Is Risk Management the Best Financial Strategy?
By Douglas Goldstein, CFP® - helping olim handle U.S., IRA, investment, and brokerage accounts from Israel
What is risk management, and how does it affect your investment decisions?
Every investment is risky
Every investment carries a chance of making a profit – and a risk of sustaining a loss. However, some investments are riskier than others. Generally speaking, the more profitable investments contain the most risk; if an investment can potentially make a high profit, it can also cause just as much of a loss. So if you’re thinking about an investment that could give a high return, ask yourself if you could handle that level of loss if it doesn’t work out.
Is it worth taking a chance?
If you’re afraid of risk, you may prefer to play it safe by keeping all your money in a savings account in the bank. You won’t make much profit as interest rates are low, but at least you minimize your chances of losing money. Savings accounts, money markets, and CDs offer protection against risk. However, when the product becomes due, the real value of your money may have decreased if the interest rate didn’t keep up with inflation.
Risk management vs. risk avoidance
Fortunately, when investing, there are many choices and you don’t need to single-handedly embrace or reject high-risk investments. There’s a middle ground: follow a policy of risk management.
For example, if you’re young and have many working years ahead of you, you may be able to withstand more risk than someone nearing retirement since you have time on your side to recoup any market losses. On the other hand, an older worker may be comfortable with some aggressive pieces in his asset allocation, but he might feel the need to have a more conservative portfolio so he doesn’t get a nasty surprise if the market crashes just when he’s entering retirement.
Consult with a financial advisor to help determine your risk level and develop a strategy to manage risk in your investment portfolio. To learn more about investment risk, read: www.RichAsAKing.com/risk.
Douglas Goldstein, CFP®, is the director of Profile Investment Services, Ltd. www.profile-financial.com. He is a licensed financial professional both in the U.S. and Israel. Call (02) 624-2788 for a consultation about handling your U.S. investments from Israel. Securities offered through Portfolio Resources Group, Inc. Member FINRA, SIPC, MSRB, FSI. The opinions expressed are those of the author and not those of Portfolio Resources Group, Inc. or its affiliates. Neither PRG nor its affiliates give tax or legal advice.