CIS Financial Planning
Download the PDF

Look In The Mirror
You start your financial plan by looking at yourself, not the stock market or the latest issue of "How To Get Rich On Mutual Funds". You need to do a cash flow report and a net worth report. A cash flow report is simply adding up all of your expenses and subtracting them from your income. This shows you how much excess cash flow you have for a regular investment plan. (If your expenses are higher than your income, then you need to rearrange your investments to make up the difference.) A net worth report shows your assets minus your liabilities. Most people have never seen all their assets and debts added up on a single sheet of paper. Sometimes it surprises, other times it scares them. Along with this, a good financial plan will include an asset allocation review and a risk review.

Then you determine your investment objectives. "I just wanna make money" is not an objective. Your objectives need to be quantified so that you can tell if you are on track or not. Saving for your kids' college may be a noble endeavor, but without a target, you might come up short. Your retirement might not be as restful as you expected if you have to get a part-time job due to poor planning.

On the back of this newsletter are future value charts that will help quantify your future goals. If you are saving for college, retirement or a house, these charts will give you a good idea of your future target.

Next you have to take a realistic look in the mirror. How much risk can you tolerate? This is not an easy question to answer because there are various types of risk other than just principle risk. How much risk you can tolerate will determine your investments and investment strategy.

This is where you can start your asset allocation. You should take a look at your monthly expenses and have at least 6 months of expenses available in cash investments. (money markets, checking, savings, T-Bills) Anything else should be invested. The three major investment categories include cash, stocks and bonds. The future value charts will tell you what to expect at different rates of return. Your own risk tolerance will determine how much risk you should take. You should never invest in anything that causes you to lose sleep.

Please make your selection to the left to learn more about CIS's Financial Planning.

Financial Planning

Money Management

Retirement Planning

Estate Planning

Senior Center

You will need Adobe Acrobat reader to view some reports
Acrobat Reader