4 Minute Money

An Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) is a security that owns a basket of assets (like stocks or bonds), the ownership of which is divided into shares. It is often compared with a "mutual fund," as a mutual fund is also a basket of assets. One of the main differences between the two, however, is that an ETF trades on an exchange (like the New York Stock Exchange) throughout the trading day. A regular (or...

Why Money Transfers Aren't as Easy as They Used to Be By Douglas Goldstein, CFP®, - helping olim handle U.S. brokerage accounts, including IRS, from Israel If you attempted a money transfer recently, you may have been surprised at the amount of documentation you were asked to provide. Any financial institution can ask for proof as to why you're moving money. They do this to make sure that they are...

Can Bonds Increase Income from Your Investment Portfolio? By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel A retired widow met with me last week to discuss how to increase income from her investment portfolio. I reviewed her account and made some suggestions for restructuring her investments to get predictable income. We spoke a lot about b...

What should you do if you receive a lump sum, such as an inheritance, legal settlement, or pension payment? Should it be invested for growth or for income ? Invest for growth A "growth investment" tries to increase the amount of money you have. Growth investments often entail some level of risk, so if you plan on using the money in the short term, you should consider a more conservative investment...

The Best Way to Update Investments in an Inherited IRA By Douglas Goldstein, CFP®, - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel If you inherit an IRA (Individual Retirement Account), you must be aware of the regulations concerning transferring the account to you, the "beneficiary." Apart from the technical requirements for processing the account, which a financia...

What Should You Do With Money in the Bank? By Douglas Goldstein, CFP®, - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel   Recently, a couple asked me what they should do with their money in the bank. I hear this question quite often. However, as every individual investor's situation and circumstances are different, there is no standard response that fits everyone. To...

How to Overcome the Challenges of Receiving an Inheritance By Douglas Goldstein, CFP®, - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel What would be your first reaction if you received an inheritance? When a client received an inheritance from her elderly aunt, she told me: "I thought she was going to leave everything to my cousin. I never imagined in my wildest dre...

Avoid This Portfolio Management Mistake By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel   At an initial meeting, a new retiree told me, "I'm not really sure what stocks I own." When I asked how he had put together his portfolio, he explained that some of the positions came from an inheritance, while others… "Well, I'm not really sure," and...

What Happens to Your Retirement Plans When You Make Aliya ? By Douglas Goldstein, CFP®, - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel   As a Certified Financial PlannerTM sitting in Jerusalem, I work mostly with American immigrants who keep the majority of their assets in American investment accounts. When a recent oleh listed the various retirement plans that he...

4 Points to Remember at the End of the Financial Year   By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel   The end of the financial year is a good time to conduct an annual review of your financial situation. If your savings plan, or the market as a whole, has swerved off course, now is an opportune time to adjust accordingly.   Saving goal...

What Happens When You File U.S. Taxes From Abroad? By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel   American citizens living overseas often need to file U.S. taxes from abroad, even if they don't owe any money. If you live in Israel, gathering the information you need to complete your taxes from Israeli banking and financial institutions...

Did You Get an Unpleasant Surprise From Your Stateside Broker? By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel   When your stateside broker sent you a surprise letter, did it contain good news? Many Americans in Israel (and non-Americans, too) have received a letter from their U.S. investment firm or bank informing them that they need to c...

How to Grow Your Money Twice as Fast: Save More By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel What's the best way to save, and how much money should you save?   As a panelist on the "Money Tree Investing Podcast," I recently answered a question about how to invest monthly savings. Here's what I advised:   Save more Before discussing spec...

If you worked in America before your move to Israel, chances are you have an IRA account. What should you do with this American account if you live an ocean away?   Should you transfer your retirement accounts to Israel? An IRA is an "Individual Retirement Account." There are several categories of IRA, including traditional, Roth, Simple, and SEP IRAs. The main differences between them relate to w...

Should Your American Assets Stay in the United States?   By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel When making aliya , many olim move their American assets to Israel and convert all their dollars to shekels. However, there is a strong case to be made for leaving your dollars in America. Here's why: Efficiency U.S. securities markets...

Why Gender Bias is a Good Thing in Financial Planning By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel One area where gender bias isn't discussed enough is in financial planning. Financial planning for women must be different than for men. What do women need to know when planning their financial future? Women work fewer years than men Even...

Is Risk Management the Best Financial Strategy? By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel What is risk management, and how does it affect your investment decisions? Every investment is risky Every investment carries a chance of making a profit – and a risk of sustaining a loss. However, some investments are riskier than others. Gener...

Estate Planning: What Happens to Your Money After You Die? By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel One of the most important issues in estate planning is what happens to your money after you die. How quickly your heirs receive the inheritance depends largely on your estate planning. (If you're having any difficulties with an inheri...

Avoid These Common Mistakes When You Receive an Inheritance By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel A new client recently told me, "My late father left me an inheritance of an IRA (Individual Retirement Account) worth $1.5 million, and I'm the sole beneficiary. What should I do with it? If I bring the money to Israel, I'll have to...

A Guide to the Tax Implications of a Legal Settlement By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel This is a two-part article addressing questions that arise when people receive lump sums. For the entire article, go to: www.profile-financial.com/settlement . I recently helped a number of people who are in the midst of receiving a cash s...

A Guide to the Tax Implications of a Legal Settlement By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel   This is a two-part article addressing questions that arise when people receive lump sums. For the entire article, go to: www.profile-financial.com/settlement .   I recently helped a number of people who are in the midst of receiving a ca...

Did You Make a Mistake When You Opened Your Bank Account? By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel What happened when you opened your first Israeli bank account after making aliya ? A new oleh recently told me: "I just tried your online tool [www.profile-financial.com/olim] to find out what I need to know about having a U.S. brokera...

What You Need to Know About Premium Bonds By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel Premium bonds may be a good investment choice for retirees looking to increase their income. (For solutions to other problems retirees face, download a free copy of The Retirement Planning Book at www.profile-financial.com/rpb.) Consider premium bonds...

The Best Way to Invest When You Want to Gift Money By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel Recently, a couple with four children of various ages asked me for advice on how to invest funds that they had just inherited. They didn't need the inheritance for themselves, and they wanted to pass it along to their children. The couple's o...

Why Interest Rate Risk is Important By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® Conservative investors who buy bonds to avoid high risk might inadvertently be exposing themselves to a potentially devastating risk: interest rate risk. If you are concerned that you may have interest rate risk or other hidden risks in your investments, call my office at 02-624-2788 to discuss your portfolio. Are bonds safe? When you...