How much of my house-sale proceeds should I use for purchasing a new home?

How much to use will depend on the rest of your financial situation, including your monthly income, the size of your emergency fund, whether you are on track for retirement savings, and even the terms of the divorce. While it is important you get a place of your own, take your time with this decision. You don’t want your excitement over buying a new home to overshadow your rational analysis and decision-making.

Also Covered:

Impacts on monthly cash flow are key
Don’t overspend, especially in this market
Don’t unravel the fairness of the divorce settlement with the home purchase

Life Planning, Investing, Retirement PlanningJoshua Escalante Troesh, CFPMay 1, 2022Buying A Home, Divorce, Retirement Planning, Emergency Fund, Selling a Home

I just paid off my debt and built up a four-month emergency fund; what's next?

Congratulations on giving yourself the foundation for financial freedom. If you were a client, I would respond to your "what's next?" question with asking you the same thing. What is next on your personal life agenda? Think about your major life goals you want to accomplish in your future. Retirement is obviously one of the major ones, but also think about whether you want to . . . .

Life Planning, Retirement PlanningJoshua Escalante Troesh, CFPNovember 6, 2019Starting Out, Financial Foundation, Building Wealth, Young Families, Individual Retirement Account, Retirement Planning, Investment portfolio, Emergency Fund, Debt Management, Debt payoff

As a college student, should I continue investing or save to pay off my debt first?

The good news is you are choosing between two good options, so you really can't go wrong with either decision. If your student loans are subsidized loans, then the U.S. Government is paying the interest for you, so there is no reason to pay anything on the loans until you graduate. If they are not subsidized loans, then you may want to consider paying just the interest on the loans and then contributing to (or even maxing out) your IRA. This will give you the best of both worlds: being able to invest in your IRA and . . . .

Life Planning, InvestingJoshua Escalante Troesh, CFPJuly 25, 2019Starting Out, Financial Foundation, Budgeting, Retirement Planning, Individual Retirement Account, 401(k), Emergency Fund, Debt Management, Debt payoff, Student Loans, Stafford Loan

As a college graduate with a new job, how should I structure what I do with my income?

As with many things in the financial world, the best answer is "a little of everything." You should get in the habit of investing in your retirement from day 1, even if it is a small amount. Those who put off contributing to their retirement for 'a little while' often find themselves 10 or even 20 years into their career with no retirement savings. To catch up they need to contribute huge portions of their income to retirement accounts. Here is my recommendation for what to focus on:

Life Planning, InvestingJoshua Escalante Troesh, CFPJuly 4, 2019Starting Out, Financial Foundation, Budgeting, Retirement Planning, Individual Retirement Account, 401(k), Emergency Fund, Debt Management, Debt payoff, Student Loans, Stafford Loan

Should we invest in stocks or pay off student loans with money gifted to us from our wedding?

I encourage the two of you not to consider this as an either/or situation, but instead use the money to provide for multiple goals. Focus on multiple goals to help you achieve both financial stability and a happier life . . . .

Retirement Planning, Debt ManagementJoshua Escalante Troesh, CFPMarch 21, 2019403(b), Pension, Starting Out, Marriage, Financial Foundation, Building Wealth, Student Loans, Retirement Planning, Emergency Fund

What should I do with the extra income I will be earning from a promotion?

Investing, Life PlanningJoshua Escalante Troesh, CFPAugust 30, 2018Debt Management, Credit Card Debt, 401(k), Emergency Fund

As a senior in college, should I focus on investing into my Roth IRA, or save for my student loan debt?

While it's currently trendy for gurus and media pundits to advise people to pay their student loans off immediately, the math doesn't work out in favor of this strategy. This article explains the math of …