Blog
Making Sense of Seemingly Inconsistent Numbers
It can be incredibly difficult to make sense of data. A report coming from one body may tell you one thing, and another report might seem to offer a wholly different perspective. Such is the case with August’s jobs numbers from...
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Business Succession Planning - Part I
Selling Your Business Should Be a Positive, Rewarding Experience As a wealth advisor, it's always amazing to me when I encounter business owners who want to sell their company but feel stuck and anxious about getting it done. And to be...
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A 6.1% Bump in Social Security?
The news keeps getting better for Social Security recipients. It's now projected that benefits will increase 6.1% in 2022, up from the 4.7% forecast just two months ago. That would be the most significant increase since 1983.1,2...
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Investor Sentiment Is Shifting
A recent survey shows that 63% of investors are more interested in protecting their financial assets and planning for uncertainty in the future than anything else.1 There are many reasons for this change, but here are a few of the...
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Economic Lessons from Used-Car Inflation
Inflation is defined as the general upward price movement of goods and services in an economy. The keyword is “general.” Inflation tends to be uneven and affects the price of some items more than others. If you’ve...
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Give Now To Potentially Avoid Higher Taxes
Gift and estate taxes are going up, and likely at the end of this year. The Biden Administration has promised to lower the unified tax credit, potentially as low as $3.5 million per person, from the current $11.7 million per person....
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The Fed Acknowledges Inflation
At its June meeting, the Federal Reserve confirmed what many of us have suspected for some time: prices are rising. In fact, prices are climbing faster than many expected. In response, the Fed raised its inflation expectation to 3.4%,...
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A COLA with Your Social Security?
If there is a "silver lining" to all the inflation talk, it may be that Social Security benefits are expected to see a larger-than-normal increase in 2022. Preliminary estimates call for a 4.7% cost-of-living increase (COLA) in Social...
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The Commoditization Of Wealth Management – The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly.
Many businesses and industries are grappling with cutting-edge technology – figuring out how to stay ahead of the curve and not get left behind. The money management business is no different. Disruptive innovation is a power that...
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What's your Next Tax Year Resolution?
We share the below article on behalf of our newest CPA partner Todd M. Williams, from Trainer, Wright & Paterno (TWP). We hope you find the information helpful and invite you to contact us to learn more about this exciting partnership....
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“Green Shoots” in the Economy
Investors looking for "green shoots" to confirm that the economy is on the mend have seen plenty of examples in recent weeks. Retail sales rose 9.8% in March, the largest monthly gain since May 2020. It's important to remember that...
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Debate Starts on Capital Gains Tax
Now and again, the price action on Wall Street can surprise even the most seasoned investors. Look no further than when President Biden in late April proposed an increase in the tax on capital gains to 39.6% from 20% for those...
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What Forces Are Driving the Housing Market?
Recently, you may have seen reports that a record-low number of homes are available for sale—roughly 1.03 million nationwide. If you compare that to the average number of homes for sale during the past 10 years, it's no surprise...
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Why and How to Get a Free Copy of Your Credit Report
Why There are two main reasons to get a copy of your credit report. First, there may be an indication on your report of identity theft. Check to see if someone else requested a new credit card or a loan under your name. If you find...
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The Whims of Wall Street
It can be exhausting trying to keep up with the whims of Wall Street. Lately, the financial markets have been fixated on federal taxes and what may be proposed on Capitol Hill in the weeks and months ahead. Wall Street’s focus...
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Paying for the Infrastructure Bill
President Joe Biden introduced the much-anticipated American Jobs Plan, which outlines an approach to spend roughly $2.2 trillion on the nation's infrastructure and other projects. As part of the legislative process, the Biden...
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Volatility Tests Your Mettle
Most people understand that stock prices don't go straight up. But when market volatility increases, the price action can test the mettle of even the most seasoned investor. In recent weeks, stock prices have trended lower with a few...
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The Shadow of Inflation
I’m sure you’ve heard that the House recently passed the Senate another round of stimulus to try and counteract the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The new stimulus package could narrow income eligibility to...
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Economic Predictions: What Lies Ahead?
It can be easy to overlook the nation’s solid economic fundamentals when the financial media splashes stories every day about an army of amateur traders, short-selling mania, and initial public offerings (IPOs) that double in...
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Great tax planning idea if you are taking Required Minimum Distributions
Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCD) can reduce the taxable income from your Required Minimum Distribution (RMD). You can direct that a portion of your RMD from your IRA be sent directly to a qualified charity as a QCD. As a result...
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Oil Prices on the Move
At this time last year, it was still unknown that a deadly global pandemic was on the rise, eventually stalling economic growth and sending crude oil prices into negative territory. But recently, oil prices have surged, with crude...
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It Was Goliath vs. Goliath All Along
What's your "go-to" source for financial information? "Family and friends" is the #1 answer given in the annual Retirement Confidence Survey. But a close second is search engines and other online tools, including online forums like...
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Personal Savings Rate
The personal savings rate in the United States, which is the amount of income left after taxes and household spending, has reached some significant milestones. In April, when much of the country stayed home to avoid the COVID-19...
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2021 Off to a Fast Start
The first week of 2021 has already had many ups and downs. Just because it’s a new year doesn’t mean that the 2020 issues go away, and so far, 2021 has been no exception to this rule. The markets opened on January 4 and...
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Earnings Season Gets Underway
Every few months, you may hear the phrase “earnings season” as you listen to financial news. But what exactly is “earnings season,” and why is it important to Wall Street? Earnings season is the time when a...
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Distributions from Mutual Funds
This time of year, you might glance at an account statement and see there has been an adjustment. But there may not be any cause for concern. Many mutual funds in December pay shareholders capital gains distributions that they have...
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What’s the Buzz with Bitcoin?
