Investment account back up!

[ultrarunner]

Wrong again. I'm retired. Investments are absolutely a form of income. I don't "need" it except to counter the inflationary pressure.

A CD is just losing money more slowly than keeping cash in your mattress. It is like saying a piece of gauze on a serious bleed is sufficient, when you really need stitches. It's your money, but stop lying to yourself and anyone who reads this that thinks a CD is providing real income.

Never met anyone wiped out by their CDs.

Many of my friends/neighbors are widows in the 80 to 100 range still living in their homes of many years.

I could never advise them putting money in positions where the possibility of it not being there could happen...

Plus having ladder CDs at several different banks let's them sleep well at night... and peace of mind can be priceless.

 

[MAX-24-Dean]

We are up 25-28% YTD across all funds. I'd like 40% considering the past 24 months of burning things down. However, this is a long game... And our 15 year average is 10%. I carefully select funds and revise them when needed. The wife is about to go off and earn another $60k per year for us, which is why I'm pretty sure I'm retiring soon. I’m not that smart, but I can do simple math, so we always had savings goals.

By this statement you are smarter than most. Having financial investment goals never comes to a lot people.

 

[MAX-24-Dean]

I had a teacher in the 60's show us all how compounded interest works. Its the very small consistant investment over time that eventually seems to grows exponentially. Any way it worked for several of us.

 

[newbury]

and peace of mind can be priceless.

So true.
Some people are natural worry warts and can't sleep at night because of money matters.

 

[MoKelly]

I had a teacher in the 60's show us all how compounded interest works. Its the very small consistant investment over time that eventually seems to grows exponentially. Any way it worked for several of us.

Albert Einstein called compound interest “the eighth wonder of the world”.

 

[MossRoad]

My father got laid off three times when I was a kid (1 of 5 kids). While we never starved, we ate a lot of chicken, rice and beans (pretty tasty, as mom was a good cook), and it was often a tad chilly in the house in winter. I could see the concerns in my parents' eyes regarding financing.

Mom would say "Money isn't everything, but it sure helps."

It all worked out in the end. But it was stressful on them at times.

 

[NorTracNY]

RSKY - Investing isn't for everyone. I don't know how to help you, but your sister should NEVER be in charge of investments if she panics. You know her best. Maybe you can get her a book on investing and emotions. If she has a husband, maybe he can take over? Either way, if someone panics at a 10% drop, they shouldn't be investing. I'm a little blunt with my siblings and would point out that they are idiots in the situation you described. My guess is that's not the best approach here.

 

[RSKY]

RSKY - Investing isn't for everyone. I don't know how to help you, but your sister should NEVER be in charge of investments if she panics. You know her best. Maybe you can get her a book on investing and emotions. If she has a husband, maybe he can take over? Either way, if someone panics at a 10% drop, they shouldn't be investing. I'm a little blunt with my siblings and would point out that they are idiots in the situation you described. My guess is that's not the best approach here.

She is eighty years old and even though they are fairly well off she is very tight with her money. Everything now is what they will leave their son and grandkids. Her husband is in very bad health and unable to help her. I was the one that suggested she get an advisor to handle her investments several years ago because I did NOT want the job. Still, she doesn't do anything without talking to me or our sister.

She panics about a lot of things but gets over it quickly.

RSKY

 

[bdhsfz6]

A lot of good information here. One thing I'd like to add is this:

For those, including myself, who are living on investments with no other source of income, there is a principal "threshold" to consider.

When there is a dip in the market, as in 2008, there is a minimum level of principal required to allow for a successful portfolio recovery. During the dip, or recession, you still need living expenses, which can further erode that principal.
This threshold is difficult to determine and follows in the footsteps of that age old question, "How much do I need in retirement?" Sometimes adjustments to withdrawals or investment direction is necessary and requires sound advice from a qualified investment councilor.

 

[NorTracNY]

She is eighty years old and even though they are fairly well off she is very tight with her money. Everything now is what they will leave their son and grandkids. Her husband is in very bad health and unable to help her. I was the one that suggested she get an advisor to handle her investments several years ago because I did NOT want the job. Still, she doesn't do anything without talking to me or our sister.

She panics about a lot of things but gets over it quickly.

RSKY

OK, that I understand. So you've probably done the best thing. I wouldn't want to invest for someone else if they also were going to monitor and panic. I actually was put in charge of investing a relative's money. It was horribly managed by her ex-husband. I took it over, discussed things with her in the beginning and we never discussed how much she had. We just took care of her and her finances. If she ever brought it up, I just asked her what her need was for money and we'd take care of it. She grew up poor and worried about money all her life. I couldn't get her to understand that she had enough money to last her and to not worry.

Since your sister won't do anything without talking to you or your other sister, she should be ok. Emotionally selling is one of the greatest reasons people can't even come close to matching the returns of the market.