STEP 6
Review Investments regularly
While your work and family takes away most of your time, it is also essential to set aside time to fully understand the investment / insurance plan, before signing up.
Demand for the terms and conditions of the plan, read, clarify and fully understand the implications of the various clauses stated on the terms and conditions.
When fully satisfied with the answers and you are confident that the plan recommended will help you achieve your financial goals, then only sign on the dotted line.
Once you have setup the investment plan, the due diligence should not stop there; review your investment performance at least once in 3 months to ascertain if it is progressing as desired.
For term insurance plans, which do not have an investment options, an annual review will suffice.
Today communication has become very easy thanks to the latest technology, if a face to face meeting is not possible, you can ask your financial consultant to chat over skype to review your plan.
When using skype for review you can actually share your screens, so that both of you can not only see each other, but also see what you are referring to on your computer.
While setting up your investment plan, agree to a review schedule, with your financial adviser and if you are unable to meet personally, have your financial adviser email you the statements and at least, have a telephonic review of your account.
If you can’t take time to track your investment, then you are encouraging your adviser to ignore your account.
Why investments need regular reviews?
Agreed, Investments could be for a long term, but that doesn’t mean you should ignore them for years.
Markets may go up markets may go down, and nobody can control them, but if you review you investment regularly; you can act according to the market conditions and make necessary changes protecting your loses or increasing the chances of your growth.