Tag: debtfree

Nick Foy, CFP®
nick@greenwaywealth.com

Last month, Marketwatch ran a story detailing people who take out a loan to pay for their vacation. Yes, it really is just as bad an idea as you’d think.

It turns out companies like Affirm are willing to lend people money for just about anything, sort of like a credit card. Of course, that money doesn’t come cheap: The interest rates range from 10-30%, sort of like a credit card.

Reading that story reminded me of this skit from circa 2006 SNL, wherein an expert shares the holy grail of personal finance: Don’t buy stuff you can’t afford.

Continue reading “The world’s simplest financial plan – don’t buy stuff you can’t afford”

Nick Foy, CFP®
nick@greenwaywealth.com

Most kids aren’t great with money. But then again, neither are most parents.

When it comes to teaching kids about money, I find few know where, or when, to start. Not many of us had parents of our own who taught basic financial literacy lessons, and we all know that just about nobody ever receives information about personal finance in school.

A couple of weeks back, the Wall Street Journal ran an article providing some ideas on the topic, but for the most part, the story was focused on teens (and later). But, in order to truly have an impact, I think parents should start teaching basics at a younger age.

It’s tough to get 96% of people to agree on anything, but check this out:

“Some 96% of 128 college students in a recent study said they wished their parents taught them practical skills such as budgeting and saving (emphasis mine).”

I’ll assume the remaining 4% either learned practical skills about money as kids, or were recovering from a late night frat party and didn’t really understand the question.

So when, and how, should parents start teaching their kids about money, debt, and investing?

Continue reading “Three steps to teaching your kids about money”

Nick Foy, CFP®
nick@greenwaywealth.com

From Nobel Prize winning economists to Warren Buffett, a consensus has formed for investor-centric advisors and thought leaders: Index (or passive) investors stand a better chance of having a great investment experience than their active counterparts. Decades of research and data have provided us a deep insight into the ways of the market. Stock markets don’t always make sense; sometimes, in fact, they go completely berzerk. But investors who focus on those things they can control: costs, taxes, diversification, and their own behavior, are probably going to capture more of the return that markets provide than those who overspend in what the data shows us is likely to be a futile attempt to beat a benchmark.

I drew this conclusion after studying the markets for the past 17 (or so) years, 11 professionally. Now, as a relatively young (middle aged?) advisor, I’m grateful to have developed this understanding early in my career.

Some aren’t so fortunate.

Continue reading “Don’t be like that guy”

Nick Foy, CFP®
nick@greenwaywealth.com

The media and politicians make this mistake all the time, but it’s worth pointing out: More income doesn’t make you rich.

A couple of months ago, Business Insider answered the question entirely incorrectly: How much money you have to earn to be considered rich in 42 major US cities.

The article proceeds to tell us how much income someone needs to earn in order to be in the top 1% in cities all over the country. What they don’t mention, though, is that income has almost nothing to do with wealth. Continue reading “More income doesn’t make you rich”

Nick Foy, CFP®
nick@greenwaywealth.com

A major part of our role as advisors is helping people balance different types of risks that can keep them from achieving their goals. Two of those that we work toward offsetting are market risk, and inflationary risk.

First, let’s define both: Continue reading “Inflation: Like heart disease for your money”