Advice after inheritance

Here’s a practical and customized strategy to help you make the most of your inheritance:

  1. Set up a Retirement Plan: Given that you’re 38 with no retirement accounts, now is an ideal time to set up a diversified investment strategy for long-term growth. A good starting point is a traditional or Roth IRA, where you can contribute up to $6,500 annually (or more if you're 50+). If you open a taxable brokerage account as well, you’ll have greater flexibility for saving and investing beyond retirement.

  2. Invest the Inheritance Wisely: Consider allocating a portion of your $365,000 savings and $210,000 CDs into diversified, low-cost index funds or ETFs, which are great for long-term growth with relatively low fees. Given that CDs are maturing in six months, this gives you time to research and plan.

  3. Selling Your Old House: Selling your property and potentially netting $150,000 can add to your investment pool. You’ll want to assess whether these funds are best added to your investments or kept in a high-yield savings account for greater liquidity.

  4. Covering Your Monthly Expenses: Since your monthly expenses are about $2,400, ensuring your investments are yielding enough to cover these costs in the future will be key to maintaining financial independence. With your $750,000, a sustainable withdrawal rate of around 3-4% would provide an annual income close to $30,000, which could cover a substantial portion of your expenses.

  5. Emergency Fund & Safety Net: While you already have significant liquidity, keeping at least six months’ worth of expenses in a liquid, high-yield savings account is essential. Consider earmarking some of the cash or savings account funds for this purpose.