3 Ways to Instill Enduring Financial Values in Your Children

3 Ways to Instill Enduring Financial Values in Your Children

Leading by example is always a good idea, and the earlier you start, the better. These three lessons can get the whole family going in the right direction.

Passing down values related to family wealth is one of the most crucial, yet challenging, tasks for parents today. Children’s experiences with money during their formative years can shape how they save, spend and give for the rest of their lives.

What’s more, taking the right approach can ensure a family’s wealth is preserved through future generations. One recent study found that 70% of wealthy families lose control of their assets by the second generation, and 90% by the third. That’s a frightening prospect, especially when previous generations have taken so many steps to grow and maintain their wealth.

By setting a positive example and having meaningful conversations with their children, parents can teach three key lessons about money management.

No. 1: Teach them how to save

Helping children think beyond current wants and desires is no easy feat, which is why demonstrating the value of saving up for something is best accomplished through concrete examples and exercises.

Here’s one example. Plan an exciting family vacation a few months out. Establish that in order to save enough money for the trip, the family will need to limit the number of times they go out to dinner between now and then. This small compromise increases the perceived value of the vacation when it finally arrives.

Of course, there are many other examples and exercises to teach children the value of a dollar saved, such as using coupons at the grocery store or having a loose change jar in the kitchen. The key is to explain these concepts along the way, so children both hear and see best practices in action.

Many families also expose their children to long-term savings by bringing them to appointments with their financial adviser. Most children simply sit in the waiting room.

However, this trip gives parents an opportunity to explain that they are saving for retirement, planning for tax season or putting away money in a college fund. They can demonstrate that proper financial planning is important, complex and the reason they can provide a great lifestyle for their family.

No. 2: Teach them how to spend

Parents often debate the value of giving their children an allowance. When done in a disciplined way, an allowance can instill simple money management skills that children will carry with them for years.

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

https://www.kiplinger.com/article/retirement/T003-C032-S014-income-annuities-take-risk-out-of-retirement.html

Why The Price Of Silver Could Skyrocket

Why The Price Of Silver Could Skyrocket

Notes From The Field By Simon Black 

April 13, 2020  Bahia Beach, Puerto Rico

By the mid-6th century BC, Darius the Great was ‘King of Kings’, ruling over the vast Achaemenid Empire.

By that time, gold and silver had already been in use by earlier civilizations for thousands of years.

There are cuneiform tablets that are nearly 4,000 years old from ancient Sumeria which record commercial transactions made in gold and silver.

And subsequent civilizations-- the Babylonians, Egyptians, Lydians, etc. all used gold or silver in commerce.

But Darius had a unique idea.

He borrowed the idea of minting gold and silver coins from the Lydians… but then established a fixed exchange rate between the two metals.

Darius decreed that one gold “daric” was worth 13.5 silver coins-- one of the first examples in history of a fixed, bimetallic standard.

His idea caught on. And for thousands of year afterward, later civilizations established a fixed gold/silver ratio.

In ancient Greece during the age of Pericles, gold was valued at 14x silver. In ancient Rome, Julius Caesar valued gold at 12x silver.

It remained this way for centuries.

Even in the earliest days of the United States, eighteen centuries after Caesar, The Coinage Act of 1792 established a ratio of 15:1.

(According to the law, one US dollar is supposed to be 24.1 grams of silver, or 1.6 grams of gold. So those pieces of paper in your wallet are not dollars-- they are technically “Federal Reserve Notes”.)

In modern times there is no longer a fixed ratio between gold and silver, though its long-term average over the last several decades has been between 50:1 and 80:1.

This is a lot higher than in ancient times… but the circumstances are obviously different.

Today, gold is still widely used as a reserve by central banks and governments around the world. And investors still buy gold as a hedge against inflation and uncertainty.

Silver, on the other hand, has countless industrial applications; it’s a critical component in everything from mobile phones to automobiles to solar panels.

Like gold, silver is also a hedge against inflation and uncertainty.

But silver’s demand fundamentals are more heavily influenced by overall economic health. If the economy is in recession, silver prices can fall because there’s less demand from industry.

Gold, on the other hand, doesn’t follow that pattern. In 5 out of the last 6 recessions, in fact, gold has increased in price.

That’s why recessions, and extreme turmoil, can lead to a massive spike in the gold/silver ratio. Gold goes up, and silver stays flat (or falls).

Just prior to World War II as Hitler launched his invasion of Poland, the ratio spiked to 98:1.

In 1991 as the first Gulf War began, the ratio again reached 100:1.

Today we’re back again in that territory; as of this morning, the ratio is 110:1, and it’s been as high as 120 or more in recent weeks.

Now, there are very few things about this pandemic that we can be certain about.

Things that were unthinkable even a month ago are now part of our daily lives. And so as I’ve written over and over again, EVERY possible scenario is on the table right now.

But one thing that does seem very clear is that central banks around the world are going to print an extraordinary amount of money.

Many of them already have.

The Federal Reserve in the US, for example, has already expanded its balance sheet to SIX TRILLION DOLLARS.

That’s a nearly 50% increase from last month. And they’re just getting started.

Why does something so mundane as a central bank balance sheet even matter?

Because a rising balance sheet means they’re conjuring trillions of dollars out of thin air to bail everyone out.

This is the way they solve problems: they print money and debase the currency, something that policymakers have been doing for thousands of years.

