Financial Planning
Fixed or floating: which home loan rate actually costs less
A fixed rate buys certainty at a price that is rarely quoted. Over twenty years that premium usually costs more…
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Financial Planning
Goals, an emergency fund, the right insurance and an asset allocation you can hold through a bad year.
Start with the buffer
Three to six months of essential expenses in a savings account or liquid fund, and more if your income is variable. Without it, every setback is funded by a credit card at three per cent a month, which undoes years of investment returns.
Insure the catastrophic, not the inconvenient #
Pure term life cover of roughly ten to fifteen times annual income for anyone with dependants, and a family health policy sized to a private hospital bill in your city. Investment-linked insurance mixes two decisions badly and is usually dearer than buying each separately.
Allocation, then products #
Decide the split between equity, debt and gold from the time until you need the money, not from last year's returns. Rebalance once a year on a fixed date. The plan you can hold through a thirty per cent fall beats the optimal plan you abandon.
What you will need
- Monthly income and expense summary
- Emergency fund balance
- Term and health insurance policy documents
- Loan statements with interest rates
- Current investment holdings and their purpose
- Written list of goals with dates and amounts
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Financial Planning
Financial Planning
A financial plan that fits on one page
Most plans fail because they are too complicated to follow. Six decisions, in order, cover almost everything that matters.
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Financial Planning
Fixed or floating: which home loan rate actually costs less
A fixed rate buys certainty at a price that is rarely quoted. Over twenty years that premium usually costs more…
Financial Planning
A financial plan that fits on one page
Most plans fail because they are too complicated to follow. Six decisions, in order, cover almost everything that matters.