PFA Blog

How to Avoid Retirement Woes

Data breaches, once a fairly rare occurrence, have become more frequent as hackers become more skilled in their ability to extract personal data from popular social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter.

If you’re new to investing, some of the information on the Internet can be downright confusing. While investing itself is fairly straightforward, many people find themselves shying away from the entire process because they simply don’t understand the terminology, which can be somewhat overwhelming.

Many investors have heard the term “asset allocation” at one time or another. From the first time we sign up for a 401k plan at the office all the way through the conversations we have with financial planners in retirement we are bombarded with messages about the importance of proper asset allocation.

Perhaps the most encouraging outcome of the latest recession is the increasing emphasis on debt reduction by most Americans.  We are borrowing less and saving more, and, hopefully, developing some more frugal habits that can lead to healthier finances in the future.  Still, many people continue to struggle with their debt.  It takes a firm commitment and a lot of discipline, but

An increasing number of people are starting to understand that their real risk exposure is not in the costs associated with repairing or replacing their car or home, rather it is in the far more costly liability risk. Yet, most people drastically underestimate their personal liability risks.

Remember way back to your first paycheck. The moment you open the envelope anticipating the windfall when all your hard work pays off. Then, like a swift kick to your gut, realty hits. Your takeaway earnings are almost always way lower than what you expected.

Most consumers typically have both a credit card and a debit card. Of course, the biggest difference between the two is that a debit card will immediately take money out of your bank account when used, unlike a credit card, which will pay for the purchase and later add the amount of the transaction to your monthly statement.

But are there any other differences between the two?

If you’re interested in beginning to invest but are nervous, or simply don’t have a lot of money to invest, why not start slow?

There are a multitude of ways to get started without risking a lot of money in the process. If you have $1,000 and are ready to start investing, here are some ways to do so: