Helping pave the way towards financial freedom
In my years in the business, I’ve seen some bright people make some really silly money decisions. I can probably write a small book if I included all the mistakes I’ve witnessed! I call them silly mistakes. I use the word “silly” because it’s taken more lightly. I can probably swap the words to read…
This past week I attended a two-day seminar from Ed Slott and Co. I know a lot about IRAs – A L O T – but am ever-curious and always willing to learn more. Ed is considered by many to be America’s IRA expert and I went to learn from one of the smartest people…
Lately I have been introduced to people who have just come into a whole lot of money. Most times it’s game-changing kind of money. And there are a number of reasons why it’s happening. Some have small businesses which take off. Some have a company stock which went IPO. Some are stock options which became…
Whether you are a stock investor or a bond investor, the first half of 2019 was outstanding for financial markets. This has been a huge about-face from December when markets pulled back and sentiment was grim. The S&P 500 had it’s best June month in over 60 years. Not that we’re getting overly excited about…
June is the time of year when school wraps up, with parents celebrating and guiding their kids to the next chapter in their exciting lives. I was reminded of it this week when looking at my Instagram. I am seeing friends post graduating pics, whether it’s moving on to middle school or moving on to…
Finance is a male-dominated industry. According to Cerulli research, only 16% of financial advisors in the US are female. There have been initiatives to change this but currently, this is fact. It’s no wonder then, that women may feel out of place when they walk into a financial planner’s office. Plus the topic of money…
Being a financial planner for as long as I have, my general observation around long-term care (LTC) insurance is this: if I don’t bring it up, it rarely ever comes up. Occasionally I get asked about it by someone if (and only if) someone in their family was affected by it. Usually by then, it’s…
I am often asked my thoughts on saving for a kid’s college. With the price of today’s college tuition, there is no wonder why! Parents can and should be planning for this, since the average yearly cost of a public out-of-state college is over $36k a year and growing (Source: CollegeBoard) First, as parents we…
It’s no secret that I feel that our nation lacks financial literacy. Most other professionals in my industry feel the same as well. The lack of basic financial knowledge not only applies to adults, but across the entire age spectrum as well. On one hand – this is good for someone like me, who make…
What a difference a quarter makes! After one of the most disappointing quarters in recent history, the first quarter of 2019 ended up being one of the best. Most analysts say a main driver was the Federal Reserve, who went from “zero to hero” by adjusting their stance on the future of interest rates. In…