Golden Years or Fool's Gold?
By Lee Conrad, January 6, 2011, Financial Planning Inc.

In case we needed yet another reminder about the general lack of preparedness for retirement, a new study from the Society of Actuaries shows a grim reality. It concludes that nearly half (48%) of baby boomers have no financial plans in place in case they live longer than expected.
Also, not surprisingly 71% of the respondents in the survey said they plan to claim Social Security benefits before the age of 70. People can choose when to tap Social Security, but they generally get more if they wait longer. And the Society of Actuaries emphasizes the importance of waiting as long as possible in order to secure more guaranteed lifetime income in retirement and to help hedge against outliving assets. All things considered, many people on the brink of retirement are not ready for their golden years. "With the challenges in the housing and financial markets over the past few years, coupled with the fact that people are living longer, many baby boomers are finding themselves unprepared to maintain their lifestyle in retirement", said Anna Rappaport, president of Anna Rappaport Consulting, in a press release about the survey. The Society of Actuaries survey was based on online responses from 1,006 individuals ages 45 to 70. The group is currently holding a "Living to 100" symposium in Orlando.
I've written on the issue of financial literacy and general preparedness in this column before. A few weeks ago, FINRA launched a web tool that illustrates the lack of financial knowledge in the U.S. (Two quick tidbits from that tool: 20% of all American households spent more than their incomes over the past year; and 62% do not comparison shop when looking for credit cards.)
But the new study from the Society of Actuaries can be viewed as having a silver lining, at least from the advisor's perspective. There is an entire client base out there in need of financial help. And it's not just the 48% that has no plans. It's also the 20% that plans to buy an annuity or similar product; or the 19% that plans to buy long-term care insurance; or the 22% that plans to seek planning assistance from a professional.
These are people who recognize that they need help, and have at least vague ideas as to what they want. Indeed, there are annuities and some life insurance policies that could offer some of the income these people need (provided they can afford it). But advisors just need to step up their prospecting in order to find them.
One idea that came out of our most recent "retirement roundtable" last year was the notion that the industry already has all the financial products it needs. Any situation can be handled with the products available, most of our panelists agreed, as long as someone puts them together the right way.
So you have the products necessary to help this potential client base, and they definitely have a need for someone to help them. Now one of you needs to find the other.
Conclusion: Better start early than too late. Create your financial plan today!

Written by Kevin Rose

Finding financial planning software to use within your home is one of the best ways to manage your bottom line. If you have money in the bank, funds in a stock portfolio and you have a sizable CD, you need a tool that will help you to manage those finances and ultimately you will need to know what changes you should be making to your portfolio to see profits. Ultimately, it takes a long time to build up a financial plan that will pay for your children's college or even your retirement. Using software can help you to make it more successful.

When choosing software to use, choose the types that will provide you with the most features you want and the ease of use you need. Affordable programs are readily available. Some provide a range of benefits, others are very simple and direct. Look for programs that can give you instant access to your profits and losses. Find a program that can show you where your money is currently at and where it could be if you make changes. You may want something that gives you a good idea of what your bottom line is on a regular basis.

Financial planning can be in use in a variety of different situations. People can use it to plan for their child's college education. For example, if you know you will need $50,000 in 10 years for your child's education, then the programs can help give you advice on how to build that assortment in the best method possible. Most programs give you options for investing in terms of your risk tolerance, or the amount of risk you are willing to take.

You can use financial software like this for retirement planning, too. It also works well for those who are planning a business or would like to expand their business. Building a financial plan is critical to having the money you need when you need it. In business, you also need to take into consideration the many ways you need to build your financial bottom line for the long term, putting away profits so you have the funds when you need them.

Over time, it can take time to build the funds you need, but also it means having those funds available. For example, if you are only 30 years old, you may have another 30 years for your money to grow for retirement. You may be able to take more risk than those that are 50 years old. This type of software can help you to make sure the funds are available when you need it.

With so many opportunities for investment available in financial software, it pays to do some research. Find out what the programs offer including the features that you will use. Take some time to review the options with other users. What makes this program better than the next? In doing so, you will find the most affordable software available to you, including the best one for your needs.

Copyright © 2005 - 2011 Somali Home: A Financial Blog. SomaliHome.com does not provide professional advice. The material contained is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice. Always seek professional help from a qualified professional regarding somali home.
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[DFinancier Library]

THE SECRET TO BE WEALTHY
(Long-Term Wealth Building)
By Joseph McBrennan, Editor, Wealth Legacy Advisory

Too many people think, "If only I had $1,000,000 (pick any number), I'd be set."

This is the first secret to sustained wealth and long-term wealth building. It doesn't matter how much money you manage to acquire. If you're not prepared to be wealthy, you'll soon fail.

Two statistical examples show you what I mean :

?In excess of 70% of ALL lottery winners end up broke. A greater number of these end up worse off than when they "hit it big."

