The May Newsletter is NOW AVAILABLE

Welcome to the Educated Investor,

our monthly newsletter with information that can help you with your retirement planning. Feel free to use this information and to pass it along to your friends and associates. If you are interested in additional information contact our office at

720-482-1917 or email scichon@householdergroup.com

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F E A T U R E D A R T I C L E

Investing for Your Later Years? Think Asset Preservation but Don’t Forget Growth

After years of investing for retirement and other goals, you may have accumulated a substantial portfolio. If you’re approaching or already enjoying retirement, there are important steps that you can take to help ensure that your investment plan -- and your nest egg -- is on track for your Golden Years.

For instance, consider weighting assets that you intend to keep invested for 10 years or more toward stock investments.

Reassess your income needs and portfolio -- A few years before a planned retirement, it’s important to know where your money will come from and how much you’ll need. It’s number crunching time. Figure out how much income you will receive from Social Security, a pension plan and personal savings and investments. Weigh your anticipated income against your estimated living expenses; be sure to pad your estimate to account for unexpected events or market drops. Do the two match up? If not, review your portfolio with a qualified financial professional.

Hedge against inflation -- Your investment focus will probably shift from growth to income in your later years.Naturally, you want to help protect your nest egg from market volatility. But that doesn’t mean moving your portfolio’s entire stock allocation into less risky holdings -- like bonds and cash. People are living longer, increasing the risk that some will outlive their money.

You may want to gradually shift some stock investments into more liquid, income-oriented investments. However, it may be important to keep part of your portfolio in growth-oriented investments -- stocks and stock funds -- to give your portfolio the potential to outpace inflation.

Protect what you’ve achieved -- A solid financial plan also includes estate planning to help preserve assets for your heirs. “I’m all set,” you say. “I’ve drawn up a will.” A comprehensive and effective estate plan often involves a variety of tools in addition to wills, including trusts and different types of insurance. Talk with an attorney about your specific needs.

After a lifetime of investing, make sure that your financial plan is on target in your later years. Annual reviews of your portfolio with a qualified financial professional can help you pursue your objectives and spot potential problems before they occur.

Investing involves risks including possible loss of principal. No investment strategy or risk management technique can guarantee return or eliminate risk in all market environments.

Required Attribution:

Because of the possibility of human or mechanical error by DST Systems, Inc. or its sources, neither DST Systems, Inc. nor its sources guarantees the accuracy, adequacy, completeness or availability of any information and is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of such information. In no event shall DST Systems, Inc. be liable for any indirect, special or consequential damages in connection with subscriber’s or others’ use of the content.

Avoid These Financial Traps:

Money. It’s hard to get and easy to lose. It doesn’t take long for the wealth you’ve accumulated to disappear if you don’t manage your money well or have a plan to protect your assets from sudden calamity.

Snares like the ones mentioned below could easily threaten your financial security. Planning ahead can protect you and your loved ones from getting caught.

Undisciplined Spending

The more you have, the more you spend -- or so the saying goes. But not paying close attention to your cash flow may prevent you from saving enough money for your future. Manage your income by creating a spending plan that includes saving and investing a portion of your pay. Your financial professional can help identify planning strategies that can help maximize your savings and manage you tax consequences.

High Debt

With the easy availability of credit, it isn’t hard to understand how many people rack up high credit card balances and other debt. Short-term debt will become long-term debt if you’re paying only the minimum amount toward your balances. If you can’t pay off your credit card debt all at once, consider transferring the balances to a card with a lower interest rate.

Unprotected Assets

Your life, your property, and your ability to work should all be protected. Life insurance has the potential to provide income for your family if you die. Homeowners and automobile insurance can help protect you if your home or car is damaged or destroyed and provide liability coverage if someone is injured. Disability insurance can protect your income if you’re unable to work.

Unmanaged Inheritance

A financial windfall is great, but it also can be dangerous. Without solid advice on managing and investing the money, you could find that your inheritance is gone in a much shorter time than you would have thought possible. Your financial professional can help you come up with a plan for managing your wealth. Setting aside a portion of the money to spend on a trip or other luxury while investing the rest may be one way to reward yourself and still preserve the bulk of your assets.

Neglected Investments

Reviewing your investments to make sure they’re performing as you expected -- and making changes in your portfolio if they’re not -- is essential. But it’s also essential to periodically review your investment strategy. You may find that your tolerance for risk has changed over time. You’ll also want to assess the tax implications of any changes you plan to make to help manage their impact.

Retirement Shortfall

If you’re not contributing to your employer’s retirement savings plan, you’re giving up the benefits of pretax contributions and potential tax-deferred growth. Maximizing your plan contributions can start you on your pursuit of a comfortable retirement -- hopefully with no traps along the route.

Required Attribution:

The opinions voiced in this material are for general information only and are not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual.

This information is not intended to be a substitute for specific individualized tax advice. We suggest that you discuss your specific tax issues with a qualified tax advisor.

Life insurance policies contain exclusions, limitations, reductions of benefits, and terms for keeping them in force. Your financial professional can provide you with costs and complete details.

To all past and present U.S. Service Men and Women,

Memorial Day graphic: https://careers.advantagesolutions.net/blog-how-much-do-you-know-about-memorial-day/, http://news.toyotaofboerne.com/support-oathinc-annual-cookoff/

Floral Ice Cubes

Add to your favorite Memorial Day drink!

Ingredients:

• Edible flowers

• Ice tray

• Water

Instructions:

To suspend flowers in the cubes, work in layers: Fill an ice tray (one that makes large cubes so the ice will last longer) a quarter of the way with water, add flowers facing down, and freeze. Add more water to fill halfway, and freeze. Fill to the top, and freeze again.
For ice that’s especially clear, use distilled water that has been boiled and then cooled. This limits impurities and air bubbles, which make ice cloudy.
Use only edible flowers, such as orchids, nasturtiums, pansies, and snapdragons, that have been grown to be eaten (to ensure they haven’t been treated with chemicals).

Source: https://www.marthastewart.com/348299/floral-ice-cubes

Scroll down past picture for answers.