October’s Great Reads
Just in time to cozy up in a comfy chair with whatever scalding hot drink you prefer, I present to you a few reads that got me thinking this month. They are loosely grouped around themes of cash flow and money management (like this pair on creating a financial routine and ways couples share money), investing (like this pair on the seductive and false allure of private equity and the seven Ps of portfolio managers), and...other stuff (here’s where the “pairs thesis” breaks down), with a piece on preparing your finances for parenthood, a nerd’s paradise worth of infographics from Statistics Canada, and the critical and unpredictable factors of portfolio ruin in retirement, plus a few more gems you can find below.
Retirement math: Why you may need more (or less) than you think
From Jason HeathOur friend and fellow advice-only planner, Jason Heath on some of the big mistakes people make with their retirement planning like misunderstanding life expectancy, ignoring the impact of inflation, and overestimating the income tax they’ll have to pay.Read the full article here.
The Cognitive Burden of Poverty
From Evan NesterakSomething for policy makers to think long and hard about when designing poverty reduction strategies:
While, few policies take cognitive demand into account, research shows that relatively simple interventions that reduce cognitive demand–reminders, help with forms and planning, and built in defaults (5) – could be the difference between whether or not a program designed to help the poor works for or against the people it is trying to help.
Read the full article here.
A Financial Hack to Determine Affordability and Best Outcomes
From Doris BellandI love the idea of “trying on” a major change to your cash flow and have recommended it to clients many times in the past.
If you want to test affordability for pretty much anything...spend six months acting as if you had bought the item...then sock away the difference in cash.
Read the full article here.
You can read this month's entire list below:
“Optimal” Asset Location, Applied | Justin Bender
Without that time machine, you may need to accept your inability to predict future effective tax rates, expected returns or asset class investment income distributions. What then?
Happy, Healthy Economy | Livia Gershon
The role of government is, in fact, to promote the wellbeing of citizens. In economic terms, growth is only worth something if it improves people’s lives.
The Critical Factors of Portfolio Ruin Aren't Predictable | Dirk CottonA rare and welcome overview of sequence risk vs probability of dying from Dirk Cotton.
For a given sequence of returns, the probability of prematurely depleting our savings increases if we expect to live longer or spend more, start out with a smaller portfolio, receive better average market returns or experience less volatility of those returns.
So You Want to Have a Baby in 5 Years? | Julia Chung, Kathryn Mandelcorn & Sandi Martin
The last thing we want is for you to fumble through an EI application in the middle of the night with a crying baby beside you, or fall for a group RESP scam er, scheme because you wanted to do right for your kid and just didn’t know any better. Let’s put your amazing and soon-to-be-lost ability to focus to work and prepare your wallet for parenthood.
Why Doesn’t The Stock Market Care About the News? | Ben CarlsonCome for the fascinating chart, stay for the analysis.
Just this year alone [US] stocks have shrugged off trade wars, political instability, emerging market crises, interest rate hikes by the Fed and I could go on.Any rational person would be right to ask: Why doesn’t the stock market care about all this news?
How Many Transactions Does The Average Person Make Per Day? | Owen Winkelmolen
This was obvious (once Owen made me think about it) and fascinating.
How Dafuq Do Couples Share Their Money? | Kitty
I love a good couple money story (evidence here and here) and thankfully our favourite Bitches have lots to choose from.
Keep Things Simple: Create A Routine For Your Finances | Owen Winkelmolen
More couple money: how financial planner Owen and his partner stick to a four month money routine.
When picking a portfolio manager or advisor, remember the 'Seven Ps' | Tom Bradley
There are no guarantees when picking an investment professional or team, but these factors are better predictors of future returns than what investors often use — a casual recommendation, glossy brochure or good recent returns.
Delusions and Entitlement | Josh Brown
Are you being pitched an exclusive investment? Read this before you fall head over heels with the idea of private equity.