Dollar Cost Averaging - Creating Good Money Behavior

The increase in volatility to start 2018, coupled with the almost 9-year bull market run has caused many sophisticated investors to question when to buy and when to sell. So, it’s important to remember that there is a very simple investment strategy that doesn’t require you to stare at trading screens all day – Dollar-Cost-Averaging.

It isn’t new and exciting, but many a successful investor has proven its worth. The principle behind it is this: You put the same amount of money into the same investment on the same day each month. Those months when the investment’s price goes up, your set amount does not buy as many shares. But when the investment‘s price dips, you get to buy more shares at a cheaper price.

Guess what? When the price goes back up, all those shares you bought cheaply make you some money. Those shares you bought when the price was high look good, too.

There are a few reasons to invest this way:

Celebrate Twice

First, it takes the guesswork out of trying to predict what the stock market is going to do. It’s easy to lose money seeking to time the market. Even professional investors can be pretty bad at it. As long as you feel good about the investment you buy, you know that the fundamentals are right, and your situation has not changed, you shouldn’t care what the stock market is doing day to day.

In fact, maybe you should celebrate when the market dips and you buy because you get to buy more shares that you think have great long-term prospects.

And you celebrate again when the market rallies because all your shares are more highly valued. You win either way. Also, you won’t have to put so much time and energy into investing. You can focus on your career and family rather than obsess over your portfolio.

Disciplined Approach

Next, Dollar-Cost-Averaging creates a disciplined approach to building wealth. You are now on a path to save and invest regularly, building wealth one month at a time. Yes, we have all read about those hot stocks that made someone rich overnight. But for most of us, it’s going to take a working lifetime to accumulate our wealth.

It Doesn’t Take Much to Start

You can do this for as little as $100 per month and many platforms don’t even have a minimum. You don’t need thousands of dollars to get started or to continue your dollar cost averaging plan. So, no excuses.

Some Things to Think About

·       Start with a monthly amount that won’t break your bank. This is money you won’t miss on a monthly basis.

·       Commit to a Dollar-Cost-Averaging program of at least 12 months. It takes time to build wealth and see the results of your efforts.

·       Don’t wait for the price to go up or down. The key is consistency. Don’t vary the amount based on how much is in your savings account that day, either. Set it up for the same day, same amount, same investment.

·       Don’t stop it when the market retreats. If you still believe in your investment, keep investing. Remember, in a down market you are buying more shares for less money.

Final Thoughts

The Dollar-Cost-Averaging approach is about building wealth steadily, consistently and with discipline over time. It’s about creating and strengthening good money behavior. When you do this for 10 years and see your accumulated balance, you won’t care that you didn’t invest exactly on the best day in the market in 2018.

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Many large companies offer employees a 401(k) plan with some degree of matching contribution. Although this is a good employee benefit to have, you always should pay attention to the fees involved in your plan. Your plan provider charges various fees to invest, manage and administer the plan, and those fees are passed on to the participants who invest.

The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College reports that, in recent years, the fees charged by actively managed mutual funds — including those in 401(k) plans — have dropped. Since 2015, the average fee dropped from 0.78 percent to 0.75 percent. Around 15 years ago, fees averaged about 1 percent. However, fees for passively managed index mutual funds, generally referred to as index funds, average significantly less at 0.17 percent. Index funds passively track the investments of a specific market index; there is no manager actively choosing investments for the fund on a day-to-day basis.1

If you have a 401(k) plan through a current or former employer, I’d happy to help you determine what you are paying in fees and help you assess your financial situation. In many cases, the more investors learn about fees, the more they start choosing investments that cost less. The Center for Retirement Research suggests this by sharing that U.S. investors withdrew $627 billion from actively managed funds that charged the highest fees and invested $429 billion into lower-fee index funds in 2015 and 2016.2

The Department of Labor’s fiduciary rule, which took partial effect in June, has made it easier for investors to know what they are paying for by requiring the disclosure of all fees and commissions. This information must be in dollar form.3 In addition, FINRA, a self-regulatory organization that regulates broker-dealers in the United States, offers a Fund Analyzer tool on its website that can help investors estimate the impact of fees and expenses on an investment and research applicable fees and available discounts for specific funds.4

Are fees really that important? It can depend. If you are paying a money management firm to select investments and it does a great job of providing consistent performance over time, it may be worth what you pay in fees. But it may also be worth considering how your investments compare with the overall market. For example, over the past three years, the S&P 500 has increased by 26 percent (as of mid-June 2017).5 If you were invested in a low-expense S&P 500 index fund, you would have experienced impressive returns. But if you had been paying a high fee for an active manager yielding the same performance, it may not have been worth the expense.

Speaking of fees, be aware that the IRS permits investors to deduct certain expenses incurred on taxable investments, such as:

• Fees for investment counsel, including subscriptions to financial publications
• IRA or Keogh custodial fees (if paid by cash outside the account)
• Transportation to your broker’s or investment advisor’s office
• Safety deposit box rent if you use it to store certificates or investment-related paperwork

If you have a 401(k) plan through a current or former employer and would like help determining what you are paying in fees, I’m happy to help you assess your financial situation. Using a variety of investments, I can create a financial strategy that can help put you on the path toward your financial goals.

