3 Tips to Plan Your Investments for Year-End

I hope you enjoyed the Thanksgiving holiday!  

We have just over a month remaining in 2016, and it’s going to go by super quickly. To be honest, I was both annoyed and excited by the Christmas music I heard before Thanksgiving. I wanted to just enjoy Thanksgiving. Since Christmas is my favorite holiday, however, you’ll have to bear with my side-eye excitement.

Are you ready to close the year?

I saw Arrival this past weekend, and it reminded me that we have little control over the future. If you’ve seen it, you know what I mean.

If you haven’t yet, I encourage you to see the movie because it provides an interesting twist on our ability to control (or change) the future. I will whet your appetite with this question – If you could change the trajectory of your life’s journey thus far, would you?

Well, I asked this loaded question to several people over the weekend. Many responded that they would make different financial and investment decisions to put them in a different position today. If you can relate to this feeling, leave a comment below and let’s chat it up. If not, I want you to leave a comment about one financial action you made that changed your life’s trajectory for the positive.

Either way, I want you to read these 3 tips that you can use over the next 30 days to help set you up for a 2017so that you can (or continue to) feel ahead of the game:

3 Tips Before 2016 Ends:

1. Make changes to your 401k contributions as needed. If you want to stash some extra cash away for retirement and get a tax deduction, it’s not too late. Check your 401k statement, where you will find out how much you’ve contributed thus far.

If you got an increase in salary, or stopped paying social security tax already this year, then you probably have the capacity to put a little more money away if you haven’t maxed out at the $18,000 cap already. Or, if you just want to be a badass investor and get ahead of the game, go for it. If you missed last week’s post on how to do a full 401k check-up, check it out.

1. Plan your tax deductions now. Most people think about taxes after the calendar year ends, when they are about to file their tax return. But, now is really the time to start planning what and how much you will deduct. Drop your tax advisor a note now to ask how you might strategize for the end of the year today. I’ve previously talked about how a Trump Presidency could affect your money, and here’s another insight – favorable tax deduction policies could change, as denoted in this Wall Street Journal article –“Maximize Your Deductions Now. A Trump Presidency Means You Could Lose Them.”

1. 2017 planning starts now. Whether you are single or married, now is the time to start thinking about your financial situation for next year. Make a date with yourself and/or your partner, and start the money conversation. You’re already doing this indirectly by planning those trips, weddings, baby celebrations, or investments you want to make. But, now is the time to do this holistically with some concrete goals in mind. Want to know how? Leave a comment below.

As 2016 winds down, my wish for you is joy and peace. And, let’s get that money right!

What Mrs. Janet Has to Say About the Market

In case you think I’m talking about Mrs. Janet Jackson, I’m not![Side note: The market hit a trifecta today – all 3 indices (S&P, Dow Jones, and Nasdaq) hit ALL-TIME highs. Read my commentary below for more details.]

Before you get there, I’m talking about Mrs. Janet Yellen, the Fed chairwoman. [Woot woot for this woman doing her thing in the market]. She spoke on Capital Hill last Thursday about the state of the economy, saying:

“At this stage, I do think that the economy is making very good progress toward our goals, and that the judgment the [Fed Policy] committee reached in November still pertains.”

In short, she thinks that the economy is strong enough to withstand an interest rate hike, and signaled that the Fed may raise rates at its meeting in mid-December. Mrs. Janet’s conclusion is based on several recent data points:

• Housing starts were the strongest since 2013. Strong home starts means that residential housing projects are on the move, and this is good for the overall economy.

• U.S. consumer prices rose at its fastest rate in two years. Remember, rising consumer prices signal inflation, or the tendency of prices to rise over time. When the Fed sees signs of inflation, which it wants to keep in check, it will evaluate whether or not to raise rates to prevent inflation.

• The number of people filing for unemployment insurance (or as you might know it - “unemployment checks”) dropped to the lowest level since 1973.The less people getting unemployment checks, supposedly the more people going back to work.

