The Best Laid Plans Make Your Best Life Possible.

BY CINDY YOUNGCOURT

Even a financial advisor like me has goals. Just like you, I have dreams I want to fulfill, plans I work hard to achieve, hopes for my children I wish to come true.

At Affinity Wealth Management, we talk with our clients about “living life fully”. It’s something I aspire to do in my personal life as well as for my clients.

Unfortunately, the events of this year have made nearly all aspects of life more difficult. COVID-19 threw a gigantic wrench into many people’s plans. But even a global pandemic shouldn’t stop you from planning for or striving to live your best life.

The best plans, financial and otherwise, are built to adapt to life’s surprises, keeping you on track to your ultimate goals. Change happens—but it doesn’t have to change everything about your life.

This summer provided me and my husband with a good lesson in how to anticipate and adapt to change. At the beginning of this year, my husband and I had set our sights on owning a beachfront condo in Ocean City, Maryland. Then, we thought having a beach house with a pool would be better for our family. Then, I considered installing a pool at our current home as well.

Then, COVID happened.

So my husband and I changed our mindset for what we wanted for ourselves and our family. Instead of buying a beach house or condo, we changed our vision to owning a boat. My husband had been a boater before, and I always enjoyed the many summer days I had spent on the water with friends. What if, we asked ourselves, if we had a boat for our family to enjoy, docking at a marina with pools for the kids and amenities for all of us?

After considering different options, we decided on a Sea Ray 340 Sundancer, then began our hunt for the perfect boat. That proved to be an unexpected challenge. We saw boats that looked promising, but in reality looked nothing like the online photos. We drove far and wide to check out different boats with great potential, only to find musty cabins and shoddy maintenance. When we did bid on a boat we both thought was right for us, another buyer trumped our offer.

On the drive home from a seller in Maryland—another disappointment—an online search led me to a boat for sale at a nearby dealer. This one matched our criteria and looked in great condition. The dealer agreed to show us the boat that evening, but didn’t show up when we arrived at the marina to see it.

But the boat we had our eyes on was sitting out of the water. She was a beauty. I could see the stars lining up in our favor. We both fell in love with the boat and called the dealer with a full price offer, knowing we could back out if any issues cropped up during the survey. From our research, we also knew the boat’s appraised value was much higher than the selling price; just like houses, boats are in a “seller’s market” these days too.

I have helped many clients decide on refinancing their homes and determining how much they could afford for beach property, but have never advised on a boat purchase. Still, the financial planner in me kicked in as we finalized the deal. I researched financing options, tax implications and additional costs that come with boat ownership. (Believe me, there are many!)

For my husband and I, our boat fits our vision for living life fully—taking our kids out on the water, teaching them how to navigate and maintain the boat, and most importantly, enjoying amazing times with family, friends, and three senior dogs.

For everyone, living life fully sometimes means dealing with unexpected changes. With the right financial planning in place, no change big or small should divert you from making your dreams of a best life a reality.

I want you to live your best life and enjoy it as much as possible. Reach out to me or one of my colleagues if you’re ready to make that happen.