Calmly Reassess Your Portfolio
The recent market volatility has been more pronounced and of longer duration than many expected, making it difficult to determine how to adjust your portfolio. Should you leave it alone, hoping the market will quickly rebound to much higher levels? Or should you sell everything and stick your money in cash accounts? The appropriate answer probably lies somewhere between those two extremes. What you should do is thoroughly review your portfolio and make any necessary adjustments.
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Answer These Questions First
Investments in bonds should be tailored
to your investment objectives, risk tolerance, and other personal
circumstances. Answering some fundamental questions will help
you determine the role bonds should have in your portfolio.
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Should You Pay Off Your Mortgage before Retirement?
A recent study found that 41% of homeowners
between the ages of 60 and 69 still have a mortgage on their home.
Of those, 51% had sufficient assets to repay their mortgage (Source:
Center for Retirement Research, July 2009). The study found that
most households would be better off paying their mortgage off,
since the cost of the mortgage is higher than their investment
earnings. But is that good advice for your situation?
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The Recession's Impact on Higher-Income Families
It's commonly believed that recessions impact
lower-income families more than higher-income families. However,
a recent study by economists at Northwestern University found
that the relative income loss during recessions for the top 10%
of the population is 26% greater than the average household, while it is double the average household for the top 1% of the population. (Source: Newsweek, July 20, 2009)
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Review Your Estate Plan
Between the fluctuating stock market and
declining home values, the value of your assets has probably changed
dramatically over the past couple of years. Thus, you should probably
take a look at your estate plan, considering the following.
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