Financial Checklist for the Newly Married

Financial Checklist for the Newly Married

Relationships & Money

Congratulations! You just got married! Maybe you even tied the knot without spending a fortune (now that is truly a feat). Regardless, you managed to get married in the middle of a global pandemic, so you deserve major kudos.

Now what?

As a newly-christened household, there are financial steps you and your partner need to take to make sure you’re legally and financially starting off on the right foot.

Newlywed Legal and Financial Considerations

Changing Your Name

Ahh, the romantic considerations of… a name change.

In Western culture, a woman has traditionally taken the last name of her partner. In Latin America, Asia, and many other parts of the world, women retain their maiden names for their entire lives.  Nowadays, things have changed a bit–your partner may take your last name, you may both keep your last names, or you may hyphenate.  Whatever you decide, you’ll need to make your new names legal as one of the first tasks of married life.  If you’re changing your name, you won’t be able to set up a new joint bank account, get a passport, or put your name on a joint house title without updating certain legal documents.

After getting married, your first step to changing your name is getting a copy (or two) of your marriage license.

The officiant who performed your ceremony should have given you a copy when you got married. But if not, you can request a copy from the Vital Records Office in the county where you got married.

Then, you can apply online or in person to update your Social Security card. Once your Social Security card is updated, you’ll need to make a trip to the good ‘ole DMV and get your license changed.

Eventually, you’ll also need a new passport (remember those?). For a name change on your passport, fill out a name change application here and apply by mail.

Others who will need to Know

Additional places or documents you may need to update or notify of your change in name and marital status include:

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://womenwhomoney.com/newlywed-financial-checklist/

3 Money Moves Every Woman Must Make, According to Rachel Cruze

The Financially Savvy Female: 3 Money Moves Every Woman Must Make, According to Rachel Cruze

Gabrielle Olya    Sun, June 6, 2021, 6:00

OBankingRates wants to empower women to take control of their finances. According to the latest stats, women hold $72 billion in private wealth — but fewer women than men consider themselves to be in “good” or “excellent” financial shape. Women are less likely to be investing and are more likely to have debt, and women are still being paid less than men overall. Our “Financially Savvy Female” column will explore the reasons behind these inequities and provide solutions to change them. We believe financial equality begins with financial literacy, so we’re providing tools and tips for women, by women to take control of their money and help them live a richer life.

What is the biggest obstacle you face when it comes to financial success?

Comparison is probably the biggest struggle for me. It’s so hard to avoid these days because you don’t have to live next door to the Joneses to see their new car — we carry them around in our back pockets. But we’re comparing our real lives to someone else’s highlight reel. Comparison will steal your joy and your paycheck.

One of the best ways to overcome this is to unfollow accounts on social media that tempt you to shop. Out of sight, out of mind — you need to put some blinders on and focus on your own goals in life. Money is the tool to help you achieve them, and it’s hard to win with money when you’re spending it based on someone else’s values.

What is the best piece of advice you received along your financial journey?

Don’t do debt. Period! Debt will keep you paying for your past when you should be focused on your present and future. Our culture has normalized debt, but 78% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. Not to mention that 40% of people can’t cover a $400 emergency with cash.

Being “normal” is not setting you up for financial freedom. Look, money flows two ways. If you’re spending more than you make, you’ll continue to repeat the cycle of debt. Start living below your means and cut down on expenses. It’s a simple concept, but it’s not the norm these days. Start budgeting your money and saving up for purchases that you would normally swipe a credit card to purchase. Practice delayed gratification!

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/financially-savvy-female-3-money-220016201.html

If Billionaires and Insiders Are Nervous About Markets, Should You Be?

If Billionaires and Insiders Are Nervous About Markets, Should You Be?

Tim Staermose admin@sovereignman.com  Tue, May 25 at 1:10 PM

Markets are frothy. Billionaires are bailing. But opportunities exist… for the right investor.

What do billionaires and company insiders know that you don’t?

So far in 2021, they have sold $24.4 BILLION worth of stocks.

Since November 2020, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg and his charity have sold $1.87 billion. Amazon’s Jeff Bezos has sold $6.7 billion in 2021. A couple of weeks ago, Larry Ellison of Oracle sold (only) $552 million of Oracle stock.   Small investors are piling into overvalued markets.

