Ten questions to ask now about your long-term financial plan.

Recent events have caused many investors to worry about their investment portfolios and their ability to meet financial goals. As the year moves forward, it's important to make sure you're on track toward reaching your goals and taking advantage of important investment opportunities.

Top-10 Questions to Ask Yourself

1. Do you know your net worth? Anyone seeking to reach a financial goal should start with a net worth statement that provides an inventory of all assets you own and liabilities you owe. A net worth statement can uncover financial issues ranging from inadequate portfolio structure to no estate plan that could impede you from reaching your financial goals.

2. Are you aware of any opportunities to help rebuild your retirement fund? Did you know that you can now add $1,000 more to your existing Individual Retirement Account contributions? More money compounding tax deferred will provide you a more secure retirement income source.

3. Will you be able to save enough for your children's or grandchildren's college education? Opportunities to save for college also are increasing and becoming more attractive than in the past. For example, qualified withdrawals from state sponsored 529 college savings plans are federal-income tax free in 2002. In addition, Education IRAs will allow you to save $2000 annually compared to the current $ 500.00 annual savings cap.

4. Who will pay for your care in the last years of your life? Options for taking care of yourself in your later years are expanding-including not only traditional long-term care insurance--but also self insurance and specialized life insurance.

5. Are you facing a job transition in the near future with a retirement plan distribution to manage? In most cases, it is better to roll over your retirement fund from your previous employer into an IRA as a way to defer taxes and penalties as well as retain more control over how your savings is invested.

6. Is it too late to reduce risk in your portfolio or should you just ride out the current market slump? By employing the proper asset allocation, you can smooth out the sharp upswings and downturns in the market and arrive at a portfolio that provides more stable returns than the overall market. A net worth statement reflecting all of your assets is essential in creating a portfolio suited to your needs.

7. How comfortable are you with the amount of life insurance you own? Determine whether your life insurance policy will provide enough income should you die prematurely. You also may want to consider purchasing a supplemental life insurance plan in addition to the policy provided by your employer in case you are laid off and lose your company's policy.

8. Should you consider rebalancing your portfolio to provide the right mix of investments to match your investment personality? A decline in the value of stock prices could mean your portfolio is more heavily weighted toward income investments such as bonds. This could mean you want to sell some of your bonds and buy more stocks if your risk tolerance and investment objectives haven't changed.

9. If you re a business owner, have you recently reviewed your business' risk protection package and retirement plan? Contribution limits to many of these plans increased at the start of this year, giving you and your employees and opportunity to save more for retirement and an increased tax deduction for your business.

10. Are today's falling interest rates affecting your retirement income? Selected dividend stocks can offer conservative investors a way to keep up with the rising cost of living by providing both attractive current income and dividend growth potential.

This article was provided by A.G. Edwards & Sons, Inc.