But you can only get away with doing that a limited number of times before the currency starts to lose value.

And whenever that happens, gold and silver tend to rise as a result.

There’s a lot we don’t know about this pandemic.

We don’t know how long it will last, how much destruction it will cause, or what the world will look like once this is over.

But we can be pretty sure that central banks are going to print a ridiculous amount of money, and that governments will go into a ridiculous amount of debt.

They’ve told us this much. And they’ve already started to do it. So this seems pretty obvious.

The price of gold is up significantly over the last several months, and since the start of this crisis.

But the price of silver has declined… leading to a record-high gold/silver ratio.

This ratio may stay elevated for a while, or even go higher.

But in the past, the ratio has always returned to more traditional levels. Always. Even when the world was facing Adolf Hitler or the Great Depression.

So it stands to reason that, if they keep printing money (which they already are), and the ratio eventually returns to its historical range, the price of silver could really skyrocket.

We’ll spend some time this week talking about some interesting ways to take advantage of this.

To your freedom & prosperity, Simon Black, Founder, SovereignMan.com

https://www.sovereignman.com/trends/why-the-price-of-silver-could-skyrocket-27650/

How I Saved a Small Fortune and Taught My Kids to Be Independent

How I Saved a Small Fortune and Taught My Kids to Be Independent

Smart Insights From Professional Advisers

My money-saving parenting strategy boils down to saying one magic word and saying it often: NO

It’s much easier these days to spend money on material things, especially if you can afford to do so. What’s worse is the peer pressure to keep up with the Joneses or their kids. Like many of you, when my wife and I grew up, a family dinner at Ponderosa was a BIG family night out.

I fondly remember the all-you-eat buffet and especially loved the chocolate pudding. I grew up in Arlington Heights, Ill., in a middle-class family of four. We did fine financially compared to our neighbors (the houses were all so much smaller back then).

I have succumbed to the peer pressure of keeping up with the Joneses more than I like to admit. If only I still lived in the nice three-bedroom ranch we first bought in Glen Ellyn for $220,000 I would have boatloads more money today! My mortgage would have been paid off years ago. I would already be financially independent had we not moved to a bigger, more expensive home. I probably would have been able to save close to 50% of my income today had we not moved.

IMAGINE BEING ABLE TO SAVE 50% OF YOUR INCOME!

Spoiling Kids While Living in an Affluent Neighborhood

Just living in an affluent town (DuPage County is in the top 2% for median income in the U.S.) makes it nearly impossible not to spoil my kids. Our kids know what they see and think that’s how everybody lives.

Where’s the reality check for them? How well are we preparing our kids to fly on their own and be financially responsible and independent?

I see myself as an example for my three teenage children. Believe me, your kids watch you and soak up like sponges the actions you take with your money. While I’ve been far from perfect in the frugality war, there are many things I am proud of. For instance:

I seldom give my teenagers money for entertainment or clothes — I usually tell them to use their own money from their summer jobs (they don’t get an allowance).

My kids had their own savings accounts since they were in grade school — I matched their deposits to encourage saving more money.

I keep cash in my pocket for almost all my spending at a register – this is HUGE! When we are at a store and they ask if we can buy … fill in the blank … I usually say, “No, I don’t have enough money,” which creates the concept that money is scarce. If I used plastic, my kids wouldn’t get that message. It’s worked great for me.

This summer all three of my kids had multiple jobs, some days all three were out the door before 7 a.m.!

I go out of my way to teach my kids that every retailer is trying to get you to part with your hard-earned money. The best way to do this is to not pay for your kids’ non-necessities. This might include buying them lunch, but not their drinks. They can get water or pay for the drinks themselves.

You might think I’m nuts and I am taking this to an extreme, but I’m trying to teach my kids to think before they spend. They usually go for water. I guess the soft drink isn’t that high of a priority after all.

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

 https://www.kiplinger.com/article/college/T037-C032-S014-parents-one-word-can-save-you-a-small-fortune.html

The Origin Of Financial Crisis

 The Origin Of Financial Crisis

The Final Wake Up Call  By Peter B Meyer

Made-Up Disasters Lead To Massive Financial Gains

The Formation Of The Ruling Elite

The Ruling Bloodlines

Will This Easter Be The True Biblical Resurrection?

Crisis Are Carefully Planned And Executed

The origin of today’s financial problems, clearly show that history has not been a random sequences of events, but rather a carefully planned, orchestrated and performed ‘design’ of land, wealth, and resource grabbing by a small number of wealthy and privileged individuals bent on world domination.

This has been performed on such a massive scale that it seems almost incomprehensible, but as the old saying goes, “The best kept secrets are the ones hidden in plain sight.”

All governments in the world except a few have been in a state of bankruptcy to the Rothschild-crime-cabal since the 1930s. These criminals have engineered economic boom and bust cycles for hundreds of years, including the crash of 1929 with the Great Depression of the 1930s, and more recent the 2007/8 crisis.

Most economists, who have no idea what is going on, will tell that boom and bust are part of a natural ‘economic cycle’. Which is nonsense; these are systematically planned in advance by special interest groups, like the Rothschilds and their central and other bank conglomerates under control in their chain of command.