But the smart guys are heading for the exits. And they may be correct to sell right now...

The average Price/Earnings ratio in the S&P 500 is 44, which is about 3x the historic average. It’s only been higher two other times — just before the 2000 crash, and just before the 2008 crash.

(As the name suggests, a company’s Price/Earnings (P/E) ratio measures its share price relative to its per-share earnings. Analysts and investors use P/E ratios to compare companies’ relative values.)

We’re not forecasting that a market crash is imminent. But at these valuations, it’s wise to exercise some caution.

Because financial markets are completely detached from reality…

In the United States alone, almost 10 million people remain unemployed. Thousands of small businesses are forever shuttered. Rising capital costs and labor shortages may close thousands more in the coming months.

And it’s not just small businesses that are in trouble…

Before COVID-19 struck, out of 3,000 large, publicly traded US companies, there were about 400 “zombies”. Zombie companies cannot generate enough operating income to cover their interest payments.

And the number of zombies has ballooned recently. Now, there are more than 600 zombie companies, with $2.6 TRILLION in total debt.

But again, most investors apparently don’t care about economic reality. Stock markets keep charging higher… with no regard for these clear risks.

Meanwhile, US Treasury bonds are no longer the “risk-free” investment that they once were.

Last year, when markets melted down, foreign investors and central banks didn’t rush into US Treasurys. Actually, foreigners sold $1 trillion of US Treasurys overnight.

How about cryptocurrencies as an alternative to stocks and bonds?

Despite what the fanatics proclaim, cryptocurrencies are not yet a stable store of value. For example, in the past month, bitcoin plummeted over 40%. And then quickly rebounded 10%.

So, since…

Stock markets are beyond frothy;

Treasury bonds are fraught with risk (especially with higher inflation coming);

And cryptocurrencies are not a stable store of value…

Then, at times like these, where can the rational, cautious investor safely invest capital?

Fortunately, there are still pockets of value where you can make money. Minimal downside and big upside — 54%, 120%, 250%, and even 303% profits.

You just need to:

Be extremely disciplined - with both your capital and time horizon;

And know where to look (NOT in US markets);

Let’s be clear: This type of investing is not for everyone.

If you lack the patience for your stock prices to increase…

If you cannot imagine suffering 10%, 20%, 30% losses, even though they’re temporary…

If you’re constantly checking the value of your portfolio on your phone…

Then you’re not cut out for this type of investing strategy. We’ll save you some time. You can close this email, and you can ignore this week’s remaining emails.

But if you have a long-term investment horizon with a classic asset allocation, then the risk is minimal, and the rewards are potentially unlimited.

We know that it’s your vision, discipline, and hard work that will reap the rewards. And we understand that you will build something lasting for years to come — something with real value.

Stay tuned for tomorrow to see how you can invest in real value and create true long-lasting wealth.

To your investment success, Tim Staermose, Chief Investment Officer, SovereignMan.com

https://www.sovereignman.com/blog/

Some Advice For Those Over 65

Some Advice For Those Over 65

Mark Snyder May 31 ·

1. It’s time to use the money you saved up. Use it and enjoy it.  Don’t just keep it for those who may have no notion of the sacrifices you made to get it. Remember there is nothing more dangerous than a son or daughter-in-law with big ideas for your hard-earned capital.

Warning: This is also a bad time for investments, even if it seems wonderful or fool-proof. They only bring problems and worries. This is a time for you to enjoy some peace and quiet.

2. Stop worrying about the financial situation of your children and grandchildren, and don’t feel bad spending your money on yourself. You’ve taken care of them for many years, and you’ve taught them what you could. You gave them an education, food, shelter and support. The responsibility is now theirs to earn their own money.

3. Keep a healthy life, without great physical effort. Do moderate exercise (like walking every day), eat well and get your sleep. It’s easy to become sick, and it gets harder to remain healthy. That is why you need to keep yourself in good shape and be aware of your medical and physical needs. Keep in touch with your doctor, do tests even when you’re feeling well. Stay informed.

