When you select a financial advisor, it’s a very important decision. That person and financial firm they are associated with has a critical role in your financial well-being.

Whether you are currently choosing a financial advisor or considering one to help with you financial planning and retirement needs, the client-advisor relationship is important.

Many people today are not ready for retirement. It’s been reported by the Federal Reserve that 1 in 5 people do not have any money set aside for retirement. That is a very scary fact. How do you stack up?

Rodger Alan Friedman is a financial advisor and wealth management professional, plus author of the book “Forging Bonds of Steel.” Friedman was quoted, “This issue is making news regularly, and financial planning for retirement advertisements have spiked in recent years, in case you haven’t noticed.”

So what traits do you look for in a financial advisor. There are many advertisement out there all claiming they are the best. What is important to you?

Advisors also need to improve understanding their client’s needs. Just as every financial advisor is different, so are their clients. Some need a lot of guidance, some are very independent with minimal interaction.

– Here are four key attributes that clients should look for in a financial advisor.

• Empathy:
What is a client going through? Advisors must have their antennae up. Tears, anger, regrets and frustration are often bound with a person’s finances, and “I have met very few 22-year-olds who can fully understand the struggles, worries and dreams most people experience throughout a lifetime,” he says. Advisors have to develop an approach that helps clients feel comfortable in discussing difficult matters. The client needs to understand that the advisor truly cares and is not there merely for a transaction.

• Perspective & insight:
Perspective and insight are like twins: wherever there is one, the other is not far behind. Planners gain perspective and insight through thousands of hours of listening, collaborating, advising and acting as a steward of the financial assets and dreams of the families they serve. You know when you’re in the presence of these “twins;” it is often said that people with both see with their intellect – they possess vision. Clients should keep their antennae up for these traits when meeting a prospective advisor. Pay attention to how he or she may, as if without effort, intelligently guide the two-way conversation.

• Competence:
When advisors are unsure of themselves, it comes through. When presented with a set of facts, new advisors may not recognize what they are dealing with, or its importance. A seasoned advisor, on the other hand, has dealt with many clients with numerous problems several times over and knows what it takes to solve a problem. That’s why I feel that an experienced financial advisor is the best answer for someone in need of retirement income and financial planning. Also, financial advisors should be very well-read, with self-imposed reading requirements. Learning new ideas and revisiting old ones keeps veteran advisors fresh.

• Ability to listen:
“ ‘You have to have two ears and one mouth,’ my mother used to say; she made it clear that I should be listening twice as much as I was talking, and that advice has served me well in my life and career,” Friedman says. Clients come to an advisor for professional expertise, but they don’t want to be lectured. Advisors have to first listen to clients – their problems, needs and hopes – before offering a professional response. The conversation should flow easily both ways as an advisor and client get to the heart of matters in an atmosphere of mutual respect.

If you are looking for a qualified financial advisor to assist with your financial planning and retirement needs, contact us and we can assist recommending someone in your area. This luxury blog is a great place to follow the latest news in the financial industry.

Having the financial freedom to do what we want is a dream for many people. If you desire to become a millionaire, anything is possible with hard work and sometimes a little luck. But there are some financial mistakes you need to avoid.

Many people look for the easy way out and don’t understand that setting realistic goals and having determination is just as important. Common financial mistakes should be avoided because they can quickly derail your drive for success and cause you to end up in a huge hole you can not dig yourself out of.

Mike Finley is a self-made millionaire and author of a book titled, “Financial Happine$$” to help others to avoid costly, financial mistakes. Finley also teaches a popular financial literacy class held at the University of Northern Iowa.

Finley was quoted, “You don’t have to be extraordinary in any of the headline-grabbing ways; what you need is the self-awareness to avoid wasting money on short-term, retail-priced happiness.” Here are Finley’s Top 10 financial mistakes to avoid:

1) Work a job you hate, and spend your free time buying happiness.
– It’s more important to find a fulfilling job during the week so you are not over compensating by some expensive, spending habits during the weekend.