The 13 bloodline families are moving trillions of dollars a day around the world stock markets and they dictate if the markets go up or down, boom or bust. Market crashes don’t just happen – they are made to happen. If you know the crash is coming because you are going to cause it, you know to sell high and buy back low once the crash has happened. This way they increased their holdings massively by acquiring companies at a fraction of the cost from before the manipulated collapse.

Made-Up Disasters Lead To Massive Financial Gains

They begin; by recalling loans and make it difficult or impossible to get a new loan, which results in a decrease of the amount of money in circulation. With the result, that a proportion of the people will not be able to repay their loans whereas being unable to replace with new loans, why they go bankrupt.

These home owners now are forced to transfer their underlying asset on the loan for dimes on the dollar to the lenders. And, most likely could remain in debt for the rest of their life. This trait is frequently applied to suck the financial life blood out of the people and keep these as their debt slaves in line. Their basic strategies are: destabilising nations; ruin their economies, and siphon off peoples’ savings and assets.

A classic example is from Nathan Rothschild during the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, when he ‘purchased’ England for pennies on the pound sterling.

On the early morning of June 20th, 1815, Nathan Rothschild, one of five sons of Mayer Amschel Bauer, pulled off one of the most devious financial schemes in history. Less than two days prior, in the late evening hours of June 18th, 1815, Napoleon was defeated at the battle of Waterloo by an allied alliance led by England. This ended the Napoleonic wars.

Nathan Rothschild, at that time an already wealthy and influential individual, was able to get word of the allied victory – through a private messenger – several hours prior to the official announcement to the rest of the public.

 In a bold and deceptive move, Rothschild began selling off vast amounts of British consuls or consolidated annuities, essentially what would today be called stocks. When other investors throughout the country noticed this action by Rothschild, a mode of panic began to set in.  

Everyone assumed that Rothschild’s actions signalled that Waterloo was a victory for Napoleon, and not for the allied forces, with the implication being that the value of the consuls would drop in the case of a French victory.

A large number of investors followed suit, selling off their consuls in anticipation of a French takeover of the country. Then, moments before the official announcement was made that Napoleon had been defeated, Rothschild bought up a massive amount of consuls at rock bottom prices.

When the Victory announcement was made, the value of the consuls soared, and Nathan found himself with an increase of wealth 6,500 times more than what he previously owned. In essence, he robbed the country blind, and became, for all accounts and purposes, the owner of most of England.

 From this point forward his family, with now more wealth than they could have dreamed off, became an influential player in the government, and steered policy decisions going forward in their direction.

It bears noting that this scheme by Rothschild was historically important, it showed how fabricating disasters are very beneficial.

The Formation Of The Ruling Elite

In the early part of the 17th century, the formation of a company that would eventually become the ruling elite and, ultimately, the engineers of history.

“In the year 1600, Queen Elizabeth I presented a charter to the East India Company. History tells that their goal was to establish trade relations with the Eastern world, namely India and China. Officially, its business was trading in tea. While this is certainly true, there is a much darker side to the story.

The true goals of this company were two-fold: To study the banking and financial systems of the Eastern world, specifically India, for eventual manipulation, and to introduce opium to the Far East. It is through the latter of these two that the East India Company was able to amass massive amounts of wealth that was stored in royal coffers.

The way in which this opium trade began was through the growing of prime opium poppies in the Royal Botanic Kew Gardens, in London. These were then shipped to India, where the British began growing vast plantations of opium-producing poppies.

From there, the poppies were transported in the form of raw opium, via English Tea Clipper ships, to China, where they were sold to the Chinese people. For many decades, this opium trade continued uninterrupted, and two main things occurred as a result of it:

** The East India Company made a fortune selling these vast amounts of opium, and

** The Chinese nation became a nation of addicts, with many millions of people becoming addicted to opium and thereby halting progress to the build-up of the infrastructure of China.

The ruling body of the East India Company was known as The Council of 300, yet as the opium trade began to grow and become more lucrative, pulling in massive amounts of wealth, the British monarchy merged with the company, and from this action transpired a group that to this very day refer themselves as ’The Committee of 300.’

Through the funding provided by such wealthy individuals as Nathan Rothschild and others, the British East India Company eventually morphed into The Committee of 300: A group of 300 global elitists who adopted a secret policy of domination over the Western world. The British monarchy, which stood at the upper echelon of this new power structure, had itself amassed grand wealth as part of the opium trade.

The idea behind their plan of domination was quite simple: Whoever could control the world’s wealth could ultimately exert a massive amount of power and influence over the planet.

The Ruling Bloodlines

Around 1865 before and after American Civil War, the Committee of 300, the Jesuits and the 13 Papal Bloodline families began an overt attempt to exert influence over, and to regain control of, the United States of America. The British monarchy accomplished this in much the same way that it had previously done throughout England: Through the control of land, resources, and finances.

By aligning themselves with wealthy individuals such as J.P. Morgan, John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Mellon, Paul Warburg, and E.H. Harriman – many of whom had become quite rich through their efforts in acting as defence contractors as part of the war effort, the same scheme was enacted all over again:

Accumulation of massive amounts of wealth through war and, subsequently, at the expense of slave labour, but this time in the United States. By the way, Morgan and Warburg were American agents of the Rothschild family back in England.

It is well documented that people such as the Rothschilds and the monarchs of Britain and The Netherlands viewed the mainstream populace as deplorable slaves, often referred to as the ‘masses’ or the ‘useless eaters’.

