How To Save And Invest To Reach Your Financial Goals
BOSTON (CBS) - Step 3 of your financial plan is saving and investing to reach your goals.
Review your goals. Knowing when you want to reach them is your time horizon and that should dictate what you invest in and how much risk you take.
The longer the time horizon the more risk you can take on for you have time on your side to ride out the ups and downs of the stock market. A wedding for your newly engaged daughter is one year away. A short time horizon requiring safe investments.
A college education for a two-year-old is 16 years away and you can take some risk with the investments.
Retirement for a 30-year-old is 37 years away, a long time horizon. One can be 100% invested in the stock market. Different time horizons, different investment strategies needed.
You will need to educate yourself about investing:
- Listening to WBZ radio every day is a good beginning. We have market updates all day long as well the business reports and Money Matter segments every afternoon.
- Bookstores: There are is now a section for personal finance books.
- The internet: There is so much good free information out there. Stay away from the chat rooms though. Market Watch is one of my favorite sites. All of the major mutual fund companies provide lots of good information as well as a sales pitch for their funds.
- CNBC, all about money and investing.
- Investment Clubs: Start an investment club with your friends. The NAIC (National Association of Investor Corporation) can help you start a club. 877-275-6242
- The American Association of Individual Investors has good conferences and a great monthly newsletter. $29 a year membership 800-428-2244
- Magazines and Newspapers: Read the business section of our Boston papers as well as the Wall Street Journal. Good magazines; Kiplinger's Personal Finance, Money, Fortune, Forbes, Barrons.
- Doing it yourself may not be working for you and you may need help. Hire a Financial Planner.
One more thing: To find a financial planner to help you achieve your goals and dreams in your area contact the FPA, the Financial Planning Association's local Boston chapter: or their national website.
To find a planner to help contact:
Financial Planning Association (FPA)
Suite 400
4100 E. Mississippi Ave.
Denver, Colorado
800-322-4237
Local Chapter
Membership: 28,000
National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA)
3250 North Arlington Heights Road,
Suite 109
Arlington Heights, IL 60004
800-366-2732
(NAPFA has a membership of fee-only planners. Membership: 1,100+)
Garrett Planning Network
12700 Johnson Drive
Shawnee, KS 66216
866-260-8400
A network of fee-only financial planners willing to work with consumers on an hourly, as needed basis. This is new organization with only a small number of planners.
