Saving enough each year for retirement is the most important thing you can do towards becoming retirement ready, followed by investing consistently with your life stage and other goals. Not everyone needs to save up to the IRS maximum retirement plan savings limits, but some should save up to the limits (or more, outside of a retirement plan) in order to meet their retirement readiness goals. Most people need to…
As the Federal Reserve hikes interest rates ten times to a notable 5.25% in just over a year, holding cash is generating a lot of buzz. Many view cash as the safe haven, especially when money market funds and similar instruments offer returns over 5% annually with minimal volatility. While these returns are enticing, it’s essential to take a deeper look surrounding cash in today’s financial landscape. Where the buzz…
View the 2025 market volatility review, to help you stay the course, by understanding more about market cycles, what’s driving current market fluctuations, how common volatility is, what the pitfalls are of changing strategies due to investor emotion, and how to think differently about long-term investing vs. short-term spending needs.
Experienced investors know that periods of significant market volatility, just like airplane turbulence, although unwelcome and uncommon, are normal. And until recently, overdue, as we’ve communicated a number of times in Quarterly Context webinars posted here in this blog. Market fluctuations are primarily driven by uncertainty and are unpredictably cyclical. While the reasons change, the most important question to ask is not why volatility is happening, but whether it…
Everyone thinks elder financial abuse could never happen to their family—until it does. Just look at Alfred Mancinelli. The 79-year-old gave almost $1 million in retirement savings to various con-artists, including one posing as a professional wrestler named Alexis Bliss. Convinced he was in a romantic relationship with Ms. Bliss, Mancinelli refused to listen to his children’s concerns. Instead, the retired man sued his own son for trying to intervene. …
The U.S. population is aging. By 2034, all baby boomers will be older than 70 and older adults will outnumber children for the first time in U.S. history, according to Census data. With age comes a greater risk for chronic diseases and conditions—yet most adults are not facing this reality head-on. People tend to worry about how a market downturn would affect their retirement savings. But considering that 70% of…
A recent financial literacy study from Investopedia shows Generation X (or Gen X) is invested in—and concerned about—retirement. Currently between 44 and 59 years old in 2024, Gen Xers recognize that it’s time to get serious about retirement savings. The study showed the top 3 worries for Gen Xers are retirement (21%), followed by saving money (13%) and digital currency (13%). The recent climate of inflation, rising cost of living…
The so-called “sandwich generation” is squished between their aging parents and adult children, like a piece of lettuce. That’s how some are now referring to Gen Xers (born roughly between 1965 and 1980). Between work demands, running a home, and responsibilities to both your parents and your children, midlife is often a time of “peak busyness”. The upside of this stressful time is, it often serves as motivation. The weight…