She, and the committee, will be keeping her eyes on what President-elect Trump does too because it will affect the economy in the long-run.

How will Mrs. Janet’s comments affect your investments?

First, take it all in. If you've never cared about this before, now's your chance because it affects you. Remember, this is economic data, and investors are all over it because economic data helps investors make bets on where to put their money.

You may have noticed a surge in financial stocks over the last few days. Well, this is because with the potential rise in interest rates, banks can charge consumers (that’s us) more for borrowing money. Therefore, banks will be poised to make more money, increasing their future cash flow, and thus driving up their stock prices today. We saw this first-hand with the stock market reaching all-time highs across all three indices, which all moved higher largely because investors are piling into financial stocks.

But, also keep in mind that higher interest rates over the long-term are bad for stocks. Why you might ask? Well, stock prices are driven by the market’s perceived value of what the underlying companies are worth. This “value” is derived by determining how much cash flow these companies will generate in the future, and then that amount is discounted (or lowered) to how much that value is worth today. The discount back to today’s dollars is directly linked to interest rates. The higher interest rates are, the lower overall stock prices will be in the long-term.

So, here are some things you can do:

1. Go back to your investment philosophy and examine what you hold. Ask yourself whether you need to make any adjustments to your holdings – do you want to take some profits given the strong rise in the markets recently? Do you want to re-allocate anything?
2. Ask your advisor how they are thinking about your asset allocation, or how much of your money is sitting in bonds vs. stocks vs. something else (e.g. real estate, cash).
3. Do a 401k check-up. Read how HERE!
4. Continue to pay attention to the market.

And, as Mrs. Jackson (now Janet that is), would say----- CONTROL! You have control over your situation and I want you to feel empowered to digest what’s happening around you and make moves accordingly or at least be comfortable with not taking action.

I hope you have a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving! I remain grateful to you for being part of the Charisse Says community. Enjoy time with your family and friends this week! I sure will!

Money Matters in a Post-Election Trump World

So, last week I was nervous and optimistic. And, many of you left comments on your reaction to my pre-election thoughts. Thank you for your continued engagement and thoughts. This week, I am still nervous and optimistic, just in a different way as I’ve now had several days to process and reflect. I’ve previously written about my choice in Hillary for President. But, I voted for a candidate who did not win the election.  I’m going to take it as a given that you can surmise why I’m still nervous, but here's how I’ve summed up my optimism, though frankly somewhat tempered:

I’m pouring my emotion into the things I can control and that can have impact, including trying to equip you with wealth-building and investing strategies and tactics.  I want to close the divide among those who have been utilizing wealth-building strategies and those who want to empower themselves to get some too!

Whomever you voted for (or if you chose not to vote at all – which is a topic that would take me a whole book to write about), we are all saddled with the question – how do we as individuals, which ultimately make up this country, move forward together under President-elect Trump? I had to deal with this personal reality this past weekend when I had to tackle this very question with my family members who voted for Trump. Yes, it has been up close and personal and time will ultimately judge us all!

Interestingly enough, the conversation circled back to how this Trump Presidency will affect our wallets and what we could do as individuals to create more opportunity in our lives across the board. So, here’s a few of my own takeaways on what we should be looking out for.

A Trump Presidency on Our Money:

Stick to Your Investing Philosophy. As we saw in the hours leading up to the stock market open on the day of the election, the market will show you how it feels about a particular event. The market’s rise over the week in the wake of a Trump win totally surprised many people, including some of the smartest economists around the globe. We are reminded that we cannot time the market.  According to a really good NYT article, the market is surely telling us that companies should benefit from a Trump Presidency. Only time will tell. Amidst uncertainty, we need to stick to our guns with our investment philosophies.  If you don’t have an investment philosophy yet, what’s holding you back? Send me your thoughts.

