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As we age, we are increasingly confronted by those younger who insist on pointing out “things have changed,” and they, as part of the younger generation (which they take pride in telling us we are not), know a better way to go about planning for the future than we do. While certainly, there are new […]

We all know that it is not uncommon for one spouse to be the primary decision-maker when it comes to managing a couple’s money. But this approach can have consequences. One major consequence is if the spouse with the hold on the couple’s financial situation becomes incapacitated or dies, the other spouse may find themselves

We often speak with individuals who provide us with calculations for our retirement income, which calculations are based on various assumptions, from asset allocation to market projections to future returns that may turn out to be wrong. Assumptions are only ever indicative or directional, and while a valuable exercise, a retirement strategy based on these

We frequently receive inquiries from family members of decedent owners of various insurance products where there is a disconnect between their impression of who the owner of the policy wanted to be a beneficiary, and who, in fact, ended up becoming the beneficiary. So, we thought to address that topic briefly in this commentary.  While

It isn’t always easy to save for retirement, in part because, for many people, it is far enough away that we don’t feel any sense of urgency. One possible solution? Make the future feel closer. You can start this process by asking what future benefit could be provided by choosing where you put your retirement

We were recently asked a question that led us to believe this week’s topic might be useful to many of you. While most of us are aware of how Social Security works, here are the five most important things every married couple should know about Social Security.  1) Nothing keeps you from getting your own

Last week, we spoke about RMDs and we were then asked to take it a step further and talk about the issue of leaving an IRA to beneficiaries once you have begun to take your annual distributions. With an Inherited IRA, you may either need to take annual distributions no matter what age you were

For many investors entering their 70s, diligently contributing to and saving in tax-deferred retirement accounts must soon turn to making mandatory annual withdrawals. That’s because the government requires retirees to take required minimum distributions (RMDs) from such accounts after a certain age. Retirees may find RMDs to be a bit daunting, partly because of the

An interesting study performed by the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College delved into the concept of lifespan variation, and why it provides valuable information about mortality beyond life expectancy. “It is precisely this uncertainty around the average lifespan that gives rise to “longevity risk” – the possibility of living an unusually long time

Are you the kind of person who likes to make lists? You might see the use in this list of “five easy steps for financial fitness.” #1 Create a budget; #2 Manage your debt; #3 Create a plan that keeps you disciplined in all kinds of markets; #4 Prepare for the unexpected; and #5 Protect