2) Make the appearance of wealth one of your top priorities by acquiring more stuff.
– Avoid the temptation to to buy materialistic items so you can pretend to live a luxury life. These are not good investments, either financially or in long-term happiness.

3) Play the lottery as often as possible. While you’re at it, hit the casino!
– It’s an easy mistake to hope you strike it rich. It’s a very dangerous way to seek financial security.

4) When you come into some free money, spend it. You deserve it.
– That poor thinking says that a future version of you does not deserve that money. Take that money and wisely multiply with sound investments.

5) Live paycheck to paycheck and don’t worry about saving money. Live for today, that’s all that matters.
– How has that worked out for you so far? It’s important to plan for tomorrow and appreciate life and what you have today. Avoid unnecessary expenditures.

6) Run up your credit cards and make the minimum payments whenever possible.
– A common mistake many people do is pay extremely high interest rates on stuff you really don’t need just to live a glamorous life. It’s a sad waste of money.

7) Stop your education when someone hands you a diploma; never read a book on personal finance.
– Stay educated and keep up on financial news. a diplomas shouldn’t be the end of learning. Make it a goal to acquire wisdom. The time invested will reward you down the road.

8) Blame others for your problems in life. Repeat after me: I am a victim.
– Too many people point fingers and don’t take responsibility for their own actions. The victim mentality leads to poor habits and bad decision-making.

9) Treat those “amazing” celebrities and “successful” athletes as role models. Try to be just like them whenever possible.
– Many celebrities do live a model life and should be a role model. But many lead by a poor example. Don’t dilute your unique individuality by chasing a luxury lifestyle image. Be yourself!

10) Buy the biggest wedding and the biggest ring so everyone can see just how fabulous you really are.
– A wedding is a special day in our lives but do you really need to go into deep debt at a beginning of a wonderful marriage together? Don’t blow your entire savings on one evening.

We hope you enjoyed reading these financial mistakes to avoid. If just one person gets the message and changes his/her habits, then it was a success.

If you are struggling and ready to work with a financial advisor to help get you back on track, please contact The Life of Luxury and we can recommend a licensed professional to assist you today. Follow other financial news and tips like the above financial mistakes, by visiting this luxury blog.

As 2014 is well underway, many people are still in a financial mess and trying to dig themselves out of a mountain of debt. Well make 2014 the year of your financial independence.

Rick Rodgers is a Certified Financial Planner and president of Rodgers & Associates, and is offering “5 Steps to Take Toward Financial Independence in 2014.” Your goal should be to save something from every work paycheck this year. Keep increasing it until you are saving at least 10 percent of your pay.

You will need to make some changes in 2014 that you can stick with for the rest of your life. It’s never too late to begin. Gain your financial independence and make positive changes in your financial life.

Here are five helpful financial tips that can make a significant impact on your financial future:

1) Credit cards should be a last resort. Spending less than you earn will cause your savings to grow. The savings account will be there when the car breaks down or the washing machine goes out, so you don’t have to turn to credit to handle the emergency. Most Americans are not prepared financially for any type of unexpected financial burden. Your goal should be to have three to six months of living expenses set aside in a liquid account for emergencies.

2) Spend less than you earn. If you take home $1,000 per week, you cannot spend more than $1,000 per week. That seems simple, but a survey released by Bankrate.com in 2013 found 76 percent of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. Resolve to live on a budget that’s below your means. You will never be able to out-earn your capacity to spend, so get your spending under control this year.

3) Pay less in taxes. Anyone looking for a place to cut expenses might start with their own tax return. Too many Americans pay more taxes than they should. Take advantage of tax retirement accounts through work and health savings accounts, if they’re offered. There are tax credits available for children, higher education, dependent care and retirement savings. Many of these credits go unclaimed each year. Resolve to minimize your income taxes this year and put the savings into your new financial plan.

4) Invest for financial independence. This is not the same as saving for retirement. The goal here is to get to the point financially where you no longer have to work to support yourself. Set aside some of the money you’ve worked for today. Allow it to accumulate and grow so one day that money will be working for you. Start by controlling spending so you have money to save and invest. Continue the process until the return on your investments exceeds what you earn by working. Financial independence gives you the freedom to choose to continue working, change jobs, work part-time or not at all. It is the ultimate financial goal.

