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Tuesday, November 3, 2020

During the coronavirus pandemic, we not only have to protect ourselves physically, but also digitally. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has seen an influx of scammers trying to get the information of American citizens. Some have...

 

Thursday, September 10, 2020

You have gone through the process of determining the home price range you can afford. You have been squirreling away money for several months or even years for the home of your dreams. Now what? In Part II of this blog post, we will...

 

Wednesday, April 15, 2020

This topic is currently top of mind for me personally, as I have just begun the process of purchasing my first home. This process can be daunting for first time home buyers, as there are so many financial questions that my wife and I...

 

Thursday, October 31, 2019

Living with a disability can take a very difficult toll. The statistics are stark – 1 in 4 people in the United States have some form of disability, including impairments with vision, hearing, mobility, and cognition. This can...

 

Wednesday, July 10, 2019

Life Insurance. Completely necessary for most people, and (in many cases), completely confusing. Why? Because there are just so many products out there, with more created every day. The good news? Whole life, term life, variable life,...

 

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Friday, April 5, 2019

In our line of work, we run across people from different walks of life – those with annual expenses of $30,000 all the way to $3 million. We have found that irrespective of one’s income and lifestyle, debt management has a...

 

Wednesday, July 25, 2018

With many of our younger clients who are purchasing a home for the first time (and some older clients as well), they face a critical question (in fact, this is a question that Anthony is contemplating himself): Should I delay the...

 

Saturday, June 30, 2018

A few months back, we received a friendly request from a man named John (whose name has been changed, per his request). John worked closely with a website that helps cancer patients get the necessary information they need while...

 

Friday, June 22, 2018

In the last two articles of this series, we discussed several important biases and how to overcome them. This has included the overconfidence bias, loss aversion, and the risks of inertia. In this article, we will discuss the use of...

 

Friday, June 15, 2018

To begin this article, we want you to first think of the worst stock market timeframes of your lifetime. Got it? Our guess would be that all of you named the great recession, most of you named the bursting of the tech bubble at the...

 

Friday, June 8, 2018

In our daily lives as planners, we meet with a variety of people from all walks of life, and we see many of the same financial mistakes made over and over again. This is not meant to assign blame to our clients (it would be a bad...

 

Friday, June 1, 2018

In Part I, we discussed the core benefits and drawbacks of investment real estate vs. the market. Hopefully, you were able to see that investing in real estate can prove quite fruitful if performed properly; the same can be said for...

 

Friday, May 25, 2018

Real estate vs. the market. The age old struggle. We have had advocates strongly supporting both sides, such support likened to political affiliation (no joke!). Many planners will admonish investment in real estate; their core...

 

Friday, May 18, 2018

During tax time, some of you will be receiving the dreaded 1099 Forms, reporting income from brokerage accounts. For those who are investing with us, we are taking many steps to minimize taxes for...

 

Friday, May 11, 2018

Estate Planning The very last action item that my clients always seem to get to is estate planning. From my experience, most people do not enjoy thinking about their own mortality, and thus this very important subject matter is put off...

 

Tuesday, May 8, 2018

Each and every day I read an article that questions the value of financial advisors in developing an investment plan. I read about how it is close to impossible to “beat the market” with consistency, and thus perhaps there...

 

Friday, May 4, 2018

Over the course of our careers, insurance is the one expense that a client has the hardest time with. Products are confusing, insurance (can be) expensive, and the underwriting process is cumbersome. However, insurance plays such an...

 

Friday, April 27, 2018

Financial Independence/College Funding There is investment planning, and then there is everything else when it comes to financial planning according to most financial planners. However, a proficient CFP® should know that...

 

Friday, April 20, 2018

We meet with at least one new prospect per week, and we understand that there is a thought each and every prospect considers every time they meet with us: Are these the right planners to help me (and my family) achieve my financial...

 

Friday, April 13, 2018

You have worked hard your entire career, and it you are now looking to your retirement. You have braved the harsh northern winters, and 80° and the sun sounds enticing. The question remains, should you purchase a second home, or...

 

Friday, April 6, 2018

Throughout our time as planners, Anthony and I have heard hundreds of stories of our own clients and their families facing the perilous waters of aging. However, this has not been limited to our professional life. We have faced the...

 

Friday, March 30, 2018

In Part 1, we detailed several options for students to pay for their college education, including both governmental loans as well as private lenders. In Part 2, we explained some of the debt consolidation techniques out in the...