Companies Still Move On. Last week, one of my favorite companies, Shake Shack,reported very good earnings, which positively reflected that consumers value their product and their innovation on BURGERs and MILKSHAKES. Companies will keep moving - Oh My!

Entrepreneurial Wealth Matters. I am hopeful that this election will spur more entrepreneurship activity and innovation, which tends to drive wealth over time. If we really want to close the income equality gap, which was a major focus of the overall Presidential election, we need to begin to shift our thinking toward executing (and supporting) entrepreneurial endeavors. We all know that business formation typically requires money, and so we should be asking ourselves – can we allocate some of our funds to start businesses ourselves or invest in others? (As you might guess, this is a sneak peak to 2017…oh yeah!)

I know it’s been emotional whiplash for all of us over the last year, so I hope that you take time to enjoy the people in your life – albeit a Hillary or Donald supporter – because it’s these people that drive us to work hard, invest, and build wealth.

Reflections on 3Q16 Earnings Season

Happy Halloween! Are you out on the town at a party, taking the kids out for some trick or treating, or maybe your indoors without a second thought about the holiday?  

Either way, it is the last day of October, which means that we have two more months left in 2016. You can still take action this year and invest like a badass.

Don’t worry – it’s not too late to make some smart money decisions and invest for your future. I am with you every step of the way. With only two months to go, leave a comment below and state a topic you’d like to hear more about.

We are in the midst of third quarter earnings season, and so it’s only appropriate to highlight a few companies that might create opportunities for you or at least get you pumped up about you holding these companies in your portfolio. If want a refresher on why earnings reports matter, check out my video!

My 3Q Earnings Highlights

With lots of year-end activity, and here are a few stocks that have caught my attention:

• Apple – Last week, Apple’s stock dropped on earnings results that included its first annual revenue decline in 15 years. What? Yes, I said it. IPhone sales make up a decent chunk of Apple’s full revenues and its 6S model had some sluggish sales. But, Apple released it new iPhone 7 this quarter, and this should bode well for the company going into the holiday season. Are you going to buy another IPhone, or are you considering buying the stock? Leave a comment on my blog and tell me your approach.

• Microsoft – In recent weeks, the stock finally surpassed the stock price it hit in December of 1999. Yes, that’s a long time ago and the stock is trading at an all-time high after years of being in the dump. The company beat earnings expectations on the growth of its cloud computing software – Azure. For you techies, tell us what you think on my blog. Satya Nadella, a Chicago Booth grad (my fellow alum) is now at the helm, so I’m feeling a lot of school pride right now. Is Microsoft on a full-on new path to growth? Hmmm.

• Twilio – The stock is up over $70, after IPO’ing at $15 in June, which I discussed. Nothing more needs to be said on how the market is currently valuing this company. Watch my video for a reminder on how IPOs work.

• Reynolds American – British American Tobacco (BAT) wants to buy this company, which would create the world’s largest tobacco company. Similar in discussion to how stock prices work with Time Warner merger, it’s important to see if the 20% premium BAT offered will last.

Do you have any of these stocks in your portfolios? Are you buying more Microsoft products, or continuing to use the services like Uber, whose technology is powered by Twilio? You should be paying attention.

How will you take action today?

Making Money from the AT&T & Time Warner merger

It was a sad day on Saturday when my Dad’s LA Dodgers lost, sending the Chicago Cubs to the World Series. Although I live in Chicago now, I had to go with Dad’s team, which I have embraced since I was a little girl whenever my NY Mets don’t win. Going forward, I will be cheering for the Cubs. If they win, it will be 108 years since the last championship, and there’s no way I can root against them now.  

But, Saturday also confirmed on some other news that had been percolating since Friday. If you missed it, that’s OK – all you need to know is that by Saturday, AT&T offered Time Warner (TWX) a deal to pay $107.50 per share for its stock. The two companies are now planning a merger in a deal valued at $85 billion.

