Tuesday, July 9, 2019
It has been 15 years since I was studying for the CFP exam that I have been buried in textbooks. I just completed the Certified Divorce Financial Analyst designation. Why? Recently I had received several referrals from estate planning...
Read MoreToday's graduating resident or fellow faces a daunting challenge of managing an average of $157,944 in student loan debt according to the College Board, with saving for a down payment on a home. In today's lending world a minimum 20%...
Read MoreOne of the most difficult analysis that a financial advisors can be asked to make is whether a client should take a lump sum or a monthly pension. Most pensions are covered by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. (PBGC) which aims to...
Read MoreIn July, MSCI the creator of many popular indices created two new indices that invest globally while excluding Russian companies. This highlights the difficult nature of an index fund which includes multiple countries. In a global...
Read MoreIn California where my office is located, same sex couples have the same rights to Social Security Benefits as any other married couple. With this new benefit available, which claiming strategy is best? Opposite sex couples may have...
Read MoreA recent report by Forbes mapped out the worlds billionaires. This exclusive club has 1,587 members of which 512 are in the US and Canada. Asia has grown to #2 with 403 and Europe third with 343. Latin America, Russia, and other...
Read MoreWriting from 30,000 feet on my way home from Nashville I wanted to share an interesting observation. There are a noticeable amount of Egyptians in Music City. Time and time again at my hotel, I would see a name tag and it would give...
Read MoreWith approximately half the stock market value being concentrated in the US, it is no surprise that we Americans tend to invest the majority of our assets in our home country. This is called "home country bias" and occurs in most...
Read MoreToday Scotish nationalists are asking their voting population(as young as 16 years old) to vote for separation from England. While I don't normally chime in with my political opinion I think it is rather obvious what a destabilizing...
Read MoreThe consolidation of hospitals owning private physician practices is not showing a reduction in the price and actually increased costs for the privately insured according to researchers at Stanford University(2001-2007). There is a...
Read MoreThe Conrad 30 program, named for Sen. Kent Conrad of North Dakota is meant to address physician's shortages in primary care in rural and urban areas by granting visa waivers. There are many parallels to the technology industry where...
Read MoreIn reflecting on the last two weeks in the market which have been quite volatile, we are reminded how much uncertainty there is in the world. At the beginning of the season the Royals were about a 50 to 1 shot to win the World Series...
Read MoreThere are several income producing strategies that can be used in combination with the underlying investments. There is no guarantee any of these strategies will be successful. Speak with a financial professional to determine which...
Read MoreThere are several risks to consider when developing a plan for managing your assets in retirement. Not all people will have equal exposure to these risks, yet it is important to keep these risks in mind when developing a retirement...
Read MoreWe are entering the season when parents of college age parents start completing the FAFSA form with the hope of catching a small amount of money from the murky pond of financial .aid. This is no small task with over 100 inputs.(105 to...
Read MoreAs I write this, the chairwoman of the Federal Reserve is speaking on policy and painfully answering the partisan questions of the Senators in front of her. The dual mandate of the Federal Reserve is to encourage full employment in the...
Read MoreIn the unfortunate circumstance where your 18-year-old child who you have groomed to go to college decides to take a shot at being in a band instead of attending your alma mater what you do with their 529 plan? You can of course...
Read MoreWe often think about putting our houses in the trust or providing a safety deposit box key to a loved one but who will handle your digital assets after death. To name a legacy contacts at Facebook, go to your security settings and edit...
Read MoreI can't even remember one gift I got for my 12th birthday but I have vivid memories of what I did. My parents had some semi pro skaters that I am sure could use some spending cash stop by for a demonstration for me and my friends. All...
Read MoreDid you remember that the home equity life of credit you took out before the hosing market imploded was set to amortize in ten years instead of the current interest only requirement? No? Well you are not alone. According to Equifax and...
Read MoreThe difference between socially responsible and impacting investing at first was lost on me. Socially responsible investments are often difficult to define as investors often have different values and beliefs so one investment that is...
Read MoreIf you don't know the term cap rate, consider yourself a real estate beginner. A basic way of measuring the profitability and price of a property is through a term called cap rate. It is basically dividing the annual income produced by...
Read MoreI finally took the plunge and decided to install solar on my house. Panels are continually improving but I figured they had advanced dramatically and future improvements would be more incremental in terms of the efficiency. As a...
Read MoreGroup long-term disability provided by your employer is a helpful benefit but this post will point out key differences. Ownership - coverage is individually owned as opposed to being leased from employerRates and renewal - typically...
Read MoreWhen we create retirement income models, often the response when mentioning Social Security is something like "if it still exists." While we don't believe those in or close to retirement will see any reduction, there have been...
Read MoreThere are a host of sites offering free credit reports. While these companies for a fee will give you access to your credit report and monitor changes, if you just want access to the report the website set up by the three providers www...
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