5) Make a plan. Baseball great Yogi Berra said, “If you don’t know where you’re going, you wind up someplace else.” This is especially true if you want to be financially independent. You need a short-term financial plan for controlling spending — a budget. You also need a long-term plan that establishes the level of savings you maintain, a plan to get out of debt and an investment plan that will take you to financial independence. The plan becomes your road map. There will be detours along the way; your goals and plan will need adjusting as you progress in life. Keep working at it. Don’t be distracted by outside influences you can’t control. You don’t want to get to the end of your working career only to find you haven’t saved enough to maintain
your lifestyle and you still have a mortgage on your home.

Remember, it’s never too late to start. Financial independence may seem like a pipe dream, but begin the journey in 2014 and keep it going.

Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu, said “The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.”

If you are in need of financial assistance, please contact The Life of Luxury and we can help put you in touch with a financial professional in your area.

It’s no secret that people are living better due to better health care, exercise, etc… In the U.S., the average life was just 47 years back in 1900. That has steadily increased to 78 years in 2010.

As our population continues to grow, it’s also quickly aging. The main reason is the “Baby Boomer” generation. Each day in the U.S., about 10,000 people turn the golden age of 65 years old.

Living longer giver us more time to enjoy life, but can also put add a lot of stress worrying about how to keep the money flowing during retirement. By the year 2030, almost one in five Americans will be at the retirement age of 65 or older.

Unfortunately, money during retirement will be a huge problem for many of them, but there is still time to change that.

Chris Orestis is the CEO of Life Care Funding and senior health-care advocate. He was quoted, “With 30 percent of the Medicaid population consuming 87 percent of Medicaid dollars on long-term care services, we can see that’s not going to be sustainable. More individuals will be forced to find their own resources to pay for those needs.”

Several states including California, Texas, Florida and New York are welcoming legislation that requires seniors to be notified when they can convert their life insurance policy for 30 to 60 percent of its death benefit value. The money received via this manner can then be placed into an irrevocable fund that can be specifically designated for any form of care they choose.

This method offers the policy owner the option to use their own policy while still alive to help pay for their choice of any form of senior care services.

Orestis provides three additional ways for seniors to better cope with long-term care and other budgetary issues during retirement:

• Long-term care is a matter of survival, so use your best options. The practice of converting a life insurance policy into a Life Care Benefit has been an accepted method of payment for private duty in-home care, assisted living, skilled nursing, memory care and hospice care for years. Instead of abandoning a policy when they can no longer afford the premiums, policy owners have the option to take the present-day value of the policy while they are still alive and convert it into a Long Term Care Benefit Plan. By converting the policy, a senior in retirement will remain in private pay longer and be able to choose the form of care that they want but will be Medicaid-eligible when the benefit is spent down.

• Senior discounts really add up! Restaurants, supermarkets, department stores, travel deals and other merchants give various senior discounts with minimum age requirements ranging from 55 to 62. Some of these places are worth making habits, with 15 percent off the bill at Applebee’s, 30 percent off at Banana Republic and 60 percent off at Food Lion on Mondays! Don’t forget your free cup of coffee at Dunkin’ Donuts if you’re 55 or older, and don’t be shy – at many of these places you’ll have to ask for the discount.

• Your “last act” may be decades away, so plan accordingly. It makes sense to finally enjoy your money after a lifetime of savings, but be smart about it. Take time to organize your paperwork even before retirement and create a master file that holds things such as insurance policies, investments, property, wills and trusts, etc. so you have your financial picture in one place. Also, live smart today and hold off on that new car if you don’t need a new one. If your current car is paid off and you sit tight for an additional two years, you’ll save $7,200 on a new car with $300 monthly payments. Refinancing your home may also be a very good idea, since rates are still hovering around their all-time lows. Get at least three quotes, compare rates, terms and potential penalties to make sure you’re getting the best deal. Also, live healthy and buy more fruits and vegetables and less junk food to lessen the chance you’ll need long-term care in the future.

