NorthStar Capital AdvisorsNorthStar Capital AdvisorsNorthStar Capital AdvisorsNorthStar Capital Advisors
Start Here
  • How We Help
  • Who We Serve
  • Who We Are
  • Fiduciary
  • Learning
  • Start Here
  • How We Help
  • Who We Serve
  • Who We Are
  • Fiduciary
  • Learning
  • Start Here

10 Life Lessons We Learn Too Late

  • January 26, 2017/
  • Posted By : admin/
  • 0 comments /
  • Under : Behavior, Best Practices, Live Well

life-lessons-small

A few years ago someone on Quora.com asked the question, “What are the lessons people most often learn too late in life?”  Jay Bazzinotti provided the following brilliantly insightful response:

1. Time passes much more quickly than you realize.

2. If you don’t take care of your body early then it won’t take care of you later. Your world becomes smaller each day as you lose mobility, continence and sight.

3. Sex and beauty may fade, but intimacy and friendship only grow.

4. People are far more important than any other thing in your life. No hobby, interest, book, work is going to be as important to you as the people you spend time with as you get older.

5. Money talks. It says “Goodbye.” If you don’t plan your finances for later in life, you’ll wish you had.

6. Any seeds you planted in the past, either good or bad, will begin to bear fruit and affect the quality of your life as you get older — for better or worse.

7. Jealousy is a wasted emotion. People you hate are going to succeed. People you like are going to sometimes do better than you did. Kids are going to be smarter and quicker than you are. Accept it with grace.

8. That big house you had to have becomes a bigger and bigger burden, even as the mortgage gets smaller. The cleaning, the maintenance, the stairs — all of it. Don’t let your possessions own you.

9. You will badly regret the things you didn’t do far more than the things you did that were “wrong” — the girl you didn’t kiss, the trip you didn’t take, the project you kept putting off, the time you could have helped someone. If you get the chance — do it. You may never get the chance again.

10. Every day you wake up is a victory.

 


What’s Your Wealth Index?

  • January 19, 2017/
  • Posted By : admin/
  • 0 comments /
  • Under : Best Practices, Personal Finance, Retirement

wealthhealth

How do you know the health of your wealth?  Are ahead of the curve or are you behind? Do you need to be saving more or do you need to ease up and be less frugal?

The most complete and accurate way to answer these questions is to reference your financial plan (i.e., a formal, written, date-specific, dollar-specific retirement accumulation plan).  But a quick, “back of the envelope” approach is to use the Wealth Equation.  This metric was created by Dr. Thomas Stanley, noted researcher and author of the Millionaire Next Door.

Here’s the formula:

Expected Net Worth = 10% x (your age) x (your gross income)

So if you’re a 50 year old making $150,000, your Expected Net Worth is $750,000 (=0.1*50*150000).  If you’re a dual-income family, you would use your total family income and average age of the two earners.

Now take your Expected Net Worth and compare it to your actual Net Worth (don’t know your actual Net Worth? see our special offer below*).  Create your Wealth Index by taking the ratio of those two numbers:

Wealth Index = (Actual Net Worth) / (Expected Net Worth)

 Your Wealth Index tells you where you fall into the following categories:

  • Under Accumulator of Wealth (UAW)                  Wealth Index ≤ 0.88
  • Average Accumulator of Wealth (AAW)           0.88 < Wealth Index < 1.84
  • Prodigious Accumulator of Wealth (PAW)           Wealth Index ≥  1.84

Continuing with our example above, imagine that you are that 50 year old with an actual Net Worth of $937,500.  Then your Wealth Index is 1.25 (=937500/750000) which puts you at the moderately high end of the Average Accumulator of Wealth (AAW) category.

Ideally, you want to be a Prodigious Accumulator of Wealth (PAW), in other words, a hyper saver who is consciously building a tremendous amount of wealth.  If you’re a PAW (i.e., you have a Wealth Index at or above 1.84), Dr. Stanley calls you “balance sheet affluent” because you have an army of dollars working for you and you’re doing a great job of accumulating assets.

If you’re a AAW (Wealth Index between 0.88 and 1.84) you’re probably right on track.  If you’re a UAW (Wealth Index below 0.88) you’re likely behind the curve and need to save more and spend less to grow your financial health.  Remember you want to be saving between 15% and 20% of your gross income to fund your retirement.

A note to younger folks:
If you’re in your 20s and 30s (or even early 40s), your expected net worth in the Wealth Equation may be a bit too ambitious since Dr. Stanley designed this for people in their 50s and above.  It still serves as good general reference point.  For younger savers, Dr. Stanley suggests the following approach to ramping up your retirement savings:

  • In your 20s, save at least 5% of your income
  • In your 30s, save at least 10% of your income
  • In your 40s, save at least 15% of your income
  • In your 50s, save at least 20% of your income

We would urge you to try to accelerate this so you’re saving 15% to 20% as soon as possible to assure you will enjoy a happy and well-funded retirement of 30+ years.

*Need help calculating your actual Net Worth?  Send us an email at info@nstarcapital.com and we’ll send you a free tool to calculate it quickly and accurately…forever!)


Oh Baby! You’re Expensive

  • January 12, 2017/
  • Posted By : admin/
  • 0 comments /
  • Under : Best Practices, Personal Finance

baby233610Many parents worry about saving for college, but don’t forget about the proceeding 17 years! Food, clothing, shelter, and other necessities will cost $233,610 for a child born in 2015 to a middle-income family.

This week the the U.S. Department of Agriculture released their annual report where they total up the cost that parents pay to raise a child from birth to age 17.

