1. AUGUST 2016 Columbus monthly 129
Photo:©2016thinkstock special advertising section
Managing your money, whether
you’re in your golden years or just
starting out, is all about planning.
SAVINGS
AT EVERY AGE
By KrIsTIn CamPBeLL
Reprinted for online use with permission from Columbus Monthly ©2016. All rights reserved.

2. 130 Columbus monthly AUGUST 2016
They say money can’t buy happiness,
but the feeling of security that comes with
having enough cash at your disposal is a fairly
close approximation. That security does not
happen by accident; it requires careful plan-
ning and lifelong learning, to understand the
complex system that is wealth.
Certain characteristics and habits are com-
mon to financially successful people. Peggy
Ruhlin, certified financial planner and CEO
of Budros, Ruhlin & Roe, says chief among
those is having a concrete plan.
“You must have a plan to develop wealth
that will be used to achieve goals,” she says.
Those goals might include sending the kids
to college, retiring, buying a vacation home or
sailing around the world, she says. “Whatever
they may be, it is very important to prioritize.”
Choosing between two or more worthy
goals can be difficult, and a financial planner
can help clients ask and answer the hard
questions. “You wade through those issues,
and depending upon what the goal is, you
decide what kind of tool is best to use to save
and invest,” says Ruhlin.
Age and circumstance will dictate what
approach is most fitting, and goals should be
tailored to a person’s stage of life.
In your 20s
Certified Financial Planner Ric Martin of
Bluestone Wealth Partners says your 20s are
the foundation to future success, and your
greatest investment should be in yourself
through career development and education
to establish your earning power. Martin is a
proponent of the “pay yourself first” tenet.
“Most people try to save after they pay
bills for the month,” he says. “It makes more
financial sense to save first, then pay bills
with whatever is left.”
That payment to yourself and investment in
your future should lean heavily toward invest-
ment in a 401(k) or IRA. Ruhlin concurs and
recommends that investors set up automatic
deductions. “If you don’t see it, you don’t
spend it,” she says.
Automatic payroll deductions help make
the very most of those early years with less
opportunity for straying from the plan.
It is important to begin good habits early.
Parents of 20-somethings and even teens should
stress to their children the importance of plan-
ning and saving for retirement at a young age.
“The money you make in your 20s is the most
important money you will ever make, because it
has the most time to grow,” Martin says.
In your 30s
By now, income is typically beginning to grow,
but so are expenses. Ruhlin says the best
approach is common sense—do not spend all
you earn.
“It sounds so simple, but, unfortunately,
our expenses seem to grow to match our
income as time goes by,” she says. “You
have to have a conscious plan not to spend
everything you make and to have a savings
and investment plan.” At this point, proper
budgeting skills and financial discipline
become crucial.
People in their 30s should begin saving
for their children’s college education (see
“Paying for Education,” page 133) and
continue to be tenacious in their retirement
savings. Retirement may seem to be a speck
on the horizon, but now is the time to think
about the future.
“Aside from asset accumulation, this is the
time to make sure you have life insurance, dis-
ability insurance, wills and estate documents
in place to protect your loved ones,” Martin
says. This is also the time to eliminate any
remaining student debt.
In your 40s
In this decade, the idea of retirement begins to
feel more concrete, and it is time to become
rededicated to planning and investing.
“Now is the time to start aggressively saving
for retirement if you haven’t already,” Martin says.
“If you have done everything right to this point,
you are still likely behind in saving for retirement.”
Martin points to geopolitical events and other
factors that can affect the economy and financial
markets and, as a result, your retirement sav-
ings. Now is the time to establish a relationship
with a financial planner if you haven’t already.
Some planners work only with clients
who have amassed considerable wealth,
but others specialize in helping those in the
middle class or just starting out. A certified
financial planner has in-depth education, has
passed a rigorous exam and is duty-bound
to offer investment opportunities that are not
only suitable, but that are in the client’s best
fiduciary interest.
A CFP will provide both education and
advice, guiding a client toward tools that most
effectively match his or her needs. The first
step is defining goals and laying out a plan.