Content prepared by Kara Stefan Communications.

1 Center for Retirement Research at Boston College. June 29, 2017. “Mutual Fund Fees: Here’s What Matters.” http://squaredawayblog.bc.edu/squared-away/mutual-fund-fees-heres-what-matters/. Accessed July 5, 2017.

2 Ibid.

3 Investopedia. July 5, 2017. “DOL Fiduciary Rule Explained as of July 5th, 2017.” http://www.investopedia.com/updates/dol-fiduciary-rule/. Accessed July 13, 2017.

4 FINRA. “Fund Analyzer.” http://apps.finra.org/fundanalyzer/1/fa.aspx. Accessed July 5, 2017.

5 Dayana Yochim. Atlanta Journal Constitution. July 5, 2017. “This May Be Why You’re Down in an Up Market.” http://www.ajc.com/business/consumer-advice/this-may-why-you-down-market/hQWTwwUWlBhEKX8tJoyNHL/. Accessed July 5, 2017.

6 Rande Spiegelman. Charles Schwab. March 15, 2017. “Investment Expenses: What’s Tax Deductible?” http://www.schwab.com/insights/taxes/investment-expenses-whats-tax-deductible. Accessed July 5, 2017.

Neither the firm nor its agents or representatives may give tax advice. Be sure to speak with a qualified professional about your unique situation.

We are an independent firm helping individuals create retirement strategies using a variety of insurance and investment products to custom suit their needs and objectives. This material is intended to provide general information to help you understand basic financial planning strategies and should not be construed as financial advice. All investments are subject to risk including the potential loss of principal. No investment strategy can guarantee a profit or protect against loss in periods of declining values. 

The information contained in this material is believed to be reliable, but accuracy and completeness cannot be guaranteed; it is not intended to be used as the sole basis for financial decisions. If you are unable to access any of the news articles and sources through the links provided in this text, please contact us to request a copy of the desired reference.
 

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The evidence-based approach originated in the medical field to promote the use of clinical experience and the best available research to make decisions about individual patient care.1

In the investing world, this translates to a goal of using current evidence to help maximize an individual’s investment returns while minimizing risk from market downturns.2 In more simplistic terms, evidence-based investing (EBI) means that whatever you decide to do, make sure you have an evidence-based reason for doing it, and always be prepared to amend your plan when the evidence necessitates a change.3

While we’re happy to explain to our clients various investing and wealth management approaches, including EBI, please keep in mind that our advice is tailored to each person’s needs. What works for one client may not work as well for another. We’d love to talk with you about our individual approach to investing – give us a call, and we’ll be happy to set up an appointment.

Financial professionals who use evidence-based investing typically take a four-step decision-making process:4

1. Eliminate meaningless questions.
2. Ask meaningful questions.
3. Apply the evidence.
4. Monitor for effectiveness.

Another significant distinction about EBI is that it is commonly misinterpreted as passive investing. However, EBI is not so much about active versus passive management but rather is about keeping an eye on how much you pay for each investment and determining if what you’ve gotten in return is worth the price.5

Please remember that investing involves risk, including the potential loss of principal. No investment strategy can guarantee a profit or protect against loss in periods of declining values.

Content prepared by Kara Stefan Communications.

1 Michael Chamberlain. Investopedia. March. 28, 2017. “Comparing Traditional to Evidence-Based Investing.” http://www.investopedia.com/advisor-network/articles/comparing-traditional-evidencebased-investing/. Accessed May 26, 2017.

2 Michael Finke. ThinkAdvisor. Spring 2017. “The Rise of Evidence-Based Investing.” http://www.researchmagdigital.com/researchmag/april_2017?utm_campaign=Q22017%20Thought%20Leadership&utm_content=52019654&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&pg=14#pg14. Accessed May 26, 2017.

3 Robin Powell. The Evidence-Based Investor. April 25, 2017. “Bob Seawright: Behavioral Finance Is as Much a Part of EBI as Indexing.” http://www.evidenceinvestor.co.uk/bob-seawright-behavioural-finance-much-part-ebi-indexing/?platform=hootsuite. Accessed May 26, 2017.                                                                                                     

4 Michael Finke. ThinkAdvisor. Spring 2017. “The Rise of Evidence-Based Investing.” http://www.researchmagdigital.com/researchmag/april_2017?utm_campaign=Q22017%20Thought%20Leadership&utm_content=52019654&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&pg=14#pg14. Accessed May 26, 2017.

5 Corey Hoffstein. Newfound Research. Nov. 18, 2016. “What I Learned at the Evidence-Based Investing Conference.” https://blog.thinknewfound.com/2016/11/4-lessons-ritholtz-wealth-evidence-based-investing-conference/. Accessed May 26, 2017.

We are an independent firm helping individuals create retirement strategies using a variety of insurance and investment products to custom suit their needs and objectives. This material is intended to provide general information to help you understand basic financial planning strategies and should not be construed as financial advice.

The information contained in this material is believed to be reliable, but accuracy and completeness cannot be guaranteed; it is not intended to be used as the sole basis for financial decisions. If you are unable to access any of the news articles and sources through the links provided in this text, please contact us to request a copy of the desired reference.

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