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What It Takes to Become Wealthy Becoming wealthy requires taking “controlled” risks. If you think you can become wealthy without risk, you might as well be straightening the deck chairs of the Titanic. To become wealthy without risk, you must either inherit it or win the lottery. DISCOVER LIFE’S THREE CHRONOLOGICAL PERIODS Our investment philosophy is based on an individual’s chronological time line, which consists of three periods: (1) asset accumulation, (2) wealth building, and (3) asset conservation. The financial journey through life’s time line starts at different levels, depending on whether you were born with a plastic or a silver spoon in your mouth. As you travel through your time line, your investment options change. Knowing where you are and what options are available will help you make the right choices. A Winning Financial Plan up to Age 35 The first chronological period of your life—mid-twenties to mid-thirties—should be devoted to accumulating assets and acquiring basic necessities. When you’re just starting out, your assets are usually limited and the major portion of your income goes for the basic needs—food, clothing, and shelter. This is the time to save, save, save! Amass as many investment dollars as possible. Your approach to investing during this period should be through tax-deferred plans at work or Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs). Your degree of risk should be moderate. Investments included in this category are AAA corporate bonds, blue chip stocks, and growth-oriented no-load mutual funds. Every effort should be made to purchase a home now. The advantages, from tax savings and equity buildup, historically outweigh the short-term benefits of lower monthly rent payments. Be careful when sheltering yourself and your family from liability. Only pay for protection when you’re purchasing life insurance. Purchase whole life insurance if it will yield a higher rate of return than other investments. After reading the chapter on asset protection, you might seriously consider reducing your liability coverage. Remember, your main financial goal during this time is tax-deferred accumulation of capital. Don’t take risks with your investments. Save as much as you can so that when you enter the next phase of the time line you’ll be ready to move forward. Investing between the Ages of 35 and 50 After earnings have increased, assets have been accumulated, and basic necessities are under control, it’s time to move on. Ready or not, you must face the challenges during this aggressive investment period of your life, when you are between your mid-thirties and early fifties. The Best Financial Plan for You Your best financial plan is to create the maximum wealth during this aggressive investment period of your life. Build financial security yourself: don’t rely on others to do it for you. Many people who relied on major banks and insurance companies for financial security ended up short when these institutions failed. The social security system will not do much better. You should be careful not to over diversify your assets or adopt a “hold-back” attitude. You must concentrate your assets into one or two aggressive investments rather than spreading them out. Diversification often leads to ineffectiveness. What if you fail during this period? What is your down side? If you consider your ability to bounce back because of your age, the political clout of your generation, taxes, and inflation, the real risk is minimized. Make your aggressive investments now. As you get older, your ability to rebound declines. If you do not try at this stage in your in-vestment time line, you probably will never do it, and more importantly, you will never know whether you could have done it. ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Eugene E. Vollucci, is considered to be one of the foremost authorities on real estate taxation and apartment investing and has authored four books in these fields. He is the Director of the Center for Real Estate Studies, a real estate research organization. To learn more about the Center for Real Estate Studies, please visit our web site at http://www.calstatecompanies.com
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EUGENE VOLLUCCI, REAL ESTATE, TAXATION, APARTMENT IVESTING,
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