4. Always buy the best, most beautiful items for your significant other. The key goal is to enjoy your money with your partner. One day one of you will miss the other, and the money will not provide any comfort then, enjoy it together

5.  Don’t stress over the little things.  Like paying a little extra on price quotes. You’ve already overcome so much in your life.You have good memories and bad ones, but the important thing is the present. Don’t let the past drag you down and don’t let the future frighten you. Feel good in the now. Small issues will soon be forgotten.

6. Regardless of age, always keep love alive. Love your partner, love life, love your family, love your neighbor and remember: “A man is not old as long as he has intelligence and affection.”

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://www.facebook.com/YonkersNNORC/posts/343408217207764

https://www.wjcs.com/

How To Keep Your Financial Planning On Track in 2021

How To Keep Your Financial Planning On Track in 2021

Resolutions lost their shine? Here’s how to get back the spark.

By Nicole Spector June 2, 2021

No matter how enthusiastic our New Year’s resolutions may have been to save more, spend less and/or take total ownership of our finances in 2021, they might now be losing their luster. The days since we made those ambitious resolutions are quickly passing and the shine is wearing off. Can’t we just cut ourselves some slack and do what makes us feel good and safe in the immediate sense, even if that means forsaking our lofty financial goals?

Try, if you can muster the energy, to return to that place of desire for a better financial life. If you feel that you’ve already blown it by, say, spending beyond your weekly budget or skipping a credit card payment, remember that a mistake doesn’t mean you can’t try again and have success.  But don’t take it from me: Take it from the experts who’ve provided a road map to keep (or get) your financial planning on track in 2021.

1. Don’t Just Track Your Spending, Chart It

“Many people simply track their finances automatically with an app – which is a great start, but what these apps don’t account for is when you stray or get off-target with your financial goal, which happens a lot,” says Amanda L. Grossman, a certified financial education instructor and personal finance blogger at FrugalConfessions.com. “What you want to do is to start calculating and then tracking the gap between where you are, and where you should be, according to your financial plan or goal.”

Visualizing your spending and how you’re tracking toward your financial goals is easy to do with Monifi. With the Monifi mobile banking app, your transactions are automatically categorized, so you can see at a glance where your money is going. Personalized tags and notes make it even easier to have a clear picture of how your spending stacks up against every budget item and goal you set.

Plus, you can make some extra cash — Monifi is currently offering $250 for new and recent account holders if you make two direct deposits of at least $1,000 into your Spend Balance. A Monifi account also comes with a complimentary contactless debit card and free access to the AllPoint ATM network.

2. Examine 2020’s Spending Habits and Plan for 2021

“The pandemic helped consumers reevaluate spending in terms of what they needed, versus what they wanted,” says Angela Holliday, president of Frost Brokerage Services, Inc. and Frost Investment Services, LLC. “With this in mind, take a look at how you managed to cut costs in 2020 and apply that where you can in 2021. Then, use the extra cash to pay off your debt. This will help you continue good habits so you can prosper in the new year.”

3. Budget for Savings

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://www.gobankingrates.com/saving-money/savings-advice/how-to-keep-your-financial-planning-on-track-in-2021/

30 Essential Money Habits

30 Essential Money Habits

By Elyssa Kirkham March 19, 2021

These money habits will help you grow your bank account.

What are you doing every day that can help you grow your bank account? If you can't answer that question, it's time to develop some new money habits.  Just like with your physical health, your financial health depends on the daily decisions you make every day. While healthy habits such as eating better and exercising keep you fit, certain money habits can keep you financially comfortable and help you establish wealth.

1. Spend Less Than You Earn

This habit is Personal Finance 101. It's always going to be true that you'll never get ahead financially if you always have more money going out than coming in. The great news is there are two ways you can work on this habit: Focus both on growing your income and controlling your spending to live within your means.

2. Keep Looking for New Earning Opportunities

As much as controlling spending is an essential habits, earning more money can be just as important. Look for ways to increase your income.

It could be something small, like babysitting once a week or bigger like selling crafts online.

3. Grow and Invest Your Money

In addition to looking for ways to earn money, financially savvy people also look for ways to grow the money they have. That can be as simple as finding a high-yield savings account where you can stash your funds and earn more than you would with a lower interest savings or checking account.