TWX opened at $83.31 on Friday morning, implying a potential 29% return if it goes through – oh my! The media landscape is constantly changing, so the above table from The Wall Street Journal is the best I’ve seen on the state of what company owns what.

I’m sure you remember the AOL-Time Warner merger. That one failed miserably, but perhaps this media combination will work differently.

I am hopeful. If there aren’t too many integration issues and companies stay true to their vision - “disrupt the traditional entertainment model and push the boundaries on mobile content availability for the benefit of customers” – it might actually work.

The key question is whether you are going to figure out how to make money from this reality. Here’s what I suggest:

The first way to make money from the AT&T/TWX deal is to use this opportunity to re-evaluate how you consume media, and make some money-saving decisions or encourage your friends/family to do so.

Have you cut the cable cord recently? I cut the cable cord in the spring of 2015 and I haven’t looked back. And, we have SAVED money even though we are the ultimate streaming snobs to get the shows and movies we want – Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, and Sling. Since we actually pay for these (I am not mad at you if you and your family/friends share one subscription), we saved $50 per month since we were previously paying $100 for our cable service with 125 channels that we didn’t watch. Leave a comment on my blog below on how you saved money and gotten back more time with streaming.

If you’re still on the fence, check out a New York Times article on the best ways to reconstruct your viewership experience when cutting the cord. This is the best cord-cutting article I’ve read.

Cord cutters like me, and potentially you, affect the media industry and the stocks that make them up as well.

The second way to make money from the AT&T/TWX deal is from the stocks themselves. Often, you can feel disconnected to the market. But, what this weekend reminds us is that we are so intertwined with what happens with the market. This deal happened because we, as consumers, are consuming media in a dramatically different way than we did just 10 years ago, let alone 5. Read the rest of my blog to see where you can make money from stocks.

First, check to see if you have TWX stock in any of your funds in your 401k, IRA, or brokerage accounts.

Com’on, it will be fun to see a gain. Basically, you should see a rise in the stock price near $107.50 in the short-run until deal closing. The stock will never hit that exact amount because there is risk that the merger won’t go through. Some investors will immediately sell their Time Warner stock (all or in part), if they want to take profits or they fear the deal won’t go through. Others will keep the TWX stock because they want to be part of the combined company under A&T. These could be smart money moves.

Second, check to see if you have any AT&T. You should see a fall in the price of this stock in the short-run. In most cases, the price of the acquiring company goes down a bit because it will cost money to buy the target and investor may expect the combined company to work. Over the long-term, if this deal works, AT&T could be a great money-maker stock.

Wouldn’t it be great to have some exposure to these stocks that can make you money? (Watch my video for a reminder on how to make money in stocks).

For you advanced investors, one strategy to make money is to buy an option if you are worried that the deal won’t go through – buy a put on the acquisition target’s stock, or TWX. Have no idea what I’m talking about or want to learn more about options? Let me know if this is an exciting topic for you by leaving a comment on my blog below. The more demand I see, the more I’ll know where to focus.

Highlights from the Charisse Says Community

The Charisse Say’s community’s own Jacqueline Headd was featured in American Express Open Forum. I wrote about her business success through customer service, for which she offers plenty of strategies for a business to grow. For you entrepreneurs looking to build wealth, you do not want to miss these tid bits.

Also, the Charisse Says platform is growing. I am looking to bring on an online communications guru to add to the team in November. If you’re interested, check out the description here.

Using Life Insurance to Pay for Funerals

I’m grateful for you and that you’re reading this blog!  

I took a break from writing last Monday because I wanted to leave space to honor my Uncle, who passed away 2 weeks ago. Death is a familiar visitor to many families, and while my family is no different, it has been quite a while since we planned a funeral.

I know you’re saying, “Charisse, I do not want to be reading about death.” But, before you tune out, just read a little further because you have the opportunity to prepare properly for a stage of life that everyone will go through one day.

