Investment Planning Flashcards
investment
the current commitment of money for a period of time in order to derive future benefits that will compensate the investor for:
1. The time the funds are committed
2. The expected rate of inflation
3. The uncertainty of the future payments
The time the funds are committed
this refers to the time value of money. An investor who postpones the consumption of money expects to be compensated for the opportunity cost by interest earned.
The expected rate of inflation
this refers to the investors need to earn a real return in excess of the rate of inflation in order for capital to maintain its purchasing power.
The uncertainty of the future payments
This refers to the risk an investor is prepared to take.
The higher the risk, the greater the return required.
Return objectives of the Investment Policy Statement
- Distinguish between return requirement and return desire
- Total return approach – annual after-tax return necessary to meet investment goals
Risk Objectives Investment Policy Statement
- Ability to take risk
- Willingness to take risk
Ability to take risk
- Suited to quantitative assessment – planner should define terms of analysis
- Determined by financial goals relative to resources & time within which to meet goals
Willingness to take risk
- More subjective assessment
- Psychological profiling provides estimates of individual’s willingness to take risk – but imprecise science
Constraints of the Investment Policy Statement
- Time Horizon
- Liquidity
- Taxation
- Legal and Regulatory Requirements
- Unique Circumstances
Time Horizon
- Can be single stage or multi-stage time horizon
- Stage of life investments assume that time horizon shortens gradually as life stages change
- If client has grandchildren – circumstances may determine investment goals & time horizon
- If a person needs an income during their working lives (e.g. 10 years) and assumes that they will live another 15 years after retirement, their investment time horizon is multi-staged (10 and 15 years)
Types of time horizons
No universal definition of long-term or short-term – however, generally
10 – 20 years = long-term
3 – 10 years = intermediate-term
0 – 3 years = short-term
Liquidity
Ability to efficiently meet anticipated & unanticipated demands for cash
1. Transaction costs – e.g. brokerage fees – early disinvestment penalty
2. Price volatility – lowers certainty with which cash can be realised efficiently
Liquidity requirements
- Ongoing expenses – use high degree of liquidity in investment portfolio
- Emergency reserves – can range from 3 – 6 months
- Negative liquidity events – e.g. unplanned birth of a child
- Positive liquidity events should be noted in the IPS – e.g. anticipated inheritance
Taxation
- Use tax concessions such as interest and dividend exemptions
- Consider income tax and capital gains tax implications on investment vehicles
- Defer tax to avoid impact of diminishing benefit of compounding returns
- Tax avoidance
- Wealth transfer
Tax avoidance
- Consider tax-exempt securities - although typically offer lower returns
- Some tax-sheltered savings have a minimum holding period – e.g. Endowments