Seek and Find!
The world of 50 years ago was a lot different than it is today. An individual often worked at the same job all his or her adult life, lived in the same house, and stayed married to the same spouse. In those days, too, one spouse could support a family, paying for college ordinarily didn’t require taking out a second mortgage, and people could look forward to retiring on Social Security and possibly a company pension.
Conventional wisdom says that what goes up must come down. But even if you view market volatility as a normal occurrence, it can be tough to handle when it’s your money at stake.
After several weeks of buildup and anticipation, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine last night. Rocket attacks on key infrastructure, cyberattacks on government websites, and troop advances follow on the heels of a massing of military forces on the Ukraine border as well as several previously Russian-held areas of Ukraine.
In times of crisis, you don’t want to be shaking pennies out of a piggy bank. Having a financial safety net in place can ensure that you’re protected when a financial emergency arises. One way to accomplish this is by setting up a cash reserve, a pool of readily available funds that can help you meet emergency or highly urgent short-term needs.
In Hollywood movies, when a patriarch or matriarch dies, the relatives gather to find out what money or valuables they’ve inherited. Then, someone gets greedy and causes an all-out family squabble. In real life, however, the dramas that erupt around inheritance are surprisingly often not about the money.
During his working years, Fritz Gilbert was a super saver: He socked away an average of 20 percent of his earnings and invested carefully. But when he retired from a 33-year career in the aluminum industry in 2018, he and his wife, Jackie, switched their mindset. Within the confines of their carefully constructed financial plan, they became unabashed spenders.
In late 2021, after months of growing anticipation about inflation pressures, the closely watched Consumer Price Index (CPI) measure surged to 6.8 percent on a year-over-year basis. The November reading represented a nearly 40-year high and triggered a tsunami of alarming headlines across financial media outlets.
In this installment of Client Conversations, we explore the unique benefits of nonqualified defined contribution plans, look at options for covering healthcare costs in early retirement, and provide some insights on surging home prices and the drivers behind them.