Government 401k Take Over

US Government to seize your 401k?

Is this a rumor or is this a joke?


It has been widely reported in the past 2 weeks. Basically there has been testimony to Congress by Teresa Ghilarducci, a professor at the New School of Social Research, to remove the incentive, the tax break we currently receive, by contributing to a 401(k) plan. Then, enroll everyone into a government run retirement plan, you would be required to put away 5% of your income to earn a 3% return. You would no longer decide how and where to invest for your retirement. At retirement you would receive one check in other words rolling your Social Security and your 401k into one plan. Social Security has earned less than 2 % not even keeping up with inflation.
Does anyone really want the Government handling their 401k?

Bad Spending Habits

Victoria recently had an Interview with Chellie Mills, KFOR News Channel 4, in which she discussed four things we could do to break our bad spending habits. This was probably the only Interview Victoria has done in the last month that has not been about the market. I don't know about her, but it was kind of refreshing for me!

Anyway, here are the four that Victoria talked about...

1. Plan before you shop - make a budget and stick with it. Also make a list of things you are shopping for. This helps you keep your budget.

2. Take cash with you - I believe the statistic is that we, on average, spend 33% more when we use cards instead of cash. Wow!

3. Distinguish between needs and wants - sounds simple, but is especially hard for us ladies...you know what I mean. Of course, I could say the same thing for you men and your electronics...but I won't...

4. Spend Smart - there are things you can do, like; spending $1 for a 7-Eleven coffee instead of $4 for a Starbucks coffee, or taking your lunch to work instead of eating out (you can save an average of $2,350/year when doing this!)

Those are the four points that Victoria discussed. Here's some interesting facts that I found;

-A 20-ounce bottle of Aquafina bottled water costs about $1. One bottle of water per day costs $365 per year. It costs the environment plenty, too. When my husband and I moved two years ago, we didn't much care for our tap water, so for the first time ever we starting buying bottled water. Recently, we bought a filtered water pitcher. It was my husband's idea and I actually didn't believe that it would change the taste of the water, but low and behold, it did. No more bottled water for us. And yes, you are right honey.

-The average vending machine snack costs $1. Buy a pack of cookies every afternoon at work and pay $260 per year.

-Unused memberships -- Costhelper.com reports that the monthly service fee at gyms averages between $35 and $40. At $40 per month, an unused gym membership runs $480 per year.

If you have some helpful pointers that maybe help you out in saving that extra dollar, let us know! Like Victoria loves to tell us - Don't Take Advice From Broke People!

-Jennifer-

Financial Crisis Overload

You and your Hubby are so correct. It is what I call the Financial Crisis overload. Usually we over build homes, supply and demand, there is a natural slowing down or selling off inventory til the demand is high again. This is one of the main indicators on which we judged the strength and growth of our economy. Then there is the sub prime crisis, which the Financial industry new was going to implode it was just a matter of time (read about this prior to the collapse in Chapter 10, Money Principles in my book "It's All About The $Money, Honey!".. I stated so many times in July and August as the implosion started that "at least it happened now (2007) instead of next year (2008) during election year". Now, in January of 2007 I started preparing clients for what always is expected during an election year and that is typical, volatility. So no one is surprised, if we don't have it, now that's the surprise. Then we have an election like no other; there will be change a Woman (Hillary), a black man or the most mature President we have ever elected. So there will be change. Human nature is "we don't like change". The market is always volatile during an election year. Gas prices, oh my. All of these events happening at once have created the Perfect Storm. Will we survive? Of course, we are America. In every crisis there are BIG winners. There are only 2 choices stay in the boat and ride out the storm or jump in the ocean; either choice is unpleasant. I will stay in the boat.

The President's Speech - do you feel more at peace?

OK, I know many of you watched the President's speech last night. One of the first things Victoria asked me this morning was if I watched it. I, reluctantly, had to say no, but jokingly said I didn't watch because I knew she would break it down for me in a brief and plain-English summary, which she did. I wont tell you what she said to me because you probably watched it, unlike me, but I will tell you something else she said; after the President was finished, a lot of the media criticized him for not going into more detail than he did, but she thought he did a fine job of explaining the situation without putting fear into the viewers. I found that interesting for some reason, and the more I thought about it, I realized it's because the media does put so much fear in our hearts, so to hear that someone, other than Victoria, remained calm during this time addressing the American people is...well, refreshing.

