0:00:00 - Speaker 1
Discussions in this show should not be construed as specific recommendations or investment advice. Always consult with your investment professional before making important investment decisions. Securities offered through registered representatives of Cambridge Investment Research Inc. A broker-dealer member, finra, sipc Advisory Services through Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. A registered investment advisor Cambridge and Greenway Wealth Advisory are not affiliated.

0:00:20 - Speaker 2
It's time to dive into some insider secrets of investing and retirement planning. To make your retirement as smart and as elegant as possible. This is Money Chic with Sherry Rash.

0:00:31 - Speaker 3
Hey everybody, welcome into the podcast. Thanks for tuning in to another edition of Money Chic with Sherry Rash. We're here to talk investing, finance and retirement and we're going to do an email question show this time A mailbag show. I don't know whatever you want to call it, but we basically got some email questions into the podcast. So thank you so much for listening and tuning in. We're starting to get some good listeners out there, which is fantastic, and we've got a few that have come in over the last couple of weeks and we've compiled these up, sherry. So I've got some emails that I'd like you to tackle and dive into for folks and see if you can help them out with some things. First of all, how you doing.

0:01:03 - Speaker 4
Doing great. Kids are in summer camp, so they're tired and coming home dirty and going to bed early. So life is good. Hey, that's good.

0:01:12 - Speaker 3
That's the way it should be right. Kids getting dirty that's half the fun, right there.

So yeah we've got some good email questions, so I'm looking forward to doing these. You know we are early in our podcast. I think this is our sixth episode, and so this will be a lot of fun to see if we can help some folks out. Of course, if you have a question you'd like to submit one, or just check out Sherry's website in general, that's where you go. Do it Greenwaywealthadvisorycom. That's Greenwaywealthadvisorycom. You can drop us a line, drop her a line and get some time on the calendar, whatever you'd like to do. A lot of good tools, tips and resources there.

So what do you say? We jump in and tackle some of these and see what we can do for folks. We've got Deb, who sent us one in sharing. She says I'm in the middle of a divorce after 30 years of marriage. Wow, do you think I'd be better off to get half of my husband's 401k or half of his pension? I like the idea of having a guaranteed income, but I myself won't be retiring for another 10 years, so it's not like I really need the pension right now.

0:02:09 - Speaker 4
She says that's a great question and, deb, I'm so sorry that you're in the middle of a divorce, but I appreciate you using us as a resource to guide you through this trying time.

The question's really good because, yeah, a pension sounds great, having guaranteed income sounds great, or receiving half of his 401k. I would say, based on just the little bit that you mentioned to me and the fact that you're not retiring for another 10 years, it might better serve you to take half of the 401k. And the reason why I say that is because most cases the pension dollar amount is fixed, so you'll know exactly what you're going to receive and, yes, you will receive that for the rest of your life. But with taking half of the 401k, you could also make your own personal pension, so you could use an annuity, for example, or position your investments to create an income stream, and then that way you're creating your own pension, but you also have some flexibility and the potential for more growth. So that would be my initial thought, but obviously talking it out a little bit more would make the most sense.

0:03:21 - Speaker 3
Yeah, I think that's a great point. There's certainly a lot more information that you would want to go through, but, just off of this, there's a good way of looking at that. And that's a great way of looking at it actually, because there's a lot of unknowns in that and with her having a few years to go, still there could be and I'm glad she's thinking about that too, sherry, because a lot of times we'll see people. Sometimes it'll also be they gravitate towards the house We've seen that before where it's like hey.

We're getting divorced. Should I grab the 401k or the house? And a lot of times they'll lean towards the house, thinking that's the bigger asset and it's not always the case.

0:03:50 - Speaker 2
So it's good that she's thinking.

