Serious Secrets About Investing

Four Financial Experts Weigh in With Their Tips For Your Money

When it comes to investing, it can be overwhelming to decide which strategy will work best for your individual situation. Working with a trusted financial advisor is the best way to maximize your returns, and putting a plan in place as early as possible will help you reach your financial goals.
Here are our top tips from our local experts so you can begin thinking about your long-term financial plan today!

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Melanie Hasty-Grant  & Ken Grant
Waterstone Private Wealth Management

(918) 272-1120  | www.waterstonewealth.com
9500 N. 129th E Ave Suite 106 Owasso, OK 74055

Despite volatile financial markets and slow economic growth, in the U.S., there are more millionaires than ever. That’s encouraging!   As of the end of 2016, there were a record 10.8 million millionaires nationwide, according to a new study from Spectrem Group’s Market Insights Report 2017.  
According to the author of The Millionaire Next Door, only 20% of millionaires inherited their wealth; meaning the other 80% earned their wealth on their own.  So, I’m not talking here about just movie stars and pro-athletes.  I’m talking about everyday people!  However, these millionaires didn’t just fall out of the sky and they didn’t win the lottery!  They are regular people who are intentional with their money.
The following are 5 traits of “everyday millionaires” that we work with at Waterstone Private Wealth Management.

1) They live beneath their means. The easiest way to become a millionaire is also the most boring.  Millionaires have a tendency to live in the same house for most if not all of their adult years.  They drive their cars into the ground.  They keep their cell phones way past their contract dates (some of the ones I know still have a flip phone). They are cost conscious about where they shop for groceries.  You would never know that they were millionaires because their lifestyle does not reflect it.

2) They invest. With the money they save from not having the bigger house, newest car, and hottest gadgets, they save and invest it.  Just to give you an example: If you invest just $5500 a year starting at age 20 and do this every year until you are 60 and that money grows at a rate of return of 8% a year, in 40 years , you’ll have 1.42 Million dollars!

3) They don’t have debt.  Often the only debt these folks have is their home.  They don’t use credit cards and if they do, they pay them completely off each month.  They pay cash for cars along with their trade-in rather than getting a car loan. Not having debt and keeping their expenses low allows them to focus on creating the life they really want.

4) They plan, plan, plan. Millionaires are planners and shop around for the best price.  They research purchases on the internet before they buy them. They have a financial plan and an estate plan.  They are patient and are not looking for the next “get rich quick” scheme.

5) They spend their extra money on travel and experiences rather than things.  Instead of accumulating more stuff, they tend to be more interested in creating memories through experiences and travel.

At the end of the day, there is no substitute for hard work, controlling spending, saving early and regularly, and making good investment decisions.  Wealth preservation is more important that just accumulation.  Choose your advisor and investments wisely.  Where your invested matters. If you would like some help with your financial planning, please give Waterstone Private Wealth Management a call at 918.272.1120 or visit our website at www.waterstonewealth.com. Securities offered through Cetera Advisor Networks LLC, Member FINRA/SIPC. Investment advisory services offered through CWM, LLC, an SEC Registered Investment Advisor.  Cetera Advisor Networks LLC is under separate ownership from any other named entity.  9500 N. 129th E Ave Suite 106 Owasso, OK 74055

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Joe Langley, CFP®, ChFC®, VP Wealth Advisor, RCB Bank

(855) BANK-RCB  |  WWW.RCBBANK.COM

So you’re ready to put your toes in the water but not sure where to begin. Begin at your kitchen table with pen and paper.
First thing you need to do is define your financial goals. What exactly do you want and when do you want it? To retire? By what age? Buy a vacation home? When? Send your kids to college? How much do you want to save and how long do you have? Write it down: your dreams, the costs and the timeframes.
Two big questions to ask yourself: are your goals realistic and attainable, and how much risk are you willing to handle? The best way to answer these questions is to complete a personal profile with a trusted advisor, which will help you plan and visualize your financial goals. You can consult a financial planner, broker or trust representative without committing to a partnership. Your goal is to get educated and narrow down your options to a realistic plan that will meet your needs.

A personal profile is shaped by:

-Your age and stage in your career.
-Your need for liquidity of funds.
-The size of your investment portfolio.
-Your cash flow needs.
-Your income tax bracket.
-The rate of return that you need to reach your goals.
-The amount of risk you will assume to gain the rate of return to achieve goals.

Armed with this information you are ready to develop an investment strategy and jump in the water.  They key to investing is to continually monitor your portfolio  to see if you are on track to meet your goals.
If you plan to work with a financial advisor, make sure they are working for you with your best interest in mind. Ask about their credentials, ask how they make their money and listen to your gut. It’s important that you have an open line of communication with your advisor.

