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Archive for May, 2011

Exploring the Elder Care Journey as Part of Estate and Financial Planning Process

Posted in Estate Planning, Financial Planning, tagged , , , , , , , , on May 31, 2011 | 3 Comments »

Often times individuals focus entirely on death when they plan their estate. On May 20th, Mike Branham, CFP®, wrote an excellent article that talks about his personal story of how his wife lost her father. He touches upon many of the more important aspects of end of life planning, for example having a Durable Power [...]

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Unintended Consequences: Are You Absolutely Sure – No Question About It?

Posted in Estate Planning, tagged , , , , on May 27, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

In the past, my colleagues and I have blogged about property titling and beneficiary designations and the need to review them periodically. But have you done it? Let’s look at some of the unintended consequences of ‘naming or titling’ an account beneficiary by looking at some situations that can arise by reviewing real life examples. [...]

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Congratulations, College Graduates!

Posted in Financial Planning, tagged , , , , , , on May 26, 2011 | 1 Comment »

7 Point Plan for the Real ‘Financial’ World You’ve graduated from college– what a momentous occasion! With the flip of a tassel and toss of a mortarboard, you’ve officially made the passage from adolescence to adulthood. To help you make a smooth transition from college campus to the ‘real world’, please accept this gift—a blueprint for a [...]

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Performance Anxiety

Posted in Investments, tagged , , , , , , on May 23, 2011 | 2 Comments »

According to a recent Rasmussen Consumer Index, investors are still down on the economy. While 35% believe the economy is improving, 42% believe conditions are worsening (the numbers for consumers in general being even worse). This study is relatively in line with a MFS “Investing Sentiment Survey,” which found that only 35% of the public [...]

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The End of a Life

Posted in Estate Planning, tagged , , , , , , on May 20, 2011 | 4 Comments »

It is incredibly difficult to make those phone calls. The call to someone’s sibling, child, parent, or friend to pass along the sad news that a person they have known and loved for years is gone. Whether the death is sudden in nature or follows a prolonged battle with a devastating disease, nobody is really prepared for [...]

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Financial Priorities for New Graduates

Posted in Financial Planning, tagged , , , , , on May 19, 2011 | 1 Comment »

You’ve done it graduate – passed all your classes, despite all your partying, and got a sheepskin for your wall! Now it is time to get a job and start contributing to society (maybe after a quick trip to Europe!). But wait, before you go squander your new paycheck on fill in the blank, what [...]

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Your Fiscal Health

Posted in Financial Planning, tagged , , , , , on May 18, 2011 | 1 Comment »

I often compare the diet & fitness industry with the financial services industry. We know what is best for us when it comes to our health and it’s never the latest diet fad or fitness craze. There are no shortcuts to a truly happier, healthier you. You eat less, you work out more and the results start to [...]

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Online Apps for Finances: Is the Risk Worth the Benefit?

Posted in Financial Planning, tagged , , , , , , on May 17, 2011 | 1 Comment »

For the past few years I have felt the obligation to experiment with various online applications for personal finances. If there is risk to using various applications, I would prefer to find out before recommending one to a client. My wife believes I worry more about client finances than our own, which may be true. [...]

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What’s in Your 401(k)?

Posted in Retirement, tagged , , , , , , , on May 16, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

AARP recently released a study that revealed some interesting data on 401(k) plan participants. One of the key findings of the study is the fact that 71% of participants believed that they did not pay any fees. Although this number is quite high, it is not altogether surprising. Unfortunately, when we think about the number [...]

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The Mortgage Payoff Question

Posted in Home Ownership, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on May 13, 2011 | 3 Comments »

Part 2 of 2 In my last blog post, we discussed that there is a tendency for advice in the area of mortgage planning to fall into one of two camps. The first is to pay down the debt rapidly and completely eliminate it from your life, especially before you retire. The second is to [...]

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