From this point forward, a very small number of people began to control a vast amount of Europe’s resources, land, and finances. The populace played the role of pawns on a grand chessboard, serving the needs of the elite while being blissfully unaware of what was going on behind the curtain.

Here is how their manipulation works; it is happening every day all over the world. Global finance, including banking, stock markets, or whatever is simply a confidence trick. When people are confident they buy and invest and the economy expands, when they lose confidence, they don’t buy and invest and the economy contracts.

All it needs is a gloomy forecast from the cabal-controlled financial mainstream media, or a rumour circulating about economic problems, and the house of cards can come down overnight. The cabal are experts in this kind of rumours.

They and their banking cartel have also funded all sides in virtually every war since about 1800 – wars that their agents in government, the military and intelligence agencies have manipulated into being.

This has cost the lives of at least hundreds of millions – 75 million in WW 1 and 2 alone, allowing the cabal to control governments and people through debt payments of the loans.

When the wars have devastated countries, the cabal banking cartel lends more money to rebuild them – the interest payment for the loans make them slaves of the cabal. As the cabal also own the defence companies they sell them the weaponry against a huge profit, requiring more loans to governments. If the cabal don’t want wars, there would be none.

Their plan to completely take over the planet is hugely successful by hiding their manipulation behind other cronies; they control humans like puppets on strings and so they became wealthy rulers and dark lords throughout the ages.

The “Not so Royal Family thieves of the world” and their lavish lifestyle, are part of the NWO agenda. They are rotten to the core. They are disgusting satanic beings. Why do people bow and scrape over them and sway their flags?  If you only knew more about their real history, you won’t worship these satanic criminals as celebrities, but being pleased seeing them hanging on the gallows.

 Will this Easter be the true biblical resurrection?

The New World Order faces combined the two most powerful countries in the world, while this fake pandemic has changed everything. It is now widely noticed how desperate the bankers have become, and thanks to the close cooperation between Presidents Trump, Putin and Xi, there will be no WW3.

The termination of private central banks, the Federal Reserve, the BIS, the World Bank, the IMF, the European Central Bank, BoJ, the EU, NATO has begun. Our world will eventually become a much better place to live, perhaps already soon, it will get much better. Easter’s resurrection is coming; can it really become biblical now? 

http://finalwakeupcall.info/en/2020/04/08/the-origin-of-financial-crisis/

Who Is Ineligible For Coronavirus Checks

Coronavirus Checks: Who Is Ineligible?

Many Americans Won't Get Coronavirus Checks

Here's A Look At Who Is Ineligible

NBC News  Josh Lederman,NBC News•April 6, 2020

WASHINGTON — For millions of Americans awaiting coronavirus cash, help is not on the way.

Although the $2 trillion stimulus bill passed last month includes payments of up to $1,200 for everyone who makes less than the limit, many Americans will fall through the cracks. That includes most college kids, immigrants without Social Security numbers and some disabled adults.

Why so many gaps? Part of it is the urgency that faced Congress as it rushed to get money to Americans as fast as possible. There wasn't much time to fine-tune the bill to address every contingency. Lawmakers opted to base eligibility on tax returns, even though many people don't file them.

Congress also wanted to ensure that the money goes to those who really need it now. Most Americans could use some extra cash even in the best of times. But some people's livelihoods have been more directly affected by the pandemic than others.

For those who qualify, payments will start going out from the IRS in mid-April. The IRS is using 2019 tax returns to determine eligibility or 2018 returns for those who haven't filed for 2019 yet.

Here's a look at who falls through the cracks:

College students and 17-year-olds

If someone else claims you as a dependent on their taxes, you won't get your own check. Parents will get an extra $500 payment per child, but that's only for kids under 17.

Most 17-year-olds, some young adults and many of the country's roughly 20 million college students are claimed by their parents as dependents. They won't get checks, and their parents won't get an extra $500.

"They're not on their own. And so you feed them and you still provide for them," said Susan Anderson of Lubbock, Texas, who has a 19-year-old at home and a 23-year-old about to graduate from college. "So you're not getting anything, and they're not getting anything. There's a huge gap."

Full coverage of the coronavirus outbreak

Disabled people whose parents support them

People who get disability benefits from the Social Security Administration or Veterans Affairs are eligible for the payments — but not disabled adults who are claimed as dependents by their parents or other relatives on their taxes.

Jennifer Irwin's son Simon, 21, who is nonverbal, lives about an hour's drive from her Delaware home at a center for disabled adults, where he was placed by the state. Because she claims him on her taxes, he won't get a check — a blow Irwin described as "another nail in the coffin."

"Just because he's not under 17 doesn't mean he should be excluded from the credit parents are getting. He's still entirely dependent. I still buy all his clothes," Irwin said. "It's discouraging. I mean, we struggle enough as it is."

Seniors living with their kids

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

 https://www.yahoo.com/news/falling-cracks-many-americans-wont-090029581.html

Wells Fargo Already Ran Out Of Money For Small Businesses

Wells Fargo Already Ran Out Of Money For Small Businesses

Notes From The Field By Simon Black 

April 7, 2020  Bahia Beach, Puerto Rico

That was fast! Wells Fargo already ran out of money for small businesses.

I think one of the funniest movies of the 1980s was Brewster’s Millions.