4. Continuously Pay Down Debt

Interest and debt can hold you back financially. It’s nearly impossible to get ahead and create a financially secure future when you’re always paying off yesterday’s purchases.

Whatever your debt repayment plan is, you need to stick to it and ideally pay more than the minimum every month to make a bigger impact.

5. Pay Yourself First

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://www.gobankingrates.com/saving-money/budgeting/essential-money-habits/

27 Things You Should Never Do With Your Money

27 Things You Should Never Do With Your Money

By Roger Wohlner June 1, 2021

Avoid these big money mistakes and keep more of your cash.

There is possibly an endless list of things you shouldn't do with your money. But from bad habits to decisions based on wishful thinking, some of the bigger missteps can really cost you. To find out the biggest money mistakes you should avoid, GOBankingRates asked financial experts for their best advice.

Never Cash Your Paycheck Right Away

If you cash your paycheck right away, you might burn through it too quickly.

"You will most certainly spend it all if you cash your paycheck rather than have your employer directly deposit it into your bank account," said Barbara Friedberg, a personal finance consultant. "Even better is to automatically transfer a percent of your paycheck into a retirement investment account and direct-deposit the remainder into a bank account."

One advantage of having a workplace retirement plan, such as a 401(k), is that money is automatically deducted from your pay and invested. You don't see it, so you won't spend it. You can use a budgeting template to get the most mileage out of your paycheck.

Never Fall For 'Special' Finance Deals You Can’t Afford

Promotional finance offers that provide zero or low interest rates on a big purchase might sound like a great deal -- until you wind up paying more than you expected. That's what happened to Grayson Bell, founder of personal finance website Debt Roundup.

"Don't finance a new vehicle, or watercraft in my case, based on the low promotional monthly payment," he said. "I financed a new $10,000 Jet Ski with no money down and no real way to pay for it based on a radio ad promoting a super low $69 per month payment. What I didn't read was the rate was only for two years, then it changes to include retroactive interest based on the loan amount."

"Those financing deals can ruin you if you're only looking at the monthly payment," he continued. "Go through the math and read all of the fine print. They get you in with the low monthly payments, but keep you paying for much longer than you anticipated."

Never Miss Out on Making Money With Your Money

When you pick out a checking account to use, you want to make sure you’re making the most of your options. The average checking account comes with an interest rate1 of 0.03%, if it has any at all, so you’ll want to shop around for the best options.

Depending on your daily balance, with PenFed’s Access America Checking account2, you can earn up to 0.35% APY3 with a monthly direct deposit of $500 or more. By using this account, you’ll be earning up to 11 times the average, which means your money will be doing more for you here than with other average checking accounts.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://www.gobankingrates.com/saving-money/savings-advice/things-should-never-do-with-money/?utm_campaign=1094037&utm_source=yahoo.com&utm_content=15&utm_medium=rss

One advantage of having a workplace retirement plan, such as a 401(k), is that money is automatically deducted from your pay and invested. You don't see it, so you won't spend it. You can use a budgeting template to get the most mileage out of your paycheck.

Never Fall For 'Special' Finance Deals You Can’t Afford

Promotional finance offers that provide zero or low interest rates on a big purchase might sound like a great deal -- until you wind up paying more than you expected. That's what happened to Grayson Bell, founder of personal finance website Debt Roundup.

"Don't finance a new vehicle, or watercraft in my case, based on the low promotional monthly payment," he said. "I financed a new $10,000 Jet Ski with no money down and no real way to pay for it based on a radio ad promoting a super low $69 per month payment. What I didn't read was the rate was only for two years, then it changes to include retroactive interest based on the loan amount."

"Those financing deals can ruin you if you're only looking at the monthly payment," he continued. "Go through the math and read all of the fine print. They get you in with the low monthly payments, but keep you paying for much longer than you anticipated."

Never Miss Out on Making Money With Your Money

When you pick out a checking account to use, you want to make sure you’re making the most of your options. The average checking account comes with an interest rate1 of 0.03%, if it has any at all, so you’ll want to shop around for the best options.