If you are interested in getting financial assistance and working with a money and/or insurance professional to help you and your family better deal with retirement, please contact The Life of Luxury.

Many people choose to handle their debts through a process known as debt consolidation. The objective of consolidation is to turn many debts into a single one with a lower rate of interest.

Debt consolidation is an excellent way for someone with a lot of high interest debt from credit cards, car loans, or other high-interest loans to save money in the long run, as well as improve their credit rating.

It does not, however, absolve them of the debt, and in fact it requires them to offer up some form of collateral or other item of demonstrable value in order to justify the loan.

Still, the reduced rate of interest tends to not only make the buyer’s payments much lower and more affordable, it allows the borrower to save money in the long run by paying off more of the money they actually owe and less of the interest on the initial amount.

When someone chooses to consolidate their loans, they go to a bank or other lending institution and bring information regarding all of their extant loans. This can be everything from credit card bills to car loans to gambling debts.

Most of these loans are known as “unsecured loans” because the borrower does not have to offer up anything as collateral in the event that they are unable to pay off the loan. As such, the lender needs to have a high rate of interest on the loan in order to make sure that they will gain back the amount the originally spent, plus a profit.

The rate needs to be so high that even if many of the borrowers do not pay back the loan, the company still makes money. This is why credit card debt and gambling debt are famous for their high rates of interest, since it is common for borrowers to default on them.

A consolidated loan then pays off all those extant loans and replaces them with a single large loan that is secured, in that the lender asks for collateral in the form of goods, properties or investments that they can collect on should the borrower be unable to pay.

While this means that the consolidated loan cannot be larger than the value a borrower can offer in collateral, it does mean that they can replace high-interest, unsecured debt with low-interest secured debt.

This has the downside of meaning that they lose their house or other property if they fail to pay off the new loan, however, and it also requires that the borrower own valuable and unmortgaged property that is more valuable than their extant debt.

Still, consolidation is considered better than bankruptcy for one both financially and in terms of credit rating in the long term, since it shows that one is willing and able to pay off one’s debts through one means or another.

It also means that the borrower will be able to access credit cards and take out other loans while paying off their consolidated loan, although financial expediency becomes much more important when paying off a large consolidated loan.

If you need financial advice to help you with debt consolidation or retirement planning, please contact The Life of Luxury and we can refer a certied financial planner to help your needs.

Whether it’s inefficiencies, theft or just plain management incompetence, professional firms (e.g. Architectural, Engineering & Environmental) are often bleeding lost money and many have no idea it’s even happening.

June Jewell is a CPA and owner of Acuity Business Solutions. She has 28 years of business management consulting experience and has seen many cases of companies losing money and not even aware of the problem.

She after extensive research, June states that the architectural, engineering and environmental firms she works for as a consultant, easily lose $100,000 each year through inefficient and ineffective practices. It’s money just being flushed down the toilet.

Jewell was quoted, “Of course, sometimes the waste is much, much more – and this goes for larger and smaller businesses. The problems are usually so fundamental to a business that they will never see why and how they’re bleeding money; they’re too close.”

June Jewell is also the author of a book titled “Find the Lost Dollars: 6 Steps to Increase Profits in Architecture, Engineering, and Environmental Firms.”

Her book details various step that professional firms can do to locate lost money. There are several nooks and crannies in which firms are apt to lack efficiency and that means lost money.

In this post-recession economy, Jewell says, it’s vital for firms to tune up their business management practices in order to thrive.

Below Jewell provides reviews covering three key areas where most firms can identify potential issues and turn unnecessary losses to gains:

• Company culture: While the culture may vary somewhat from one firm to another, architectural, engineering and environmental firms share some of the same characteristics. One is that their founders tend to go into business because they’re creative people who love what they do — not because they’re business people. So they don’t focus on profits, and they tend to be casual managers with regard to employees’ time. Shifting the culture to a focus of being profitable is not only necessary for sustaining the business; it allows creative people to do more of what they love.

