March 31, 2019

JP Morgan’s 2019 Guide to Retirement includes a chart (see below) depicting levels of happiness and stress by age. For married Americans, happiness is lowest at age 46 and then continues to rise on an upward sloping curve all through the ‘golden’ years. (I wonder if it has anything to do with the kids’ finally going off to college.)

March 31, 2019

It’s difficult to pass on reading an article with that title, but The Parent Trap is the title of a special report found in Barron’s. Not only was the title catchy, but the contents are very worthy of sharing.  It’s difficult to summarize an article with this type of importance, so we’ll try to capture your attention by reviewing some of the highlights.

Source: Direxion Funds

March 31, 2019

• ALMOST ALWAYS - Since 1950, there have been 60 different 10-year periods (i.e., the 10-years from 1950-59, 1951-60, 1952-61, . . . 2009-18). The S&P 500 has produced a positive total return result in 58 of the 60 decade-long periods, i.e., 97% of the time. The S&P 500 consists of 500 stocks chosen for market size, liquidity and industry group representation. It is a market value weighted index with each stock's weight in the index proportionate to its market value (source: BTN Research).

• ECONOMIC DOWNTURN - 9 of the last 10 recessions in the United States began under a Republican president going back 66 years to 1953. The only recession over this time span that began with a Democratic president in the White House was a 6-month recession that began in January 1980 during Jimmy Carter’s last year as president (source: National Bureau of Economic Research).

February 15, 2019

If you’re a senior on Medicare and you get sick while traveling abroad, let us try to help you calculate your out-of-pocket expenses should you get ill. The answer: Probably every dime you’re charged will come out of your pocket.

December 31, 2018

If your health insurance is through Medicare, you might be paying too much for prescription medications.

Consumer Reports¹ conducted a study in six cities that involved three Part D prescription drug plans. In each of the six cities, they “looked at two pharmacies and checked prices for generic versions of five common drugs.”  In Denver, “Someone filling prescriptions for the five drugs we looked at, plus paying a $16 monthly premium, could pay as little as $524 for a full year. But another person – at the same store with the same prescriptions but a different plan – would pay $1,686.”

November 15, 2018

MONEY Magazine recently had an article¹ on the “growing number of people (who) are facing retirement by themselves.” Please click through to find a few tips on how to “live life to the fullest when it’s a party of one.”

Source: Direxion Funds

November, 15 2018

• A greater percentage of Millennials have all of their pre-tax retirement money invested in cash and bonds (20%) than those that have all of their pre-tax retirement money invested in stocks (19%). 2,593 Millennials (ages 20-36 in 2017) were surveyed in the 4th quarter 2017.

• 47 investment bankers worldwide received jail time as a result of the 2008 global recession, including 25 bankers from Iceland. Just 1 American investment banker went to prison, receiving a 30-month sentence for “fraudulently inflating” the prices of mortgage-backed securities.

• 618 US employers surveyed in the 1st quarter 2018 anticipate offering a starting base salary of $65,000 to college graduates with a bachelor’s degree, $85,000 to workers coming “direct-from-industry” and $105,000 to MBA graduates.

September 30, 2018

I was standing at my desk reading an article titled “What is Your Good Life” when the phone rang. It was my wife, asking if I wanted to come home to have lunch with our daughter and granddaughter who had dropped by. I logged off my computer and promptly walked out the door. Apparently, my definition of my good life includes having lunch with a three-year-old who still thinks I’m funny and wants to play with me.

September 30, 2018

By: John Zeltmann

As I write this article, we’re approximately three weeks out from the arrival of our third child.  The due date is mid-October, and we don't yet know whether we're having a boy or girl.  We're obviously very excited to find out and to also meet this little one who's coming into our lives. 

Of course, being a financial planner, I can't help but start thinking about a topic for my family that we frequently discuss with our clients: 529 plans. As we’re asked a lot of questions about 529 plans from both parents and grandparents alike, we thought it might be useful to share some of them.

September 30, 2018

AARP Bulletin¹ points out nine anticipated changes to the Medicare program for 2019. If you’re an enrollee, or about to become one, pay attention, because a lack of information may cost you a lot of money.