In the movie, Richard Pryor plays Monty Brewster, a minor league baseball player who finds out that he is in line to inherit a vast $300 million fortune.

In order to inherit the money, though, Brewster must spend $30 million over the next 30 days… and if he fails to do so, he forfeits the entire inheritance.

Part of the terms of his inheritance were that Brewster couldn’t buy assets. He couldn’t just acquire a bunch of real estate or expensive paintings. He had to spend the money, not invest it.

$30 million is a ton of money, especially in 1985 when Brewster’s Millions was released. And the movie is a hilarious account of how difficult it was for Richard Pryor’s character to spend so much money so quickly.

Amazingly enough, the US federal government is starting to realize this too.

Ten days ago they passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (“CARES”) Act with the aim of putting cash in people’s pockets.

As I wrote to you a week ago, the law includes $350 billion in emergency funding for small businesses. It’s specifically aimed at helping entrepreneurs retain and pay their employees.

A week and a half later, the government seems to have realized just how difficult it is to give away $350 billion to tens of millions of businesses.

Sure, the Defense Department blows hundreds of billions of dollars all the time. They make it look easy. But they’re acquiring really expensive stuff-- bombs, aircraft carriers, fighter jets, etc.

But similar to Brewster’s Millions, the Small Business Administration isn’t buying anything. They have to spend the money, sprinkling hundreds of billions of dollars across the economy as quickly as possible.

And to make matters even more difficult, they’re spending it in very small chunks as low as $10,000 each.

So the government and the banks are scrambling right now trying to figure out how to get this money into the economy, and fast.

Meanwhile, demand is incredibly high from small business owners who are looking to get a piece of that $350 billion.

Some bank websites have crashed. Others simply put a page up saying “We’re sorry, we’re unable to process your request.”

Wells Fargo (of course it had to be Wells Fargo…) announced yesterday on Twitter that they had already “reached lending capacity” for small businesses under this program, and they subsequently took down the application form.

 Then the Federal Reserve reacted by announcing a new facility to ‘buy’ small business loans from the banks, which gives banks like Wells Fargo more ammunition to keep lending.

The problem, of course, is that a good chunk of these loans will never be repaid. Ever.

As I explained last week, Congress set up these loans to be “forgivable”. They’re non-recourse loans, and no personal guarantee is required. So a small business owner can take the money, never pay a penny back, and there will be no consequences (as long as the money was used for its intended purpose.)

But based on yesterday’s announcement, a ton of these loans will end up being owned by the Federal Reserve.

Bear in mind that the Federal Reserve’s total capital is just $38 billion. So $350 billion worth of small business loans (or even just a fraction of the $350 billion) would completely dwarf the Fed’s capital.

In other words, widespread loan defaults could easily wipe out the Fed’s capital, rendering the largest and most important central bank in the world insolvent.

Of course the federal government is supposed to guarantee these loans… so if a borrower defaults, the Small Business Administration will make the lender (or the Fed) whole.

But the federal government itself is insolvent! Think about it-- just to be able to make this $350 billion loan guarantee, the US government has to borrow money from… the Federal Reserve!

It’s mind boggling when you think about it: the Federal Reserve prints money and loans it to the US government, so that the US government can financially guarantee the Federal Reserve.

So bizarre.

Anyhow, we’ll talk about those consequences more later. For now, my team put together a detailed report on the CARES Act and its small business loan programs.

So if you have a qualifying business (and pretty much anyone with a pulse qualifies) and you’re interested in some specifics about how to apply for one of these forgivable loans, you can download this free report..

To your freedom & prosperity, Simon Black, Founder, SovereignMan.com

That was fast! Wells Fargo already ran out of money for small businesses | Sovereign Man 

Financial Action Plans: The Full Breakdown

Financial Action Plans: The Full Breakdown

Financial Fitness   January 24, 2020, 8:38 AM EST

At a glance:

What is a financial action plan?

How to create a simple financial action plan

A sample financial action plan

Help for writing a financial action plan

Keep it simple

Practical ideas you can start with today

When you think of doing financial planning, do you picture yourself in an office, with a professional planner on the other side of the table, and hashing out a complicated set of documents with a lot of big numbers and goals that are hard to imagine you could ever achieve?

In truth, financial planning often does involve professionals, and it often does lead to a set of documents with big numbers and a list of goals.

But it need not be this involved. It can also be quite simple, as we will see.

What is a financial action plan?

A financial action plan is a plan that directs how you will manage your money in order to make progress toward your goals.

Simply knowing what you want will not get you there: you need a real plan to make it happen.

And it should be written down, with clear goals and actionable steps that can be measured in some way. When a plan is written with concrete, measurable steps, you can gauge whether or not it has succeeded.

Another benefit is that the concrete, actionable steps take the hunches and the guesswork out of your planning.

A financial action plan answers the age old question, what do you need to do to get where you need to go

It's all about your goals in life

At its core, financial planning simply means setting a number of goals and writing steps to achieve them with your money. You can start with just a few and make a living, breathing, flexible plan for yourself. Indeed, your plan can be as simple as writing down three to five goals and some steps for achieving them.

Professionally written financial plans typically encompass all areas of a person's life: debt management, investing, retirement planning, estate planning, financial forecasting, insurance, risk management, assets and liabilities and net worth, and a plan for periodic review.

