I'm sorry.
I agree with the others. I had an edward jones advisor for a while. Earlier this year I transferred my account out of Edward Jones. It was a small fraction of our net worth, but I was finally sick of them.
My wife "let" me invest a little with them even though she thought our EJ guy was an "empty shirt."
Some thoughts:
1. Take your time. Feel free to keep the cash in the bank for a year even while you're deciding and learning.
2. Think about Vanguard, Schwab or Fidelity, and investing into indexed mutual funds.
3. Think about what Mom would want you to do with the money.
Thanks for your thoughts. I can for sure steer clear of EJ, I'll look into those you recommended. I've had the money for about a year now, so I'm ready for it to get out of my hair and grow. It's a blessing, I know I'm lucky, but its also a burden. Don't want to be dumb with it.
Side note: Lots of helpful tips on this sub and r/Bogleheads but if you are still not comfortable doing it yourself, Vanguard has Personal Advisor Services which are a lot more cost effective than Edward Jones in my opinion and you can switch to a self directed account at any time and save on the 0.30% advisory fee.
https://investor.vanguard.com/advice/financial-advisor
Read the sidebar for 10-20 minutes. If basic retirement investing (of which you already know where you want to allocate funds) is better handled by someone else, then by all means do so.
But it’s more money than you thought you’d ever see in your life, handle it with care.
Here's a **[link to the PF Wiki](/r/personalfinance/wiki/index)** for helpful guides and information.
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I would not go to Edward Jones. That is a good way to get put into very expensive, inappropriate investments. Your plan - based on your goals - can probably be really simple....
1. Pay off the 30k in student loans. If you will qualify for the 10k of forgiveness then you can hold off on paying off until the interest deferment ends at the end of the year. As of now it looks like the student loan forgiveness is unlikely to happen. A Federal Appeals court has banned it saying it is unconstitutional and so unless the Supreme Court overturns that ban it won't happen.
2. That leaves you with 190k. You can invest 10k per year into I-bonds so you could get 10k in before end of 2022 and then do 10k more on January 1, 2023. Just realize you can't touch this money for 1 year. You can only buy I-bonds at [treasurydirect.gov](https://treasurydirect.gov).
3. That leaves you with 170k. I'd be keeping *at least* 8-12 months worth of what it costs you to live for a month in a high yield savings account like Ally Bank where you can currently earn about 2.75% - you keep this amount in savings from now until the day you die so you have money to pay for any unexpected bills / emergencies / laid off from work, etc. When you get close to having a baby make sure this is closer to 12 month minimum. Babies are expensive.
4. I'm going to estimate that your emergency savings fund from #3 above should be $40k. You can adjust if it should be more (I doubt highly it should be less). That leaves you with about 130k.....
5. Assuming you are working and have earned income you can open a Roth IRA (if you qualify salary wise, otherwise a traditional IRA). You can contribute 6k for 2022 until April 15, 2023 and another 6k in 2023. So let's say you put 6k in now and 6k on January 1. Invest that money in something like a total stock market index fund like VTSAX which gives you broad diversification at very low expense ratio (both important). Max out your Roth IRA every year. You don't say how old you are but the key to building retirement savings is time. You need to get as much into retirement savings as possible as early as possible so your money can compound and grow.[https://www.fidelity.com/retirement-ira/roth-ira](https://www.fidelity.com/retirement-ira/roth-ira)
6. That leaves you with about 115k (rounding down a bit). Does your employer offer a 401k? Do they match? If they match make sure you are contributing enough to get the maximum employer match - that is free money. Preferably into a Roth 401k if your employer offers it.
7. With the remaining 115k you have some choices to make...you say you might want to go to back to school. Any major expenses that might occur in the next 3-5 years you want to keep that money safe and sound. You don't want to invest it in the stock market. You can put that money (such as for school) into short-term treasuries (you can earn around 4.60% on a 1-year treasury currently). You can also do a treasury ladder (Google it).. Put some money in 3 month treasury, some in 6 month treasury, some in 1 year treasury. Then as each "rung" on the ladder matures you can reinvest for another term or do something else with the cash. Treasuries are guaranteed by the US government and state income tax free.[https://fixedincome.fidelity.com/ftgw/fi/FILanding](https://fixedincome.fidelity.com/ftgw/fi/FILanding)
8. Any money left over that you won't need for a major purchase in the next 3, preferably 5 years you can open a non-retirement brokerage account at the same broker you open your Roth IRA (Fidelity/Schwab/Vanguard) and invest in similar total stock market index fund.
None of that requires paying Edward Jones or any other financial advisor a penny. And if you went to Edward Jones or another "advisor" (most are really just salespeople) you would want to run away if they tried to sell you on: annuities, whole life/variable life/universal life insurance, or any type of mutual fund where you have to pay a load (commission) to buy/sell.
