Blog

At Plancorp, we don’t wait for you to ask the right questions.
We take the initiative to offer insights and guidance — real enlightenment for real life.

How to Pay for College Without Breaking the Bank

Deciding how much to spend on your child’s college education? Given the sticker price, it’s one of the most significant financial decisions you’ll ever make. Parents who overspend on their kids’ higher education may end up having to work longer, live on less, sacrifice other important goals and Read more…

End-of-Year Tax Planning Tips

My first opportunity to vote in a presidential election was the year 2000. Bush v. Gore. Hanging chads. A month of legal battles until we had a President Elect. I always wondered whether another election would surpass that chaos. 20 years later I have my answer. Read more…

Saving Tips for Millennials: How to Create a Personal Financial Plan for the Future

For Millennials, financial obligations are more overwhelming than they were for both Generation X and Baby Boomers before them. This shouldn’t come as a surprise since this generation arguably has faced more economic uncertainty than any generation since those who lived during the Great Depression. Read more…

Your Employer Offers You Non-Qualified Deferred Compensation (NQDC): Now What?

It’s always nice to be recognized for a job well done. Being invited to participate in your employer’s non-qualified deferred compensation (NQDC) plan, is one such vote of confidence; it’s typically offered exclusively to select executives or similar high-performing employees. Read more…

8 Financial Planning Benefits for Same-Sex Couples: The Story of Jane and Josephine

In 2015, Jane and Josephine had been together as a couple for ten years and, the U.S. Supreme Court just declared that same-sex couples have the fundamental right to marry. Like every couple, Jane and Josephine had a lot to consider before deciding to get married or not. The first thing that they Read more…

Pay Off Student Loans or Invest? Here’s How to Decide

These days, holding a college diploma is table stakes to qualify for a decent job. Because more people than ever attend a four-year college and that degree is the minimum qualification for many positions, we’ve also seen a spike in students who continue their education to pursue a graduate degree. Read more…

What to Do If You Were Getting Ready to Retire Before the Pandemic Hit

The current impact that the global coronavirus pandemic has had on our daily lives is obvious. This event has touched every one of us in various ways, but you may feel particularly affected if you were thinking about retiring in the near future. You may wonder how the fallout and long-term Read more…

6 ESG Investment Strategies to Consider

A growing number of investors are interested in Environmental, Social and Governance investing, known as ESG. That term is becoming more common, but ESG still means different things to different people. Read more…

How to Use Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts (GRATs) to Transfer Wealth to Beneficiaries Tax-Free

One of our most important responsibilities is helping clients achieve financial independence. We love when we can tell them they have enough money to do whatever they want for the rest of their lives. But that milestone is hardly the end of the wealth management process. The next question we like Read more…

What Does it Mean to Be an ESG Investor?

In late 2017, I was tasked with building Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) portfolios for Plancorp. To be honest, I was initially less than thrilled; my past experiences with these types of portfolios were not necessarily positive. Read more…