Depending on your daily balance, with PenFed’s Access America Checking account2, you can earn up to 0.35% APY3 with a monthly direct deposit of $500 or more. By using this account, you’ll be earning up to 11 times the average, which means your money will be doing more for you here than with other average checking accounts.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://www.gobankingrates.com/saving-money/savings-advice/things-should-never-do-with-money/?utm_campaign=1094037&utm_source=yahoo.com&utm_content=15&utm_medium=rss

10 Powerful Quotes That Made Me A Millionaire

From Recaps Archives

10 Powerful Quotes That Made Me A Millionaire
By Dale-Partridge

Make Your Passion Your Profession

With an overwhelming access to knowledge, this generation often finds itself ten feet wide and one inch deep. Knowing a little about everything but never enough about one thing to matter. We have no shortage of words; rather, we have a shortage of the right words.
  
Poetry has been defined as the best words in the best order. But I believe it goes beyond a poem.
 
The right words listed in concert and color can articulate a comprehensive and deep meaning in just a few characters. A meaning that can fasten your fears to the floor and allow you to step into progress.
 
Anchors that keep us straight and hold us tight – almost like an injection of clarity and control for our most uncertain of times.

Ultimately, words are the stones that bridge the gap to our furthest destinations. From incomprehension and overcoming indifference to closing a sale and believing in God.
 
 Words make up how we think, what we know, and who we become.
 
But the right words change your life. They can change your story.
 
Here are the words that have changed mine.
 
1. "Never get too busy making a living that you forget to make a life."
 
Who Said It?: My Grandmother
 
How It Has Helped Me:

Getting lost in something you love often results in getting lost in general. We live in a culture that measures our success by how much money we make rather than the fullness of our lives.
 
Over the 13 years I've spent building businesses, I've learned the months that feel weighted to one side typically follow a season spent living in the absence of this quote.
 
2. "Speak to people how they need to hear it, not how you want to say it."

Who Said It?: My Mentor
 
How It Has Helped Me:

Empathy is a difficult virtue to master. As an entrepreneur, the best marketing is performed by those who can step into the customer's pain. To put words to their emotions and to create products that solve their most trying problems. As leaders, we must not forget that thoughtfulness is the most effective form of communication. 

3. "Your greatest weakness is often the overextension of your greatest strength."
 
Who Said It?: Jason Benham
 
How It Has Helped Me:

I'm a natural teacher. Speaking, selling, and convincing others is almost instinctive to me. But far too many times I've been kicked in the leg by my wife for not shutting my mouth.
 
As I've matured, I'm learning that the overuse of our inherent gifting can backfire. The secret is learning to take it to the very edge, and stop.
 
4. "A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away."
 
Who Said It?: Antoine de Saint-Exupery
 
How It Has Helped Me:

A designer is someone who can make something more beautiful than someone else with the same tools at the same cost. Beauty is my secret weapon. But the more I practice design, the more I realize its purpose is not to draw our eyes to many things, but one thing.
 
So whenever I dislike the aesthetics of something I'm working on, whether it's landscaping my backyard or designing a new website, my first step is to take something away.
 
 
5. "The goal of an argument is to win their heart, not just their mind."
 
Who Said It?: Matthew L. Jacobson
 
How It Has Helped Me:

I used to HATE arguments. For a season, I was even passive. But arguments, debate, and marketing are all important pieces of the persuasion family. In my experience, the secret to removing a fear of confrontation is to re-establish your respect for others.
 
It's to realize our thoughts are directly connected to our hearts. Winning an argument and losing their heart is a cause for hurt. But winning both is a cause for respect. Remember, people don't care what you know until they know that you care.
 
6. "It's impossible to be spiritually mature while remaining emotionally immature."
 
Who Said It?: Peter Scazzero
 
How It Has Helped Me:

Nothing is independent. Over the years I've learned my relationship with God can only go as far as my capacity to connect with His people.
 
Too often, I find myself trying to simplify my spirituality to a one-dimensional experience – as if I can compartmentalize my faith absent of others. But I can't. Because maturity in any area requires maturity in all areas.

7. "We change when the pain of staying the same is greater than the pain of changing."
 