Putting aside the grieving and emotional whiplash we endure, death also forces us confront the economic realities of burying our loved ones. While I strongly believe that no one can be truly prepared to handle death, you can prepare to not let the occurrence of death financially cripple you or your loved ones.

Two Pieces of Dead-on Advice (Ok, you can smile here – I couldn’t help it) 

Start the Conversation Now. My grandmother talks about death like a birthday party she’s planning for herself – how much it’s going to cost, what she wants to wear, where it will be, and who’s to come. On one hand, this frightens me to no end as I do not want to think of my grandmother leaving this earth. On the other hand, I am grateful for her foresight into how important it is to plan for the inevitable.

If you do not have a grandmother or parent who talks about death like a birthday party, that’s OK. But, do begin your own conversation with your loved ones (parent, spouse, child) to find out what they want to happen in case they (or you) leave this earth. According to the National Funeral Directors Association in 2012,the average funeral cost was $7,775, not including cemetery costs, and so I want everyone around you to be prepared.

Life Insurance Is a Must. In my first job at JPMorgan, I remember one of my colleagues reflecting after his lunch meeting with his financial advisor. He said “Life insurance is a priority for me because I do not want my wife and kids have financial hardship in case I get hit by a bus.” Life insurance policies often carry a death benefit clause, which is very helpful to pay for burial and funeral expenses. So, ask yourself these key questions and work backwards to see if you are adequately covered:

• How will my funeral expenses be covered?
• What kind of coverage does my life insurance provide?
• Do my loved ones know what the policy is, and where it is?

According to the American Council of Life Insurers, 41% of all life insurance policies in force in 2013 were through groups, including workplaces, churches and other associations. Remember, however, that most plans through your employer are not portable, so if you leave your job, I do not want you to be out of luck.

My Uncle Tommy always spoke life into me, whether it was to compliment me on an outfit or simply tell me he loved me. I now take his love and share my own with you:

You are destined for great things.

Take hold of your own future.

Have the courage to plan for the unexpected.

If you've made a smart money decision when it comes to preparing for death or funerals, please leave a comment below.

Real Estate Crowdfunding For Non-Accredited Investors

The fourth quarter is now upon us. I can’t believe that we are in October. Can you?  

We have much to look forward – deciding a new U.S. President (which had me fired up on the debates last week), participating in holiday festivities, executing on smart tax strategies, following those stock company earnings (for us market junkies), and enjoying the last days of 2016.

Now, let’s also remember that the last three months also offer reflection on your 2016 money goals and whether or not you have taken action like we’ve discussed. If your money situation is creating some anxiety for you, you’re not alone as money issue can be stressful!

One way to reduce stress, and especially money stress, is to practice mindful meditation. As I learned during my recent travels, the Japanese have a strong meditation culture and I was re-inspired to incorporate it into my daily routine. And this year, new scientific evidence has shown that mindful meditation has positive physiological ramifications.

Don’t know how? All good - check out these mindfulness techniques. My favorite is taking time out to breathe.

I had to do some breathing before I participated on the Real Cap Chicago’s real estate crowdfunding panel last Thursday. I also want to share several takeaways: (Read more to find out how you can make money in real estate crowdfunding)

3 Takeaways on Real Estate Crowdfunding.

1.Real estate crowdfunding offers an alternative way to invest in real estate. One of the biggest hindrances to direct real estate investing is the amount of time you can spend in managing the property. If you do not want to invest in REITs or other equity-like real estate investments, crowdfunding offers another option. Real estate crowdfunding allows development companies to raise funds through online platforms for private real estate deals, which should generate a return for you. Think of Kickstarter solely focused on real estate.

2. Non-accredited investors will get more access to private real estate deals. Under the 2015 JOBS Act, non-accredited investors, are allowed to participate in crowdsourced deals. Here is a list of the major real estate crowdfunding sites. If you’re in Chicago, you could not miss the opening of Whole Foods in Engelwood last week. Of the $15MM raised as part of the deal, $500,000 was crowdsourced.