• Ineffective practices: Of course, there are many moving parts in an A&E firm, which means there are many potential areas for improvement. That includes customer service, time management, marketing, strategic planning, accurate budgets and estimates, and the cost of lost opportunities. Failure to create an accurate, meticulous job estimate, for instance, can have multiple consequences, from having disappointed clients to jeopardize projects to losing money because time, materials and other costs were not accurately forecast.

• Systems & IT: This is the third way to improve business management and increase profits. Technology is able to help companies leverage their resources more effectively, yet many of them are still using outdated software and non-integrated systems. By looking at systems as a strategic investment that can help them to be more competitive, they can realize a great return on investment (ROI) from their projects. While the transition from old to new software has its cost in time and work, the efficiency gained in future work production is worth it.

If your professional firm is a potential target for lost money, don’t delay and get expert help.

June Jewell concludes, “I’ve worked with hundreds of A&E firms in my 28 years of consulting, and I see these shared problems so often, I offer what I call – the $100K Challenge – That’s a guarantee that I can work with any business that’s doing a few million dollars a year in business and find $100,000 they’re losing in profits.”

If your firm requires professional consulting help, please contact The Life of Luxury using the below form.

Nobody has to tell us that we’re enduring some very troubling economics times. Instead of complaining, let’s buckle down and learn from what we’re experiencing.

These days, the importance of money is at an all time high. The economic crisis is hitting many of us very hard. So it’s very important that we are prepared for anything that it might bring along with it. Teaching our own children to appreciate money and the value of money is one important way to make the financial crisis a good family bonding experience.

You, of all people, should know how much a budget can make or break your household’s financial balance.

It’s really important for everyone to learn how to budget and not waste their money on useless stuff. By teaching your kids how to better appreciate money, then you are actually helping them become better citizens, better adults in the future.

Saving is a good and simple way to begin your children’s lesson in finances. You have to make sure that you point out all of the benefits that these things do for them like it helps them prepare for something that they might need money for in the future. Whether it be something that they want to buy or some other thing they want to spend their money on, you can actually tell them all of these things to convince them that saving money today is never a bad idea.

You can let them participate when it comes to planning out the household budget as well. This makes them feel more part of the family because it lets them get involved in adult matters. It teaches them responsibility and that there are certain things that need to be prioritized over others. It also shows them that money is not something that they can have whenever they want.

Another great idea is to have them start their own small business. It could be mowing the lawn of the neighborhood, if they’re old enough, or it could be something that they enjoy altogether. For example, joining you in you rown business or store where they can sell some of the products of their hobbies for a price.

If your kids can learn all the good things that money brings, you can also teach them to become more responsible adults in the future. You should be careful never to overindulge as this might bring about a spending spree from your kids which, in light of the recent crises, you surely do not want happening.

Becoming a millionaire is a lifetime dream for many. Some people achieve it rather simply via an inheritance, or maybe hitting the right stock pick or lottery.

But for those fortunate enough to have become a millionaire, it usually entails very hard work, strategic thinking, dedication, and sometimes even a little luck.

Just becoming a millionaire isn’t a guarantee you will be set for the rest of your life.  Fidelity Investments conducted a study in 2011 of millionaires and discovered that 42 percent of them do feel wealthy.  On average, they believe they would need $7.5 million of investable assets to actually start feeling rich.  Of course, it’s all relevant right?

The below list titled Seven Secrets of Self-Made Multimillionaires is about generating multimillion-dollar wealth and enjoying it during the creation process. Enjoy and best of luck in achieving your dream of a wealthy lifestyle and a Life of Luxury!

No. 1: Decide to Be a Multimillionaire — You first have to decide you want to be a self-made millionaire. I went from nothing—no money, just ideas and a lot of hard work—to create a net worth that probably cannot be destroyed in my lifetime. The first step was making a decision and setting a target. Every day for years, I wrote down this statement: “I am worth over $100,000,000!”

No. 2: Get Rid of Poverty Thinking – There’s no shortage of money on planet Earth, only a shortage of people who think correctly about it. To become a millionaire from scratch, you must end the poverty thinking. I know because I had to. I was raised by a single mother who did everything possible to put three boys through school and make ends meets. Many of the lessons she taught me encouraged a sense of scarcity and fear: “Eat all your food; there are people starving,” “Don’t waste anything,” “Money doesn’t grow on trees.” Real wealth and abundance aren’t created from such thinking.