?In addition, Bloomberg recently reported that a professional athlete's advocacy group sited the statistic that within two years after ending their professional careers, 78% of former pro athletes end up divorced, jobless or bankrupt.

The flip side of this secret is that UNEARNED WEALTH can be a curse.
Imagine stumbling onto millions, yet losing your family.
All the money in the world isn't worth it.
The world is full of people with money, yet they have no life and no wealth.

The lesson is clear. The secret is clear.
You must prepare to be wealthy.

Conclusion: Don't live in a dream, but analyze your financial position immediately.

By Duncan Greenberg ; Source: Wednesday, April 1, 2009 Forbes

Are billionaires born or made? What are the common attributes among the uber-wealthy? Are there any true secrets of the self-made?

We get these questions a lot, and decided it was time to go beyond the broad answers of smarts, ambition and luck by sorting through our database of wealthy individuals in search of bona fide trends. We analyzed everything from the billionaires' parents' professions to where they went to school, their track records in the early stages of their careers and other experiences that may have put them on the path to extreme wealth.

Our admittedly unscientific study of the 657 self-made billionaires we counted in February for our list of the World's Billionaires yielded some interesting results.

First, a significant percentage of billionaires had parents with a high aptitude for math. The ability to crunch numbers is crucial to becoming a billionaire, and mathematical prowess is hereditary. Some of the most common professions among the parents of American billionaires (for whom we could find the information) were engineer, accountant and small-business owner.

Consistent with the rest of the population, more American billionaires were born in the fall than in any other season. However, relatively few billionaires were born in December, traditionally the month with the eighth highest birth rate. This anomaly holds true among billionaires in the U.S. and abroad.

More than 20% of the 292 of the self-made American billionaires on the most recent list of the World's Billionaires have either never started or never completed college. This is especially true of those destined for careers as technology entrepreneurs: Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Michael Dell, Larry Ellison, and Theodore Waitt.

Billionaires who derive their fortunes from finance make up one of the most highly educated sub-groups: More than 55% of them have graduate degrees. Nearly 90% of those with M.B.A.s obtained their master's degree from one of three Ivy League schools: Harvard, Columbia or U. Penn's Wharton School of Business.

Goldman Sachs has attracted a large share of hungry minds that went on to garner 10-figure fortunes. At least 11 current and recent billionaire financiers worked at Goldman early in their careers, including Edward Lampert, Daniel Och, Tom Steyer and Richard Perry.

Several billionaires suffered a bitter professional setback early in their careers that heightened their fear of failure. Pharmaceutical tycoon R.J. Kirk's first venture was a flop--an experience he regrets but appreciates. "Failure early on is a necessary condition for success, though not a sufficient one", he told Forbes in 2007.

According to a statement read by Phil Falcone during a congressional hearing in November, his botched buyout of a company in Newark in the early 1990s taught him "several valuable lessons that have had a profound impact upon my success as a hedge fund manager."

Several current and former billionaires rounded out their Yale careers as members of Skull and Bones, the secret society portrayed with enigmatic relish by Hollywood in movies like The Skulls and W. Among those who were inducted: investor Edward Lampert, Blackstone co-founder Steven Schwarzman, and FedEx founder Frederick Smith.

Parents Had Math-Related Careers
The ability to crunch numbers is normally a key to becoming a billionaire. Often, mathematical prowess is hereditary. Some of the most common professions among the parents of American billionaires for whom we could find that information were engineer, accountant and small-business owner.

September Birthdays
Of the 380 self-made American tycoons who have appeared on the Forbes list of the World's Billionaires in the past three years, 42 were born in September--more than in any other month. Maybe that's because September is the month the Forbes list of the 400 richest Americans is published.

Tech Titans Who Dropped Out of College
Forget everything your guidance counselor told you: You don't have to go to college to be successful. More than 20% of the self-made American moguls on the most recent list of the World's Billionaires never finished college. Many of them made their fortunes in tech. Among them: Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Michael Dell, Larry Ellison, (Oracle) and Theodore Waitt (Gateway).

Skull and Bones
Several current and former billionaires rounded out their Yale careers as members of Skull and Bones, the secret society portrayed with enigmatic relish by Hollywood in movies like The Skulls and W. Among those who were inducted: investor Edward Lampert, Blackstone co-founder Steven Schwarzman and FedEx founder Frederick Smith.

Goldman Sachs
A stint at investment bank Goldman Sachs is a prime credential for becoming a finance billionaire. Of the 68 self-made American billionaires that derive their fortunes from finance, at least eight cut their teeth in Goldman's investment banking, trading, or asset management divisions. The company's crown jewel: its "risk arbitrage" unit, which launched the careers of billionaires Edward Lampert and Daniel Och, as well as former billionaires Tom Steyer and Richard Perry.

[DFinancier Library]