31
2014The market is at an all-time high – what do I do now?
Well, that really depends on which direction you are looking. Certainly, looking backwards in time we are at or near an all-time high. The Dow Jones is sitting at 16,300, the S&P 500 is at 1,855 and the NASDAQ is at 4,226. Do you remember NASDAQ 5,000? That was 14 years ago; we still have a ways to go to get there! In most cases,...
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24
2014Life Insurance – Cont’d
Last week we looked at the need for personal and business life insurance and how to go about determining how much protection is needed. This week we’ll focus on the types of life insurance available, term and permanent. Term life insurance is protection for a specific period of years or offered by employers through a group plan. The costs are the lowest I’ve seen in...
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13
2014
Life Insurance – How Much and What Kind?
Life Insurance – How Much & What Kind? How much life insurance do I need and what kind should I buy? Do these questions sound familiar? For the past forty-five years, I have been providing clients with insight into their purchase of life insurance. So, let’s start this blog with the question of determining a need for life insurance. The purchase of life insurance is...
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13
2014Is The Average Retirement Age Increasing?
Many Americans appear to be giving up on retirement. It’s a sad fact, but there is evidence that seems to back this up. According to a recent poll by the Associated Press, from 2012 to 2014, the average actual retirement age among retirees rose from 59 to 62. Another recent study from Gallup projected that 80% of Americans over 50 will continue to work longer....
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13
2014College or Retirement? Resist the Urge to Sacrifice Your Future
I know this may come off as mean and unthinkable, but I really think parents need to spend less time worrying about their children’s futures and more on their own. With pensions evaporating before our eyes and many people woefully underfunded for retirement, this should be a cause for alarm. Yet, a new study by T. Rowe Price1 surveyed 2,000 parents in December 2014 and found...
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07
2014
So You’re Going To Hire a Financial Advisor
My Top 10 Items to Consider After much self-examination and thorough analysis, you have decided to hire a Financial Advisor – Congratulations, now let the fun begin…. I happen to be sitting on the other side of the fence, yet I will attempt to give you some unbiased suggestions for what to look for when seeking out professional financial help. As David Lettermen does it,...
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27
2014Looking at the Big Picture; the Premier Bucket Strategy
By now, I hope you have seen that I don’t like to overcomplicate my life… Far too often I tell clients not to “overthink” what they are trying to do with their investment accounts. I am not convinced $2 stock trades, low cost ETF’s, or “get-rich-quick” tapes and classes will make any of us better investors. This is the driving force behind what we call...
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20
2014
Who is in Control; You or Your Money?
For the most part, I believe people have a fairly good grasp on how to manage their money. I am referring to the ability to enjoy your money and not have your money enjoy you. Have you ever seen the show “Hoarders”? It’s the show where people get consumed with collecting “stuff” to a point where their lives are taken over by belongings. Unfortunately, there...
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12
2014Needs vs. Wants – Are we much different from our children?
“I want, I want, I want” – How often do we hear this from our children? As parents, we normally say, “Oh, you don’t need that….” If only we could practice what we preach. When it comes to investing many people sound like their children: “I want to beat the market, I want to get my advice for free, I want to time the market,...
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05
2014Why Hire A Professional? – It’s a Function of Delegation
Mechanics, contractors, accountants, financial advisors; all people we hire to do the things that we lack the time, knowledge, or desire to do. One commonly asked question is, “why should I hire a professional?” For some people there is no need to hire a professional. If I were good enough to do my own taxes, well then, I would do my own taxes. However, I...
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