As Realtors we're Independent Contractors. We're the Rain Makers. We need to make it happen for ourselves since we're responsible for our own financial security. So I started wondering how many Realtors have actually created a plan for their financial future and retirement.

One of the most important factors in planning is timing. There's always a viable excuse to delay starting the plan, but don't procrastinate - make a plan and implement it as early as possible in your career. One of the first steps is to open a SEP IRA - a Simplified Employee Pension Individual Retirement Account. The SEP IRA is a variation of the Individual Retirement Account. SEP IRAs are adopted by business owners to provide retirement benefits for the business owners and their employees - in our case as Realtors, we open a SEP IRA for own account.

A SEP-IRA may be best for Self-employed individuals; Employers with few or no employees; Employers who want to make high contributions to their own accounts and the accounts of partners or employees; Employers who want flexibility in the amount contributed annually; and Employers who want an easy-to-administer, low-cost plan. Contributions to the SEP IRA are tax deductible up to  25% of compensation (20% if you're self-employed) or $46,000 for 2008, whichever is less.

Once the SEP IRA is opened you need to decide on what investment to make with the funds. My research and experience has shown that a diverse portfolio of mutual funds is the best way to go. Diversification is the key buzz word. There's an interesting article in the Los Angeles Times online that explains how to create a winning fund portfolio.

For interest I also like to include a few stocks that are of particular interest to me for one or other reason. I use very basic fundamental logic to decide which stocks to consider. An example is APPLE  - no matter how quiet a shopping mall may be, I notice that the Apple Store is always full of people. My logic tells me that this is stock to watch and possibly be invested in. (By the way I love my iPod, iTunes, my iPhone, and I have my eye on the new Apple notebook (the MacBook Air).

I invite members to share their ideas and observations for Stocks of Companies they think may be worthwhile including as an Investment.