SEC, FINRA Issue New Investor Alert: Year-End Investment Considerations for Individual Investors

WASHINGTON — The SEC's Office of Investor Education and Advocacy and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) have issued a new Investor Alert called Year-End Investment Considerations for Individual Investors. This new alert provides individual investors with a few suggestions for year-end investment planning as the year draws to a close.

"The end of the year is a great time to take stock of your financial situation and make sure your investment plan is meeting your needs," said Gerri Walsh, FINRA's Vice President for Investor Education. "Taking some time to carefully manage your investment portfolio can pay dividends in the coming year."

Year-End Investment Considerations outlines five key areas investors should focus on when making investment decisions:

Asset Allocation. The end of the year is a reasonable time to review your overall investment portfolio and evaluate your existing asset allocation.

Consider Rebalancing. Some of your investments will grow faster than others. Rebalancing allows you to adjust your investment portfolio so as not to overemphasize one or more asset categories.

Tax Considerations. Investors who are interested in learning what impact tax rates, including potential changes in the tax laws, may have on their investments under different financial scenarios should consult their tax adviser or visit the IRS website (www.irs.gov) for more information.

Check Out Your Investment Professional. Many investors do not realize that they can check the background of a broker or investment adviser by using FINRA Broker Check or the Investment Adviser Public Disclosure (IAPD) website.

Locate Your Financial Records. Consider preparing a list identifying your financial records, including a list of financial accounts and all user names and passwords.

FINRA, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, is the largest independent regulator for all securities firms doing business in the United States. FINRA is dedicated to investor protection and market integrity through effective and efficient regulation and complementary compliance and technology-based services. FINRA touches virtually every aspect of the securities business – from registering and educating all industry participants to examining securities firms, writing rules, enforcing those rules and the federal securities laws, informing and educating the investing public, providing trade reporting and other industry utilities, and administering the largest dispute resolution forum for investors and firms. For more information, please visit www.finra.org.