TIMES.KY

Cayman Islands, Caribbeanand International News
Thursday, Jun 01, 2023

0:00
0:00

J.P. Morgan’s wealth management guru has some advice for recent college graduates on managing money and building wealth

For students graduating college, the number they are concerned about is not a grade anymore - it is the number in their bank account. At least, that is what recent data shows. According to Federal Reserve data from 2021, more than 40% of college adults took on student debt. With financial literacy a well established key closing the wealth gap, J.P. Morgan says it is never too early to start thinking about money matters.

“Finances play a major role regardless of post-graduation plans,” head of J.P. Morgan Wealth Management Sam Palmer says. “Recent graduates might be starting to pay off student debt or invest for retirement. Those who learn about managing money when they’re young are often able to better handle their finances as adults.” For young graduates, it is all the more imperative because those entering the workforce are doing so at a time of immense volatility in the markets.

So what can rookie professionals do to manage money better, especially in today's economic climate? Fortune spoke with Palmer to gain insights into how recent graduates can see more green.


Think about the future


For graduates just starting a career, it might seem counterintuitive to think so far ahead. After all, they are young, and things like retirement seem light-years away. But Palmer says taking steps now can help graduates secure financial well-being in the future. Young professionals can take steps towards financial freedom even before they first set foot in the office.

Investing early, for instance, could set a recent graduate up well just a couple of decades down the line. “If someone were to start investing at age 22 versus age 42, the amount of money years later would look very different,” Palmer says. “If someone saved $200 a month, they’d have about $48,000 in 20 years. But if they invested $200 a month for 20 years, they could potentially have about $116,000 in a very strong market or about $82,000 in a median market.”

The job hunt also presents an opportunity for recent graduates to think about the future. Palmer urges job seekers to take advantage of employer-sponsored retirement plans. Another key is 'maxing out' your employer's match, so try to stretch and contribute as much as your company will match so you aren't leaving any money on the table.

“We all know there are things we know that we should do, but we don’t because the benefits are only felt down the road,” Palmer says. “For example, someone might know they should order a kale salad today, but French Fries taste much better right now.”


Stay organized and prepared


Recent graduates likely spent time organizing to-do lists, filling out planners, and categorizing notes and assignments throughout college. Now that they enter the workforce, young professionals will likely need to apply those organizational skills to their own finances.

“To stay organized, it’s very important to centralize personal financial information in one place and also think about short-term and long-term goals,” Palmer says. “Having a clear view of their full financial picture will help recent grads make better decisions and be confident about their plan.”

What kind of plans prove useful to young professionals? Palmer advocates for a ground-up approach. Recent graduates need to take advantage of resources that “build on a strong foundation of financial health” in order to set them up for the future. Checking credit scores, for example, can help rookies get a picture of their financial health and take steps to improve it.

Plans that help them see the full picture can also make tasks like budgeting—which Palmer admits is tough for young professionals—easier to track. Clear, coherent organization can also help them be prepared and set aside money for an emergency fund, which Palmer recommends lasts 3-6 months.

Palmer says that, sometimes, being adequately prepared for the future might mean sacrificing independence. According to a study by Qualtrics, nearly a third of people born in the late 90s and early 2000s between the ages of 18 and 25 live with their parents or other relatives. "Living with parents can help lower costs while recent graduates start a career or graduate school, build up an emergency savings account or start paying off student loans," he said.


Can debt actually be good?


For people in college, words like “student debt” most likely sent shivers down their spines. Debt has long been treated as the financial equivalent of “stranger danger” - Palmer says most people are taught to avoid debt throughout their life. However, recent graduates can learn to use debt and student loans to their advantage.

Some people, for example, have longer than they think to pay off student loans, making them eligible to invest on the side. “Many people think they must pay off debt before investing, but the reality is that you can do both,” Palmer says. “In some cases you can get more from your money by investing for your long-term goals. Many people also think they need to reach a certain salary or net worth threshold to start investing. This isn’t true.”

Of course, when investing and paying off student loans at the same time, it is important for young professionals to be extra vigilant. Palmer warns about putting all of your eggs in one basket, especially in the stock market. The wealth management head points to the recent influx of meme stocks as an example of volatility. When it comes to securing returns in volatile periods, Palmer heeds the advice of many other advisors: a diverse portfolio is crucial. And even if you're just starting out, do your research. “If investing, recent graduates should consider talking to an advisor,” Palmer says. “If they’re going to invest on their own, they should make sure to take advantage of educational resources.”

