Think of Social Security as an asset to be managed. It may be a bit of an abstract thought since it is impossible to call up Social Security and ask for a withdrawal. Still, the lifetime value of your Social Security benefit is likely to be substantial, and can be dramatically larger or smaller depending on your claiming strategy, timing, and longevity.

Almost all our engagements and recommendations with clients are Fiduciary. Why does that matter to you? Under current regulations, all advisors are now required to act as Fiduciaries for new recommendations in retirement accounts (for example IRA accounts). However, they were not required to do that until very recently, and your account might be grandfathered under the old, weaker, “suitability” rules.

In our prior videos (College Planning), we have talked about ways to reduce the cost of education through AP course, college selection, and scholarships.  Assuming you have done that and still have a shortfall, you are probably moving on to methods of obtaining financial aid.  Today we are going to talk about the $150 billion in federal aid that the US Department of Education offers to 15 million students each year.  The aid is provided in the form of grants, work-study, and loans.

In our first college planning video, we highlighted advanced placement credits, college selection, and military scholarships. Today we are going to talk about other scholarships: athletic, academic, and community/specialty/employer scholarships.

Does the potential cost of college have you worried?  Today we are going to talk about ways to plan for college costs.  There are several ways, but we are going to focus on 3 that I think you can control. This is near and dear to me as I have 6 kids, with the first one just entering her 2nd year of college. Possibly 5 more to go, so I appreciate any avenue to save money while still getting a good value in this area.

We work with clients through all stages of life and through multiple generations. From going to college, paying off debt, getting married, saving for a house and of course, planning for retirement. And while accomplishing these important financial and life goals is critical, it can all go up in smoke in an instant if you haven’t planned properly. Premature death, disability, and an inability to handle one’s own affairs can leave you and your loved ones in a difficult position. Luckily, there are some simple things you can do to plan for the unforeseen and protect your loved ones and your financial legacy.

Would you like to know how investment managers are selected for your portfolio?  It certainly is not a case of “we like this guy,” or “who has the best return.”  There is a very clear and defined due diligence process.  But because our team of advisors recognize that this many not be visible for you, it seemed valuable to share more about it.

Let’s be frank; no one likes to pay for insurance. It’s one of those things we do because we’re “responsible adults”. But in many cases we’re paying to protect ourselves against something that isn’t likely to happen. Most people don’t totally destroy their cars. Most houses don’t burn down. But when those things do happen, they can have catastrophic financial effects on those who are ill-prepared. While this is true for things like houses and cars, it’s also true when it comes to planning your financial future. Let’s take a quick dive into three areas we think are critically important to address when thinking about your financial plan.

Are more choices better?  The makers of toothpaste certainly think so.  But so many choices can lead to indecision and, worse, inaction.  Thankfully, people find a way to cut through the noise, buy their toothpaste and, most importantly, actually brush their teeth frequently.  Investors could learn from this.  Read more about my quirky analogy.

Most people know that in order to have a secure online presence, you must have a strong password. By “strong”, we mean that it should be long, complex (letters, number & special characters) and unique (not the same password on every website). But this can be tough to do. So in addition to a password, or in the absence of a strong password, there is something you should do to protect your online accounts.

It is often argued that there are “good” uses of debt. Yet many people are so burdened by it that they cannot afford to save for the future, which, of course, is not good. In many cases, debt is the hangover from decisions we made months or even years ago…