Ideas to help preserve and grow your money
For the past ten years, the markets have essentially gone nowhere. And it is entirely possible this history will repeat itself over the next ten years. If the pattern holds, all investors will be forced to rethink their assumptions about asset allocation and diversification. Otherwise, we’re unlikely to be successful if our objective is to …
Continue reading The Case For Alternative Investments – Part I
It's hard to find a short, comprehensive description of what's happening in the global economy. And most of us don't have either the time or the specific need to read the Wall Street Journal and come to our own conclusions. We just want a short summary to help us make intelligent decisions. This Weekly Insight …
I think we all know the name Bernie Madoff. What we don't know is how his actions have influenced how ordinary people interact with their financial advisors. But I rarely have a conversation with a prospective client anymore that isn't influenced by Madoff. Many individuals begin an interaction with a financial advisor as a result …
Some days there is good news and other days it's not so good. The last few days have been not so good. I recently talked about the use of insurance as a way to help overcome the lack of time issues associated with "investing for the long term". This article is another reminder that the …
Continue reading AARP: Older Americans may never recover from recession
It's amazing the number of financial advisors who still think insurance is separate from investment planning and will embrace any non-insurance option rather than use insurance or annuities to address their clients' needs. Increasingly, there are insurance products that bridge an important gap. If, when you are 35 years old, and you do something stupid, …
Clients are understandably worried about what will happen to their money going forward. We've spent the last two plus years attempting to recover from a crisis, trying to assign blame, and working to find ways to reasure both ourselves and our clients about the future. Here's an article that suggests that among the culprits for …
Most of us know about IRAs, about how we can put aside money each year into an account that gives us a tax deduction this year, leaving the money to grow tax deferred until we are ready to take it and spend it during retirement. What many folks don't know is what happens to that …
How much is enough? Can you grow enough money to retire and still send your kids to college? How much time is left to make it happen? Click on the CollegeMoneyNow tab to find a way to help pay for college, leaving your retirement nest egg intact. By Bob Seawright The financial services industry finally …
There is, in my opinion, no rational reason to delay the implementation of the Dodd-Frank rules for derivatives. More than any single issue that led to the recent financial crisis, financial derivatives should be subject to oversight and control. I spent 20 years as a Registered Reprentative and there are more rules than you can …
By Lauren Barack Few financial planners hope to have clients lean on Social Security benefits during their retirement years. But the last decade has changed how many advisors and clients view our nation's pension fund. Today, depending on the age of the client, adding Social Security benefits into the retirement income plan may be a …
Continue reading The Role of Social Security in Retirement Plans
Helping Define Your Financial Future 