Each item includes a set of steps for making it happen. Thus, it is not the same thing as a budget; it covers more than just how you will spend your money. Indeed, some personal financial plans are over 100 pages long. But every one is as individual as the person it is written for.

It's a starting point for bigger things

As you succeed at your own plan over time and refine and update it, you can expand it to include more complex goals, like a retirement plan and investments. For these, the services of a professional planner may be desirable.

How to create a simple financial action plan

No two financial action plans are the same. They differ based on how complex your needs are and how much of your life plans you want to cover. Traditionally, financial plans have a certain structure:

Setting goals and gathering financial data. This includes your income, insurance, any investments, your benefits at work, and of course, your life's goals.

Assessing your financial status. This is where calculations and financial statements come into play. For example, a net worth statement will add up your assets and subtract your liabilities to give you your financial status.

Developing the actual plan. This step is how your plan will be carried out. It will include recommended savings and investments and other means of generating wealth.

Carrying out the plan. Here, you will actually do the saving and investing; or a professional will do it for you.

Monitoring the plan. Your plan must be reviewed periodically to make sure it is on track. If necessary, it can (and usually will be) revised.

Though this may look intimidating, it's not a requirement. A financial action plan can be as simple as listing each goal and then listing a means of achieving each one:

Setting goals. Write down the things you want to achieve.

Developing the plan. Set a simple task list.

Carrying out the plan. Do the tasks and mark them as done when they are done.

Monitoring the plan. Set a reminder on a calendar or an app to see how you are doing.

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

https://www.cashay.com/what-are-financial-action-plans-133816738.html

Emergency Fund: What You Need To Know To Build One

Emergency Fund: What You Need To Know To Build One

Financial Fitness  January 24, 2020

At a glance:

What is an emergency fund?

Where to keep your emergency fund

Finding money to save for an emergency fund

Summary of building an emergency fund

Practical idea you can start with today

Life throws lots of surprises at you, many of them financial: the refrigerator dies, the radiator on the car goes out, we get a surprise tax bill, or a job is terminated.

If you lack an emergency fund there are other options, including credit cards, payday loans, pawnshop loans or loans from family members or friends. Each of these options have their own problems: high interest rates, making them difficult to pay back, as well as potential conflict with people close to you.

It's at that point, when you hit a financial bottom, when you realize the importance of setting aside a certain amount of cash for unforeseen occurrences.

Doing so can buy you peace of mind while sacrificing spending for the short term.

Ideally, you want to have this cash saved up sooner rather than later so that you don't suffer a major inconvenience when something does go wrong.

What is an emergency fund?

An emergency fund is an account set aside to gather money for emergency use. The emergency itself may be anything, but it's wise to plan for the worst, which means loss of your ability to earn income. Conventional wisdom says to save for three to six months' worth of your daily expenses, though others suggest more, especially during periods of economic uncertainty.

This includes rent, mortgage, major bills, food, etc. Paradoxically, you tend to need an emergency fund the most when you're not financially stable, like when you're just starting out, which is when it is the most difficult to save. Emergency funds are something that you can't create overnight. It can take a year or more to build a fund sufficient to meet your minimum emergency needs and years to build up a more robust amount of savings. Some people add to them over the course of years instead.

Use existing money if you can

Ideally, you want to pay for emergency expenses with existing funds. Though credit will do the job as well as cash in your savings account, it comes with expensive strings attached. Interest on credit cards, just like the interest on savings accounts, adds up over the months, so you end up paying off a bill higher than what you originally incurred.

In addition, credit card companies may levy extra fees or higher rates if you go over your limit or forget to pay your bill, adding to the overall cost. An additional advantage of using existing money is that it can earn interest or dividends if sitting in an account in a financial institution.

First, track your expenses

You should know your spending and earning habits well enough to decide how large of an emergency fund you're going to need. If your income is not stable—which is true for many self-employed consumers—you may need a larger fund than someone who gets a steady paycheck does.

Begin by determining how much money you spend in a month, including housing-related expenses, utilities, car payments, gas, insurance, food, and loan payments. Since a loss of income-earning ability will mean cutting out unnecessary expenses during that time, focus on the necessary ones.

Once you have your total dollar amount, multiply it by the number of months you think you'll need.

With this goal in mind, determine a safe amount to sock away each month or week. At first, it's probably best to set aside a small amount, but be consistent with it.

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

https://www.cashay.com/emergency-fund-what-you-need-to-know-to-build-one-122855232.html

Coronavirus Stimulus Checks Explained

Coronavirus Stimulus Checks Explained

175 million Americans will start receiving funds 'this week or early next,' Larry Kudlow says

Denitsa Tsekova Reporter  Yahoo Money April 6, 2020

An estimated 175 million Americans will get stimulus checks with the first payments going out this week or next, according to Larry Kudlow, director of the U.S. National Economic Council.

The payments, worth up to $1,200 plus additional $500 per child, are intended to help Americans financially weather job loss, reduced work hours, and other money challenges as large swaths of the country are shut down to curb the coronavirus outbreak.

"The checks from the Treasury and the IRS [will] probably start going out, I think this week, perhaps early next," Kudlow told CNBC.

Kudlow also said glitches that small business have experienced when applying for the relief program will get worked out and told CNBC that the government is supporting the economy by, "liquidity, cash rescue, try to keep the labor force connected to the actual businesses."

