Well, I think when we're in periods of time where inflation is high,
bond markets are not at place for performance either. And then we take a
look at housing. Right, So for anyone who's looking to either downsize,
move, look for employment in a different areta, it's definitely not the time
that they want to go out and get any mortgage where they're looking at rates
a loan. You're listening to Carrie Lutz's Financial Survival Network, where you get
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I'm your host, Carrie Lutz. A. It's Friday, just before
Memorial Day weekend. The official art of summer, although the official start of
summer in Florida is doesn't have an official start, and it's always summer year.
It's just hot and hotter. So our good friend Mindy Macintosh is with
us and now and many welcome back. So the first thing that popped out
well, I guess we should talk about consumer sentiment. But before we do
that, the vix All right, when you see the vics enter a period
of complacency or maybe indifference, like nobody's training it, it's just staying at
a low level. You know, nothing's happening. Doesn't that give you a
pause for thought? Absolutely a pause. It's like, here's the calm before
the storm, and you know something's going to happen. But here's where we
just kind of see a slower calming period of time, which really, you
know all honestly, Caroly, is the time that I tell folks that we
need to start establishing a plan. So you know, here we really make
sure that folks have that. It's kind of the first step. Make sure
you have a world diversified plan. So what are you doing today inside of
your investment portfolio? And how are we looking at things such as volatility and
risk and video and all of these different piecees to the puzzle to make sure
that you don't have too much in anyone give an allocation and making sure that
we're here to walk you do that, because it didn't definitely in that period
of time where it's like, oh my goodness, we're at around twelve,
and we know what that hanging into when history repeats itself or just kind of
something is brewing and coming up. All right, So now combine that with
the consumer sentiment report in May, which fill further the Michigan the University of
Michigan's Consumers Sentiment Index, you know, falling eight point one points a month
over months. You know, maybe the consumers know something we don't. Well,
I think when we're in periods of time where inflation is high, bond
markets are not at place for performance either. And then we take a look
at housing. Right so anyone who's looking to either downsize, move, look
for employment in a different areatia, it's definitely not the time that they want
to go out and get any mortgage when they're looking at rates alone, and
then how do they head those when you're looking at you know, what does
wealth instruments look like for them? And they might be looking at you know,
short term CDs. Right now, we're definitely out performing long term,
and we take a look over all in the market. I mean, gosh,
how long are they going to continue to say you can earn five plus
in a six month CD? And yet how do we look at the next
ten, fifteen, twenty thirty years down the road, so we have to
be super careful of what staple items, where folks are still spending their money,
how we want to actually influence this and really what the feds are going
to do and when we see the rates are going to be cut. So
we got to make sure that we're well, we're well looking ahead. We're
making sure that we're not spending too much money in anyone give an area out
we hear even have a process and we look at that with folks to say
where shouldn't we be weaning a little thin and what should we be diving into
even from our investments standpoint, you have a few extra bucks, where should
we be and not too heavily weighted in one sector? Yeah? Yeah,
you know it's interesting is that indicators pretty pretty consistent, isn't it, Mary.
Yeah, And the indicators just show that we don't want people to run
fearful, but we know that something is coming, so they have to make
sure that they have their investment and even their healthcare philosophy set in place,
Especially for we work with a lot of people that are internearing retirement. Kind
of our specialty here and really helping people focus on retirement made clear. So
you think of that, if they're getting ready for a time to retire and
we see those vis at twelve, you know, we don't want them running
scared, but we need to have the appropriate plan for how are they going
to instill income to NATO living in retirement and what things should we be doing
looking out of the short term versus the long term, and then how do
we set that around their goals of what they might want to do throughout their
retirement years. It really is a time, a pivotal time point that we
have to look at all those indicators. Yeah, yeah, I couldn't agree
with some more. And you know, nobody's talking about a soft landing anymore.
You know, you don't hear much. Nobody's saying inflation's transitory. Now
we find out it's not transitory. It's sticky, right, and maybe it's
semi permanent at this point. So you know, it looks like the meme
makers out there at the Fed and the Treasury, they're kind of losing their
grip on things absolutely, and you know those are those are things too that
we need to look at when we take a look at even just a rise
inflation, you're talking about interest rates, the Feds hunting and cut rates.
You take a look at even our national debt and what we're looking at there,
and I think some folks don't even realize how cheerful we need to be
about legislative risk and taxation later in life, even when we take a look
at portfolio. So we're always taking a look at folks and look at even
the tame little standpoint as a nation, how are we going to cut rates?
Where are we going to have our taxpayer dollars spent? And make sure
you're preparing for that as you're getting ready for retirement. Tax free is the
envelope to go in. And there's just different ways we could help you to
make sure the consumers are holding on to as much of their dollar as they
can. So what's your take on with what's happening in the banking sector now?
While we're seeing a lot of mergers acquisitions, banking is really taking overall,
especially here in Michigan with you know how much we're seeing transitory there and
transitioning, and I think that we have to really take a look that.
Obviously we're seeing CD rates, banking rates, what it's happening. What are
new folks moving into the area. So I think some folks who just have
some cash on hand, why not get into a six month CD. But
on the flip side, we should be using treasuries, and they don't have
the state tax here in Michigan to be able to be doing that. So
there's little nuggets that, you know, we can be making sure that we're
using treasuries instead of CDs. And as we take a looking at the bank,
some people aren't real comfortable and feeling that their money is going to be
super safe sitting there. And when we talk about the stick ratio, people
want funds in cash, how can they reliably utilize them? So I feel
like the banking into industry has definitely transitioned from where it used to be to
where it is today, you know. So I definitely agree that it's something
that consumers have really been taking a look at. Yeah, for sure,
for sure. So you know, I guess it all depends where you are
in your point in life, whether you're getting ready to retire, whether you've
got thirty forty more years before you have to retire, all that stuff.