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Dale Alimena, Edward Jones

(918) 274-7044  |  www.facebook.com/ejadvisordalealimena
8805 N 145th East Ave, Owasso, OK 74055

Diversify Your Investments … But Consolidate Your Providers

You have probably heard that diversification is a key to investment success. If so, you may also think it might also be good to diversify your financial advisors – after all, aren’t two (or more) heads better than one? Actually, some good reasons exist to consider consolidating all your investment accounts with one provider. Let’s look at each topic separately.
Consider the two broadest categories of investments: stocks and bonds. Stock prices will move up and down in response to many different factors. Bond prices are usually more strongly driven by changes in interest rates. Stocks and bonds often move in different directions. If you only own U.S. stocks, you could take a big hit during a market downturn. (Keep in mind, though, that even a diversified portfolio can’t prevent all losses or guarantee profits.)
So, it is clearly a good idea to diversify your investment portfolio.  Now, let’s move on to diversifying financial service providers.
Actually, some good reasons exist to consider consolidating all your investment accounts with one provider. First, you’ll keep better track of your assets with much less paperwork.  Additionally, it will be much easier to follow a single, unified investment strategy, based on your goals, risk tolerance and time horizon. Also, if you have accounts with several different financial service providers, you might be incurring many fees. Finally, you won’t get conflicting advice and you’ll receive clear guidance on important issues.
Diversification and consolidation – one is good for building an investment portfolio, while the other can help you invest more efficiently and effectively. Put the two concepts together, and make them work for you.

This article was written by Edward Jones for use by your local Edward Jones Financial Advisor Dale Alimena.

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Linda Rainwater, Generation Income Strategies

(918) 272-4456  |  www.genincome.com
12899 E. 76th St. N, Suite 106 Owasso, OK 74055

The irony with all the things people want most—health, money, family, success—is that the “secrets” to attaining them aren’t secrets at all! Like an explorer who has landed on a treasure, many who achieve success are unselfish enough to tell others exactly how they did it. When it comes to investing, there are simple but effective principles that may start benefiting your portfolio today.
Like most other areas in business, operating solely based on your emotions is catastrophic for investing. Many people’s default setting when it comes to money is getting emotional. This makes sense since money is so often connected to the people we love, but it also may explain why most people aren’t rich.
As you seek to invest wisely, try to avoid making decisions based on emotions or feelings. Instead, lean on the tested and tried principles that have helped to create wealth for years. By eliminating emotions from investing, you can position yourself and your family to enjoy those things you should be emotional about—like having meaningful, worry-free moments with one another.
Every so often, a story will circulate about some “genius investor” who quickly traded his way to millions. Sadly, many unsuspecting readers find themselves inspired to try and do the same thing. This laissez-faire, nonchalant investing method probably can make you a millionaire, but only if you start out as a billionaire.
When striving to invest successfully, consider lengthening your timeline. Invest with long-term goals in mind and be patient, knowing that the market tends to reward those who know how to keep their cool no matter what. Warren Buffett once said, “The stock market is a device for transferring money from the impatient to the patient.”
If you’re making the decision to play the long game and invest for a long period of time, then the sooner you get involved, more likely the better. A time-period as short as even a few years can make a big difference. The sooner you start making your money work for you, the sooner you may be able to stop working for money.
Your financial health demands sound investing principles. By removing your investment strategy from all emotional entanglements, lengthening your timeline to invest for the long haul, and getting involved in investing as soon as possible, you may soon find yourself joining the ranks of those who enthusiastically shout their “secrets” for all to hear.
Generation Income Strategies 12899 E. 76th St. N, Suite 106 Owasso, OK 74055 Linda Rainwater, Financial Advisor
 All investing involves risk and you may incur a profit or a loss. There is no assurance that any investment strategy will be successful. The foregoing information has been obtained from sources considered to be reliable, but we do not guarantee that it is accurate or complete, it is not a statement of all available data necessary for making an investment decision, and it does not constitute a recommendation. Any opinions are those of Linda Rainwater and not necessarily those of RJFS or Raymond James.
Securities are offered through Raymond James Financial Services, Inc. Member FINRA/SIPC. Investment  Advisory Services are offered through Raymond James Financial Services Advisors, Inc. Generation Income Strategies is not a registered broker/dealer and is independent of Raymond James Financial Services.

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Give any of our experts a call today to set up a time to talk about your finanical future. They will have expert advice for your investment profile that will set you up for success!