 

Friday, March 23, 2018

In Part I, we detailed several options for students to pay for their college education, including governmental loans and private loans. Now that we explained how to get INTO debt, in Part II and Part III, we will explain how to GET OUT...

 

Friday, March 16, 2018

A constant fear of a myriad of our clients is determining how to pay for their children’s college. Unfortunately, many Americans need to begin very early in order to properly fund 529 plans/UTMA accounts. However, the sad fact is...

 

Friday, March 9, 2018

As taxes continue to rise, there are less and less places to put your hard earned dollars so it does not go to Uncle Sam. Luckily, your employer may provide you an additional avenue (aside from your retirement plan) to bypass taxes...

 

Friday, March 2, 2018

One of the most important decisions to make in retirement is specifically when and how to take social security. There are over 80 different strategies that can be taken, and each strategy has its own set of confusing characteristics....

 

Friday, February 23, 2018

In our careers, we have seen clients retire both inside AND outside our borders. A common question we sometimes get asked is whether the grass is greener outside the US from a financial perspective – does it make financial sense...

 

Friday, February 16, 2018

We recently met with a couple who was telling us about their recent vacations. It turned into “National Lampoon’s Vacation” – everything that could go wrong did (the entire family getting gravely sick, broken...

 

Friday, February 9, 2018

On a daily basis I must receive an email which promises something “free.” I then ask myself the following question: What is the catch? Few things in life are actually “free.” The next best thing is “almost...

 

Friday, February 2, 2018

In our Navigating the Maze of Medicare Series, we have discussed the type of coverage offered by both Medicare Parts A and B, along with the financial component. However, we have noted that Medicare does not offer absolute cost...

 

Friday, January 26, 2018

Medicare is confusing as it is in terms of understanding what types of healthcare services are covered and in what capacity. If you add on the financial layer, Medicare will remind you of another amazingly complex governmental system...

 

Friday, January 19, 2018

Over the course of our careers, we have met with numerous clients who are approaching the golden age of Medicare – age 65. Unfortunately, you do not get a phone call from the government explaining in detail what steps you need to...

 

Friday, January 12, 2018

A 2013 University of Cambridge study revealed that children’s monetary habits develop as early as 7 years old. Not surprisingly, the study found that parents are the largest single factor in the development of good financial...

 

Friday, January 5, 2018

You only have one identity, make sure you protect it. In 2017, 16.7 million US citizens were victims of identity theft, a record high, which cost $16.8 billion in losses, both direct and indirect.[1] Of those reported, the $905 million...

 

Friday, December 29, 2017

Having a strong credit score is one of the most important things you can do to help control your finances. Your credit score is used every time you apply for a loan, to help determine interest and insurance rates, for background checks...

 

Friday, December 22, 2017

Many of our clients have asked us a question over the course of our planning: “Where is the best place to retire?” Over the last two articles, we have surmised the best locations to retire, strictly from a financial...

 

Friday, December 15, 2017

It is not just about income or property taxes when it comes to the financial factors of retiring in a particular state. Last month in Part 1, we reviewed the best/worst states to retire while you are alive and in retirement. In this...

 

Friday, December 8, 2017

A warm climate? National parks? Remaining close to your family? Proximity to a bigger city? Maybe getting away from the hustle and bustle? These are all very important factors in deciding where to retire. However, there are also...

 

Friday, December 1, 2017

No one can predict the future. Considering the uncertainty of these economic times and what the future may hold for most Americans with respect to tax brackets and deductions, having a potential pool of retirement income with low to no...

 

Friday, November 24, 2017

The toughest question that we get as planners is, “How do I budget?” The reason for its difficulty lies in several facets. First, everyone is different, and the most productive way for one person may be a fruitless exercise...

 

Friday, November 17, 2017

At this point, you have probably heard that there was a hack at the credit bureau Equifax, where 143 million American consumers’ sensitive information (SS numbers, birth dates, addresses, driver’s license, etc.) was stolen,...

 

Friday, November 10, 2017

As our society has become more high tech and our daily lives have become more intertwined with the internet, in many ways traditional daily tasks have become effortless and more convenient. However, this has also benefited criminals as...

 

Friday, November 3, 2017

Unfortunately, in today’s high tech world, not only do seniors (and their loved ones) need to worry about protecting their assets, credit and identity against nefarious online hackers (as the recent Equifax hack proves), but they...