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It's no surprise that many people who inherit millions of dollars are uncertain about what to do with their newfound wealth. The possibilities of becoming a multimillionaire overnight can be overwhelming, especially during a period when most are grieving the loss of a parent or other loved one.
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I often work with people in many different age groups who have suddenly become wealthy as the result of a windfall inheritance. While there is a need to develop a comprehensive financial plan, it's not the first step. Instead, I try to determine each person's starting point with money. Many people fall into one of three categories:
They are anticipating how they will handle their wealth, but the money hasn't yet arrived.They have their inheritance — often several million dollars — but they are still grieving the loss of a loved one and are looking for guidance on next steps.
The inheritance has been in their bank account for a long period, but they still lack direction and can't make any decisions.
It is important to listen to each person's personal story with a windfall of money. Losing an important person in your life is difficult, and reflecting on the impact that person made is just as important. Many people express a desire to do something to honor a parent's wishes.
Figuring out how to make the best use of an inheritance
Here is how I generally approach these conversations to help a person make the best use of their inheritance:
Define their relat
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Buy expensive stocks - or build a whole portfolio - on the cheap. Fractional shares, increasingly available at online brokers including Schwab, Fidelity and Robinhood, allow you to buy a portion of a stock you might not otherwise be able to afford. You can even put together a portfolio of stock snippets, giving you a diversified ownership stake in the best of corporate America, even if you're just starting out and your budget is limited.
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Say you had $1,000 to invest and wanted to buy stock in NVR (NVR), a homebuilder recently rated Strong Buy by investment research firm CFRA. You'd be out of luck, considering the shares recently traded for about $4,200 a pop. But at Schwab, for example, you'd be able to buy what the company calls a Stock Slice - a single slice or up to 30 slices at a time of any S&P 500 stock for as little as $5 per slice, commission-free. With Fidelity's Stocks by the Slice program, you can access more than 7,000 U.S. stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) for as little as $1.
You can also trade fractional shares at Robinhood and InteractiveBrokers, each with programs starting at $1. Eligible stocks and ETFs at Robinhood trade for more than $1 per share and have a market value of more than $25 million. InteractiveBrokers allows trading in U.S. and European stocks and ETFs. Vanguard is testing fractional trading of Vanguard ETFs for launch later this year. The rules and eligible investments for fractional share-buying differ by broker, so be sure to compare options.
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