Summer's coming—and although you may have your eye on beach destinations or backyard cookouts, now's also the right time to get your finances in order. Summer usually unleashes spending temptations and the chance to reboot your priorities.
At Global View, we help families and individuals in and around Greenville establish strategies that are focused on the future. As fiduciary financial planners, our role is to assist you in readying yourself for the seasons to come—including retirement. Below are five real-world strategies to fortify your financial foundation before summer.
1. Crafting Your Comprehensive Financial Plan
It begins with a plan, and not only for investment but for all areas of your financial life. A financial plan encompasses your short-term requirements, long-term aspirations, income, expenses, insurance, and investment strategies in a single clear picture.
What do you save for? Retirement at a certain age? For the family? For giving back? Once we establish your objectives, we can evaluate your present cash flow, assess risk exposures, and assist you in putting your money to work in a way that suits you. You're in a stronger position to ride through market volatility, life transitions, and even summer vacation expenses.
2. Optimizing Retirement Planning in Greenville
Retirement planning goes far beyond saving; it involves coordinating your income flow, withdrawal approach, and long-term vision. The sooner you start planning, the more freedom you will have to make informed decisions that are beneficial for your lifestyle needs and financial goals.
If you're approaching your golden years, the summer is a good opportunity to determine if you're saving sufficient amounts. Residents in Greenville often benefit from employer-based plans, but yours need not be the only source to consider.
Now's the opportunity to maximize contributions to 401(k)s or IRAs, particularly if you are aged 50 or more and qualify for catch-up contributions. Depending on your income, a Roth conversion may also be something to talk through with the leading financial advisor in Greenville, SC -- Global View. Each decision you make today has the potential to shape the lifestyle you'll have tomorrow, so we encourage you to get started.
3. Tax-Smart Investment Strategies
You've earned your wealth through hard work—don’t let unnecessary taxes eat into it. Tax efficiency isn't confined to April; it needs to be a part of your investment choices all year.
Strategies such as asset location—storing tax-inefficient investments in tax-advantaged accounts—and capital gains planning enable you to keep more of what you've earned. And when you have a fee-only financial advisor in Greenville, SC by your side, you receive guidance in your best interest, not advice that earns a commission.
Tax impact is critical, whether you're rebalancing your investments or determining what to sell. Assessing your portfolio today will enable you to make informed decisions before the end-of-year crunch.
4. Reviewing and Adjusting Your Investment Portfolio
Much can happen in six months. If you've not recently looked into your investments, do it now. The market evolves rapidly, as do your needs, particularly as you get closer to key life milestones.
Rebalancing your portfolio ensures that your asset allocation continues representing your goals and risk tolerance. Perhaps you've become more financially conservative as you approach retirement, or have sold a home or business. Whatever the reason, a fiduciary investment advisor in the Greenville area can determine if your existing assets are still a good match.
A well-tuned portfolio reduces risk and creates opportunities. Facing summer with financial confidence is well worth the effort.
5. Estate Planning Essentials
Estate planning isn't the most thrilling summer preparation, but it is among the most critical. Ensuring your will is up to date, your power of attorney exists, and your beneficiaries are in order will save your family grief down the line.
You don’t have to get into the deep legal weeds, but you do need to address the basics. That involves reviewing how your property would pass and who would be in charge. These are conversations you have more easily in good times rather than in a crisis.
On this topic, let us point out that even slight changes, such as boosting your retirement contributions or rebalancing your portfolio, can make a major difference in the long run. Follow-through and consistency usually work better than grand gestures.
Time to Get Moving
Creating a solid financial foundation isn’t about perfection; it’s preparation. Before summer gets you into vacation mode, take a little space to review whether your plan serves the life you desire now and for the future. Global View offers individually tailored advice based on your objectives and informed by a fiduciary standard. Contact us today to begin your path to financial confidence.