Five Minute Finance

If you are thinking about investing in individual company stocks, what should you consider? In today's episode we discuss: Risk versus Reward: A company that does well has the potential to have its stock price go up over time, making you a lot of money. However, the opposite is also true: you can lose all your money if it goes out of business. Diversification: Owning a single company makes you tie...

A listener asks the following question: "I’ve luckily survived the pandemic so far and my job has continued to be busy.  Through the last few years, I’ve found that my savings have grown quite nicely but I’ve been hesitant to invest the extra cash into the market.  Now I realize I have about $200,000 in cash that I can invest for the future.  How do I get that invested when the mark...

I tell all my clients: you have to protect yourself from financially catastrophic events before we can plan savings and investments for your future goals. Insurance involves thinking about "the bad things" that might happen, so it's not a fun topic. But it's very important to ensure nothing comes along and wipes you out financially. In today's show we chat about: What to consider when reviewing he...

Would you like to have more $$ growing in a tax-free account forever? Let me show you how: Maximize your 401(k) contributions, $19,500 for 2021 into your Traditional 401(k) [or maybe the Roth 401k] Add after-tax contributions to your 401(k). Maybe 5%, $10,000 or even $30k. Whatever you are allowed within your employer's plan. Immediately roll those after-tax contributions to the Roth "side" of you...

You could use your Health Savings Account (HSA) to pay for current medical expenses. However, if you can, I recommend that you invest the full HSA amount into the stock market and allow it to grow and compound. The HSA is the only account that has triple-tax benefits: you don't pay taxes on contributions, growth or withdrawals (for qualified medical expenses). Did you know: You can save your recei...

A backdoor Roth is a way for high-income earners to be able to contribute money into a tax-free Roth IRA account. It is a matter of contributing non-deductible money to a Traditional IRA and then converting that to a Roth IRA. The tricky part comes during the conversion: If you have any money in an IRA that has not yet been taxed, you're going to owe taxes on that. In today's episode we discuss: T...

From savings to brokerage, 401ks, HSA, and 529 accounts: there are a lot of accounts to choose from! Where should you focus your savings? What is the "right" account to put your money to save on taxes and grow it for the future? Today we discuss the order of account funding, which accounts to focus on first, second and third. Listen as we discuss: Paying off high-interest debt first Saving for Eme...

A listener asked the following question: "My company just went through an IPO.   I have been working for a large technology company for the past 7 years.  I am 34 years old, single, and find myself in an entirely new situation. My stock is now worth over $4m dollars and I have no idea what exactly I should do next!  How do I think about this new wealth?  Do I sell some of...

What is a Donor Advised Fund? How does it work and why would you want to open one? What exactly are the tax savings? And be sure to listen to the end where I review some real-world strategies used by clients. We cover topics such as: A Donor Advised Fund is simply an account that you own. How to open a Donor Advised Fund How to transfer money into a DAF Why most Americans do not get a tax deductio...

In today’s episode, I’m interviewed by Matt Robison in his on-air radio show Your Money - where we discuss Traditional IRA vs Roth IRA.  Where should you invest your money?  Which one makes more sense?  And be sure to listen to the end where we talk about Roth Conversions and Back-Door strategies.  We cover topics such as: What is an IRA? What is the difference between a Tradit...

In today’s episode I’m interviewed by Matt Robison in his on-air radio show Your Money - where we talk about Health Savings Accounts or HSA.  What is this type of account?  And how does it work?.  And be sure to listen to the end where we talk about how investing in your HSA can save you thousands of dollars.  We cover: What is a Health Savings Account (HSA) How do you qualify...

In today’s episode I’m interviewed by Matt Robison in his on-air radio show Your Money - where we talk about Investing and Portfolio Allocation.  What is a stock or bond?  How should you think about diversifying your portfolio?  And be sure to listen to the end where we discuss how to think about your portfolio and investing future.

In today’s episode, I’m interviewed by Matt Robison in his on-air radio show Your Money - where we talk about the latest Stimulus package.  Have you received your checks?  Does the unemployment benefit continue or increase? What are the changes when it comes to taxes and deductions? And be sure to listen to the end where we discuss what wasn't included this time.