You know how almost every home has that one drawer no one ever opens? The drawer with old chargers, expired coupons, and a random key that might belong to something important. You avoid it because nothing bad seems to happen if you leave it alone. It just sits there quietly while life moves on.
Money can end up in that same drawer.
Not because someone is careless. Often it happens because life gets busy, especially when living in Israel while still holding U.S. brokerage or I.R.A. accounts. Statements continue to arrive. The balances do not look alarming. Nothing appears urgent. Over time, leaving things alone starts to feel like the sensible choice.
Gradually, that silence can become a source of risk.
I once met with a woman living in Israel who had inherited her mother’s I.R.A. account. The money was meaningful. Not enormous, but important. Because it came from her mother, she treated it with deep respect. She described it as something she did not want to disturb, almost like a museum piece. She worried that touching it might lead to a mistake, so she left it unchanged.
For several years, most of the account remained in certificates of deposit. They felt familiar and predictable. Each year she glanced at the balance and felt reassured that nothing dramatic had happened. That sense of stability offered comfort, or at least the appearance of comfort.
The picture shifted when she received a routine question during tax season asking how much had been distributed from the account. That question forced her to confront something she had not considered before. She had focused on avoiding losses, avoiding volatility, and avoiding errors. She had not spent time thinking about what the money was actually meant to accomplish.
When we reviewed the account together, an important distinction emerged. The account was not broken, but it also was not clearly aligned with her life. It was essentially standing still while time and circumstances continued to change.
That led to a question that often reframes the conversation for people managing U.S. investments from Israel. Is this money intended to support current living needs, or is it meant to serve someone else in the future?
The answer did not come immediately. Eventually, it became clear that the money was not meant for daily expenses. It was intended as a legacy. Something to support children or future generations. Once that purpose was articulated, it became easier to evaluate whether the way the account was positioned matched that goal.
Those certificates of deposit were not necessarily wrong, but they may not have been well suited to a long time horizon. Inflation, even at modest levels, can gradually reduce purchasing power. Over extended periods, money that remains too static may struggle to keep pace with rising costs. The effort to avoid doing something wrong had led to doing nothing, and doing nothing carries its own set of trade-offs.
This pattern shows up in other forms as well. I have met with people who kept a large portion of retirement savings in cash while waiting for the right moment to act. Markets rose, fell, and rose again, while the account changed very little. Looking back, the disappointment was less about missed market movements and more about the passage of time that could not be recovered.
I have also worked with couples who held substantial savings earning very little because the money was earmarked for children. The intention was thoughtful and caring. Yet inflation moved independently of their account, gradually affecting what that money might be able to provide in the future. When the account was adjusted to better reflect its purpose and time frame, the sense of relief came not from dramatic growth, but from having a clearer strategy.
Another situation arises when people wait until required minimum distributions from retirement accounts force them to act. By that stage, decisions can feel compressed and reactive. When choices are made under pressure, stress tends to rise, and clarity often declines.
What connects these scenarios is drift. Not sudden losses. Not alarming headlines. Drift is the gradual misalignment that occurs when life evolves but financial arrangements remain anchored to an earlier moment.
Addressing drift does not require predicting markets or eliminating risk. It often begins with better questions. What is this money meant to accomplish? Who is it intended to support? What is the realistic time horizon? And which decisions are being postponed because they feel uncomfortable or confusing?
Answering those questions does not guarantee outcomes, but it can create a framework for decision-making. From there, considerations such as risk tolerance, review frequency, and cross-border complications like U.S. brokerage limitations or address issues tend to make more sense because they fit into a broader context.
When accounts have a defined role, they are less likely to feel like background noise. They may not behave perfectly, and markets will remain unpredictable, but the structure can help reduce uncertainty.
If any of this sounds familiar, it is not a personal failing. Managing money across borders involves layers of complexity, and life in Israel brings enough adjustments on its own. Many people have that drawer they avoid opening.
This article is for educational purposes only and is not intended as financial, legal, or tax advice. Individual circumstances vary, and professional guidance is important before making financial decisions.
If you would like help reviewing your U.S. brokerage or I.R.A. accounts and understanding how they fit into your life in Israel, you can book a free introductory call at profile-financial.com/call. The purpose of the conversation is simply to explore whether working together might be appropriate for your situation.
