Financial Floating Manager

Archive for August, 2009

Many personal finance articles have been written on the issue of money.  Can’t say I have been moved to action by many.  First I’d like to say it is ok that you feel down about the current situation about your personal finances.  I give you permission to feel your feeling for the next 24 hours and then pull yourself by your boot straps and let’s what we can do.

There exist many a definition, I want to share with you  my personal finance definition:

Financial freedom is not an event, it is a skill.

I bet right now with the current economic situation you are saying to yourself, “I just wish I could the lotto!”  Boy don’t we all and yet statistics and personal finance facts show that the majority of people who win the lottery, end up broke and worse off before their winnings! Imagine that.  You among the many seeking wealth, riches, fame few people realize that money isn’t the solution to their problems;  the way you think about money is the problem and the solution.

I can almost see you going oh yeah, give me the money and I’ll show you change in mindset!

My favorite entrepreneur of all times, Henry Ford was once asked, “What if you lost everything you own?” He responded without missing a beat: “I’d have it all back and more within 5 years.”

Being a master of your own personal finance is not about what is in the bank; it’s about the ability to acquire the skill that will show you how to produce new streams of income and wealth based on your knowledge and experience.

So before we go any further on this issue let us tackle the real problem here that is impeding your personal finance for good!  Why you might ask?  Well without the mastery of these 5 steps, your desire for your goal for financial success and financial freedom is highly unlikely!  This is why big players in any industry have coaches, Oprah has a life coach, football players and basketball players have coaches and mentors.  Tiger woods after every bad game will go in for coaching and training.  Why?  Those who achieve great financial success do not go it alone.  They always have a team.  Those who achieve great poverty have the do it yourself mentality!

Why is it important to plan personal finances?

5 Steps That Will Guarantee You Become Master Your Personal Finances

1. How do you think about money? Say you come up with an idea to do something. Do you think that will never work?  Are you afraid to follow through?  Are you scared of loosing money or do you see every dollar spent as an investment?

2. How do you manage and invest your time?  The average man has at his disposal  6 discretionary hours.  This is time they can do whatever they want.  No work, no chores etc.  Many will watch T.V., attend pricey sports events, spend money on meals at a restaurant and movies, see where I am going with this? Do you do personal finance budgeting?

3. How do you leverage the talents and life experiences you ALREADY POSSESS?
Most people see their experiences as failures.  They only talk of how they tried to do something as failed.  Thomas Edison failed more than I care to count, and yet he persisted to light the whole world. Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up. Thomas A. Edison

4. Do you have a mentor and/or coach with a proven personal finance curriculum? This is the true measure of your desire for financial freedom.  This is where you literally put your money where your mouth is, can’t afford a mentor you say?  Well what was the last book you read? Gossip magazines do not count as literature sorry ?!

5. What do you think is “risky,” and what do you think is “safe and secure”?  Most people never break into the realm of the 5% wealthy group who own 95% of  the worlds resources because they want to play it safe.  They want the money, the fame, the accolades but they feel they should not have to go through the process of creating this wealth.  No wonder the internet and other places are full of scams and get rich quick opportunities.  Remember this success does not  happen overnight, but one night success does happen.  Someone once said to me, it takes 3 years to be an overnight success!

Everybody has an idea of what their dream retirement will look like. However, do you have the math to back it? How will you pay for your dream retirement is the big question. Lets talk retirement investing. Estimate yearly expenses at $45,000. On top of that add pension and social security at $25,000. Add $5000 for items you covet, like that Europe trip or the costly home theater system.
Add up everything and you need about 1.2 million dollars. Now that’s a lot of money. Before you reach for the anti-anxiety pills consider this – you now have a lot more tools than before to pull in the money in your retirement investing plan.
This article lays out a three part strategy for getting where you want. It involves more active (aggressive) investing. Also, cutting back on spending when the markets are tough and spending more when the markets are good.
Stocks – You need the growth power of stocks in your investment portfolio. Current wisdom says, subtract your age from 100 and invest that percentage of money in stocks. The growth power of stocks is needed to add to your savings and make sure you have money that lasts a lifetime.
Investment firms are beginning to understand this reality today. It may seem risky to rely too much on stocks but it is more prudent than a timid approach. If the market shows an average performance, your retirement investing income should be a huge stash of money

with a couple of years of income thrown in.
In retirement investing, stocks provide greater protection from inflation than bonds. This helps you maintain your standard of living. However, investments in stocks should not be overdone. Investing over aggressively may lead to far greater losses in stocks than is normal. Be sure to decrease stock investment as you age.
Apart from smart retirement investing you will need to tap other assets. Some people decide on working after retirement. Whether this is a pastime, for fun or for the money, it could prove to be an important source of income. This has other benefits as well. You will not need to tap into your savings to run the house. This lowers the risk of your portfolio running dry.
Your home is another important retirement asset. It is good to know you have a cushion in the form of value of your house. You can use it by buying a less expensive house after selling this one, a reverse mortgage or a home equity line of credit.
Managing your spending is the next most important part of retirement investing. It is important to keep a flexible attitude on spending. Advisors recommend you limit your initial withdrawal after retirement to 4 percent of your portfolio. After this, increase the dollar amount annually for inflation. This four percent is not a random amount. It provides an assurance that your savings will last for 30 years. Spend more when your portfolio performs well and spend less when it performs poorly.
The willingness to make adjustments in spending is an important part of retirement investing. There are no guarantees in retirement, much like life itself. However, with the right saving and disciplined spending, you have a much better chance of living out your dream retirement.

After reading Value Investing Basics for Beginners, you now know the basics of what you need to know to invest in stocks that are value picks. The next part of this process gets into more of the details of value investing.

Historical research shows that stocks with low P/Es have performed better over time than high P/E stocks. The P/E ratio is the multiple of earnings per share (EPS) that the stock price currently is (Ex: Stock A has EPS of $3, and P/E of 10x; the stock price= $30). However, to find really solid stocks there are lot more aspects to look at than simple P/Es, because the P/E ratio doesn’t paint the whole picture of the company.

After you have read Part I – Value Investing Basics for Beginners, you should know what type of companies to look for. You now need to follow these guidelines for making sound value investments. You can input these requirements into stock screeners to find undervalued stocks. Most of these ratios are readily available in Yahoo! Finance information for companies.

Value Investing Guidelines Screen:

1. PEG Ratio less than 1.

2. Net profit margin more than 15%.

3. Return on Equity more than 15%.

4. Return on Assets more than 10%.

5. Earnings growth of 10% or more over the past 5 years.

6. Growing Cash Flow from Operating Activities.

7. Low Debt relative to Gross Profit- Total Debt should not exceed 3 or 4 times Gross Profit.

Although these are not hard, fast rules, these are guidelines that will sift out great companies from the not-so-great companies. If the stock has a low PE with all of these requirements, it is an attractive stock.

These requirements make the PEG Ratio important. The PEG ratio equals the PE ratio divided by the expected EPS growth rate for the next 5 years (Ex: a stock has PE of 9 and a five year EPS growth rate of 15%; so 9/15= .6 PEG ratio). Many value investors buy stocks from just the PEG ratio. Although it adds an important element of profitable growth to the PE number, you still have to look at factors other than the PEG.

Now you understand the fundamentals of how to Value Invest. This list and Part I allow you to find sound value investments. There are more details that some investors use, which I will post later about. Happy Investing!