5 Tips to Recapture Your Wealth

Did you know that many American’s transfer away between $2,000,000 and $5,000,000 of their wealth over a lifetime.  Yes, millions according to U.S. News and World Report.

Could you be one of them?

The truth is we will all transfer away wealth but we all have the opportunity to recapture a good chunk of that if we know the rules of the game.

After 20 years of working in almost every capacity in the financial industry, I have learned one important thing:  the rules of the game are not taught to us.

Why?  I will let you draw your own conclusions, but hope these points will help you make better financial decisions and allow you to recapture some of your hard-earned money.

First, what are the major wealth transfers in someone’s financial life:  taxes, fees paid to financial firms and the cost educating college students.

Here are few tips that could help you recapture that money:

1. If you are invested in mutual funds, STOP until you know the costs. According to this benchmark Forbes article: The Real Costs of Owning a Mutual Fund, an average fund can have up to 2.5% – 3.25% of internal costs. Compounded over time can equal a lot of money. That is why, according to a Dalbar study, the average equity mutual fund investor underperformed the S&P 500 by a margin of 3.66% in 2015.  If you factor in buying and selling at the wrong times it should be no surprise the average retail investor underperforms the market by over 6%.
2. Your typical stockbroker is not your friend but your fiduciary always works in your best interest. Most people do not know there are two different standards with which advisors do business.  This funny video will explain the difference in less than 30 seconds.  Afterwards, ask your advisor.
3. Colleges act like businesses and there is a practice in the industry known as enrollment management that should change the way you think about planning your student’s education. With the average cost ranging from $24,385 for public school to $73,286 for elite colleges annually, a student taking longer than four years to graduate (and the average student loan debt per student of $37,0000) must focus more on SAVING ON THE COST of college than saving for college.  The college planning process has changed, and families need a new approach to recapture and lower their costs.  If you have two kids you very well could pay $150,000 to $250,000 for their education hoping they graduate in four years.  See if this new approach to college planning makes sense to you:  Know before you go, a new approach to college planning.
4. Is your CPA a tax preparer or a tax planner? Think about it, most good CPAs are focused on saving you money today so they look good and will get your repeat business next year. How to tell if your CPA is a good one from this Forbes article: Red flags, how to know your CPA is working for you or not.
5. Paying an advisor 1% or more to manage your money is a loser’s game. Most families don’t know all of the services an advisor should be providing and what is the true value.  According to this Vanguard study, a great advisor will help you potentially net about 3% in additional returns.  Now that is a deal, but so often most firms do not provide the additional services a family deserves.

Hopefully, you have found something in this post that will change your financial life so you can spend and enjoy more of your money!

If you want to learn more, please feel free to schedule a complimentary 30-minute call to discuss your situation.  Schedule Your Call.