0:03:52 - Speaker 3
Yeah, good that she's thinking about these things. Well, deb, thank you so much for the question. Thanks for checking out the podcast as well. Definitely give Sherry a call and have a more specific one-on-one conversation 703-255-2808. All right, let's see what else we've got. We've got Patty, and Patty says Sherry, my husband and I argue about money almost every day because we just haven't done a very good job of planning for retirement and it's starting to stress us both out. Is this normal or do we need some serious help?

0:04:21 - Speaker 4
Well, I would first get down to the root of why. What are you arguing about? You're saying that we haven't done a great job of planning for retirement, but is that because you don't think there's enough money saved? Do you have a plan? Do you know when you're going to retire? What is the crux of the argument?

You both may be stressed out about two very different things, and we talked about in a few shows ago Money personalities, and it's not very common that both partners have the same money personality. So, getting down to the root of what are you really arguing about and what is stressing each of you out? And no, you should not be arguing about Retirement and finances every day. A little scuffle every so often is perfectly fine, but I think getting a third party involved and Looking at what you have saved and what exactly is stressing you out would be the best step to take next. So then they can help you. And are these fears and stresses legitimate? Or is it just an over concern? Or are you more stressed out because you just don't have a plan? And putting a plan in place may Eliminate a lot of those concerns and worries.

0:05:33 - Speaker 3
You know, imagine, jerry, that you often have to wear multiple hats right, and one of those is probably a bit marriage counselor, because imagine a lot of folks are typically not on the same page. I mean, anybody who's married can can probably attest to that right. When it comes to a few things in your marriage and money's usually there there's usually a difference of opinion.

0:05:53 - Speaker 4
Absolutely, absolutely. And having a neutral third party that can Speak with both of you, together and separately, and get down to Understand your money personality, get down to the crux of what your concerns are, is very, very helpful. And then, that way, creating a plan and tailoring conversations based on what your priorities are, what your fears are, what your goals are, is. Very important, but I mean, with anything going at it by yourself or on your own is really hard, especially when it comes to finances.

0:06:25 - Speaker 3
Yeah, absolutely Well, patty. Yeah, definitely don't argue every day. That's not good for you either. So have some conversations with each other and, yeah, get a third party involved. Reach out to Sherry, have a chat if you'd like to do that as well. So thank you so much for listening to the podcast and sending in the questions.

All right, let's do another one here from David. David says Sherry, my father died in his late 60s, my mother died in her early 70s, so I myself am not planning on longevity all that much. Do you feel like that means I should start social security as early as I can and share. I got a chime in real quick on this before you tackle this. I'm in the same boat as David. Long jeffety is not in my family history and I get that like inclination, but I also think it's being a little short-sighted and I'm curious to get your opinion because If I'm wrong and I live much longer, then I could have more problems if I'm not planning for longevity. If I'm a financial standpoint right and I get that it's easy to do. But do you see this often where people kind of feel like they they need to lean that way because there's, you know, not longevity in their family?

0:07:25 - Speaker 4
You I do see that and it does come up often. And also just taking the conversation of taking social security is usually a rather passionate conversation. Okay, in general, whether there is longevity or is not longevity in your family, or what you think is going to happen to yourself in the future, mm-hmm, generally saying you know, with social security, if you can wait till full retirement age that's usually my default request or plan let's at least wait till full retirement age so you can get the most. You're getting at least 100% of what you're owed back from social security based on your contributions. And some folks don't want to wait till 70 for many reasons For longevity, for what they think is going to happen to them, because they just want the money. They want to use it. And a good point that's also brought up is if I wait till 70, I may not be in the physical state to enjoy that 8% increase in each year that I've gotten in my paycheck.

0:08:23 - Speaker 1
Right.

0:08:24 - Speaker 4
Which is a very valid point. So I would say give yourself a little bit more credit. Longevity just because your parents doesn't necessarily mean the same thing's going to happen to you. So you need to plan accordingly. And taking social security as early as you can may not be the best solution. You could still retire. That doesn't mean you have to wait to retire. Just because you're retired Doesn't mean you have to start taking social security right away, or vice versa.