While many Americans will start receiving their checks soon, it may take months for others. This depends on what banking information the Internal Revenue Service has on file and other factors. Here's what you need to know about the checks.

White House chief economic adviser Larry Kudlow talks to reporters at the White House, Monday, April 6, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

When will the stimulus check arrive? It depends.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said at a White House briefing last Thursday, that those Americans who have signed up for direct deposit will receive their payment within two weeks.

"Social Security, you'll get it very quickly after that," Mnuchin said. "If we don’t have your information, you'll have a simple web portal, you'll upload it. If we don't have that, we'll send you checks in the mail."

The payments will be deposited directly into your bank account if you received your last tax refund or expect to receive this year's refund that way. You'll also be able to provide your banking details online once a portal is set up, according to the IRS.

Otherwise, checks will be mailed, which could take longer to get to Americans. Adding to the complications, about 6% of U.S. adults — or 12 about 12 million Americans — do not have a checking, savings, or other bank account, according to a 2018 Federal Reserve report.

A worker sorts through newly-printed stimulus checks at the San Francisco Regional Financial Center in Emeryville, Calif., Thursday, May 8, 2008. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)

The New York Times, citing IRS guidelines that detail how Americans who aren't usually required to file tax returns will need to do so to receive payments, noted the guidance "will almost certainly mean longer waits for those who must file new returns to be eligible to receive a stimulus payment."

Americans with the lowest income will get mailed checks first, according to reporting by the Washington Post. Here's the timetable for the first checks, per IRS documents seen by the Post:

Taxpayers with income up to $10,000: April 24

Taxpayers with income up to $20,000: May 1

Taxpayers with income up to $40,000: May 15

The rest of the checks will be issued by gradually increasing income increments each week. Households earning $198,000 who file jointly will get their reduced checks on Sept. 4. The last group of checks will be sent on Sept. 11 to those who don't have tax information on file and had to apply for checks, according to the Washington Post.

 Who gets a stimulus check?

Your eligibility is based on your most recent tax return and your adjusted gross income. If you already filed your 2019 taxes, your eligibility will be based on that. If not, the Internal Revenue Service will use your 2018 taxes to determine if you qualify.

Read more: Tax deadline postponed: Why you should still file as soon as you can

The benefit is available not only to those who have filed taxes, but also to those who receive Social Security benefits as long as they’ve received their SSA-1099 or RB-1099 forms.

U.S Treasurer Anna Escobedo Cabral, right, thanks workers at the San Francisco Regional Financial Center for their efforts in the printing of stimulus check in Emeryville, Calif., Thursday, May 8, 2008. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)

Single adults with income up to $75,000 will get a $1,200 payment. Married couples with income up to $150,000 will get $2,400. Single parents who file as head of household with income up to $112,500 will get the full $1,200 check.

Additionally, Americans who qualify for the stimulus payment and have children will get an additional $500 per child under 17.

Reduced checks will be available for single adults who earn between $75,001 and $99,000 and married couples who earn between $150,001 and $198,000. The check will be reduced by $5 for every $100 over $75,000 for single adults and $150,000 for married couples.

Who doesn't get a check?

Single adults who make more than $99,000 and married couples who earn more than $198,000 won’t receive stimulus checks.

Those without a Social Security number and nonresident aliens — those who aren't a U.S. citizen or U.S. national and don't have a green card or have not passed the substantial presence test — aren't eligible.

You're also ineligible if your parents claim you as a dependent on their taxes.

How will the government send you the stimulus check?

The IRS will use the direct deposit information you provided from the taxes you've filed either for 2019 or for 2018.

If you have no direct deposit information on file or if the account provided is now closed, the IRS will mail you a check, instead.

Stimulus payments roll off printing presses at the San Francisco Regional Financial Center in Emeryville, Calif., Thursday, May 8, 2008. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)

If the IRS doesn’t have your direct deposit information

If you didn't include your direct deposit information when filing your taxes or if you receive your Social Security payments by mail, you may be able to do this before checks are sent out.

The Treasury plans to create a web-based portal for individuals to provide their banking details online, according to the IRS. That will help Americans get payments faster rather than waiting for a check in the mail, according to the IRS.

Do you have to pay back the stimulus check?

No. The stimulus payment is actually a refundable credit against your 2020 tax liability, according to Kyle Pomerleau of the American Enterprise, and is paid out as an advanced refund. That means you don't have to wait to file your 2020 taxes to get the money.

It also doesn’t reduce any refund you would otherwise receive, Watson said.

In fact, if you don’t qualify for the stimulus check now based on your 2018 or 2019 tax returns, you may be able to qualify to take the tax credit next year when you file your 2020 taxes if your income meets the thresholds.

 Denitsa is a writer for Yahoo Finance and Cashay, a new personal finance website. Follow her on Twitter @denitsa_tsekova.

 Read More:  Experts give advice on how Americans should use the funds

https://money.yahoo.com/coronavirus-stimulus-check-what-to-do-164431209.html

https://www.yahoo.com/money/coronavirus-stimulus-checks-175-million-americans-will-start-receiving-funds-172107552.html

Under Pressure

Under Pressure

Adam M. Grossman  |  April 5, 2020

ON APRIL 14, 1988, Captain Paul Rinn was the commanding officer of the USS Samuel B. Roberts when it struck a mine in the Persian Gulf. The resulting explosion tore a 21-foot hole in the side of the frigate. Almost immediately, the ship began taking on water and multiple fires broke out.

