www.hchoicenet.com

HomeChoice Network, Inc. is a locally owned and operated Licensed Home Care Agency. The owners are hands on operators with over forty years of long-term care experience. Our mission is to provide services that will enable seniors to cope with the requirements of independent living while remaining in the familiar surroundings of home, wherever they call home. HomeChoice Network caregivers are employees of the agency. Caregivers are selected for their compassion, competence, and experience. All are carefully screened, orientated, and receive ongoing training. As an employer, the agency maintains liability insurance, workers compensation coverage, and withholding tax responsibilities for all caregivers.

Our services are available twenty four hours a day – seven days a week. We are very proud to provide the following areas of service for clients:

● Companionship

● Personal Services

● Nutrition Services

● Housekeeping Services

● Transportation Services

● Clerical Services

● Personal Care Services

● Additional Services Upon Request

Please contact us. We will be glad to answer any questions you may have. A trained representative is available to answer questions at all times. Or, you can visit us on our website at www.hchoicenet.com

Provided by Roy Neal

The stock market is unsettled … and perhaps its fluctuations are unsettling you. It’s a stressful time for the economy and Wall Street, and you may be concerned about your portfolio given what’s going on with oil prices, the real estate market, and rising unemployment figures. It may be a good time to review how your assets are invested.

Is your portfolio balanced? A balanced portfolio may help you ride out stock market turbulence. Stocks and mutual funds aren’t the only asset allocation choices you have, and you won’t be alone this winter if you decide to examine other investment options.

Fixed annuities and Treasuries become attractive to investors when the market turns volatile. Bonds tend to maintain their strength when stocks perform poorly; fixed annuities are simply contracts with insurance firms, not correlated to stock market performance (though certain types of annuities may enable you to take advantage of stock market gains while maintaining your principal). Fixed-income mutual funds, dividend income funds and bond funds also have their adherents.

Last but not least, you have cash, though cash holdings haven’t traditionally performed anywhere near the level of the stock markets.

Are you retired, or retiring? If you are, this is all the more reason to review and possibly even revise your portfolio. Frequently, people approach or enter retirement with portfolios that haven’t been reviewed in years. The asset allocation that seemed wise ten years ago may seem foolhardy today.

Often, people in their fifties and sixties feel they need to accumulate more money for retirement, and that feeling leads them to accept more risk in their portfolio than they should. In the absence of a salary, however, you’ll likely want consistent income and growth, and therein lies the appeal of a balanced investment approach designed to manage risk while encouraging an adequate return.

Why not take a look into your portfolio? Ask your financial advisor to assist you. You may find that you have a mix of investments that matches your risk tolerance. Or, your portfolio may need minor or major adjustments. The right balance may help you insulate your assets to a greater degree against financial ups and downs.

These are the views of Peter Montoya, Inc., not the named Representative or Broker/Dealer, and should not be construed as investment advice. Neither the named Representative or Broker/Dealer give tax or legal advice. All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however, we make no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. Please consult your Financial Advisor for further information.

Securities and Advisory Services offered through Private Client Services LLC, 2225 Lexington Rd, Louisville, KY  40206  Ph 502-451-0600.  Member FINRA, SIPC and Registered Investment Adviser.  Private Client Services LLC and Retirement and Estate Planning Services are unaffiliated entities

Bill Sahadi, CRS
910 638-0888
Broker/Owner Fore Properties
www.foreproperties.com/radio

James R. Berenson, MD
Institute for Myeloma & Bone Cancer Research
http://imbcr.org/

Presented by Roy Neal

Planning financially for retirement may feel overwhelming. For some, that feeling is what keeps them from really focusing on and implementing a plan. If you haven’t started planning for your retirement – do yourself a favor and make TODAY the day you begin.

