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Mutual funds and ETFs charge a fee called an “expense ratio.” (Notice how it’s not called a fee? That’s clever marketing.) The expense ratio is billed as a (really tiny) percentage of the assets in the fund. A typical expense ratio for a mutual fund might be something like 0.5%. By design, 0.5% sounds really low – but, even a small percentage can still be a large cost to you.

For example, if you’ve saved $50,000 for retirement in a mutual fund that has a 0.5% expense ratio then you’re paying $250 in annual fees.

That fee is taken right off the top. No matter whether the value of the mutual fund grows or shrinks, the fund collects its due. Furthermore, as your investment grows, so does the cost. If, after 10 years of dedicated saving, you’ve built your nest egg to $250,000, you’re now paying $1,250 per year. Over $100 per month.

And that’s not even the worst of it! In the same way investments grow over time, so does the cumulative impact of those fees.

For example, if you invest $1,000 per month and get a 7% average return, after 30 years that 0.5% “expense ratio” will cost you almost $100,000 in lost returns – a difference of almost 10%!

The good news is that funds are transparent about their expenses. You can usually Google “expense ratio” along with the fund’s ticker symbol to find what the fund charges. Multiply that number by the amount you have invested in the fund, and that’s what you’re paying each year.

If the expense ratio is high (over 0.1% or so) – it may make sense to look for a lower cost option.

You deserve more than one-size-fits-all advice.

With Fortunately, you’ll get a plan based on your unique situation and goals.

Knowing how much to contribute to what types of accounts (401k, IRA, brokerage, etc.) can save you lots of money come tax time, in addition to giving you the peace of mind.

Give yourself the best chance of achieving your goals by knowing exactly when and where to invest.

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Stocks give you partial ownership of a company and bonds are a loan from you to be repaid.

If you are more risk-loving or have a longer time horizon, you should be more heavily invested in stocks. As you near your goals, the money you need should be more heavily invested in bonds.

Get your goal-based financial plan in less than 5 minutes at livefortunately.com

Once you create your personalized financial plan with Fortunately, we outline which tax-advantaged accounts are most beneficial for your situation and how much you should be investing within each.

Check it out at https://buff.ly/3ABY8WU

If you’re lucky, your employer will match your 401k contributions up to a certain amount. Say your company has a 50% contribution match up to 6% of your salary. If you contribute, say, $5,000 a year to your 401k, your employer would contribute $2,500 in addition to your salary. It’s almost like… free money.

Finding the perfect asset allocation mix can be tricky. While we can all agree diversification, aka the “only free lunch in finance,” should be your guiding principle in optimizing your portfolio – then what? How do you find the ideal mix of ETFs without blindly following generalized advice, spending tons of time developing your own personalized strategy, or winging it?

*the three fund portfolio enters the chat*

Learn more about building a three fund portfolio → https://buff.ly/3R12bRE

We are proud to annouce Fortunately was selected as “Best in Show Fintech” at the upcoming FinCon conference in Orlando. We are thrilled to have the opportunity to present Fortunately to this audience. Comment below if we will see you there!

Great insights from Jeff Rose and mention of us in this article 🥳

"While financial planning may feel complicated and overwhelming at first, what’s most important is taking the first step."

Full article here: https://buff.ly/3QwvGLr

The longer you wait to start saving and investing, the more you’ll miss out on compound interest.

Better understand the tradeoffs of your financial decisions with an interactive and actionable financial plan. Visit livefortunately.com for your free plan.

Hand-picking individual stocks and trying to time the market may be exciting, much like playing a slot machine can be exciting, but it is not a good strategy for building long-term wealth. A three-fund portfolio, however, is an easy way to manage your own investments while achieving the goal of a well-diversified portfolio with low fees.

Most investors aren’t exposed equally in each of the three categories; their asset allocation mix will differ depending on their risk tolerance and proximity to their goals. Thankfully, you don't need to figure out your asset allocation mix on your own. You have Fortunately to support you.

Visit livefortunately.com for a free financial plan in a few minutes.