Naval protocol for this situation was clear: Put out the fires first, then worry about patching the hull. But after just a few minutes of firefighting, Rinn realized he would need to ignore protocol or the ship would sink before the fires were out. He immediately directed the crew to begin patching the hull with any available materials, including clothing and bed sheets. Thanks to Rinn’s judgment, the ship was saved and no lives were lost.

Some 20 years later, while flying out of New York’s LaGuardia Airport, Captain Chesley Sullenberger faced a similar situation when his plane lost power in both engines.

While a later analysis indicated that Sullenberger could have made it back to the airport, he understood the danger of attempting a landing in such a densely populated area, so he opted for a seemingly risky water landing on the Hudson River. As you probably recall, the plane landed safely and, again, no lives were lost.

The dangers of making decisions under stress are well understood, which is why Rinn and Sullenberger are both lauded as heroes. In both cases, there was no ready playbook. Instead, they combined equal doses of skill, judgment and intuition to make the miraculous possible.

What can ordinary people learn from them? I hesitate to compare financial decision-making to the life-and-death choices faced by these two men. But it’s worth exploring ways we can also combine logic and intuition to manage the financial stress that many of us feel today.

While there’s no magic bullet, I recommend starting with an awareness of what stress does to us. You’ll then be in a better position to use stress to your advantage, rather than letting it control you. Below are three aspects of stress that have a bearing on financial decision-making:

1. Information.  A key characteristic of any stressful situation: Information is incomplete, inaccurate or simply unavailable. That’s absolutely the case today. The health impact of the coronavirus is still an open question. Beyond that, we don’t know what the result will be for financial markets.

Unfortunately, that doesn’t stop people from offering their own theories, opinions, anecdotes and predictions. Today, even some people with seeming expertise are employing alarmist language. On Friday, for example, the Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund called this “humanity’s darkest hour.”

How can you turn this to your advantage? Think in terms of half steps. If you’re considering actions such as reducing your portfolio’s risk level, taking more risk, rebalancing, making gifts for estate planning purposes or completing a Roth conversion, don’t jump in with both feet. Instead, take a partial step.

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

https://humbledollar.com/2020/04/under-pressure/

Twelve Rules

Twelve Rules

Phil Dawson    September 19, 2018

JORDAN PETERSON, a Canadian clinical psychologist and professor at the University of Toronto, has thundered onto the cultural scene, thanks in large part to his book 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos.

I began reading with healthy skepticism, but quickly became a fan.

Not that the doctor and I agree on all points. But the book immediately confronted my intellectual laziness in a careful but unavoidable way. On second reading, I began to think about alternate applications for his advice. With great literary license, the following contains some thoughts in that regard. All quotes are from 12 Rules for Life.

Rule 1: Stand up straight, with your shoulders back

Peterson begins his rules with lobsters, dominance hierarchies and serotonin, which he makes far more interesting and relevant than you might suspect. “Circumstances change, and so can you.

Positive feedback loops, adding effect to effect, can spiral counterproductively in a negative direction, but can also work to get you ahead.” In your financial life, this is where you stare down your financial condition, own it and take responsibility for improvement.

Rule 2: Treat yourself like someone you are responsible for helping

Peterson points out how people fail to do things that are good for them. “Don’t underestimate the power of vision and direction. These are irresistible forces, able to transform what might appear to be unconquerable obstacles into traversable pathways and expanding opportunities.

Strengthen the individual. Start with yourself. Take care with yourself.” What advice would you give to someone in your financial condition? Are you following that advice yourself?

Rule 3: Make friends with people who want the best for you

Peterson explains how the environment you select for yourself has a direct influence on your quality of life. You know those people who encourage your financial intemperance? They’re not your friends; they are just making you poor.

“The same thing happens when well-meaning counselors place a delinquent teen among comparatively civilized peers. The delinquency spreads, not the stability. Down is a lot easier than up.” Get rid of the losers. Find friends who want you to do truly well and who will carefully correct you when you need it.

Rule 4: Compare yourself to who you were yesterday, not to who someone else is today

Peterson introduces your internal critic and the way it works, and then offers this observation: “Finally, you might come to realize that the specifics of the many games you are playing are so unique to you, so individual, that comparison to others is simply inappropriate.

Perhaps you are overvaluing what you don’t have and undervaluing what you do. There’s some real utility in gratitude.” Don’t be resentful of what you see around you. Just keep pedaling.

Rule 5: Do not let your children do anything that makes you dislike them

That includes the use of money. “Parents have a duty to act as proxies for the real world—merciful proxies, caring proxies—but proxies, nonetheless. This obligation supersedes any responsibility to ensure happiness, foster creativity, or boost self-esteem.

It is the primary duty of parents to make their children socially desirable. That will provide the child with opportunity, self-regard, and security.” The world is a harsh place to learn the basics of money.  Start early.

Rule 6: Set your house in perfect order before you criticize the world

There is much to despair about. The government and culture have gone to seed, the U.S. is $21.5 trillion in debt and many financial crimes go unpunished. You can’t fix it all. Instead, advises Peterson, “Consider your circumstances. Start small. Have you taken advantage of the opportunities offered to you?”

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

https://humbledollar.com/2018/09/twelve-rules/