Retiree Health Insurance Options Prior to Medicare Eligibility
Category: Financial Planning
Key health insurance options and considerations for retirees prior to Medicare eligibility.
How Should a Nonprofit Allocate its Investment Portfolio?
Let's review two industry studies, the NACUBO Study of Endowments and the Association Investment Policies, Practices and Performance. Each organization is different and has its own set of unique goals and challenges. Although this is the case, learning how other nonprofits invest can help ignite a meaningful conversation within your own organization.
Are You Getting the Top 4% of the Market? | Financial Perspectives
How many stocks does it take to really move your portfolio? It's a surprisingly small number. This week, Kent Kramer is joined by Foster Group's Director of Investments, Michael Westphal, to help answer this question.
Chart of the Month – August 2024
Category: Investing » Interest Rates
Is it Possible to Stop Worrying About Money? Yes!
Category: Foster Group
One of the most important things we do at Foster Group isn’t tangible. It’s emotional. Let's look at some things that you might worry about but wish you no longer had to worry.
Three Fun Budgeting Benefits
I’ve found some fun benefits to budgeting outside of the normal spend less, save more mantra.
Predictable Mistakes
We believe that investors increase their chances of success by avoiding predictable mistakes, those practices that sound like they should work but have been shown time and again to have very low probabilities of success.
Retirement: Living Well and Fully Living
Category: Financial Planning » Behavioral Finance
Essential do’s and don’ts that could help you enjoy your retirement life to the fullest.
A Conversation with Award-Winning Portfolio Manager Mary Ellen Stanek | Financial Perspectives
In this week's special edition of Financial Perspectives, Kent Kramer has a conversation with 2022 Morningstar Outstanding Portfolio Manager award winner, Mary Ellen Stanek, who is managing director and co-chief investment officer of Baird. In this conversation, Kent and Mary Ellen cover everything from market history and trends to surprising interviews.
The Promise of Small Beginnings
Category: Financial Planning » Charitable Giving
Spring and it's emerging signs of life are great reminders of how many things in our lives start small. But with a little attention year after year, small things can grow to become meaningful and enjoyable contributions to our lives and the lives of others.
What I Learned On The Road To The House on the Lake
Category: Financial Planning » Behavioral Finance
In my life, I’ve always been a goal setter. You may be a goal setter, too. If you’re like me, you set goals on an annual basis. It may be hard to get going, but being purposeful about taking those first steps will produce results and help propel you from one success to the next. So where do you start?
Chart of the Month – April 2024
Trying to time the market and choosing to sell in reaction to headlines tends to be a predictable mistake. There always seems to be a reason to sell.
Tailoring Your Financial Plan to Match Your Goals
If you are a client of Foster Group and have met with your advisor recently, you may have discussed what’s important to you, what we are planning for as it relates to your goals, and what you hope to achieve.
Business Owners, Beware of the “Missing Middle”
For many family businesses, the lack of clear succession plans is the most significant challenge.
March: Predictable Madness and Markets | Financial Perspectives
In the NCAA tournaments, uncertainty and underdogs pulling off the impossible upset of a top-ranked team is a certainty. This week, Kent Kramer observes how we can learn from March Madness and apply those observations to investing.
Celebrating 50 Years of Equal Credit Opportunities for Women
Category: Foster Group
As a woman in finance, I often like to think about how far we, as women, have come. A lot has changed for women in finance in the last 50 years, and I hope to see even more changes in the next 50!
“Sportsified” Diversification
The benefit of a diversified investment portfolio is that, while again we do not know who the actual winners and losers will be, the risk of excluding the best is greatly reduced.
2024 Looks as Uncertain as Ever | Financial Perspectives
The world is, and has always been, a surprising and uncertain place. This week, Kent Kramer dives into Foster Group's foundational investment principle #2: Embrace Uncertainty. He provides four positive reasons to embrace uncertainty and two big dangers of not embracing it.
Chart of the Month – March 2024
Many people are apprehensive about the markets, whether we’re in a bear market or a bull market. The fear of a market correction is always present.
Navigating the Noise: A Reality Check on Fearful Headlines
Sometimes headlines are right, but remember they are created to get your attention, not necessarily to provide you with helpful information.