1. The earlier the better.
Time is definitely one of your greatest allies. A person who begins contributing a modest amount to a retirement plan in their early twenties could end up on par with someone who contributes much more aggressively but does not start until their mid-thirties. Even if you have to start small, start now. Whatever amount you can afford to set aside for later, do it – and let it grow. If you don’t have the luxury of starting young, don’t waste time worrying about it. Start now. You’ll never again be younger than you are today.

2. Be smart about what you’ll need.
Yes, it’s true – the senior discount is alive and well, and the general cost of living may be less for those who have retired. But don’t forget, there are other costs to consider. Your healthcare costs, for example, may be greater in retirement simply because you’re not as healthy as you were in your youth. Additionally, you’ll want to take inflation into account. If you plan your retirement based on the cost of living and income of your 30’s, by the time you hit your retirement years, you may find you greatly underestimated your needs.

3. Be smart about how long you’ll need it.
When Social Security was being developed, in the 1930’s, a male retiring in the United States was really only expected to live about 12 years past his date of retirement.2 However, the average life expectancy of a United States citizen has risen fairly steadily throughout the last fifty years.1 Depending on when you retire, you may need to plan for 20 or more years of income.

4. Take advantage of tax-deferred contributions.
It sounds like a no-brainer, but sometimes people determine how much they can afford to contribute to a retirement account based on their net income, rather than their gross income. You may decide you can only afford $50 less per paycheck, net. But remember that some contributions, like those to your 401(k) for example, may be made with pre-tax dollars. That means you can afford to contribute a bit more from your gross income and still only “miss” $50 from your net income. This is an important consideration.

5. Take advantage of matching contributions.
If your employer offers a 401(k) match – consider scrimping here and there in order to take maximum advantage of it. It’s a very positive domino effect. The more you contribute, the more you earn in matching contributions (up to the maximum allowable amount). Think of it this way – if your employer offers a 50% match, then for every $100 you don’t contribute, you’re missing out on $50 in “free money”. You’re also missing out on the growth potential of that money as well.

6. Do the math.
This might be the most important retirement tip of all. Block off some time to sit down and do some calculations. Consider the different levels of contributions you could make and calculate how far those could take you by the time you reach retirement. Once you see what you COULD achieve, you may be more motivated to increase your contributions.

7. Trim the fat.
Keep careful track of your spending for one month (if you bank online, you may have access to tools that help you do this). After one full month, sit down and take a careful look at what you spent money on. Did it all make sense? Was some of it frivolous? Any regrets? Taking a close look at exactly where your money is going is often the best way to discover areas that need improvement, and ways you could adjust your spending habits. Add up all the money you feel you spent unnecessarily, then add that amount to the contribution math you did previously … how much further might that extra monthly contribution have taken you?

8. Get help.
These retirement tips are intended to help you get started down a path toward, potentially, a more successful retirement. But they’re just that – a starting point. While it’s definitely important to educate yourself and understand your finances, seeking the assistance of a financial professional may be one of the best moves you could make.

This material was prepared by Peter Montoya Inc., and does not necessarily represent the views of the presenting party, nor their affiliates. This information should not be construed as investment, tax or legal advice. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services. All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however, we make no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. If assistance or further information is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.

1 – google.com/publicdata?ds=wb-wdi&met=sp_dyn_le00_in&idim=country:USA&dl=en&hl=en&q=life+expectancy [10/29/10]
2 – http://www.newretirement.com/Planning101/Retiring_Too_Soon.aspx [10/25/10]

Securities and Advisory Services offered through Private Client Services LLC, 2225 Lexington Rd, Louisville, KY 40206 Ph 502-451-0600. Member FINRA, SIPC and Registered Investment Adviser. Private Client Services LLC and Retirement and Estate Planning Services are unaffiliated entities

by Roy Neal

GMIBs. GMWBs. GMABs. GLWBs. What do these acronyms mean? If you own a variable annuity or think you might want to own one, they stand for a new class of living benefits that make these investments even more attractive.

