have served in the military. I found it interesting because they are stories that usually don’t get told. Also, the financial planning firm I work at focuses on the military and helping them plan their military retirement so it will last through retirement. Some people don’t come in and ask for help until their spouse dies. Then it’s too late for most to take full advantage of benefits had they set it up correctly. I’m not an expert in this but the planners I work around are. We live near Hill Air Force Base and the many servicemen and women who work there.
Written by admin on August 12th, 2009 with no comments.
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Charles Schwab just released a study about retirement and it’s not encouraging. People are not saving more for retirement, despite the economy.
We’re kind of hoping retirement happens even though we’re not planning or ready for it. Many Americans are neither financially nor emotionally ready for retirement. Not even half of Americans currently save for retirement.
Here’s the scary part:
Survey respondents estimate they will need just over $1.2 million to comfortably retire. But the ones who say they are saving have put away an average of $194,000. And despite this they feel good about their progress. 41% percent of Americans feel positively about their retirement preparedness. 22% percent feel indifferent (hope that they can keep working or dream of winning the lottery?).
With the market down people need to put away MORE not LESS.
Other stats
- Fifty-one percent of 55-63 year olds surveyed have saved less than $500,000, though they most commonly believe they will need $2,000,000 to retire comfortably.
- To help bridge the gap of over a million dollars, 52% will put off retirement. 47% report they have not changed their thinking about retirement.
- Apathy. Respondents aged 18-34 years old – 35 percent feel “indifferent” when it comes to their retirement preparedness. Why? 20% percent cite “fear” and “anxiety.” (fear is not a good investment strategy)
We’re a nation of optimists or we’re really good at denial. America, especially young Americans: the recession should be a wake-up call that we need to plan for our future.
Schedule a free 1-hour consultation about retirement with a Utah Certified Finanical Planner.
Written by admin on June 9th, 2009 with no comments.
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Gourmet Magazine just featured an article called “Extreme Frugality” about how a family of 6 will live on $550 a month after major expenses (or $41k a year). I hope some of that frugality includes at least a little investing for retirement…but this should be a great read. You know it’s mainstream when this high end magazine touts the virtue of saving money…and they will probably make it look pretty too. Of course $41k a year is not terrible, it could be worse…
Here are some quotes from the article, which can hopefully inspire Utahns to save or spend less than we earn.
I felt entitled to live as did my father (although he was 25 years older than I) and all those successful, happy people in ads and on TV…Like 70 percent of our fellow Americans, we were living off our VISA cards with no means of paying them off any time soon. As a result, we had $75,000 in credit-card debt and owed $245,000 on a $289,000 house. What had I been thinking?
Ninety percent of us buy something we don’t need every month, and Americans in all walks of life—except the very rich—carry $961 billion of credit-card debt at any given moment, paying $1.22 for every $1 they spend. For the first time ever, my family is going to do the unthinkable. We’re going to live within our means.
Written by admin on April 2nd, 2009 with no comments.
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“I never would have thought, in my most extreme paranoid fantasies, that my software, and the others like it, would have enabled Wall Street to decimate the investments of everyone in my family.”
Michael Osinski’s piece in New York Magazine: “How I helped build the bomb that blew up Wall Street” is a chilling read. He wrote the software that turned mortgages into bonds – and he feels bad about doing it.
First, it’s rare to hear anyone take any responsibility for the mess we’re in. Second, it’s tough to really understand the long-term affects of decisions that seem entirely rational. His writing is so compelling and the small pieces of truth are astounding. You’ve got to read this article.
Our finances and the world we live in is more complex and demanding. As this quote points out it can lull us into not thinking ahead:
“The aim of software is, in a sense, to create an alternative reality. The power we all hold in our hands is shocking, yet it’s controlled by a few swipes of a finger. The drive to simplify the user’s contact with the machine has an inherent side effect of disguising the complexity of a given task. Over time, the users of any software are inured to the intricate nature of what they are doing. Also, as the software does more of the “thinking,” the user does less.”
He goes on to say:
“Nature does not give you explicit warning messages; her ways are more subtle and take a lifetime to penetrate. I forgot the day of the week but knew instinctively the tide and the phase of the moon.”
“It hurts when people say I caused this mess. I was and am quite proud of the work I did. My software was a delicate, intricate web of logic. They don’t understand, I tell myself. Perhaps it was too complicated. But we live in a world largely of our own device. How to adjust and control these complexities, without stifling innovation, is the problem.”
I read this and thought of how people doing simple jobs can cause incredible destruction. Hitler’s regime worked that way. Yet he could kill people and it’s easy to see the evil intent in his work. But what about the things we do unknowingly that hurt people, not suddenly, but over time? Even unintentionally. Can you imagine what a very smart person like Osinski could do to mess up the world if they were actually trying to? We may not be able to understand or discover, much less stop it from happening.
The thought is chilling.
Written by admin on April 1st, 2009 with no comments.
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If you’re not in the habit of investing or saving now is a good time to begin – when you get your tax refund. Most people are getting some sort of tax refund now or very soon. It can be tough to save if you are spending practically everything you make. While you adjust your spending habits, you really need an emergency fund. Then you need to invest for the future (long term).
It’s easy to spend your tax refund on extra things you don’t really need. My tip is to resist that temptation and instead start a savings account. I really like ING Direct an online savings site. If your savings is a little out of your normal routine and you set it up so it comes out of your checking account automatically it discourages you from spending the money unless you absolutely must spend it.
