This new year, let us be the fund managers of our goals and dreams. To do this, we must do better than these common beliefs and questions we ask on money management or the issues we worry about: We naively believe that because the Indian economy is expected to grow, our portfolio returns will always grow,…

Here is a quick-start list of action items for young earners to start their investment journey in 2026. Older earners can also use it as relevant. The action plan Get life insurance (15-20 times annual income) Get health insurance for parents (if not present). Get a separate health cover for yourself. Build an emergency buffer:…

We discuss the most crucial steps in defining and planning for a financial goal. Only after the goal is defined should one consider products for investments. Sadly, most investors have a product-first, plan-later approach. A goal provides direction and a sense of purpose. Only when we know the destination can we plan how to get…

Retirement planning is a life-long exercise. Ideally, it lasts from when we draw our first salary/income to when we (or the surviving spouse) draw our last breath. During this journey, there are several stages. Each stage teaches us something new. Here are some of these stages. This could vary from person to person. This listing…

Here are 16 personal finance resolutions and resources to help you start your wealth creation journey. In his 2013 Ted Talk, former Google search quality chief Matt Cutts discussed the power of trying something new for 30 days.  He says if you try something new for 30 days or stop doing something for 30 days,…

Use this financial health check tool to gauge the strength of your finances. This tool was added to the SEBI investor education portal in Oct 2023. Readers may recall that nine freefincal calculators are already part of the SEBI investor education website. Since then, video tutorials by M. Pattabiraman for a few calculators have also…

I have tracked the amount invested in my goal portfolio for over 14 years. It has been a life and game-changer for my family. Whether you track your spending or not, tracking your investment amount or maintaining an investment diary is crucial. Today, I can invest more for retirement than my target investment. That was…

In most of the interviews or podcasts I do today, I get asked, “A lot of people are using AI for personal finance. Is this healthy?” Change is inevitable. In the three years that AI assistants were introduced one after the other, they have become a part of our lives. A few months ago, I…

A reader says, “I am a regular follower/reader of freefincal and started my financial planning journey in 2020 after reading your book “You Can Be Rich Too with Goal-based Investing.” “I have followed a unified portfolio approach for all the long term goals, like retirement (26 years from now), child higher education (15 years from…

Writing a Will is a crucial aspect of personal finance and life planning. Although it is often presented as a straightforward task, certain nuances must be understood. Under Section 74 of the Indian Succession Act, 1925 (ISA), which lays down the rules for drafting a Will, it is not mandatory to use technical terms or…

A reader asks, “Can I invest a lump sum in equity MFs to increase my equity allocation from 45% to 65%?” A 65% equity exposure is not that high, but what matters is, do you have a strategy to reduce risk progressively as you head towards the goal deadline? As we have shown, this can…

“How do I invest a lump sum I don’t need for the next 5-7 years?” is a question most often asked to us or other social media forums. The best way to eliminate this confusion is to rephrase the problem statement. Better still, if one has a proper goal-based financial plan, the answer to this…

These are some reasonable and unreasonable risks in investing and money management.  We all agree that some risk is necessary for our careers, life, and investing. But not all risks are the same. Some risks have a reasonable chance (not a probability) of success based on common sense and/or history if given enough time and…

I go past a famous clothing store each day for my walk. One day, I heard a heated argument between an auto driver and two old ladies over the fare. The auto driver said, “Madam, you are still living in the sixties. Costs have increased significantly, and you will have to pay more.” That is…

While reading about living trusts and retirement planning, I came across a very important regulatory update from SEBI – one that directly affects how your investments are handled if you become temporarily or permanently unable to sign documents due to a physical condition. About the author: Manmohan Sethumadhavan is a freelancer, investor, and personal finance enthusiast…