  • The annual expense per child ranges from $9,330 to $9,980 on average (depending on age; $174,690 total!) for households with an annual income less than $59,200.
  • The annual cost increases to $12,350 to $13,900 ($233,610 total!) for households with income up to $107,400.
  • The annual cost increases yet again to $19,380 to $23,380 ($372,210 total!) for households with annual income greater than $107,400.

Housing, childcare & education, and food comprise 63% of the expenses.

child-2015

It’s interesting to compare the costs of raising a child born in 1960 (the year the USDA study first started) to a child of 2015. The total cost has increased 16% from $202,020 in 1960 (in 2015 dollars) to $233,610 in 2015.

  • Housing was the largest expense on a child in both time periods (decreasing from 31% in 1960 to 29% in 2015)
  • Food was the second largest expense (decreasing from 24% to 18%)
  • Childcare & education has surged from only 2% in 1960 to 16% in 2015
  • Healthcare has doubled from 4% in 1960 to 9% in 2015

child-1960-2015

 


Ponzi Schemes? Look No Further Than Your Backyard!

  • January 5, 2017/
  • Posted By : admin/
  • 0 comments /
  • Under : Scams & Schemes

A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investment operation that pays returns to its investors from their own money or the money paid by subsequent investors, rather than from any actual profit earned by the individual or organization running the operation. The scheme is named after Charles Ponzi, who became notorious for using the technique in 1920 (see photo).

People often don’t realize Ponzi schemes happen everywhere and all the time. Take for instance Bruce Kramer and his company Barki, LLC based in Mint Hill, North Carolina. This small town is just outside of Charlotte, NC and not far from the headquarters of our firm, NorthStar Capital Advisors. The Charlotte Observer broke the story on May 29, 2009:

In January, with the economy tanking and Bernard Madoff’s $65 billion scam unraveling, Bruce Kramer met a nervous investor for lunch at Hawthorne’s pizzeria in Mint Hill.

The investor, a Charlotte consultant who had invested several hundred thousand dollars with Kramer’s foreign currency exchange firm in Cabarrus County, wondered if the money was safe. Kramer reassured him it was, recalled the investor, who asked not to be identified to protect his family.

Kramer then thanked him for lunch and drove off in a new $90,000 Maserati.

A month later, Kramer shot and killed himself. Court documents allege he swindled $40 million from 80 clients and spent much of it on luxury cars, a racehorse, art and extravagant parties.

The U.S. District Court ultimately issued a default judgment against the late Bruce Kramer and his company ordering more than $40 million in fines and restitution.

How to spot a Ponzi Scheme

According to the SEC, many Ponzi schemes share common characteristics. Look for these warning signs:

  • High returns with little or no risk. Every investment carries some degree of risk, and investments yielding higher returns typically involve more risk. Be highly suspicious of any “guaranteed” investment opportunity.
  • Overly consistent returns. Investments tend to go up and down over time. Be skeptical about an investment that regularly generates positive returns regardless of overall market conditions.
  • Unregistered investments. Ponzi schemes typically involve investments that are not registered with the SEC or with state regulators. Registration is important because it provides investors with access to information about the company’s management, products, services, and finances.
  • Unlicensed sellers. Federal and state securities laws require investment professionals and firms to be licensed or registered. Most Ponzi schemes involve unlicensed individuals or unregistered firms.
  • Secretive, complex strategies. Avoid investments if you don’t understand them or can’t get complete information about them.
  • Issues with paperwork. Account statement errors may be a sign that funds are not being invested as promised.
  • Difficulty receiving payments. Be suspicious if you don’t receive a payment or have difficulty cashing out. Ponzi scheme promoters sometimes try to prevent participants from cashing out by offering even higher returns for staying put.

Recent Posts
  • SVB and bank collapses March 14,2023
  • 529 Rollovers (coming soon) February 6,2023
  • SECURE Act 2.0 (2023 changes inside) January 5,2023
  • Time-sensitive planning (action needed) November 2,2022
  • Market lessons you should know (inside) October 18,2022
Archives
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • December 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • November 2010
  • October 2010
  • September 2010
  • August 2010
Categories
  • 401(k)
  • Annuities
  • Behavior
  • Best Practices
  • Bonds
  • Charitable Donations
  • Economy
  • Fees
  • Fiduciary
  • Financial Planning
  • Investing 101
  • Live Well
  • Market Outlook
  • Mutual Funds
  • NorthStar
  • Performance
  • Personal Finance
  • Planning
  • Retirement
  • Saving Money
  • Scams & Schemes
  • Seeking Prudent Advice
  • Tax Planning
  • Uncategorised
  • Uncategorized
  • Weekly Market Review
ABOUT US

We are a fee-only, independent fiduciary advisor. Our allegiance rests solely with our clients and their best interests. We are headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina and serve client families across the nation.



CLIENT TOOLS
CONTACT
  • (704) 350-5028
  • info@nstarcapital.com
  • 521 East Blvd, Charlotte, NC 28203
    (by appointment only)
  • fax: (704) 626-3462
FROM OUR BLOG
  • SVB and bank collapses March 14,2023
  • 529 Rollovers (coming soon) February 6,2023
  • SECURE Act 2.0 (2023 changes inside) January 5,2023
Nothing on this website constitutes either the provision of investment advice or solicitation to provide investment advice. Investment advice can only be provided through a formal investment advisory relationship. Copyright © 2023 NorthStar Capital Advisors - Charlotte, NC. All Rights Reserved.