Several weeks ago, I worked with a couple who wanted to retire early. At first glance, they seemed well situated to do so, as they had both worked as teachers for decades and they would… Read More
Assets and Your Child’s Financial Aid: How Ownership Affects Assistance
In a series of recent blog posts, I’ve covered the control and tax issues parents face when determining how to hold assets for their children. Another key consideration I’ll address in this post is how… Read More
Looking After Elderly Parents: A Checklist to Help Organize Their Finances
A few weeks ago, I wrote a post detailing a framework you can use if you are looking after elderly parents and need to help them stay on top of their financial situation. For this… Read More
Year End Financial Checklist for Better Financial Health
About 10 years ago, I put together a year end checklist. I did so because I wanted to see how much financial progress we had made during the year and because I didn’t want to… Read More
Setting Financial Goals: Stumbling Toward Happiness
One of the under-appreciated issues in constructing and implementing a financial plan is the role of how we think. Whether the issue is investments, goal-setting or plan implementation, it can be easy to get in… Read More
Saving for Education
Last week, we reviewed a book on children, money and values. One topic the book covered was saving for kids’ needs, which typically included either education or providing them a nest egg post-college. The book… Read More
The Process Of Buying A New Car
In last week’s post, I walked through a series of questions you should consider when it comes to a new car purchase. If you’re like me, it’s tough to resist the combination of new car… Read More
Prioritizing Paying Down Debt versus Savings
Things are going well. Your income is up, expenses are steady and you’ve got money left over at the end of every month. You’re not planning on spending the excess cash, so you face a… Read More
Money Issues: Couples Combining Finances
Many couples encounter money issues at some point, so if you and your significant other approach money the same way, consider yourself fortunate. After 15 years of working as an advisor, I’ve found that most… Read More
Tips on Implementing a Budget
A few months back, I wrote a post on the experience my wife and I have had over the last year in implementing a budget. The experience has been largely positive, and several clients have… Read More