Afford Anything®

Tag: asset allocation

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#489: Ask Paula: What to Do with a Six-Figure Windfall?

Cara made $100,000 in commissions this year, her biggest bonus ever. What should she do with the money if she wants to retire early?

An anonymous caller and his partner have lived in an RV for years. They’re ready to settle. Should they sell most of his investments to purchase raw land and build an off-grid home?

Remy and her husband need to come up with $30,000 for IVF treatments. How do they build their family without breaking the family finances in the process?

Another anonymous caller is upset that the 401k plan he sold his boss on is charging him an Assets Under Management (AUM) fee. Should he keep the 401k at all?

Former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy and I tackle these four questions in today’s episode.

Enjoy!

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#484: Ask Paula: The Hidden Cost of Public Service Loan Forgiveness

Kristen’s financial advisor charges a 1.3 percent fee on her investments. They also sold her term life, whole life, and long-term disability insurance. Do they have her best interests at heart?

Casey has $290,000 in student loan debt. He committed 10 years to one employer for a chance at public service loan forgiveness. But five years in, Casey questions what he’s missing out on.

Sara feels like it’s time to move to a more conservative asset allocation but she’s torn between buying bonds from Vanguard or Treasury Direct. What’s the difference anyway?

Former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy and I tackle these three questions in today’s episode.

Enjoy!

P.S. Got a question? Leave it here.

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#422: Ask Paula: We’re Saving 72 Percent Of Our Income…and It SUCKS

Emily is saving aggressively for financial independence, but it’s hard to enjoy the present. Is it time to increase spending?

Monroe wants to stop working. Forever. Which is more important: debt payoff or investing?

Another anonymous caller and his spouse dream of building a homestead on an expensive piece of land. How much is too much to spend on housing?

Given the high costs of moving, Sarah wonders if buying a starter home is the best decision. Should she and her fiance jump straight to buying their forever home?

Former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy and I tackle these four questions in today’s episode.

Enjoy!

P.S. Got a question? Leave it here.

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#420: What We Learned in 2022, with Paula Pant

Dr. Ellen Vora, M.D., shared insight into the roots of procrastination, offering evidence-based tips for how to overcome our own inner demons of anxiety, fear and laziness.

Psychology professor Bill von Hippel described why too much happiness is just as detrimental to our long-term health and wellbeing as too little happiness.

Wall St. Journal columnist Spencer Jakab observed the perfect storm of conditions that gave rise to meme stonks and other oddities of our era.

Former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy argued for “strategic under-diversification” and explained the Sharpe Ratio.

Data scientist Nick Maggiulli explains the save-invest continuum.

And financial planner Bill Bengen, the creator of the 4 percent retirement withdrawal rule, talks about what most people misunderstand about the safe withdrawal rate.

These are just some of the highlights from the Afford Anything podcast in this 2022 year-in-review episode.

Enjoy!

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#374: Ask Paula: Watch Out! Here’s How Lowering Your Investment Tax Bill…Might Increase Your Risk

Jake wants investment cash flow until he’s eligible for his military pension in 10 years.  Should he buy small multifamily properties right now, wait a few years and invest in syndications or should he invest in index funds through taxable accounts?

Andy in Palm Springs is shoveling money into a taxable brokerage account. He wants to use these investments to create another stream of income. But there’s a problem: his tax bill is going to be high. What should he do?

Anonymous is a U.S. citizen, lives in London, and can’t invest in index funds. Can he emulate the index fund experience by directly buying a huge number of individual stocks?

Former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy and I tackle these questions in today’s episode.

Enjoy!

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#350: Ask Paula: How Much Should We Spend on a Wedding?

Anonymous and her husband have set themselves on the path of saving for retirement. But an old mistake haunts them: a financial planner convinced them to buy a mix of whole and term life insurance, which costs them $700 per month. Do they need whole life insurance, and where else can they save their money?

Mike has $60,000 in cash earning one percent interest. He has plans to buy a home and get married in three to five years. Where else can he put his cash to earn a little more? Is the stock market too risky for such a short time horizon?

Anonymous and her future husband are wondering: what’s a realistic amount to spend on a wedding?

My friend and former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy joins me to answer these questions on today’s episode. Enjoy!

Do you have a question on business, money, trade-offs, financial independence strategies, travel, or investing? Leave it here and we’ll answer them in a future episode. 