So what is your take? How did his speech make you feel? Do you think we will come out of this like we have done throughout American History?

Jennifer

A New "Face"

May I say, what a busy week it has been in the market and in the office! If you are like me, this whole mess can be very confusing, but thankfully, I work for the Diva, so I have the luxury of receiving first-hand knowledge of what is going on, why it's happening, and what we should do about it (which Victoria's answer is always the same, ingrained in my head..."don't panic!" In fact, she often jokes that I could fill in for her on the news segments she does since I have heard her answers so many times! But fortunately for me, she is the expert - not me).

Before I rant further, let me introduce myself, because some of you know who I am, but others are saying "who is this clever blogger?" I have worked as the Diva's assistant for over 2 years now (that's it??) doing anything and everything you could possibly think of for her, the business, and her clients. My Title is actually "Office Manager", but I sometimes change it depending on what I'm doing that day. Personal Assistant, Party Coordinator (oh, I mean Event Coordinator), Leasing Agent, Radio Show Co-Host, Gatekeeper, and the list goes on. I have learned many a thing since I started here and continue to do so. Victoria is one of the most clever business women I have ever come across and I am not just saying that so that she will buy me another Armani Suit!

The sole purpose of my post is (and this should come as no surprise) that the Diva is BUSY! She can not always post Blogs every week, when she is already doing so many other things. So, silly me, I volunteered to help occasionally in order to keep our bloggers(YOU) happy with their continuous chat. So today, I title myself Blog Manager - another to add to my list.

So after all that, here's what I want to ask - did anyone see "The Women"? I saw it over the weekend with a girlfriend of mine and I must say, it was a pretty good flick. My friend thought it was hilarious, and has seen it twice now already. She's one of those that laughs at everything though, whereas it takes a bit more to get a chuckle out of me. I did laugh quite a bit, so that's a pretty good sign. If you Divas have not seen it, I do recommend this one. The surprising thing is that there is not one Male in the entire movie! This was kind of wierd if you are looking for it, but it worked quite well for the movie. So if you consider yourself a Diva, you must see this film! If you have seen it, please let me know what you thought (and also so I can feel special that someone is reading my Blog!).

Thanks for reading my rant,
Jennifer

What is Your Perspective on Long Term Investing?

Some are saying "this is just like 1987". Really? In 1987, the market dropped by over 22%. But the market dropped Monday just less than 5%. If you were to listen to the media, you would have thought the market dropped by 50%! Let's keep things in Perspective. It's alarming enough without added "hype".

Today I was reminded of the quote from earlier in the quarter from Portfolio Strategist Litman/Gregory who stated the following, "it is often when the overall trend is negative that disciplined investors can build a portfolio for long-term out performance....It requires patience and the ability to weigh long-term analysis above short-term fear..."

Fear-based overreactions can make a temporary loss permanent. Long-term investment plans expect that tough markets - even bear markets - are a fact of investing life, and are often a catalyst for new opportunities. The key, and the most difficult challenge for advisors, is helping clients avoid the most significant risk they face: emotions.

How are your emotions holding up? Are you scared, frustrated, uncertain, confused, even mad? Or do you feel like you've been here before and don't like it but understand the opportunities?

Palin; How Absurd

What do think of our New Vice Presidential Candidate?

Does she inspire confidence?

Is it time we have a Woman representing all the women who care about the Economy, Taxes, Education for our children, and our safety?

We don't have to ask the question "can she do both?"....be a Mother and be the Vice President; how absolutely absurd! We have been much more than that forever! As Women we manage our homes, take care of our husbands, our families, our children, our friends, our parents, his parents, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, etc, etc, etc. Oh, and by the way, all while running successful businesses! Do we bring the children to work if necessary? Yes. Do we rock them while on the phone? Yes. Do we give them little jobs and Barbies to play with while we attend a board meeting? Yes. Do we take a pump to work in order to breast feed? Yes. And we run successful companies. Can she be a Mother and be a service to her country as Vice President? Absurd.