Happy New Year once again! I hope the time off over the holidays has rejuvenated and prepared you for a great 2019. It certainly has for me and my profession. In March 2000 I passed the exam necessary to join my mom in the financial services industry performing securities sales. As my career path matured...
With Thanksgiving just ahead – a distinct reminder of the love, friendship, and community that makes our lives so special. We can also be thankful for our health and well being; we all hope to sustain our good health well into retirement. Even so, it is not unusual to think about what would happen in...
Our featured monthly article, Getting You Personal Finances in Shape for 2019, encourages you to take action on those financial items that were pushed to the side over summer break. Now is a great time to take inventory and assess your current situation as it relates to your budget, credit, and investments prior to the...
Our featured monthly article, Guarding Against Identity Theft, is a departure from the typical financial articles presented in this newsletter, however due to increased usage of accessing financial information online over the past decade or so, these two areas have become inextricable intertwined. As evidenced by my company’s recent mandatory audit, which included a four...
Our featured monthly article, Should You Leave Your IRA to a Child?, initiates the conversation on proper estate planning techniques and highlights how good intentions could lead to unfortunate results. The article explains some of the logistics of using a trust as a beneficiary, but digging a little deeper may provide better context. While most...
Our featured monthly article, How Much Do You Really Know About Long-Term Care?, separates facts from myths by clarifying some common misconceptions surrounding the payor of long term care, the use of care, and the actual cost of care. The payor of care, in most long term care scenarios, is commonly the recipient of the...
Our featured monthly article, Adjusting Your Portfolio as You Age, highlights some prudent points in regard to asset and risk management within your investment portfolio. Without any readjustment, over time, portfolios naturally shift towards the outperforming investment in the group, leaving the overall allocation skewed. This shift could result in unintended additional risk and exasperated...
Our featured monthly article, Tax Efficiency in Retirement, outlines some very commonly used tax advantaged vehicles for saving and planning for retirement. As described, the 401(k) and Traditional IRA offer immediate tax benefits, while the Roth IRA provides a longer term advantage. They both have their pros and cons, but determining the best value for...
Our featured monthly article, How Retirement Spending Changes With Time, provides some perspective on what to expect out of our spending habits during retirement. As described in the article, spending tends to be higher during the onset of a retirement lifestyle. Plans to take that trip you had always planned on but were too busy...
This week, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped in a way that it never had before. Monday, the benchmark fell 1,175 points, taking the greatest tumble in its long history. At one point, it was down 1,500 points during the trading day. 1,2 While Monday’s Dow loss was indeed severe, it was not as catastrophic...