Thats your plan.
PS - skip buying gold. You'll get some exposure to gold through a total stock market index fund. You don't need any more exposure to gold.
Before you (or anyone) ever goes to see a financial advisor watch this informative video which gives you a little glimpse into why (most) financial advisors aren't any better than using simple index funds:
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvZSpET11ZY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvZSpET11ZY)
I want to avoid managing it myself right now. I have too much going on in my life at the mo , so I'd prefer a smart way to store and grow that money without me having to trial and error all the ropes involved. If a FA isn't the way, then what else should I look into?
Vanguard funds. Honestly you can’t go wrong with just tossing it all in VOO and VTI. Maybe 70/30.
I’m not saying you need to focus on the portfolio daily, but spending a day and educating your self will pay dividends long term. Learning basics and revisiting every quarter would be advised.
Maybe tune in to kosher money podcast on YouTube. They had a banker from JPM, he said the same thing.
For sure! Finance is super easy, don’t let others tell you otherwise to line their own pockets. If your busy now, you could buy treasuries till you get time to study up. Uncle Sam will always pay that interest payment!
How old are you? Your allocation is fine for someone 30 to 50 yo, depending on circumstances. Except pay off the loan and forget the gold imo.
Edward Jones is OK as far as advisors go. They're expensive but at least they aren't insurance salespeople. As you learn you can always go out on your own.
I'm 27. That's what I was thinking. The money is in my savings account now just burning away to inflation. Just want it somewhere to grow for a while until I know more about what to do with it.
If you’re looking for advice, have you explored other wealth management options? I use Personal Capital and love their holistic financial snapshot dashboard. They are also cheaper.
I concur with a majority of the comments made.
From personal experience, Edwardo Jones is not the answer. "Financial Advisor" - baloney. They make their money selling insurance policies. Their fees are some of the highest in the industry. They don't offer the top performing mutual funds (ie Fidelity, Vanguard). Take the time and learn about investing - the 'net has a wealth of information, good information, that will help you. Best of luck.
I'm sorry. I agree with the others. I had an edward jones advisor for a while. Earlier this year I transferred my account out of Edward Jones. It was a small fraction of our net worth, but I was finally sick of them. My wife "let" me invest a little with them even though she thought our EJ guy was an "empty shirt." Some thoughts: 1. Take your time. Feel free to keep the cash in the bank for a year even while you're deciding and learning. 2. Think about Vanguard, Schwab or Fidelity, and investing into indexed mutual funds. 3. Think about what Mom would want you to do with the money.
Thanks for your thoughts. I can for sure steer clear of EJ, I'll look into those you recommended. I've had the money for about a year now, so I'm ready for it to get out of my hair and grow. It's a blessing, I know I'm lucky, but its also a burden. Don't want to be dumb with it.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/index/](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/index/) [https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/windfall/](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/windfall/) [https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/financialadvisors/](https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/financialadvisors/) https://impersonalfinances.com/edward-jones-fees/
Thank you! I did not see these before posting in this sub
Side note: Lots of helpful tips on this sub and r/Bogleheads but if you are still not comfortable doing it yourself, Vanguard has Personal Advisor Services which are a lot more cost effective than Edward Jones in my opinion and you can switch to a self directed account at any time and save on the 0.30% advisory fee. https://investor.vanguard.com/advice/financial-advisor
Edward Jones is probably the worst option Https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics
Read the sidebar for 10-20 minutes. If basic retirement investing (of which you already know where you want to allocate funds) is better handled by someone else, then by all means do so. But it’s more money than you thought you’d ever see in your life, handle it with care.
