If she could have convinced herself of one thing during her younger days, financial advisor Tanya Winch would have told herself to save much more for her retirement and to begin saving earlier. “I regret wasting potential gains on magazines and gum” she said. “Back then, I didn’t understand the magnitude of what compound interest can do. It’s a great theory and it’s completely understandable but behaviorally, it’s not real until you get to a certain point in your life and you say, ‘There’s only so much left in my working life. I’d better get on it. I’d better stop fooling around.’” These days, she’s on a mission to help other young working professionals not only understand how compound interest can boost the money they’ve worked so hard to earn, but also how easy it is to do so. Simply directing a small portion of their paycheck into an account now will lessen their future anxiety about retirement and give them a leg up on feeling great about their money skills. Toward that end, she is teaching a class called “Take Control of Your 401(k)” that will be offered both virtually and in person through the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh – Fox Cities. The two-session series will run on Nov. 2 and 9 from 6 to 7 p.m. You can register here. She wants young professionals to take control of their 401(k) and other retirement accounts and to understand that it’s not that difficult to do so. “I think everyone thinks it has to be a giant amount of money that you put into your 401K) to make a difference, but even if you just put a small amount of your paycheck in you’re going to see a big reward,” she said. “That’s the highest form of self-care and it’s really necessary for both your current and your future self.” While the class will cover 401(k) specifics like what a market cap is and… | Read More »
How to get the most out of your 401(k)
Keep calm and maximize your 401(k) — a Money Smart Week reminder
Your employer sponsored retirement plan is the single most important investment you’ll make. Even more than your home, your 401(k), 403(b), Simple, SEP or 457 plan forms the foundation for your retirement years. But, when is the last time you took a good hard look at your account, what’s inside it and how it’s being managed? We think Money Smart Week is an excellent time to begin. You can take out a mortgage to fund your home, but you can’t take out a loan to fund your retirement. The good news is, you have more control than you think. But you have to start now. Do you know what fees you’re paying within your 401(k)? Have you analyzed your investment options within the account? Target date funds have become increasingly popular because they appear to condense all of your retirement questions into two: How old are you now and at what age do you intend to retire? The problem is, these funds aren’t right for everyone. What happens, for instance, if you’re forced to retire sooner than you had anticipated? According to a 2015 report from the Retirement Research Consortium, 41% of Americans working at age 58 wind up retiring earlier than they had planned. The top reasons for this unplanned exit from the workforce include unexpected health issues and involuntary job losses. Workers can’t control these “job shocks,” but they can control the way they prepare for them. Specifically, they can maximize the performance of their retirement accounts. At Winch Financial, we’re all about education and we’re ready to show you how to get the most out of the money you’ve already earned. We’ll help you understand the choices you have and how to make them effectively and with confidence. We’ll explain what a self-directed brokerage account is, and why the Roth option within your 401(k) can be an extremely critical tool. You can come with your questions and… | Read More »