3. Education is key. If you’re considering a crowdsourced deal, it’s important that you do your homework. You should be able to articulate why your are making the investment, how the investment fits in your overall portfolio, what’s the investment opportunity in the deal, and who are the people behind the company that is developing the real estate. If you have a financial advisor, ask them these questions and what deals would they recommend.

If you’re not ready to crowdfund, it’s OK as the opportunity must be right for you. In the meanwhile, please continue to share your investing successes and failures with the community below – we’d love to hear from you.

Preview to Money and 2016 Presidential Debates

It’s been a difficult week with all of us suffering from the continued racial discord in our country. Amidst it all, the stock market marches onward, and it was a rocky week with the Fed’s commentary on the potential future upward trajectory of interest rates.  

So much is going on, right?

If you’re like me, you are getting fired up for the debates tonight. If we’re lucky, we will witness a sparring between Hillary and Donald on the issues. Unfortunately, most debates (and the associated gains or losses for the candidates) are based on how candidates look saying stuff, rather than what they say, as outlined extensively in The Atlantic’s recent “Who Will Win” article. I hope that we do not fall into this trap, especially because the significance of image in this is election seems even greater than in the past.

That said, I want to share several money issues I think you should be focused on during this election season.

Money Issues for Election 2016

According to a July Pew Study, voters cite that the 5 top issues of this are:

• The economy
• Terrorism
• Foreign policy
• Health care
• Gun policy (Lord knows that we in Chicago need that last one)

Yes, what happens in the economy will affect your money, but I also want to see a discussion on pressing issues that will influence your pocketbook - child care and maternity/paternity leave, student loan debt, and social security.

On the child care front, I am even more sensitive to this issue after listening to Dr. Anne-Marie Slaughter give a talk at the Chicago Foundation for Women. Regardless of whether you have your own kid or not, this issue touches us all. You remember Dr. Slaughter, right? She wrote the article “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All,” four years ago. Last week, she said something that shocked me:

“Child care costs more than rent in each of the 50 states.”

I fact checked it and found a few studies, one in particular showing that daycare fees for two children (an infant and a 4-year-old) exceeded annual median rent payments in every state in the U.S. last year. This is crazy, especially since this study doesn’t even account for the quality of child care, which will surely impact the price.

Regardless of who becomes the next President of the U.S., nothing that he or she will do will take shape for some time. In the meanwhile, we all still must grapple with what can each of us do to improve our situation today. So…..

Here’s Some Money Advice

With three months to go in this year, I want to challenge you to continue to make smart money decisions. I asked some of you to share successes of failures. Thank you for all the responses! Continue to send these my way.

I want to give a shout-out to Lynda M., who shared that she is working on an entrepreneurial venture and taking steps to build her product. If you remember nothing else, remember that wealth creation through entrepreneurship is a viable option. Congrats, Lynda for taking the big leap of faith to invest in you.

Have a wonderful week and I hope you continue to find joy in all our craziness.

The Impact of Japanese Culture and RealCap 2016

I am back from my vacation in Japan, and I have to be honest with you – it was tough to come back. My husband George and I truly enjoyed ourselves. This picture describes how I felt – FREE! (yup, that’s me and my crazy self.) Anata ni aitakatta! In Japanese, this means “I Missed You.”

But, our unplugging gave rise to lots of creative meanderings and the ability to just be present and take in the new experience. The market remained relatively calm for me while I was gone…whew! [Side note - When I use to work at JPMorgan stock picking, many of my vacations were high jacked by a few of my stocks blowing up. I do not miss those times!]

Whenever I go to a country for the first time, I am amazed by what I learn and absorb. And of course, I would be remiss if I did not share a little bit with you as it relates to journeying with you when it comes to taking it to the next level with your money.

You ready?

Well, I’ll share one major takeaway each week over the next few weeks.