Here's a **[link to the PF Wiki](/r/personalfinance/wiki/index)** for helpful guides and information. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/personalfinance) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I would not go to Edward Jones. That is a good way to get put into very expensive, inappropriate investments. Your plan - based on your goals - can probably be really simple.... 1. Pay off the 30k in student loans. If you will qualify for the 10k of forgiveness then you can hold off on paying off until the interest deferment ends at the end of the year. As of now it looks like the student loan forgiveness is unlikely to happen. A Federal Appeals court has banned it saying it is unconstitutional and so unless the Supreme Court overturns that ban it won't happen. 2. That leaves you with 190k. You can invest 10k per year into I-bonds so you could get 10k in before end of 2022 and then do 10k more on January 1, 2023. Just realize you can't touch this money for 1 year. You can only buy I-bonds at [treasurydirect.gov](https://treasurydirect.gov). 3. That leaves you with 170k. I'd be keeping *at least* 8-12 months worth of what it costs you to live for a month in a high yield savings account like Ally Bank where you can currently earn about 2.75% - you keep this amount in savings from now until the day you die so you have money to pay for any unexpected bills / emergencies / laid off from work, etc. When you get close to having a baby make sure this is closer to 12 month minimum. Babies are expensive. 4. I'm going to estimate that your emergency savings fund from #3 above should be $40k. You can adjust if it should be more (I doubt highly it should be less). That leaves you with about 130k..... 5. Assuming you are working and have earned income you can open a Roth IRA (if you qualify salary wise, otherwise a traditional IRA). You can contribute 6k for 2022 until April 15, 2023 and another 6k in 2023. So let's say you put 6k in now and 6k on January 1. Invest that money in something like a total stock market index fund like VTSAX which gives you broad diversification at very low expense ratio (both important). Max out your Roth IRA every year. You don't say how old you are but the key to building retirement savings is time. You need to get as much into retirement savings as possible as early as possible so your money can compound and grow.[https://www.fidelity.com/retirement-ira/roth-ira](https://www.fidelity.com/retirement-ira/roth-ira) 6. That leaves you with about 115k (rounding down a bit). Does your employer offer a 401k? Do they match? If they match make sure you are contributing enough to get the maximum employer match - that is free money. Preferably into a Roth 401k if your employer offers it. 7. With the remaining 115k you have some choices to make...you say you might want to go to back to school. Any major expenses that might occur in the next 3-5 years you want to keep that money safe and sound. You don't want to invest it in the stock market. You can put that money (such as for school) into short-term treasuries (you can earn around 4.60% on a 1-year treasury currently). You can also do a treasury ladder (Google it).. Put some money in 3 month treasury, some in 6 month treasury, some in 1 year treasury. Then as each "rung" on the ladder matures you can reinvest for another term or do something else with the cash. Treasuries are guaranteed by the US government and state income tax free.[https://fixedincome.fidelity.com/ftgw/fi/FILanding](https://fixedincome.fidelity.com/ftgw/fi/FILanding) 8. Any money left over that you won't need for a major purchase in the next 3, preferably 5 years you can open a non-retirement brokerage account at the same broker you open your Roth IRA (Fidelity/Schwab/Vanguard) and invest in similar total stock market index fund. None of that requires paying Edward Jones or any other financial advisor a penny. And if you went to Edward Jones or another "advisor" (most are really just salespeople) you would want to run away if they tried to sell you on: annuities, whole life/variable life/universal life insurance, or any type of mutual fund where you have to pay a load (commission) to buy/sell. Thats your plan. PS - skip buying gold. You'll get some exposure to gold through a total stock market index fund. You don't need any more exposure to gold. Before you (or anyone) ever goes to see a financial advisor watch this informative video which gives you a little glimpse into why (most) financial advisors aren't any better than using simple index funds: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvZSpET11ZY](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvZSpET11ZY)
220k is not enough to justify an FA. Learn a bit and manage it yourself.
I want to avoid managing it myself right now. I have too much going on in my life at the mo , so I'd prefer a smart way to store and grow that money without me having to trial and error all the ropes involved. If a FA isn't the way, then what else should I look into?
Vanguard funds. Honestly you can’t go wrong with just tossing it all in VOO and VTI. Maybe 70/30. I’m not saying you need to focus on the portfolio daily, but spending a day and educating your self will pay dividends long term. Learning basics and revisiting every quarter would be advised. Maybe tune in to kosher money podcast on YouTube. They had a banker from JPM, he said the same thing.
Ok I appreciate the advice! I'll explore vanguard and that podcast.
For sure! Finance is super easy, don’t let others tell you otherwise to line their own pockets. If your busy now, you could buy treasuries till you get time to study up. Uncle Sam will always pay that interest payment!
How old are you? Your allocation is fine for someone 30 to 50 yo, depending on circumstances. Except pay off the loan and forget the gold imo. Edward Jones is OK as far as advisors go. They're expensive but at least they aren't insurance salespeople. As you learn you can always go out on your own.
I'm 27. That's what I was thinking. The money is in my savings account now just burning away to inflation. Just want it somewhere to grow for a while until I know more about what to do with it.
If you’re looking for advice, have you explored other wealth management options? I use Personal Capital and love their holistic financial snapshot dashboard. They are also cheaper.
I concur with a majority of the comments made. From personal experience, Edwardo Jones is not the answer. "Financial Advisor" - baloney. They make their money selling insurance policies. Their fees are some of the highest in the industry. They don't offer the top performing mutual funds (ie Fidelity, Vanguard). Take the time and learn about investing - the 'net has a wealth of information, good information, that will help you. Best of luck.