Navigating The New Financial Normal

As we continue to attempt to figure out how we’re going to reconstruct the madness of the past couple of years, families across America are also rebuilding their financial futures too. It is important to take some serious stock in as much as our personal financial and ‘wealth’ positions are related because many families have lost hundreds of thousands of dollars of their net worth – without even knowing it. So that means, it is time to call in the experts. Expert advice in Wealth Planning can help you take a hard look at where your finances stand currently and most importantly, how to plan moving forward.

Here’s a few thoughts to consider.

START, WITH WHERE YOU’RE HEADED

Many Americans are facing new financial futures brought on by the pandemic and the catastrophic results that many businesses faced. This means that retirement planning is more important than ever before. Your fund may have been a winner…or, it may have been on a shockingly bad losing side of the markets. Now, one would like to think that one’s financial team would be the first people on the phone to tell you all about this – but this isn’t always the case.

You need to take responsibility for checking in with your planner and figuring it if you are on the “plus” side of the exchange or not. Many stocks have tumbled while others yet have flourished, either way – you’ll want to know if you’re still doing OK, or if you need to take steps to address shortfalls.

Taking out additional policies at this time might not be the right solution for your family and could have significant implications for managing your cash flow effectively. If you’re only starting your investment career, now is a great time to manage it and manage it well.

Now, if you do find yourself in the territory you would rather not want to be in, you need to decide if liquidating any of your assets is the right decision for you or not. Mostly because at times, a little patience can weather a storm without needing any major decisions on your part.

However, do bear in mind that assets are just “things” at the end of the day, and if you’re in the position where you need to sell off an asset or two so that you can regroup and grow again later, that’s obviously the right thing to do – and it also means you’re fortunate enough to be able to do so.

PROPERTY MATTERS

Still, the preferred method for creating wealth and transferring wealth,  property is the most ideal mechanism to guard against inflation, fluctuations in currency, and accessing emergency lines of credit or financing when you need it.  Now, if you have a portfolio of properties, is also a great time to have all your properties revalued to understand precisely where you’re at in terms of cost of investment versus returns at this point.

FUNDING AND TRADING

Your financial planner or broker should always keep you updated in real-time, but it doesn’t hurt to figure out a lot of this “stuff” on your own. Knowing what you’re dealing with, even if not in your wheelhouse in terms of skill – can save you heaps of trouble later.

Most of all, know when to know. If you have to cut losses, regroup and reorganize then waste no time in doing it.

Change is inevitable – be on the right side of it.