No. 3: Treat it Like a Duty – Self-made multimillionaires are motivated not just by money, but by a need for the marketplace to validate their contributions. While I have always wanted wealth, I was driven more by my need to contribute consistent with my potential. Multimillionaires don’t lower their targets when things get tough. Rather, they raise expectations for themselves because they see the difference they can make with their families, company, community and charities.

No. 4: Surround Yourself with Multimillionaires – I have been studying wealthy people since I was 10 years old. I read their stories and see what they went through. These are my mentors and teachers who inspire me. You can’t learn how to make money from someone who doesn’t have much. Who says, “Money won’t make you happy”? People without money. Who says, “All rich people are greedy”? People who aren’t rich. Wealthy people don’t talk like that. You need to know what people are doing to create wealth and follow their example: What do they read? How do they invest? What drives them? How do they stay motivated and excited?

No. 5: Work Like a Millionaire – Rich people treat time differently. They buy it, while poor people sell it. The wealthy know time is more valuable than money itself, so they hire people for things they’re not good at or aren’t a productive use of their time, such as household chores. But don’t kid yourself that those who hit it big don’t work hard. Financially successful people are consumed by their hunt for success and work to the point that they feel they are winning and not just working.

No. 6: Shift Focus from Spending to Investing – The rich don’t spend money; they invest. They know the U.S. tax laws favor investing over spending. You buy a house and can’t write it off. The rich, in contrast, buy an apartment building that produces cash flow, appreciates and offers write-offs year after year. You buy cars for comfort and style. The rich buy cars for their company that are deductible because they are used to produce revenue.

No. 7: Create Multiple Flows of Income – The really rich never depend on one flow of income but instead create a number of revenue streams. My first business had been generating a seven-figure income for years when I started investing cash in multifamily real estate. Once my real estate and my consulting business were churning, I went into a third business developing software to help retailers improve the customer experience. Lastly, you may be surprised to learn that wealthy people wish you were wealthy, too. It’s a mystery to them why others don’t get rich. They know they aren’t special and that wealth is available to anyone who wants to focus and persist. Rich people want others to be rich for two reasons: first, so you can buy their products and services, and second, because they want to hang out with other rich people.

Source: Entrepreneur.com

The world economic crisis has taken its toll on everybody, from the poor to the ultra-rich.

It’s time once again for Forbes to announce its list of the World’s Billionaires for 2009.

Amid the global recession, this year’s Forbes list of the World’s Billionaires is smaller and definitely poorer.  As a result, the very small club of billionaires from age 40 and younger, also got a whole lot smaller.

In Forbes’ 2008 list, the world’s 20 youngest plutocrats were all under the age of 36. Now in 2009, the billionaires age ranges from 25 to 40. The average age of the world’s 20 youngest billionaires is 35 this year, up from last year’s average of 32.

25-year-old German Prince Albert von Thurn und Taxis takes the award for the youngest billionaire in the world. Von Thurn und Taxis is worth $2.1 billion.

The list also includes former Yahoo! Chief Executive Jerry Yang.

See the complete list at Forbes

After the slaughter of the Dot.com bust and stock market free-fall, many people took managing their investments into their own hands.  Mergers-and-acquisitions lawyer Susan Pravda recalls, “I had a money market fund here, a stock brokerage account there, and a bunch of 401(k) plans floating around.” Even she had excellent returns, Pravda still  wonders whether she might have fared better if she had followed her own advice to clients, and hired a pro to help her devise a custom portfolio.

For many professionals, whose careers and family responsibilities demand time and attention, tackling complex financial tasks–such as building an asset allocation model or a long-term wealth plan — may get pushed to the back burner and stay there, even as their wealth levels grow.

Recognizing this, more financial institutions are particularly targeting women as potential clients, offering to professionally manage their investment portfolios.  Putting all your money in someone else’s hands can be unnerving. Do your research and thoroughly understand, who’s managing your money.  Full article