Year-end investment tips

Just what you need, right? One more time-consuming task to be taken care of between now and the end of the year. But taking a little time to make some strategic saving and investing decisions before December 31 can affect not only your long-term ability to meet your financial goals but also the amount of taxes you’ll owe next April. Look at the forest, not just the trees The first step in your year-end investment planning process should be a review of your overall portfolio. That review can tell you whether you need to rebalance. If one type of investment you own has done well — for example, large-cap stocks — it might now represent a greater percentage of your portfolio than you originally intended. To rebalance, you would sell some of that asset class and use that money to buy other types of investments to bring your overall allocation back to an appropriate balance. Your overall review should also help you decide whether that rebalancing should be done before or after December 31 for tax reasons. Also, make sure your asset allocation is still appropriate for your time horizon and goals. You might consider being a bit more aggressive