Many readers have spent decades socking away money for retirement. Naturally, the accumulation phase is very familiar ground. However, it is during the second phase, better known as the distribution phase, where the process becomes a bit unfamiliar. Based on my experience, there are three primary concerns most people have as they near the transition […]

Your tax world has officially changed. Here are some of the new things you’ll see – and old things you won’t see – on your 2018 tax return. First, if your itemized deductions don’t add up to exceed the new, doubled standard deduction, your tax life will get simpler. For single filers, the new standard […]

In case you haven’t been paying attention, the new tax law has dramatically lowered corporate tax rates. It could be argued that corporations were the primary beneficiaries politicians had in mind. Wisely, rather than highlighting the billions slashed from their future corporate tax bills, the headline grabbing figure most often cited by companies has been […]

Have you ever dreamed of being a half-millionaire? It’s got a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? Well, the fact is, if you are retired or are nearing retirement, thanks to Social Security, you can probably make this claim! Social Security is just like – actually, even better than – having a pension or owning […]

With year-end tax planning underway, now is the perfect time to bring up a perennial tax trick; making a charitable donation directly from your IRA. This is known as a qualified charitable distribution. Perhaps you’ve already received that annual letter from your favorite charity where it says you can support your cause while simultaneously satisfying […]

Any program impacting over 55 million people is worth reviewing at least once a year. This is so obvious that even our divided government officials can agree! With its annual open enrollment deadline fast approaching, your window to learn about your choices in Medicare coverage is closing quickly. In total, Medicare costs around $700 billion […]

With trillions of dollars of collective wealth embedded in the value of their homes, it’s no wonder people ask about how they might someday access their real estate to help support their retirement years. This question often leads to a conversation about a little understood product, the reverse mortgage. Reverse mortgages are somewhat complex and […]

We certainly live in a brave new world. Welcome to the age of passive investing where almost half of all dollars are now invested in index fund strategies with the singular goal of “tracking the market.” That is double the level seen a decade ago and quadruple the level seen only two decades ago. And, […]

As this year has unfolded, investors have been treated to a highly unusual level of financial market calm amidst an equally unusual stretch of political volatility. It’s been eerily calm, in fact. To put this in perspective, on only two trading days this year has the stock market ended up or down over 1%. In […]