The Annuity Comeback
On October 6, 2021, BlackRock announced that it would be introducing annuities as a built-in option within BlackRock’s 401(k) plans. I believe that this latest product introduction in defined contribution retirement savings plans is a huge shift in the retirement planning industry and a bellwether for the state of personal retirement savings plans for most Americans.
Are Military Health Benefits Enough?
Many people are already comfortable with their post-retirement healthcare situation and those who spent time in the armed forces may think that their current Veterans Administration (VA) or Tricare For Life (TFL) coverage is adequate. However, limiting your coverage to only the military-sponsored programs may cost you in terms of time, energy and, most importantly, coverage!
Moving Considerations for Military Retirees
So you’re retiring from the military and are moving to your dream home… here are a few tips and things to remember.
Fund Your Trust!
The following article summarizes the conversation with Amar Shah, Founder of Client First Capital, and Alex Rodriguez, Principal Attorney at Rodriguez Law Offices, as they discuss the importance of funding a trust.
Do You Believe in Inflation?
Week over week, the number of Covid infections from the Delta variant continues to drop, implying that there is a reasonable basis for supply chain and labor to restart the path to normalization. Current estimates anticipate that the global supply chain will normalize after March 2022. Yet, there are multiple problems that exist, including a backlog of ships offshore as well as port, trucking and warehouse capacity.
Medicare Advantage Versus Medicare Supplement
October 15th is the beginning of the Annual Enrollment Period (AEP) for Medicare. But what is Medicare anyway? There is much confusion around the topic, particularly between Medicare Advantage and Medicare Supplement. Generally speaking, Medicare is our national health insurance program in the United States.
Service-members’ Group Life Insurance
So, I’m leaving the Military. Can I keep my SGLI? You can keep it for 120 days, then the answer is ultimately “No”.
Wash Sale Rules
The following is a summary of a conversation with Amar Shah, CFA, CFP®, Founder & CIO, Client First Capital, and Kyle Lynch, CPA, Founder of Clover Hill CPA, about wash sales—what they are, and the rules that impact securities, crypto, and more.
Roth Conversions: When and How to Use Them
Many of you know that I view Roth IRAs as simply the best type of retirement account. However, there are instances where it does not make sense to overfund a Roth IRA. In this post, I want to share the top three reasons I see for clients in retirement to limit the funding of a Roth IRA.
Survivor Benefit Plan
Retired pay for life is one of the great retirement benefits a qualified Military member is entitled to. A percentage of it can also continue as a benefit to your spouse should you predecease him or her. One of the most important factors for a married service member as they consider retirement is whether they wish to provide an annuity to their spouse should they predecease their spouse. This is called the Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP).
Charitable Giving: The Donor Advised Option
Because we partner with both Charles Schwab Charitable and Fidelity Charitable, we can help determine whether a donor advised fund would be an appropriate option.
How to Trade Bitcoin and Other Cryptocurrency
In March, we published a couple of articles that covered a lot of ground on cryptocurrency in general and the challenges and opportunities that exist for those hoping to earn, store, and spend their bitcoin or similar cryptoassets. Now with all of the previous knowledge from the past two articles, you may or may not be interested in using cryptocurrency as a means of exchange. But what about trading in it, directly or in fund form?
Should You Use a TOD Designation on Your House?
The following article is a summary of the conversation with Amar Shah, Founder of Client First Capital, and Alex Rodriguez, Principal Attorney at Rodriguez Law Offices, about titling your house and the pros and cons of a TOD (Transfer on Death) designation.
Being Prepared: Planning for Diminished Capacity
This article will walk through the importance of estate planning, setting up a living trust, power of attorney and medical attorney and what key steps to take with your financial advisor to tackle each one. We are also going to provide a brief overview of long-term care insurance and the benefits and considerations.
Beware of Scammers
Especially with the pandemic, scams are on the rise. Very often, senior citizens are targets for fraud and with that in mind it we thought that it would be important to round up the most common retirement scams that you should be on the lookout for.
5 Risk Management Strategies for Protecting (and Growing) your Wealth
This article dives into five ways you can be on the offensive side of managing risk and protecting and growing your wealth in the years to come.
Protecting What is Yours
Whether due to disability, dementia, or simply enjoying an exotic vacation, there are many ways you can end up unavailable to make critical financial or health care choices for yourself or your loved ones. If you’ve not documented your desires in advance, it can add extra stress for everyone, plus the outcomes may not be what anyone had in mind!
Essential Tips for planning a Multigenerational Vacation
As we slowly prepare to return back to normalcy, it is the perfect time to begin planning a trip with your loved ones. A multigenerational vacation can be a time to build new memories with your family. Below are a few things to consider when planning your next trip to make sure it is one for the books!
How to Spend Bitcoin and Other Cryptocurrency
At the beginning of March, we published an article about cryptocurrency, now let’s explore the challenges and opportunities that exist for those hoping to earn, store, and spend their bitcoin or similar cryptoassets.
Budgeting for Retirement
In this video, we walk through a few tips for each different phase of retirement.