Variable annuities are tax-deferred investments structured to pay you benefits over a set number of years, and a death benefit to your beneficiaries. They let you invest some of your annuity assets in investment subaccounts that suit your investment styles and goals.

Additionally, these annuity contracts often come with riders that guarantee certain benefits regardless of how the markets perform: GMIBs, GMWBs, GLWBs, and GMABs.

Guaranteed minimum income benefit (GMIB). A GMIB ensures that the annuity payments that come your way are at least a specified minimum amount, even if your investment subaccounts perform poorly (the insurer picks up the slack). How is the minimum payment amount figured out? It is based on the insurance company’s estimation of the future value of the initial annuity investment.1

Guaranteed minimum withdrawal benefit (GMWB). If the principal of your variable annuity shrinks due to a market downturn, you can use this rider to recoup the amount of your entire initial investment. If you own a variable annuity with a GMWB with a 10% withdrawal rate, you can withdraw 10% of your entire investment each year until the initial investment amount has been recouped. That’s useful if the value of your annuity should decline. If you started your variable annuity with a $200,000 investment and it is now worth $180,000, you can use the 10% GMWB to withdraw $20,000 of the original principal amount each year until the entire $200,000 is recovered thanks to the guarantee set by the insurance company.2

Guaranteed lifetime withdrawal benefit (GLWB). This means guaranteed income payments for life. Let’s say your variable annuity has an account balance of $100,000 and is structured to pay out $5,000 a year for 20 years. With a GMWB for life, you will continue to receive $5,000 a year from the insurer even if you have recouped the original principal and even if the account value falls due to poor investment returns.3

Guaranteed minimum accumulation benefit (GMAB). A GMAB gives you the confidence of knowing that after a set period of years, you will have at least X dollar amount of assets in your variable annuity. Usually, the GMAB is established for the end of a 10-year period, i.e., in ten years, the insurer guarantees that your annuity contract will be valued at a minimum of $100,000, even if the market drives the actual value down.4

Long-term care insurance options. This is certainly a new wrinkle in variable annuities and worth knowing about. Some variable annuities now allow you to pay long-term care benefits from the life insurance death benefit promised in the annuity contract. While this will reduce the amount of the death benefit, it can certainly help during your life. If you don’t choose to spend some of the death benefit on long-term care, then the entire death benefit will be received by your heir. You can also choose to receive the cash value of the death benefit as an income stream.5

Very interesting, isn’t it? If you’d like to know more about the new living benefits in variable annuities, why not talk to a qualified insurance or investment professional today? These new annuity options may give you more financial confidence – and financial choices – for retirement.

Please note that variable annuities are long-term investment vehicles designed for retirement purposes. Investing in variable annuities involves market risk, including possible loss of principal. Investors should carefully consider the product’s investment objectives, risks, limitation, charges, and expenses. The variable annuity prospectus and underlying sub-account prospectus contain this and other important information. These prospectuses should be read carefully before investing.

These views are those of the author and should not be construed as investment advice. All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however we make no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. Please consult your Financial Advisor for further information.

Citations.
1 investopedia.com/terms/g/gmib.asp [11/11/08]
2 investopedia.com/terms/g/gmwb.asp [11/11/08]
3 lidp.com/living-benefits-defined.html [11/11/08]
4 finance.yahoo.com/how-to-guide/retirement/18308 [11/11/08]
5 investopedia.com/printable.asp?a=/articles/pf/08/variable-insurance.asp [11/11/08]

Securities and Advisory Services offered through Private Client Services LLC, 2225 Lexington Rd, Louisville, KY 40206 Ph 502-451-0600. Member FINRA, SIPC and Registered Investment Adviser. Private Client Services LLC and Retirement and Estate Planning Services are unaffiliated entities

Provided by Roy Neal

In any stock market climate, proper asset allocation matters. In a down market, you could argue that it matters more than anything else.

