The subject of inflation has dominated the recent economic news. After a decade of low inflation rates averaging around 2%, the core inflation rate has soared in recent months. Inflation jumped from 2.6% in March… Read More
What You Should Know About Postponed and Deferred Retirement Under FERS
How FERS Regular Retirement Works Before digging into postponed and deferred retirement, let’s first look at how FERS regular retirement works. Once you have at least 30 years of federal government service, you can retire… Read More
What Are Your TSP Investment Options — and How Can You Build a Retirement Portfolio with Them?
As a federal government employee, one key source of retirement income is likely to be the Thrift Savings Plan, or TSP. This is the federal government’s version of a 401(k) plan, a popular retirement savings… Read More
What to Watch for During the Presidential Transition
The Economy and Markets What to Watch for During the Presidential Transition After a long and often bitter campaign, it appears more and more likely that Joe Biden will be sworn in as the 46th… Read More
Is Now the Time to Refinance Your Mortgage?
Is Now the Time to Refinance Your Mortgage? The economic upheaval we’ve experienced this year has led to at least one very positive outcome for U.S. consumers: Rock-bottom mortgage interest rates. If you’re planning to… Read More
Managing Portfolios – How We’re Thinking About this Downturn
Years ago, before I became a financial advisor, I had a job that required me to fly a lot. I’d routinely log a few hundred thousand air miles a year, and somewhere along the way… Read More
Wall Street Slump: Your Checklist for When the Market Heads South
An old rule of thumb when it comes to investing is that markets drop more quickly than they rise. Panic strikes suddenly, but optimism creeps in over time. That leads to situations like the most… Read More
The Best Time to Withdraw From Your TSP Account
If you’re a federal employee and are planning on retiring soon, you need to understand when you can and when you should withdraw from your Thrift Savings Account (TSP). In this article you’ll learn about… Read More
Realistic Investment Expectations
Bear markets are a preoccupation for many investors and they are one of the primary reasons that the idea of timing the market is attractive. But the reality is that bear markets are the exception… Read More
Alternatives to Market Timing
In last week’s post, I walked through the challenges of market timing strategies in investing. The buying low and selling high that characterizes an ad-hoc approach doesn’t work, and it can be tough to stick… Read More