The other day, I saw the UPS truck stop at the end of my driveway, so I opened the door to receive whatever was about to be delivered. I casually asked the driver how he was doing, and he replied, “Not so well.” The conversation then led us to politics, politicians, and policies.
Social Security is a topic we frequently discuss with clients. The two main points of discussion include at what age to begin collecting Social Security benefits and will there be any benefits left to collect? Let's dive in.
MDVIP is a national network of primary care physicians. In their "Living Well" blog, they discuss the importance of combating cognitive decline from an early age.
If you’re a parent, you may recall the first time your child used your own words against you. That’s the moment you knew just saying “Because I said so” would no longer get the response you wanted. From that day forward, you would have to use logic to get the preferred behavior from your children. (I’m aware I’ve omitted screaming, threats, bribery, and, in extreme cases, crying.)
Over the years, we’ve repeated on numerous occasions “that time in the stock market is more important than timing the stock market.” One works; the other rarely does. The market's rapid rise over the past ten years has many market observers calling for a bear market, a correction, or X number of years of sideways growth. Other prognosticators believe this is a new era and that artificial intelligence will make companies more profitable, thus lifting stock prices. Like most other predictions, the truth is likely somewhere in between the two extremes.
If you think your name, Social Security number, address, and other identifying information are not available on the so-called dark web, reconsider your position. In fact, if we just assume a lot of our personal information is already available for sale, we can act accordingly.
As I look back at 2024, a few things changed for me. As per my plan with John, I spent less time at the office while John added more tasks to his work portfolio. While I’m still engaged in our financial planning practice, I’ve cut back. Having extra hours each day puts me on the receiving end of a discussion I often initiated with clients over the years. As they (you) approached and entered retirement, I typically asked: “We know what you’re not going to do (i.e., work), but what are you going to do?”
JP Morgan has released it's latest stack of fascinating charts reflecting the current state of the economy and the stock market. We thought we'd share a few of our favorites.
We deal with families, so we understand some of the dynamics between adult children and aging parents. In many households, we know it isn’t easy to talk about money from an intergenerational perspective. In some instances, elderly parents are not likely to want their adult children to know they may not have enough money to last their entire lives. In other instances, adult children may be making (poor) spending decisions because they assume they will be left a bigger inheritance than they’re likely to receive. Suffice it to say that money is a sensitive subject.
It’s staggering when you consider how many people are trying to separate you from your money. Early in the post-Madoff days, I once joked to a colleague at a financial planner’s conference that we should add a fee for our integrity. Imagine the email clients receive at year-end: “I didn’t steal any of your money this year. Attached please find an invoice for my integrity.” Sadly, that gallows humor joke has yet to wear out as the years have passed.