January is a natural time to start fresh. To pledge to lose weight, exercise more, finish your novel, maybe travel and look for romance (where applicable)!

For federal and postal workers, the start of a new year is a logical time to check out the old TSP balance and investment allocations. Will it be C, F, G, or the I fund or combination thereof in the Lifecycle funds? Are you going for growth or safety?

Did you learn the buy and hold lessons of 2008-09, and has your account balance doubled? Or did you cut and run (not that there’s anything wrong with than) and park your nest egg in the super-safe G-fund while the index funds were on sale, and then they started soaring?

Bethesda-based financial planner Arthur Stein knows the TSP. He has lots of feds as clients. He’ll be our guest on today’s Your Turn radio show (10 a.m. EST). He notes that 2014 was a very, very good year for the TSP’s C and S funds (which cover the U.S. stock market). To which he says, “So what?” 2015 may not be a repeat of 2014. It could be better, or worse.

He notes that low-interest rates continue to help people who borrow money (home or car purchase for example) but they hurt savers, and keep the G-fund return low.

Obviously, there is a trade-off between risk and reward. So what’s your tolerance level? Do you feel faint when the market plunges 500 points in one day, or view it as a buying opportunity.

Are you really built to follow a buy-low-sell high strategy? Should you stick with the regular TSP, which gives you an immediate tax break, or go with a Roth which is funded with after-tax money, but then gives you a tax-free nest egg when you collect? Regardless of its size. Stein asks, “What is the best day to invest in the stock market?” I can’t wait for the answer to that one!

All of the above are good questions. Stein will tackle them during the show. If you have a question, or comment, there are two options: You can call in while we are on air at 202-465-3081, or email me your questions (before we go on the air) at mcausey@federalnewsradio.com.

Later in the show, Federal Times senior writer Andy Medici will break out the crystal ball to see what might be in store for feds, and talk about the possibility of a (partial) government shutdown. If you can’t listen to the show live (www.federalnewsradio.com or 1500 AM in the D.C. area) it will be archived on our homepage.

NEARLY USELESS FACTOID:

The headline for Mike Causey’s column on Monday inspired a Nearly Useless Factoid submission from Andrew Cole of Manassas Park, Virginia:

“The title of your 01/12/2015 column “Engineering a Train Wreck …” brought the book The Man Who Wrecked 146 Locomotives to mind. It’s the story of “Head-on” Joe Connolly who staged train wrecks at fairs and other venues for entertainment.”

        Read more: Mike Causey

Source: South Platte Press

Got a factoid that’s nearly useless, send submissions to Michael O’Connell.

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