If you already have a savings account, your tax refund may be extra money that you can invest. A Utah Financial Planner can help you with that. You don’t have to start big – but just starting is key.
Written by admin on March 28th, 2009 with no comments.
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It’s the time of year for taxes and we just got ours finished. It’s a big job even with our CPA. When people come in for a consultation my husband asks them to bring their tax forms. He can often point out things to look into. However, he’s not a tax preparer. Right now many people are doing their taxes and getting lost. They’re calling their financial planner for tax help with TurboTax (or other tax software).
Please remember that while he might be able to refer you to someone for tax help, your finanicial planner doesn’t support tax software or help you do your taxes. Thank you.
Written by admin on March 27th, 2009 with no comments.
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My husband’s credit card number was stolen yesterday. It wasn’t online – he never buys anything online. We’re not sure how someone got the number. He first learned of the problem when First Command Bank called about some of the charges. Of all the credit card companies I’ve ever worked with I prefer First Command. This only solidified my preference.
First Command Bank caught the problem quickly and we canceled the card. That was simple. The next part isn’t. Many people (like us) automate payments with a credit card. That means the mortgage, insurance, and other payments are charged to a credit card automatically. But now that credit card is canceled. And it will be about 10 days before we get a new card. That’s a problem.
Tip: Make a list of all of your credit card auto drafts with contact information. Put it in a secure place – like a safe.
Did you know that you’ll get charged service fees (about $25 a pop) if your card is declined? Even if it was canceled. Even if it wasn’t your fault. If you think of all of the various accounts that use this card, it could get very expensive. So you have to manually call each one and set up another way to pay those bills. Then when we get the new card we’ll have to call again. It will save you a lot of time if you have a list.
Getting a credit card stolen is stressful. Luckily it’s more hassle than cost in the end – but we learned some things going through this. Hopefully you can avoid having this happen to you.
(Brought to you by the Utah Financial Planner blog)
Written by admin on March 27th, 2009 with no comments.
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Last night my favorite Terry Moran of Nightline covered Alzheimer’s disease. He even had himself tested for it (he had a 19% chance of developing the disease). His wife was there, they showed pictures of his mother who died with the disease. It was poignant and very brave of him to report on such a personal topic and include himself.
Meryl Comer was also on the show. She has aged significantly since I’ve seen her. She was on the show live as she read her own chances of getting the disease. It was over 30%. She also revealed that her mother now has the disease. She’s been caring for her own husband for 15 years! She is my hero. Somehow I don’t think she’ll die with the disease because she will probably die before she gets it. The disease takes the lives of caregivers and her life is a labor of love for her husband and now her mother.
Nightline makes it tough to link to individual shows (read: impossible) or I’d link to the exact story. Again, just like Meryl urged people in her speech to us, look into long term care insurance. This disease can bankrupt you (along with others that you’re more likely to get as you age). Talk to a Utah financial planner and see what your options are.
Written by admin on March 26th, 2009 with no comments.
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At one of the First Command Financial Planner’s meetings I attended I heard journalist Meryl Comer speak about her husband’s fight with Alzheimer’s disease. She talked about how much care and the high cost that was depleting their savings even though they were wealthy.
Today I heard NPR’s Talk of the Nation guests talk about a task force studying Alzheimer’s. You can listen by clicking on the link – and I highly recommend that you do listen to it.
Former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor spoke about her husband who has the disease. Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich and former Surgeon General David Satcher are also on the interview.
They talk about the extremely high cost – that it would take a stimulus package every 6 months to fund the expense of caring for baby boomers with the disease. They spoke of the stats that if you hit 80 years old you’re chances of getting Alzheimer’s disease is about half!! One in two!
Caring for someone with the disease is 24/7. In other words as the disease progresses you can’t leave a person by themselves day or night. It takes an enormous toll on families and marriages no matter how strong. It’s also very expensive to hire help or respite care because the disease can go on for years.
- Definition of Long-term care insurance.
- Long term care insurance is a type of insurance designed to help pay for services that provide assistance with specific activities of daily living a person cannot perform by himself or herself. These services may be provided in an assisted living facility, nursing home, adult day care center or private home.
First Command Financial planners in Utah highly recommend looking at long term care insurance as a way to manage the high cost of long term care due to Alzheimer’s or other chronic diseases. Call 801-703-2150 to request a free consultation from Stephen or use our contact form and he’ll contact you.
Written by admin on March 25th, 2009 with no comments.
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The Savvy Shopper tells how she saves hundreds on her grocery bill using coupons. She is an expert! I use coupons but not to this level.
She works for the Provo Daily Herald and her name is Amy. Here are some tips she gave:
- Coupons are the same as cash and combined with sales can be one of the best investments there are
- Look for coupons in the aisles of your store (black boxes that hold coupons with a blinking red light)
- Look for coupons that print off at checkout
- Look for coupons attached to products you want to buy
- Buy items in multiples in one shopping trip
- Call manufacturers and they often offer to send you coupons
She has a series of videos about Utah coupon shopping tips that are so helpful. Did you know you can get up to 5 copies of the Daily Herald at a big discount to get coupons.
Invest the money you save with a qualified Utah Financial Planner.
Written by admin on March 22nd, 2009 with no comments.
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