So there's no like cookie cutter answer here, but certainly caution is the byword,
definitely caution. We need to be careful that people have a well thought
out plan, seek out help with that and what they should do next,
so that ways we know life changes, we know there's change coming, but
we want to make sure you're not here with that surprise because you're dealing bike
jery. I don't think we're going to see us soft landing here. So
you're being prepared and make sure that we're working together to walk through this and
navigate on how you should be set up so we don't have that nakage surprise
because some people like surprises on birthdays. Outside of that, we want to
make sure we have a well thought out plan. The one thing that gives
me a little solace is you know the old saying that economists have predicted five
out of the last two recessions, right, sure, yeah, So when
we take a look at that, it does help. I mean, I
think that as long as we can look ahead and look at these indicators,
right, we need to look at unemployment rates and what's happening in consumer staples.
So these are all indicators that do help us to look ahead to make
sure that we are well prepared to know what has happened in the past,
where we at currently, what do we see coming because we're definitely in a
different train point in a different world that we than what we ever have in
my opinion, as we look at rates and interest rates and really this inflationary
period of time. Yeah, so what's your take on cutting rates? Are
we going to see it? Are they going to hold off to the last
possible moment? What are they going to do? I feel like they have
to hold the last possible a little bit. I'm not sure what we're going
to exactly see with race, but I don't feel that we're going to see,
you know all, we're going to actually seeknvence cut rates, housing numbers
go back to where they should, interest rates, make some changes and transitions.
I think we're going to wait till last possible they need to do.
So. Now, I think that what folks are expecting to see for the
level playing field leveling back out, we might, you know, be a
period of time where Dan Barga said a little bit different and this might be
somewhat more of the new norm, at least from what I've been seeing.
Yeah, yeah, you know, that's that's a little scary. Well,
one thing that the unemployment numbers have held up pretty well. There have been
some states down in others, you know generally, and it's all in the
revisions, right, isn't there Right, Yes, it's in the revisions.
And how they're gonna uncover that and watch that. I mean, we definitely
need to see there's periods of time where you see, okay, we need
more folks purchasing homes and selling and moving into new heritors. But when we
take a look at unemployment, those numbers look good. People are still going
out, the consumer staples are time, We're still seeing people traveling. So
that's why I think sometimes we're going to see a hold on this now eventually
is going to need to happen and make some changes, see some you know,
we really need to see a period of time where information and interest rates
in bond prices are all kind of on mis teeter totter. Well, we'll
see that leverage out at some point. I just I think they're going to
hold off of it. Yeah. Yeah, And you know, one thing
I learned over the years is that you know, what's happening in the economy
is always important, but sometimes the flow of funds coming in from the rest
of the world is really more important. And we see like the flow of
funds going into China's stopped gone, Like nobody's putting money in there. They're
getting the heck out. So a lot of flight capital from China as well
as other parts of the world are coming here, right, Yeah, I
mean, so that's nice, and we can keep it in the States.
We've definitely seen that the trade. We're continuing to see that more and more
inside the US, which is helpful. It does help our economy, which
means that why would they need to change some of the inditional items. They've
already done that. They pivotally changed some exterior your barriers, wire done meat,
I think is going to just continue to try to help the consumer shape
it here and then how do we actually look at that for revenues down the
road, and how FEDS are going to handle this and just globally, where
are we seeing that? So I just still say be plaustrous and look ahead,
make sure you're looking inside these accounts and really watching what's up and coming.
Okay, So the other question is I don't know your family situation,
but let's say you're talking to your mother who's eighty, what are you telling
you? Or seventy five to eighty, what are you telling her to do?
Well? We definitely want to make sure that we're transit into being well
diversified, so our folks already are, meaning that we don't want to just
say, oh, everybody go to Nvidia because that's important and everyone to be
an AI in tech stoc So that is definitely a position to have portion of
your portfolio, but as an age, we need to be more and more
well grounded. I also say we don't want to be directly in the bond
index right now, not a spot to be so wrong time period of COVID.
We have bond alterna venoms into portfolios to help perform where the bond IndX
is and where it should be. So what I tell my grandmother is not
a buy and hold strategy, It is making sure we have a solid income
plan. So, especially for their age, looking out for things like long
term care and having a solid income plan, which means navigating their investment portion
of portfolio and optimizing that is key. So we definitely don't want to ignore
it. We don't want to run scared though either and just make sure you're
talking to your family members and your advisor to make sure me you're setup for
success. All right, I think we got a good insight into things.
I think we'll let it go of that, Mindy, just tell us where
do we find you on the way up? How do we connect with you?
So in order to connect with us, please go to Wealthmichigan dot com.
Some of you might be interested in our toolkit and our new book titled
Cultivate Wealth. It can talk to you about some of these things that we
are seeing currently in the market, and so we'd be happy to help you
there. So Wealthmichigan dot com or Macintosh you she'll see it all right,
excellent, And of course the link is in the show notes to this interview
on Financial Survival Network dot com. When you go there, please sign up
for your free newsletter Mandy. It's always a pleasure. And hey, we'll
try to put the link in to get your toolkit as well, and we'll
talk to you again soon. Thanks, Kerry, appreciate it. Thanks for
listening to carry lets this Financial Survival Network your solution to today's trying times.
For the latest, go to Financial Survivalnetwork dot com. Financial Survival Network now
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