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

TIMES.KY
Close
0:00
0:00
Nvidia Joins Tech Giants as First Chipmaker to Reach $1 Trillion Valuation
Drone Attack on Moscow's Wealthiest Neighborhoods Suspected to be Launched by Ukraine
Elon Musk Meets Chinese Finance Minister in Beijing
AI ‘extinction’ should be same priority as nuclear war – experts
Prominent Hacker Forum RaidForums Suffers Substantial Data Breach
Nvidia CEO Huang says firms, individuals without AI expertise will be left behind
WPP Revolutionizes Advertising with NVIDIA's AI Powerhouse
Two US Employees Fired For Chasing Robbers Out Of Store As They Broke ''Company Policy''
If you donated to BLM, you got played
Pfizer, the EU, and disappearing ink - Smoke, Mirrors, and the Billion-Dose Pfizer Vaccine Deal: EU's 'Open Secret
Actor Tom Hanks told Harvard University graduates to be superheroes in their defense of truth and American ideals, and to resist those who twist the truth for their own gain
The Sussexes' Royal Rebound: Could Harry and Meghan Markle Return to the UK?
A provocative study suggests: Left-Wing Extremism and its Unsettling Connection to Psychopathy and Narcissism
France Arrests 10 on Suspicion of Failing to Respond in Time to Migrant Drowning
Neuralink Receives FDA Approval for First-in-Human Clinical Study
Is Saudi Arabia the holiest place in the world? Ancient Hebrew Inscriptions from "The Mount Sinai Stand" Discovered in Saudi Arabia
Ukrainian Intelligence Official Admits to Assassination Attempts on Putin
Bernard Arnault Loses $11.2 Billion in One Day as Investors Fear Slowdown in US Growth Will Reduce Demand for Luxury Products
Russian’s Wagner Group leader: “I am not a chef, I am a butcher. Russia is in danger of a revolution like in 1917.”
TikTok Sues Montana Over Law Banning the App
Ron DeSantis Jumps Into 2024 Presidential Race, Setting Up Showdown With Trump
Last Walmart in North Portland Closing Down
Florida's DeSantis seeks to disqualify judge in Disney case
Talks between US House Republicans and President Biden's Democratic administration on raising the federal government's $31.4tn debt ceiling have paused
Biden Administration Eyeing High-Profile Visits to China: The Biden Administration is heating things up by looking into setting up a series of top-level visits to Beijing by top officials in the coming months
New evidence in special counsel probe may undercut Trump’s claim documents he took were automatically declassified
A French court of appeals confirmed former President Nicolas Sarkozy's three-year jail term for corruption and influence peddling
Debt Ceiling Crises Have Unleashed Political Chaos
Weibao Wang, a former software engineer at Apple, was charged with stealing trade secrets related to autonomous systems, including self-driving cars
Mobile phone giant Vodafone to cut 11,000 jobs globally over three years as new boss says its performance not good enough
Elon Musk compares George Soros to Magneto, the supervillain from the Marvel Comics series.
Warren Buffett Sells TSMC Shares Over Concerns About Taiwan's Stability
New Study Finds That Secondary Bacterial Pneumonia Is a Major Cause of Death in COVID-19 Patients Who Require Ventilator Assistance
The Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines calls the British monarchy "an absurdity" he wants to remove in his lifetime
King Charles III being crowned.
'Godfather Of AI' Geoffrey Hinton Quits Google To Warn Of The Tech's Dangers
A Real woman
Vermont Man Charged with Stalking After Secretly Tracking Woman with Apple AirTag
Elon Musk Statements About Tesla Autopilot Could Be 'Deepfakes,' Lawyers Claim. Judge Evette Pennypacker Does Not Understand How Far and Advanced This Technology Became
Ukraine More Prepared for Counterattack as Reinforcements Arrive
UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni Discuss Migration, Defence, and Ukraine
AT&T's Successful Test of Satellite-Based Phone Call Raises Possibility of Widespread Coverage
CNN: "Joe Biden is asking for four more years — when 74% of Americans think the country is heading the wrong way“
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Cuts Short Live TV Interview Due to Health Issue
US Congresswoman threaten Twitter Files journalist with arrest
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh slams New York Times' pro-government stance and treatment of sources
Enough is enough: it's time to end the war in Ukraine. While Russia may be to blame for starting it, Russia is not the one refusing to stop it
Fox News Settles their case with Dominion Voting Systems for a staggering $787.5 MILLION
AG decries scapegoating and rushed lawmaking by government
The land of the free violence
×