If you’re thinking ahead to retirement, or maybe you’re already in retirement, chances are you’ve developed some sort of plan for your 401(k)s and IRAs. You have determined if they will generate enough income for you to live comfortably. You probably also spent some time figuring out the best way to claim your Social Security Benefit. All of these items are critically important and you should applaud yourself for taking those steps! However, there is another clever but less […]

It’s Never Too Late to Be Prepared – and Save Lurking behind the holiday season and year-end celebrations is the realization that taxes are coming due. Taking some time from the festivities to make sure you are well prepared for taxes can pay off big time, especially with new tax reform rules. While we are close to the end of 2018, there are steps you can still take to ensure a lower tax bill. Here are my Top 12 Year-End […]

  According to the Federal Trade Commission, in 2017 over 1 million fraudulent scams, schemes, etc. were reported to the commission. In 21% of these reported frauds, the victims suffered a financial loss. The total losses reported for all ages were over $905 million in 2017, with and median loss of $429 per victim. Retirement age victims tended to lose more money to fraudsters then younger victims. For victims in their 60’s, the median fraud loss was $500, $621 for […]

  There are many reasons to take the time to construct a sound retirement plan. Retirement planning provides a range of tremendous benefits… better organization, a road map to the future, added confidence and greater peace-of-mind – amongst many more. But what is the most important benefit of all? What benefit, above ALL others, should drive you to drop what you’re doing, call your financial advisor and schedule a time to talk about your plan? Ready with your guess? Let’s […]

  Holiday season is upon us. It brings lots of joy, and it also brings the challenge of staying on budget as your gift list seems to grow each time you look at it. Most people, out of their good nature, impulse, or lack of planning, over-spend during the holidays, putting much of their holiday spending on credit cards. Then, when the credit cards come due in January, they realize they are going to spend the next year paying off […]

  On its surface, it may not seem like golf and investing have much in common. After all, golf is a sport played in wide-open spaces, where most players wear funny pants and some even drink beer in the golf cart. You probably don’t deal with your investments outdoors, and you likely don’t dress funny at the same time. Most certainly you’re not drinking beer when you’re trading… are you? When you get to know me, you will find that […]

  Today, there are over 76.4 million baby boomers who have recently retired or are nearing retirement. No matter what your age, ensuring you don’t run out of money in retirement means being smart and savvy – especially when it comes to shopping, something that we all love! Recently, I was on a trip to one of my favorite wholesale stores, Costco, and as I was browsing up and down the aisles (one of my favorite things to do – […]

  What goes up, must come down. But, when and how hard or soft will I land? When it comes to investing, I believe everyone will need a parachute sooner or later. Especially now! The Lurking Question As this bull market officially surpasses the length of all other bull markets in history, one must wonder when it’s going to end. I certainly do. Especially since, seemingly, every time I check my investment accounts the values keep going up. But, in […]

Commentary by Steve Lewit, MA Economics Every action has a reaction. The reaction to Trumps trade policy has caused a reaction in the markets here, and overseas as China begins to retaliate. Volatility in the market was on the rise before Trump’s tariff decision. Now, it’s off the charts; China has done nothing but sit on the sidelines throughout all of Trump’s commentary about their trade policies. Today they’ve moved from the sidelines onto the playing field. Where will this […]