As summer approaches our firm has just completed the first half of all annual plan reviews with our clients. Financial planning continues to evolve and encompasses a wide array of services, needs, and considerations. It’s been our experience that attempting to...
Traditional investment thinking has always viewed bonds and fixed income as a “safe” haven away from the volatility of equities. Equities, as we’ve discussed before, are thousands of companies (of various sizes) run by really smart men and women. These companies are...
Pop quiz: How are your New Year’s resolutions progressing? Do you even remember what you resolved to change or improve? So much has changed in the past 10 weeks that it may be difficult to reflect upon what was so important in early January. I’m guessing that most...
In our last post, we outlined the challenges that exist when planning for aging parents. We covered several points that may help you better prepare for opening a dialogue to ensure mom and dad’s financial choices are optimized. Here are some other conversation...
How do you assist aging parents with their financial decisions? It’s natural not to discuss money, or other financial matters, with family. This reluctance to share tends to increase with age, even though studies show our cognitive decision-making declines as we get...
Spending the past nine weeks at home may have you contemplating some capital improvements when life returns to normal. Every project comes with a price tag, how you decide to pay for renovations small or large has an impact on your financial plan. Let’s take a...
Now is a good time to reflect on current spending as we work and live from home. Spending in some areas may be up while other discretionary spending is likely down. It’s possible more cash has accumulated in your bank accounts as non-essential spending has declined...
Every professional and family needs a safety net to protect what is important to them. This “safety net” is unique depending on who you are, what you care about, and where you are in life. Life moves quickly and it’s important to ensure your safety net is keeping...
In our prior post we covered the three tax environments in which your investments live. Tax-diversification is the act of managing these environments as you accumulate wealth today and also as you distribute income tomorrow. Problems may arise when your approach...
Tax diversification plays a key role in our conversations and planning with clients. We recognize tax considerations can change frequently and, if not properly monitored, can take a larger bite out of your income and investments than you’d like. When you invest, it...
Financial planning is a lot like baking a cake or making a batch of cookies. Most recipes will use similar ingredients such as flower, sugar, and milk. However, there is still quite a bit you can customize, substitute, or make your own. Some of this comes in the...
April is financial literacy month and it couldn’t arrive at a better time. Given our current circumstances and being hunkered-down at home, its natural for your financials to receive less attention than they deserve. There are several steps, outlined below, that may...