Seek and Find!
Over the past year, we have endured a period of massive uncertainty driven by a global healthcare crisis and its economic impacts, compounded by racially charged social tensions and a contentious U.S. election season. No doubt, we will feel 2020’s impact on our lives, families, household finances, and the economy for many years. While the past year has highlighted deeply rooted issues that need addressing, hopefully we are closing in on the light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel. At the risk of giving the all clear too soon, it might be worth a look in the rearview mirror while our feelings are still fresh.
We are on the cusp of an extraordinary transition in medicine made possible by high-speed Internet, artificial intelligence (AI), and wearables. Medical experts are calling this new frontier precision medicine because advancing technologies are going to make it possible to consider each patient’s unique lifestyle, environment, and gene variations in ways that will make health care as individualized as a tailor-made suit.
In a perfect world, both halves of a couple share the same investment goals and agree on the best way to try to reach them. It doesn’t always work that way, though; disagreements about money are often a source of friction between couples. You may be risk averse, while your spouse may be comfortable investing more aggressively—or vice versa. How can you bridge that gap?
Gauge your knowledge and find out how much you really know about your employer-sponsored retirement savings plan.
The 2015 movie The Big Short chronicles the market and economic forces that led to the financial crisis in 2007. Based on a Michael Lewis book of the same name, the film’s all-star cast explains the crisis’s origins through the stories of a handful of analysts and investors who saw the meltdown coming, bet on it, and made a lot of money.
In the college savings game, all strategies aren’t created equal. The best savings vehicles offer special tax advantages if the funds are used to pay for college.
It’s generally a good idea to review your employer-sponsored retirement savings plan at least once each year, and when major life changes occur. If you haven’t given your plan a thorough review within the past 12 months, now may be a good time to do so.
529 plans can be powerful college savings tools, but you need to understand how your plan works before you can take full advantage of it. Among other things, this means becoming familiar with the finer points of contributions and withdrawals.