Creating a budget and sticking to it is difficult for most people because the process is time consuming and restrictive. Traditional budgeting forces you to make every decision as if you live in a spreadsheet. But guess what? You don’t live in a spreadsheet. Read more…
The 8 Essential Elements for a Complete Financial Plan
Perhaps you’ve been told that you need a financial plan or you think you already have one. Either way, here are the essential sections a complete financial plan should cover. Many clients initially seek financial advice because they want help making smart investment decisions. But investments are Read more…
3 Icebreakers For Difficult Conversations With Your Parents About Money
How do you approach difficult conversations about money with your parents? A survey from GoBankingRates found that 73 percent of adults have not had in-depth conversations about money with their parents, which comes as no surprise. 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…
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…
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…
5 Financial Questions to Help Physicians Prepare for a Market Downturn
The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting virtually everyone in our society, and our hearts go out to all who have suffered first-hand or through friends and family. As a former practicing physician, I cannot help focusing on the plight of our healthcare workers – including nurses, aides, support staff, Read more…
Choose to Be an Optimist
We are facing risks unlike any we’ve dealt with in our lifetimes. Being told you’re in danger triggers all your evolutionary defense mechanisms intended to keep you safe. Unfortunately, none of these instinctive reactions are useful in the arena of long-term investing. Read more…
How the SECURE Act Impacts Your Financial and Estate Planning
After a bumpy road for the new retirement bill in Congress, the SECURE Act came into effect on Jan. 1. Also known as the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act, the law is one of the most comprehensive pieces of legislation to reform retirement savings. Read more…
Employee Benefits: What Are They and Why Should You Care?
When I accepted my first full time job which I would start after graduating from college, I was excited about having a job I knew I could build into a career. I was looking forward to moving to a city and being an “adult”, but I also had to think of the practical side of living on my own and being Read more…