Positives About the Market
2022 was a historically painful year as an investor with stock markets experiencing a bear market, and bond markets having one of their worst years ever. However, as we enter 2023, I’d like to consider the positives.
8 Changes from SECURE Act 2.0
Category: Financial Planning
On December 29th, 2022, the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act 2.0 was officially signed into law. The act includes 90+ provisions designed to help savers and people in or near retirement. Here are 8 key changes from the act.
Chart of the Month – Jan 2023
It's natural to sit down at the end of the year and reflect on what happened. Here is a short recap of what happened in the markets and the world in 2022.
How to Plan a Business Exit
Do I keep or do I sell? Business owners planning an exit should examine this question every 90 days. Here are five stages to building value in a business.
Chart of the Month – Dec 2022
Category: Investing » Foster Group Investment Principles
Those of you who keep up with the financial news are likely familiar with the three most quoted indices, the S&P 500, Dow Jones Industrial Average, and the NASDAQ. Sometimes, the returns for all of them are similar, but sometimes they are not.
How to Plan Your Digital Legacy
Category: Financial Planning » Estate & Transfer Planning
Currently, a single solution to preserve or pass on ownership of digital assets doesn’t exist. This is where it becomes important to think about all of your digital assets and develop a plan for each. Here’s how to go about it.
Every Investor’s Real Question: “Am I Going to Be Okay?”
Category: Financial Planning » Behavioral Finance
In my time working with clients, there is one question asked more than any other, “Am I going to be okay?”
How to Construct a Good Investment Policy Statement
I wrote in a previous blog about the importance of having a well-written Investment Policy Statement (IPS). What should be in a well-written document?
Running to Retirement
Stay diversified, and stay the course. That’s good advice for both runners and investors.
Three Ways to Make Saving Automatic
Category: Financial Planning » Behavioral Finance
Here are some ideas and tools you can use to help make your saving automatic, the biggest key to growing your savings.
Saving for a Rainy Day
Category: Financial Planning » Cashflow
According to a 2020 Federal Reserve study, 36% of American adults do not have enough cash to cover a $400 unexpected expense1. While the opposite 64% say they DO have enough, that still leaves around 90 million American adults unable to handle a modest money disruption in their lives.
Savings Ho!
Category: Financial Planning » Cashflow
It has been eight years, but the memories are still fresh! My wife and I loaded our four daughters into our Dodge Grand Caravan and headed west for our long-anticipated “Westward Ho!” journey. As we crossed the great plains into the Rockies and traversed the high desert of New Mexico into the arid Arizona desert, we laughed, fought, slept, played games, and created incredible memories.
Don’t Borrow from Your Future Self
Category: Financial Planning » Cashflow
While each person has different long-term goals, a common future desire that exists for most people is retirement. There's a day coming when you won't want to, or can’t, work anymore, and your income will need to be replaced. This is a huge “future self” liability that has to be considered.
Getting Rid of Debt Can Help You Save
Category: Financial Planning » Cashflow
At the end of 2021, outstanding consumer debt in the United States, including mortgages, student loans, auto loans, credit cards, etc., totaled $15.6 trillion, which equates to about $50,000 per American. Clearly, we are no strangers to debt. Ultimately, getting rid of consumeristic debt will help you save and accomplish your goals.
Saving More Is Easy If You Eliminate Obstacles
Category: Financial Planning » Behavioral Finance
I listened to a great show on the Hidden Brain podcast a couple months ago: Work 2.0 – The Obstacles You Don’t See. The big takeaway was that often the path to success is not about more motivation but removing obstacles. I think the podcast has had a big impact on my life already. Let me explain.
Keep Your Eyes on the Horizon and Wings Level
Category: Investing » Alternative Investments
We often get asked by clients about different ideas they heard from a friend, a new exclusive deal they got invited into, or, most frequently, a specific company or stock that a friend gave them the scoop on. The reality is that a lot of the “great ideas and deals” never amount to any real return, and many end up going to zero.
Is the Stock Market a Glass Half Full?
The month of January was marked by negative returns for global stock markets. But, as the well-worn phrase, “Is your glass half full or half empty?” implies, our view of, or the way we feel about the state of markets as investors, may be more related to our personal dispositions than what the numbers indicate.
Chart of the Month – Feb 2022
Market declines are never enjoyable in the moment. But these kinds of intra-year pull backs are normal when looking at market history.
Gifting with a Purpose: Practical Strategies to Positively Impact Your Next Generation
Because saving money early and often can be difficult, consider how you might help those closest to you to do more of it. Here are some scenarios and ideas.
2022’s Financial To-Do List
As we kick off 2022, many of us likely have decided on a few financial New Year’s resolutions. Starting the year off on the right foot is important to accomplish your 2022 financial goals. Here are a few ideas to consider when planning for the year ahead.
Four Reasons You Should Hire a Financial Advisor Right Now
Category: Foster Group
When we help people understand that their financial lives are Truly Cared For®, we usually think about how we help them plan, invest, protect, and give, but that doesn’t always address the reasons that people hire us.