Who Said It?: Dr. Henry Cloud
 
How It Has Helped Me:

The old saying, "if there's no pain, there's no gain" reigns true. But in life, pain doesn't always equal bad. I've learned to re-associate pain with growth or new or beginning.
 

It's helped me not to spend my life avoiding pain but instead identifying pain that is good for me. The pain that grows me. The pain that changes me. The pain that forms me into the person I was intended to be.

8. "Who we listen to will determine who we will become

Who Said It?: Unknown
 
How It Has Helped Me:

I don't give my eyes and ears to many. Because my history tells me those I give permission to speak into my life will determine the direction of my actions.
 
It decides the life that I’ll end up creating. It calls for a change in behaviors that will ultimately adjust my current state of existence. Be cautious with whom you lend your ears. If we let the wrong person in, we could find ourselves far from who we want to become.
 
9. "Success occurs when we shift our efforts from making a million dollars to helping a million people."
 
Who Said It?: Dharmesh Shah
 
How It Has Helped Me:

I spent many years trying to make money to make money. It felt hollow and empty. And surprisingly I didn't make much money either. It wasn't until I had a genuine heart for helping others that I saw a significant jump in my income. Success is often counterintuitive.
 
What looks like the answer to many is often the path to mediocrity. Instead, the harder path is typically the right path. The path to a more sincere prosperity.
 
10. "If you don't build your dream, someone will hire you to build theirs."

 Who Said It?: Unknown
 
How It Has Helped Me:

This quote is a bit like of a backhanded encouragement. It's harsh, but it's true. You can either use your resources (time, energy, passion, etc.) to build the life you want or you will be used as a resource to build the life someone else wants. For me, this quote has been the motivation I needed to become a creator instead of a supporter.

https://startupcamp.com/10-powerful-quotes-made-successful/

Getting Schooled on Becoming More Financially Literate

Getting Schooled on Becoming More Financially Literate

Dennis Friedman   November 5, 2019  Humble Dollar

MANY BELIEVE we’ve raised a bunch of financial illiterates. If people were better educated about personal finance, the argument goes, they’d make smarter money decisions.  North Carolina this year became the 20th state to require high schoolers to take a financial literacy class. Its Lieutenant Governor, Dan Forest, said the new law would “ensure future students, prior to graduating high school, will be more financially literate and economically sound in their decision making as adults.”

But many aren’t sold on the idea that a personal finance class in high school is going to make much of a difference. According to the Huffington Post, “The way we make financial decisions has more to do with our money personality, our math skills, logical thinking, the ability to investigate, the confidence to ask questions and spot BS answers, and recognizing the unconscious influences in ourselves that have long been studied by behavioral scientists.”

There are many studies that show that teaching financial literacy in high school has little effect on how people handle money. For example, a 2014 paper for the journal Management Science looked at the results from nearly 170 papers covering more than 200 scientific studies on financial literacy. It found that financial education did little to improve subsequent financial behavior.

According to Timothy Ogden, managing director of the Financial Access Initiative, a research center, “It’s easy to boost financial knowledge: Lots of programs show positive outcomes when you ask people a few questions before and after a financial-ed course. Unfortunately, the impact disappears when you measure what people who take the courses actually do (not just what they say they do, which is a problem with a lot of studies that claim to find an impact).”

What these studies may be telling us is that we need to change the way we teach financial literacy. Financial education can have more of an impact if it’s based on the students’ short-term needs and delivered in a timely manner. For example, teaching high schoolers about college loans and credit card debt could make a difference in the debt load of students going to college.

Personal finance classes also need to deal with economic realities. How to find the lowest interest rate on a car loan is more important than how to calculate interest on that loan.

We should keep in mind that just because you know more about personal finance doesn’t mean you’re going to behave better. We all have emotions and biases that can keep us from making rational decisions.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://humbledollar.com/2019/11/getting-schooled-3/

What to Worry About and Four Things You Can Do

What to Worry About and Four Things You Can Do

Adam M. Grossman  |  July 19, 2020  Humble Dollar

IN RECENT WEEKS, I’ve focused on some of the growing risks in the financial system. In the stock market, there are day trading enthusiasts and their obliging brokers. In Washington, there’s a Federal Reserve that has served up a seemingly bottomless punch bowl of new money.