0:08:51 - Speaker 1
Yeah.

0:08:52 - Speaker 4
So if it means you want to retire early because you want to enjoy retirement and you worked hard and you may not think you have long, that's fine. Let's create a plan around that. But social security and retirement dates don't necessarily have to go hand in hand.

0:09:08 - Speaker 3
Well, and it's definitely running the math right, sherry, because you can look at the different accounts you have and figure out the best strategy for pulling, because it is a pretty good increase If you can hang on and let social security continue to build. It is a pretty good increase to your point there. So I think it's all about the strategy of what to do and, of course, if you need the money, you need the money. That's totally different argument. But yeah, so, david, I think it's certainly one of those questions that a lot of people face. But don't let the longevity thing get you too much because, like I said, what if you're wrong? And then you got to look at it that way? Or even for your spouse, if you're married and even if you do pass away early, you want to try to maximize that strategy for them as well.

0:09:44 - Speaker 4
So thanks so much. That's a great point, yeah, yeah.

0:09:46 - Speaker 3
Thank you. So, yeah, thanks so much for listening to the podcast, david, and definitely reach out to Sherry, have a conversation, share some more details, as with any of this folks, if you're listening to the show, and whether you'd like to submit us a question here on the program, just to kind of have it asked and answered, or you'd like to talk with her specifically one-on-one, you can always just reach out and you should. Before you take any action. You should always check with a qualified professional like Sherry before you do anything. You know specifically without talking about your unique situation, and you can find her at GreenwayWealthAdvisorycom. That's GreenwayWealthAdvisorycom. All right, let's see if we can get another one or two in here before we go. This week. We've got Linda who says my daughter just turned 18 and I'd like to help get her off onto the right foot with some retirement savings. That's a good idea. What's the best way to do this, she asks.

0:10:31 - Speaker 4
I love this question. I think this is great and it's rarely talked about or asked about. So thanks, linda, for this question. So, now that your daughter is 18, she can have a regular Roth IRA. She can have contributions after-tax contributions to this account. The only catches we're right now currently at $6,000 is how much you can contribute to a Roth IRA. Or she can contribute to a Roth IRA Because, remember, you could contribute on behalf of her. The contributions, though, cannot exceed her earned income. So if she was babysitting or busing tables or working at a summer camp, that's great, and if she earned $4,000 through her work ventures, she can only contribute $4,000 to that Roth IRA. You cannot contribute more, so I think that's fantastic. Or if her allowance you want to, instead of sending giving her an allowance because she's now working and earning some money, send it to a Roth IRA instead. I think her future self will be very thankful to you for doing that.

But also children that are younger than 18 can have kitty Roth IRAs. Same concept yeah, same concept. It's based off of earned income. Parents or parents can contribute based on behalf of the child, and it just can't exceed earned income. So another great, great tool for your kids. So you know I talk a lot about and I have clients asking about contributing to a 529 on behalf of their children or grandchildren. But a Roth IRA Roth IRA may also be an interesting venture to contribute for your children.

0:12:13 - Speaker 3
I didn't know that. That's really cool. That's a new one for me as well, and so, yeah, I love that. You said her future self will appreciate it. Her current self at 18 might be like can I just have the money? That's right, but the future self will be certainly happy about it, and I'm sure that's what Linda's thinking as well. So there's some good tools and tidbits there for you, linda. Hopefully that helps out, and thank you so much for listening to the podcast and submitting a question. We really appreciate it. Let's go to Rick and see what Rick's got for you. This is interesting, especially with the timing right now of what's going on in the housing market. He says share your house is a lot bigger than what we need, so we probably should downsize. But it is the place we raise the family, so I'm emotionally attached to it. I guess I'm wondering if it's foolish to keep it when we could live someplace else cheaper and downsize. But boy, right now it seems like that might be a tough question because the housing market's so hot, would it?

0:13:02 - Speaker 4
be cheaper to downside.

