Financial Experts are Providing Much Needed Guidance

Stock markets fell again on Wednesday as animosity between Russia and Ukraine has continued to grow. Many individual investors are directly affected by recent market falls brought on by geopolitical threats, particularly when it comes to their retirement income. According to financial gurus, this might be a time to put any funds you have free to work toward long-term goals rather than waiting on the sidelines.

The S&P 500 Index, along with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq Composite indices, plunged deeper into correction territory this week. According to Vance Barse, wealth advisor and CEO of Your Dedicated Fiduciary – with offices in San Diego and Prosper, Texas – stated, “For many investors, the contraction in equity markets dating back to the start of the year may feel unfamiliar after the muted volatility we have had.”

Clients, according to Barse, should adopt a proactive approach to evaluate how they might benefit from current market conditions. “With volatility typically comes opportunity,” Barse added, “and we’re advising clients to take action.” You’ll find in this article that Barse is not only talking about retirees. His advice applies on a broad scale, including young investors new to the market.

  • Could this advice be practical and helpful for investors like us?
  • What does this potentially mean for the economic recovery?


This year, investors have until April 15th to fill out their IRAs for the previous year. According to Barse, now is an excellent time to start saving for retirement in 2022, including IRAs and 401(k) accounts. Barse stated, “If you have continued volatility, and stocks and/or bonds continue to sell off, then we might have the opportunity to deploy that cash into the portfolio, where valuations might be lower than where they are now.”

The method, however, is also effective for new, young investors. Marguerita Cheng, CEO of Gaithersburg, Maryland-based Blue Ocean Global Wealth, said she recently had her 25-year-old daughter fully fund her Roth IRA account. As a gig economy worker going through her first professional slowdown, her daughter used the global instability as a learning opportunity. She was unhappy to find her first retirement investment, which had risen to roughly 38% two years earlier, suddenly in the red. Cheng advised her daughter, “The best thing for you to do is not panic.” Cheng also pointed out that now is an excellent time for investors to jump on board if one is in a good position.

There are also tax-saving opportunities that should be considered. Anytime we can get a break from the IRS, it’s certainly not a bad thing. Roth conversions, which include shifting retirement assets from a conventional IRA or other pre-tax retirement accounts to a post-tax Roth IRA, are another option, according to Barse. The transfer will result in a tax burden today, which would likely be lowered in the event of a market downturn.

According to Barse, converting to a Roth IRA now can free up capital to invest in that account in the near future. If market volatility persists, it may be possible to deploy the funds at lower valuations. According to Barse, this could very well be a good opportunity for younger investors with non-retirement portfolios to take advantage of tax-loss harvesting options that were not accessible at the end of 2021 (when stocks were higher.)

Investors can use tax-loss harvesting to sell investments at a loss and replace them with other securities. This can help you save money on taxes, investment gains, or other taxable income. Importantly, investors must refrain from purchasing the same or comparable assets within 30 days of the transaction to avoid violating IRS wash sale laws and incurring fines. To be sure, get the advice of a tax specialist or financial counselor to ensure which specific approach works for you and is correctly implemented. Regardless of your age or income, it clearly can’t hurt to consider Vance Barse’s free financial advice seriously. I, for one, certainly will be.





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