Result: Despite the current recession and 11% unemployment, the stock market is close to its pre-coronavirus all-time high, fueled in part by the Fed’s policies, which have driven income-starved investors to take greater risk. Meanwhile, the federal budget deficit has gone into the stratosphere—in June alone the deficit was $863 billion, up from $8 billion last year—and the Fed has printed about three trillion new dollars.

A reader asked which posed a bigger risk, an overeager stock market or an overspending government. My response: These risks aren’t the only risks. In fact, the worst risks are the ones we aren’t currently paying attention to. Risks that catch us by surprise are, by definition, the ones we’re least prepared for. Below are just a few examples. Some of these represent risks to the entire system, while others may impact us individually.

Cybersecurity. Talk to folks who work for financial institutions, and they’ll tell you that their computer systems are attacked every day. Fortunately, most attacks are unsuccessful. But I worry about a situation where a major bank’s systems are compromised. The result would be chaos, even if the problems were eventually sorted out.

Identity theft and other types of fraud. In the past, I’ve mentioned Peter Willmott, the former chief executive of Federal Express, whose own bookkeeper stole nearly $10 million from him. Ulysses S. Grant, a former president, found himself bankrupted by a Ponzi scheme late in life. Fortunately, these are the exception rather than the rule, but they illustrate that fraud can affect anyone.

Litigation. Travel down a highway in many states, and you’ll see billboards blanketed with ads for attorneys. “Injured? Call us!” If you’re a physician or a small business owner, litigation is a perennial risk. But the fact is, it can impact anyone who owns a home or drives a car.

Political risk. Ever since the 2000 election got hung up in litigation, I get a little nervous in election years. The reality is that financial markets are mostly agnostic to political parties, but they hate uncertainty. To have the Oval Office hanging in the balance may be the worst kind of uncertainty.

To continue reading, please go to the original article here:

https://humbledollar.com/2020/07/what-to-worry-about/

Watch Your Wallet

Watch Your Wallet

Joe Kesler  |  March 13, 2021  Humble Wallet

AS A BANKER, I got a ringside seat from which to watch the many ways that people are separated from their hard-earned money. Some are illegal. Some are legal, but unethical. And many, while legal and ethical, would be unnecessary with a little more knowledge about managing money.  For me, the most disturbing experiences were when scammers extracted money from the naïve and innocent. I’ve seen the pain of customers who found out that their elderly mother had given her life savings to a manipulative TV preacher. Unfortunately, there isn’t a lot that can be done in such situations.

Even sadder are the lonely people who develop an online romance with someone overseas. To come to the U.S., somebody convinced one of my customers to wire funds, so he could get a passport and airline ticket. But that wasn’t enough. Just send a little more, he told her numerous times. Finally, the lightbulb came on that this might be a scam.

Have you heard of the Nigerian prince scam? I didn’t believe any sophisticated person would fall for such a crazy scheme. But a customer of mine got a fax from a “prince” trapped in Nigeria. The fax promised that if my customer, an accountant no less, would wire $20,000, it would allow the prince to wire my customer millions. Unfortunately, my customer bought it and lost not only his money, but also his reputation.

Rather than absorb the loss and move on, my customer decided to fly to Nigeria to “get his money back.” He didn’t get his money back, but at least he came back alive.

Today, many scams are high tech. It’s become common for computer hackers to demand ransom in return for unlocking vital computer systems. I’ve talked to businesses that have had to pay the ransom in bitcoin—or risk seeing their business fail.

Selling fear. One of the earliest books I read on investing was How to Prosper During the Coming Bad Years, published in 1979.  It scared me that we were on the brink of destruction. I didn’t have much money, but I bought goldmining stocks in countries I couldn’t even find on a map. I later learned that fear sells books and newsletters. But it doesn’t lead to clear thinking or prosperity.

Today’s marketers still seek to get your money through fear tactics. I recently saw an economist’s newsletter that included an impressive array of charts, all showing how the stock market is in a bubble. His pitch? The future doesn’t belong to passive low-cost index investors like me. Rather, I should turn my money over to him, because he’s going to be an expert stock picker as the markets crash.

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