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#348: Ask Paula: How Should We Invest to Retire By Our Mid-40’s?

Julia and her husband, both 27, want to retire by their early to mid-40s. Is there a point at which they should stop contributing to tax advantaged accounts and only contribute to taxable accounts?

Ana and her family like their home, but it needs to be bigger. A cash-out refi didn’t give them enough funds for their dream renovation. Should they put their money into the market in the hopes that it will grow large enough to fund a future renovation? Or should they move into a bigger house, rent out their house, and fix it up years down the road?

Anonymous from MA is flummoxed by HSA-compatible health plans. His copay and deductible are awful, and even bronze plans seem better. Are HSA plans overrated, or does the math work out?

Aja’s mom is 75 and has to take required minimum distributions from her IRA. She doesn’t need the money. Where should she put it?

Nick has a seasonal business. Can a sweep account help stabilize him?

My friend and former financial planner, Joe Saul-Sehy, joins me to answer these questions on today’s show. Enjoy!

Do you have a question on business, money, trade-offs, financial independence strategies, travel, or investing? Leave it here and we’ll answer them in a future episode.

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By Paula Pant

#332: Ask Paula: What’s the Point of Financial Independence if I’m Not Going to Retire?

Ginger’s financial independence (FI) number is $2 million, but she doesn’t want to fully retire early. Once she hits ‘coast’ FI, she wants to 1) buy her time back with outsourcing, 2) take a mini-retirement, and 3) buy a vacation home. Does it make sense for her to divert retirement contributions to these goals, or should she aim to save $2M?

Wilson plans to have a two percent withdrawal rate in retirement. Given this low rate, should he go all-in on stocks? Or should he split up his retirement funds and invest one half conservatively and the other half aggressively?

Jennifer has a low-stress doggie-daycare, but she needs a bigger space to scale up. How the heck can she find a property to suit her needs in Austin, TX?

My friend and former financial planner Joe Saul-Sehy joins me to answer another round of listener questions.

(If you have questions on business, money, trade-offs, financial independence strategies, travel, or investing, leave them here and we’ll answer them in a future episode.)

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By Paula Pant

#306: Ask Paula & Joe – How to Shift From Financial Independence to a Mini-Retirement?

Jake and his wife want to retire in five years, at which point they’ll have 14 years before they can access their 401k funds. To help bridge that gap, Jake wants to know: what should their asset allocation look like for their taxable brokerage account?

This year, Kim’s employer enrolled all employees into a “fully funded indemnity program combined with a nationwide direct primary care membership.” What the heck is this program, and how might it impact Kim’s finances?

Burnt Out in Boston is switching their focus from financial independence to taking a mini-retirement. How can they financially and mentally prepare for this leap?

Matthew is torn: should he and his wife – both 26 – max out their Roth IRAs and then save up for a rental property, or simply save cash for the rental and worry about their Roth later?

Finally, Deva and her husband are fed up with their messy tenants. They’re kind and responsible, but they’ve left the yard a mess. They have a clause in the lease that addresses this, so beyond that, what can they do?

My friend and former financial planner, Joe Saul-Sehy, joins me to answer these questions on today’s show. Enjoy!

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By Paula Pant

#297: Ask Paula – Should I Househack or Pay Off My Student Loans?

George is torn between paying down his student loan debt (which he deferred) or buying a househack. Which is better for his long-term goal of reaching financial independence?

Hanan wants to figure out if a backdoor Roth IRA conversion will work for her. She also wants to investigate whether a Vanguard Institutional 500 Index Trust and a Vanguard Institutional Total Bond Market Index Trust are ideal. Are trusts different from index funds or mutual funds and if so, how?

June and her husband netted $400,000 from the sale of some golden parachute ISOs. They want to help their children pay for college and are trying to figure out how to strategically use this money. Should they pay off their home, buy rentals, fund 529s, or Roth their 401ks?

Mario is curious to know: is his two-fund portfolio at a 90/10 split is a good asset allocation for his Roth IRA?

Vivian is worried about bridging the gap between when she retires and when she claims Social Security. Will her plan of doing a Roth conversion ladder work out the way she hopes?

My friend and former financial planner, Joe Saul-Sehy, joins me to answer these five questions. Enjoy!

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