You may have seen this anonymous piece before. With all that’s going on in our culture it is timely and a good reminder. A father used to say to his children when they were young: “When you all reach the age of 12, I will tell you the secret of life.” One day…
You’ve probably noticed the volatility wreaking havoc in the markets over the past few weeks. To understand what’s going on, let me tell you a story. Imagine you are inside a fancy restaurant, waiting for your meal to be prepared. While you wait, you can watch the chefs as they work. Suddenly, though, you…
According to the Department of Health and Human Services (I know I’m quoting a government source), 70 percent of all people over age 65 will need some form of long-term care in their lifetimes. This is also confirmed by other non-government sources. The statistics are frightening. I talk to many that would add paralyzing.…
One of the charts I watch daily is the 10-year treasury yield. It’s now started creeping higher again since about the first of the month. Traditionally, growth stocks with lots of debt typically do not do well in a rising rate environment. The US Debt Clock shows that the interest paid on the record $30.7…
You may be tired of hearing me harp on taxes. Now some mainstream news sources are starting to chime in. This is a 4th of July article from Kiplinger. I am going to quote the very first sentence of the article. “Traditional IRAs are set up in a way that basically incentivizes you (and…
Nearly each one of these Retirement Truths is worth a 30-minute conversation. Take a look at these truths and email me and let me know which ones we should discuss at our next meeting. When we talk about any of these, I want you to REVERSE your thinking to, “What if I could take…
Part 2 Last week I posed the question; which is easier to fix? Is a recession easier to fix or is inflation easier to fix? Thank you for all of the feedback I received. I had some unique and creative answers for sure! I hope the question stirred your thoughts on what’s currently happening.…
Which Is Easier to Fix, Recession or Inflation? They did it again on Wednesday. The Federal Reserve raised by 0.75 percentage points yesterday and also June. Yesterday is the fourth rate increase this year. But what does all of this really mean? The most notable issue in the economy is inflation. Raising interest rates is…
A Careful Look At Beneficiaries For most people the choice of beneficiaries is simple: Spouse first, then adult children. For others it may not be that simple—or not stay that simple. Let’s see what we can learn. The most common cases requiring beneficiary designation are on wills and trusts, and on financial accounts like qualified…
Many have asked me about the government’s inflation protected savings bond which is currently paying 9.62 percent. It’s a great question. Who wouldn’t want 9.62%? I’ve found for most of our clients a $10,000 investment at 9.62% doesn’t really move the needle much. You can only have $10,000 and no more than $10,000. …