“If you have a plan and it is written down,
you are much more likely to achieve it,” Ruhlin
says. “That’s where a financial planner can
really help any consumer, identifying how you
can pay yourself first and making sure savings
is the number one thing in the budget.”
Photo:©2016thinkstock
special advertising section

3. AUGUST 2016 Columbus monthly 131
This is the time for a continually renewed
commitment to future goals.
“You should have 20 high-income years to
go until retirement, so maxing out all eligible
retirement plans is paramount,” Martin says.
Make regular assessments of investments
with your planner to keep progressing toward
future goals.
In your 50s
In this decade, goals will begin to come to
fruition, but you should continue contributing
diligently to savings and monitor progress.
“Like it or not, at this point your income is
most likely as high as it is ever going to be, so
make adjustments to your plan accordingly,”
Martin says.
By now, your own college costs likely are
in the rearview mirror, so all of the focus can
shift to retirement.
“If you are on track, build up as big a sur-
plus as you can,” Martin says. Because retire-
ment is looming ever nearer, this is a wise time
to assess risk and perhaps make changes.
“Pull back the risk in your portfolio, as you
don’t have as much time to recover,” Martin
says. “Stress test your portfolio to make sure
your chances of success are reasonable,
and look at different scenarios for yourself to
know your options. Plan for every negative
scenario that can occur, from both the vari-
ables that are within your control and those
that are not.”
This also is the time to purchase long-term
care insurance to ward against unexpected
depletion of your wealth and to pay close
attention to your parents’ finances to make
sure they are well taken care of.
In your 60s and Beyond
That dream of traveling the world or spend-
ing more time with family is upon you, but
there is still much to do. This decade repre-
sents a time of both freedom and responsi-
bility, and a new learning curve as you plan
for future expenses.
“The decisions you make in your 60s will
impact your lifestyle for the rest of your life,”
Martin says. This is the time to get familiar
with Social Security and Medicare to ensure
that all eventualities are covered. Keep tabs
on your portfolio and consider reducing risk
even further, with an eye to the future.
“It may make sense to fund an annuity to
mitigate longevity and market risk,” Martin
says. An annuity can provide a welcome
hedge against potentially outliving your retire-
ment savings.
This also is the time to consider leav-
ing a financial legacy. “Assuming that you
have taken care of yourself, determine the
excess capital available to you and make sure
your heirs are taken care of,” Martin says.
Once retirement funds are assured, Martin
recommends funding irrevocable trusts to
avoid estate taxes and thinking about leaving
endowments to special charitable causes.
“Most of all, enjoy yourself,” he says. “A
lifetime of hard work and careful planning has
gotten you this far, so now is the time to travel
and hopefully spend time with grandchildren.”
PAYING FOR EDUCATION
The cost of living typically increases 3 per-
cent annually. Savings accounts earn roughly
1.5 percent interest, and college costs are
increasing at 6 percent, says Adam Hill,
certified financial planner and president of
Maxwell Financial Management.
Those numbers clash in a most uncomfort-
able way for anyone looking to fund a college
education.
“Obviously, a savings account is not going
to be the best tool,” he says. The best choice
is to invest in a 529 Plan, a tool dedicated
solely to funding college costs.
“Most states offer tax deductions for funding
529 plans, and the investments grow tax-
free if they are used for qualified education
expenses,” says Certified Financial Planner
Ric Martin of Bluestone Wealth Partners.
“If you want to contribute beyond the maxi-
mum you can deduct, fund a 529 plan for
yourself and your spouse to take advantage
of an even greater deduction,” he says. “The
beneficiary can be changed at any time
without penalty, so you can adjust or change
beneficiaries later.”
Clients also can transfer ownership of certain
assets to their minor children through the
Uniform Transfer to Minors Act.
“Once in the UTMA, you can take advantage
of the ‘kiddie tax’ provision, in which the first
$1,900 of income is tax-free,” Martin says.
“Liquidate the shares and then move the
account to an UTMA 529. This accumulates
tax-free like a 529, but reverts to the child’s
control at the age of majority.”
Highly appreciated assets could include items
like company stock or other assets that have
grown in value over time, Martin says. “By
passing along the highly appreciated assets,
you could be reducing or redirecting the taxes
you will ultimately owe on the gains,” he says.
special advertising section