The Japanese put the community first.

Whether I saw a person covering their face with a full-blown mask so that other people won’t get sick or someone on the street stopped to help us not look terribly lost, someone constantly worried about our well-being.

Ah ha moment – What if we took a community approach to our money matters? As Americans, we tend to keep our money talks to ourselves. Families who do transfer wealth between generations do talk more than the average, but it’s still a little taboo.

But what if we (and, I mean YOU as part of the Charisse Says community) got into a habit of sharing your successes and failures for the benefit of the community?

Challenge - Please share below an investing success or failure you’ve had over the last month or two – I know someone else can benefit. We have just a few more months in this Year of Action, so let me hear it.

Vacation also allowed me to get some good reads in. My book of pleasure was Re Jane, a coming of age book told from the Korean-American perspective. Key takeaway for you – when your family has the opportunity to pull together to make a sizable investment, the results might be favorable. We can often do more collectively than individually. Notice a common theme this week?

If You’re In Town

I’ll be a panelist at this year’s RealCap Chicago 2016 conference. RealCap is a national conference dedicated to educating leaders and newcomers, developers and investors alike on the expanding industry of real estate crowdfunding. In my panel, we are set to discuss “Finding and Accessing Capital,” and I’m pretty pumped up. You can get $100 off by using my promocode: CJ100.

3 Investing Takeaways Before I See Ya in September!

We have a few weeks left before it’s “back to school” and “back to work,” and thus I’m saying goodbye for the remaining weeks of summer. Yup, I work hard to play hard and it’s break time.

I told you that I’m all about an Olympian attitude, and it’s time to finish strong.

So, I figured I’d leave you with 3 takeaways before I head out: 

1. Stock Trifecta – Last week, all three major indices reached new heights on the same day last week. And, by major, I mean the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the Nasdaq Composite, and the S&P 500 Index. Forget what these mean? No worries – check out my video on the stock market.

   Why should you care? Because you should be thinking about how your portfolio has been doing and whether you should rebalance or taking profits somewhere. Remember, stocks don’t continue to go up forever. Most people, including myself, are horrible at timing the market and thus, staying disciplined on rebalancing is key. 

2. Is Facebook Really Worth an Investment? Yes, Zuckerberg has been all over the news for his desire to put an Oculus on all 1.7 BILLION Facebook users. If you missed the Bloomberg article about it, check it out here. I spent some time with my mother’s investment club over the last month and they weighed the pros and cons of investing more money into this one (Don’t worry – I got permission to write about it).

   Before you start pondering whether you want to invest in the individual stock, check out your current mutual funds or ETFs and see if you already own Facebook shares. Many people want to own the stock outright, but you might benefit from the diversification that comes with owning Facebook as part of a larger portfolio. 

3. My Roboadvisor Account Disappointed. In last week’s post on the Rio Olympics, I told you that I would let you know the results of my 1-year use of the roboadvisor Betterment. I analyzed the results and it is clear that I underperformed the S&P 500 Index over the same time period even though I held 90% stocks and 10% bonds.

   When I dug deeper, a big reason that I didn’t keep up is that my portfolio had some international stock exposure (shall I remind you of Brexit???). More alarming is that account FEEs ate up some of my returns. Because I only invested $50 per month, I had to pay $3 per month in fees. While that doesn’t seem like a lot, it’s 6% ($3 divided by $50) of my monthly investment – Yikes! I have yet to get a hold of Betterment’s customer service, but when I do, we will walk through the details.

My recommendation? If you’re going to use Betterment, auto-deposit at least $100 per month so that the annual fee is 0.35% on assets.

Well, it’s been real this summer. I hope you get your break on and enjoy time with family and friends. And, if you have a good money book that you want to recommend to me, please don’t hesitate to leave a comment below. I’m going to need lots to reading material on long my trip to Japan in a few weeks.

Enjoy Labor Day, and I’ll be back in mid-Setpember!