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YOUR WEEKLY MONEY DILEMMA

 

Can you help me? I recently inherited $40k from my Grandmother. I have never had this amount of money before and I don’t know what to do. I am scared I am going to do the wrong thing. Its currently just in my bank account. Is that ok? What else could I be doing? 

A few different elements of this dilemma I want to go into:

Inheritances
We are on the presuppose of the largest transfers of wealth transferred from one generation to another we have ever seen. More and more young people are navigating inheritances.   
This is often a messy, emotional time for people and there can be a huge level of burden or responsibility on someone to make sure they 'do the right thing' with the money. If possible, I always think it's important to give yourself a few months of breathing space to grieve - if it's all happened quickly. It seems illogical, but grief can be a like a thick fog. We want it to subside as much as possible before we look forward and decide what to do. Moving the money into an account that you don't see or easily have access to can be helpful here. 
What to do with the money: 
Ultimately this is up to you. The first thing I would suggest you do, is be responsible. This isn't free cash, someone worked hard for this and probably wouldn't be happy if you spent it on crap. This is an opportunity to make good progress on your financial goals. Maybe you use some for emergency savings, getting that insurance sorted you thought was too expensive or your own Will sorted. Perhaps you start investing it for longer term financial goals or keep somewhere relatively safe if it's for a shorter term goal (perhaps a deposit on an investment property in the next few years). 
Cash can be crap for your goals
I know, it seems very contradictory. We all need SOME cash, everyone should have at least a few months of expenses easily available incase life pummels you with lemons. I would also say cash is good for shorter term goals (things you want to do in the next year or two)... but with inflation so high, and interest rates not amazing- if you keep large amounts of money in cash for long term goals not only will it not be likely to grow, in real dollar terms your money will be going backwards! 
I know these situations are a confusing mix of sadness and gratefulness that you have the opportunity to impact your life for the better. Don't let fear about what you do stop you from doing anything (common!). Make take out a few dollars to do something in memory of your Grandmother. 
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Have a money dilemma?

Money dilemmas can be a nightmare! They can leave you up all night ruminating about what to do, have you feeling alone and isolated or just plain ol' stuck. So, we are here to help. I am going to tackle one a week and give you my unbiased, no BS general thoughts on how to tackle your conundrum. We would love for you to send yours (or someone you know) in. 

Obvs all of this is general advice only... especially important to note any and all of the comments above do not take into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. Before acting on any information, you should consider the appropriateness of the information provided and the nature of the relevant financial product having regard to your objectives, financial situation and needs.