Hardly a day goes by that the topic of bitcoin or other cryptocurrency assets doesn’t come up in meetings with clients and prospects or from friends and relatives who want to know, “what all the buzz is about?” The...
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Markets & Marriage
Your investment strategy is a lot like a marriage. One day you may feel like everything’s going swimmingly. The next day, there might be an argument over who forgot to load the dishwasher. And even the best marriages and...
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Speed Bumps & Headlines
As an investor, it can be tempting to get caught up in daily news headlines. Consider how news about the election and COVID-19 vaccines have moved the markets over the past several weeks. But having a financial strategy can help you...
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Long-Term Rates Are Creeping Higher
With all the election chatter and stock market volatility, it may have been easy to miss the ongoing uptrend in long-term interest rates. The yield on the 10-year Treasury bond is sitting just below 1%. Just a few short months ago,...
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Wall Street Reacts to Potentially Divided Government
After many weeks of telegraphing a long and careful ballot count, this week’s election lived up to that prediction in races for the Senate, the House, and the presidency. While Americans voted Tuesday, Wall Street cast its...
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2021 Limits for IRAs, 401(k)s and More
On October 26, the Treasury Department released the 2021 adjusted figures for retirement account savings. Although these adjustments won’t bring any major changes, there are some minor elements to note. 401(k)sThe salary...
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Election 2020: A Dose of Patience
The upcoming election is prompting some people to reconsider their investment strategy. In fact, 45% of consumers with $100,000 or more investable assets expect to make changes to their portfolio due to the upcoming 2020 presidential...
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The Social Security Administration Announces 2021 COLA
On October 13, 2020, the Social Security Administration (SSA) officially announced that Social Security recipients will receive a 1.3 percent cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2021. This adjustment will begin with benefits payable...
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Election 2020: Managing Your Emotions
It’s a startling statistic. 45% of consumers with $100,000 or more investable assets expect to make changes to their investments due to the upcoming 2020 presidential election.1 Second-guessing your investment strategy is...
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October Is Financial Planning Month
When training to become a financial professional, much of our course work centers on the six critical areas of creating a financial strategy. Some recognize October as Financial Planning Month, so it's an excellent opportunity to...
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Ouch! September’s Market Correction Hurt
In theory, investors understand that stock market corrections are part of the investing process. But experiencing a setback—like the one we’ve witnessed in the past four weeks—can raise a lot of shoulda, woulda,...
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Dow 30 Changes Its Starting Lineup
The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), one of the most widely followed stock market indices, has made some key changes to its starting lineup.Salesforce.com, Amgen Inc.and Honeywell International Inc. have replaced Exxon Mobil Corp.,...
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Home Builders Confident In Economic Rebound
To some, this may hardly feel like an economy headed for a bright future. But don’t tell that to home builders here in the USA.
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When the Fed Talks Inflation, Bond Investors Listen
Most recently, you may have read that Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell announced a change in how the Fed views inflation. In the past, the Fed said it would consider adjusting short-term rates when inflation approached 2 percent....
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Federal Student Loan payments paused due to COVID-19
This month, many universities and colleges are welcoming students back to campus, even if most campuses are largely online this year. But that's not all that's different. The current administration has issued an executive memorandum...
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Has the Stock Market Rally Left You Behind?
Some people in recent weeks may have been feeling that “the stock market seems to be doing so well but I’m not participating.” A look behind the headlines helps tell the story. A CNBC study found that between the...
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What Are Stock Splits?
Two high-profile companies—Apple and Tesla—have announced stock splits in the past few weeks, which makes it a great time to discuss what’s involved when a company announces a stock split.Remember, any companies...
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A Decision Not Made Is Still a Decision
INVESTMENTREAD TIME: 3 MIN Whether through inertia or trepidation, investors who put off important investment decisions might consider the admonition offered by motivational speaker Brian Tracy, “Almost any decision is better...
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Don’t Overreact in August
One of my favorite Wall Street quotes is from Mark Twain, who said:“October: This is one of the peculiarly dangerous months to speculate in stocks. The others are July, January, September, April, November, May, March, June,...
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30-Year Home Loans Fall to Historic Lows
Lately, it can feel like each day brings a new headline about fluctuating market behavior. But amid the ups and downs of 2020, there may be some potential good news on the horizon. On July 16, 2020, the interest rate for a 30-year...
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What Is an Annuity?
Individuals hold about $2.2 trillion in annuity contracts; a tidy sum considering an estimated $9.2 trillion is held in all types of IRAs.1 Annuity contracts are purchased from an insurance company. In exchange, the insurance company...
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CARES Act Modification Allows More Retirement Savings Access
Americans who have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic will be able to access retirement accounts to help cover daily expenses, penalty-free. Now, in addition to those who have lost their jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic,...
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Password Protection Strategies
We all know that the more complicated a password is, the better. They should include a mixture of numbers, punctuation marks and symbols, and upper- and lower-case letters. Or should they? Recent research into password security has...
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Medicare: When to Apply
If you’re like most of us, you’ve probably been thinking about your health quite a bit lately — especially if you’re approaching retirement. Trust me, I understand. Anticipating your future medical costs can...
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An Unprecedented Rush to Cash
As Americans adjust their spending habits in a rapidly changing economy, they are building cash reserves at an unprecedented rate.The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported on May 29th that the personal savings rate hit a historic 33%...
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Investing with Your Heart
Investing with Your Heart Some individuals believe that return on investment shouldn’t be the only criterion for how they invest their money. For them, the social impact of investing is just as important – perhaps more...
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Know your 401(k) options between jobs
Few life events are more stressful than a job loss.If you or someone you know is in this situation due to COVID-19, you’ll likely have several questions about job hunting, unemployment insurance, and health care. You may also be...
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