That's right. Yeah, I mean absolutely. If you can find somewhere cheaper, maybe, but you know that might be hard to do. But it's emotion, your head versus your heart kind of thing, and who's to say what's right? You know, on paper does it make sense to live somewhere cheaper and have less expenses and retirement? Yeah, that makes sense on paper, but at the same time your heart has to be happy with that decision as well.

So what I say is let's look at a plan in both scenarios. So create a plan for both. If you can afford your home that you're in now and you can pay the bills and the property taxes and the mortgage if applicable, then stay in the home. If that's what makes you happy, and we create a plan around that. If you want to see what a plan would look like if you do decide to downsize, we can create a plan around that. So really there's no right answer. As long as you can afford the home in retirement and that makes you happy to stay in it, stay in it. If you want to explore and see really what it could mean dollar wise if you were to downsize and have less expenses, we can take a look at that as well. So I would say you know many times there's something that the head knows is the right thing, in the heart knows. But at the end of the day you have to be happy with your decision, not just what makes the most sense financially.

0:14:23 - Speaker 3
Yeah, true, you're calling it the heart, I usually call it the tummy rule, right, you got to feel good about it in the tummy. If it makes you nauseous or queasy Sometimes it's not the right thing to do and I'm wondering. The first line he had in there was about it being a lot bigger. So it sounds like emotionally he's definitely thinking about it, you know, from that standpoint of raising the family. But from the size aspect, a lot of folks do think about that as they closer to retirement.

Maybe the bedroom, the master bedroom, is on the, or all the bedrooms, maybe you're on the second floor, right, and they're thinking that they want something more on the first floor so that it's hard to have ambulatory problems as they get older, going up and down stairs, whatever that. So there's a lot of factors, rick, obviously to take into account, and you didn't mention, but maybe you are thinking about those as well. So I think that's some good advice from Sherry on ways to kind of process that, run a plan for both scenarios and see what works out well. But yeah, the market right now has got me wondering just again. We don't know where exactly he's at, but it's pretty hot everywhere.

0:15:16 - Speaker 4
That's right, I mean it comes back to Patty's question what's the root of why you feel this way? And also bringing in a third party, a neutral third party, to just weigh out pros and cons and present it that way to you, and then you decide what's best. There you go.

0:15:32 - Speaker 3
That's a great way of looking at it. Well, folks, I think that's going to do it for us this week here on the podcast. So we got through these email questions. We appreciate everybody sending those in so much, and so, again, if you'd like to submit your own or just have questions that you'd like to get some answers, to definitely check in with Sherry before you take any action. You should always again like I say this all the time check with a qualified professional before you take any action on something you hear on our show or any other about your specific situation. You can reach out to her at Greenway Wealth Advisory dot com. That's Greenway Wealth Advisory dot com and you can click on a little podcast at the top of the page. There You'll see a link for podcast. You can check out past episodes. We give you the links to subscribe to us on whatever platform you might like to use. There's plenty of them out there and a lot of them are already pre-installed on our phones nowadays. So definitely check it out that way and reach out to Sherry.

She's got a blog a lot of good tools, tips and resources there to be found, so check that out. Sherry, thanks for hanging out with me this week. I appreciate it.

0:16:25 - Speaker 4
Thanks, mark, that was fun, yeah, I appreciate it.

0:16:27 - Speaker 3
I hope you have a great Well. We're into actually at the time we're taping this. We're taping this a few days before the 4th of July, so I hope you have a great holiday.

0:16:34 - Speaker 4
You too, thank you.

0:16:35 - Speaker 3
Going to go to the beach or anything?

0:16:37 - Speaker 4
Of course I'm a Jersey girl, not to. I've got to go to the beach.

0:16:40 - Speaker 3
That's right. It's going to be hot, it is hot, so definitely do that. Alright, folks, we'll take care, stay safe and sane, and we'll see you next time here on Money Chic with Sherry Rash.

0:17:13 - Speaker 1
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