Manarin Investment Counsel, Ltd.

Remember the old cliché, “today is the first day of the rest of your life”?  Well, it’s true.  And not only is today the first day, but 2012 is the first year of the rest of your life.  Regardless of past mistakes or procrastination, you can take action this year and change.  You can decide to keep your New Year’s resolution to prepare for your financial future.  Here are some tips for getting started:

Increase your Contributions to your Traditional Employer-Sponsored Retirement Plan. This step is basic and absolutely essential, especially for people nearing retirement.  By increasing your contributions at work, you will reap the double benefit of dollar cost averaging your way into the market, and reducing your taxable income.  Dollar cost averaging allows investors to put fixed amounts aside into their investment portfolios over time.  By doing so, more shares are purchased when prices are low and fewer when prices are high.  Along with this advantage, the tax benefits of your pre-tax deferrals are tremendous! Every dollar you earn is taxed (sometimes up to 30% or more), but when you put a dollar in your employer’s plan, that dollar is deducted from your taxable income. Instead of paying the government, you pay your future self – the self who one day won’t be able to work anymore.  Even if you can only increase your contribution by 1 or 2%, you must take this step.  You will be glad you did.

Decide what you will retire to, instead of focusing on what you will retire from. If you haven’t decided how you will spend your 40 free hours a week and 52 weeks of vacation a year, you may find that you don’t have enough money to do anything more than sit at home.  Too many people can’t wait to quit their job and retire.  But these people are more focused on quitting than retiring, and they are often the ones who end up sitting at home watching TV until they die. Knowing how you will spend your time will help guide and motivate you in setting aside funds for your future.  For example, if you decide you would like to buy an RV and travel, estimate what that will cost and compare that to what is set aside.  Then, ask yourself: do I have enough or do I need to save more?

Consolidate Your Accounts. Many people collect several savings or retirement accounts during the course of their career and end up with four or more account statements.  With all of these statements, it’s hard for people to know what they have.  One account may be a Roth IRA they opened in 1996 at Company A; one’s a Traditional IRA they opened in 1985 at Company B (by the way, Company B merged with Company D); one’s a joint account opened in 2001 with Company C; and one’s a variable annuity opened at an unknown time from some bought-out insurance company.  You get the picture.  If you don’t consolidate your accounts, you will spend your retirement trying to track down where your money is.  And, heaven help your heirs if something happens to you and they have to sort through the mess. Consolidating your accounts means taking time to find a financial advisor you trust.  Start by asking friends and family who they use, but don’t stop there. Take time to meet with a few advisors. Ask them about their investment philosophy.  Ask them how they are compensated.  Advisors who offer commission products are no better or worse than advisors who are fee based.  There are valid reasons for both approaches. When you find an advisor whose philosophy and approach matches yours, get to work on consolidating those accounts!

After you’ve taken these steps, don’t repeat the mistakes you made in 2011. If 2011 was a year of procrastination, make 2012 a year of proactivity.  If 2011 was a year in which you ignored your future, make 2012 the year you plan your future.  You won’t regret it.

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Sound familiar? I’ve been saying this for 35 years!

http://www.businessinsider.com/warren-buffett-the-investment-everyone-thinks-is-safe-is-actually-the-riskiest-in-the-world-2012-2?utm_source=%23frankguillen&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=FrankGuillen+Buzz

http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2012/02/09/warren-buffett-berkshire-shareholder-letter/

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In honor of love and Valentine’s Day, here are some great financial tips couples should consider to make sure their finances – and relationship – have a future:  http://www.mercurynews.com/business/ci_19929665

 

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Please enjoy this letter from the portfolio manager of one of the gold funds that we recommend. Some intriguing thoughts here about the structural issues in the global economy today. We maintain our use of gold as a hedge position in our portfolios, not as a speculation or investment.

Click Here to read.

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With the new year around the corner, you start to see more and more people making resolutions to “save more”. Savings is important, but just as important is what you do with the savings. It’s great to make plans to save more, but part of being financially responsible is having a plan on what to do with that savings. Put it to work for you in some way. You can pay down debt, contribute to your 401(k), or invest it, but do something with it. Click here to read an article from the Omaha World Herald about saving in 2012. Dave Blair and I are quoted.

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There are a few beacons of common sense in the House of Representatives. Representative Mike Kelly of Pennsylvania seems to be one of those voices.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUrEs_Um71g

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Government action saved us from the recession, right? Not so fast

Click Here

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The Wall Street Journal has a good piece running right now showing how abandoning the gold standard has destroyed our purchasing power over time.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424053111904007304576494073418802358.html

Also

http://news.yahoo.com/nixons-colossal-monetary-error-verdict-40-years-later-140035743.html

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This video titled “Doorbell,” submitted by Don Brookins, wasn’t a prize winner in the Power Line Prize competition, but it meets the purpose of the competition very well: in simple fashion, it brings home the significance of the federal debt crisis and the impact of the debt on the next generation. It would make a terrific 60-second television commercial:

http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2011/07/doorbell.php

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There’s been a lot of talk the last couple days about recessions and panic on Wall St. It’s important to remember to think in the long term during these times. This isn’t the end of the world, folks. I went on KETV and WOWT on Monday to help keep things in perspective. You can see the clips here and here.

The full stories are here and here.

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