Did you have a well-diversified portfolio during the fall of 2008? That was a time when the importance of having a bond allocation and proper equity diversification really hit home. Nearly all investors were hit hard, but some were hit harder than others. What percentage of your portfolio was held in Treasuries (or cash) at that time?

Wise asset allocation may help you as the market recovers. Yes, even diversified portfolios lost money at the end of 2008 and the start of 2009. Yet with rebalancing, these same portfolios may be poised to take advantage of a rebounding market.

You might say there are two schools of thought when it comes to diversification and asset allocation – hands off, and hands on.

Modern Portfolio Theory. In 1952, a University of Chicago Ph.D. candidate named Harry Markowitz published a thesis – a brief, provocative paper that called for investors and money managers to see risk with new eyes. That was the start of Modern Portfolio Theory, which still has many advocates today.

Before MPT, money managers and investors tended to look at investments in isolation: if a stock had performed well in 1948, it was a good stock and it would probably perform well in 1949. They analyzed a stock almost like they would analyze a business.

In his paper, Markowitz basically said “You guys are going about this the wrong way.” He first assumed that all investors wanted to avoid risk (which he defined as standard deviation from expected portfolio returns). He then contended that you should measure the risk level of a whole portfolio instead of individual securities.1 (In other words, if you want to include a security in your portfolio, you should think about how that will alter the risk level of your entire portfolio, rather than simply consider the risk of the security.)

MPT asserts that for every portfolio, there exists an “efficient frontier” – an ideal asset allocation among diversified asset classes that should efficiently balance maximum return and minimum risk.2 Markowitz further developed the theory with economists Merton Miller and William Sharpe, and it eventually won a Nobel Prize in economics.

MPT has its fans – but also its critics. In the last 20 years or so, many investment advisors and money managers have practiced a buy-and-hold style of portfolio management using the diversification principles of MPT. But as the markets dropped in 2008-09, critics pointed out the danger of buying and holding – you can “hold” positions too long. In the crisis, some investment advisors took more of a hands-on approach to portfolio management – others had always done so.

How long is the long run? If history is any guide (and it may not be), the longer your investment horizon, the more sense buy-and-hold can make – at least when it comes to stocks. For example, $1 invested in stocks in 1929 would be worth $759 in 2009, whereas $1 invested in bonds in 1929 would only be worth $74 today. The critics counter that argument with the fact that the S&P 500 traded at the same level in mid-2009 as it did in summer 1997. Stretch or contract different windows of time and you can reach all kinds of conclusions.2

The bottom line. The buy-and-hold adherents and critics certainly agree on one thing: diversification is hugely important. If your assets are allocated across 10 or 12 “baskets” instead of one or two, for example, you are theoretically less affected by the whims of the financial markets.

So what is “proper” asset allocation for you? Only you and your financial advisor can determine that. Your time horizon, preferred investment style, accumulated assets, life goals and financial objectives – these all have to be taken into consideration. It’s worth a conversation, today.

These are the views of Peter Montoya Inc., not the named Representative nor Broker/Dealer, and should not be construed as investment advice. Neither the named Representative nor Broker/Dealer gives tax or legal advice. All information is believed to be from reliable sources; however, we make no representation as to its completeness or accuracy. The publisher is not engaged in rendering legal, accounting or other professional services. If other expert assistance is needed, the reader is advised to engage the services of a competent professional.

Please consult your Financial Advisor for further information.

Citations.
1 biz.yahoo.com/edu/bi/ir_bi5.ir.html [6/8/09]
2 financial-planning.com/fp_issues/2009_6/buy-and-hope-2662103-1.html [6/1/09]

Securities and Advisory Services offered through Private Client Services LLC, 2225 Lexington Rd, Louisville, KY 40206 Ph 502-451-0600. Member FINRA, SIPC and Registered Investment Adviser. Private Client Services LLC and Retirement and Estate Planning Services are unaffiliated entities