One way to be sure you don’t run out of money in retirement is to carefully plan in advance. I like to talk about the Retirement Red Zone, the five years before you retire and the 10 years after. This window is when a lot of important choices and adjustments can be made to increase …
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What’s with All the Market Volatility?
Markets rise and fall over time. With the current bull market stretching back to March of 2009, it can be easy to forget the part about falling. But history shows that the S&P 500 index averages a 13.8 percent decline at some point during each calendar year. And yet, the average annual return since 1980 …
Have I Saved Enough for Retirement?
The answer to this question is the same as to many financial planning questions: “It depends.” It depends on how much you’ve saved so far and how much you will need to spend during retirement. But if you are like most Americans, the answer is “no.” A recent survey by GOBankingRates found that 42 percent …
Why Don’t I Trust My Advisor?
If you’ve ever wondered about whether to trust your financial advisor, you are not alone. Only one in three people are confident their financial advisor always puts their interests ahead of the advisor’s, and about half of people think their advisor has not been clear about costs and fees of services. These are the findings …
What is the CFP® Certification?
You may have heard of the CFP® certification. The letters stand for Certified Financial Planner™ professional. It’s probably the most widely recognized professional designation in the personal financial planning profession. You may have seen some TV commercials that promote the certification. A CFP® professional must meet rigorous education and experience requirements and they are held …
What Should I Know About My Family’s Money?
I was talking with a client recently and she mentioned a dear friend who had recently lost her husband. While the friend was working to settle the estate, to her surprise she found that she was not listed on some accounts and that she had almost no personal financial history of her own. This was …
