Retirement

Even small companies can sponsor 401(k) plans. These attractive employee benefits offer the fastest path to saving more money to build a healthy retirement fund. You may imagine these vehicles are most appropriate for larger companies. Certainly, these mega-plans get a lot of attention. But did you know owners with just a few employees may

Financial planning, as a relatively new profession, has experienced a rapid pace of evolution. Initially, it began as an aggregation of previously segregated financial industry services—brokerage, banking, and insurance—but it took a major leap forward when the first class of Certified Financial Planner™ (CFP®) designation holders graduated in 1973. The completion of this five-course curriculum

Topline The stock market surged higher on Friday, with stocks on pace to snap a three-week losing streak as investors shook off Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s recent comments about more interest rate hikes from the central bank for the foreseeable future. Key Facts The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 1.2%, nearly 400 points,

By Richard Eisenberg, Next Avenue Sharon Greenfelt Kersten, a 70-year-old publicist, loved the $1,900-a-month Fort Lauderdale, Florida, two-bedroom rental house where she lived and worked. But in November 2021, her landlord told her he planned to raise the rent by roughly 40%, to $2,800 monthly. “I absolutely could not afford that,” says Kersten. So, she

By Nancy Collamer, Next Avenue I’ve never much enjoyed doing crossword puzzles. But this past summer, I got hooked on Wordle. For those who are unfamiliar, Wordle is a free web-based word game that became wildly popular during the pandemic. Each day, you’re given six attempts to guess one five-letter word. The goal is to

By Chris Farrell, Next Avenue If you want to take a conversation in an interesting direction, ask a group of adults what they think is the most popular age for entrepreneurship. The typical answer in my experience is the younger generation. Among older adults, Steve Jobs (Apple AAPL ) and Bill Gates (Microsoft MSFT )

Estate planning and end-of-life planning can be extremely complex. It is also a topic area many people want to avoid because it forces us to face our own mortality and the what-ifs of life and death. However, just as we plan for a good life, we should plan for a good end of life. Part

Topline The stock market moved higher on Thursday even as recession fears continued and investors assessed comments from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, who pledged that the central bank is “strongly committed” to bringing down inflation with rate hikes for the foreseeable future. Key Facts The Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.6%, nearly 200

For many families, trusts can be a useful vehicle for passing wealth to the next generation or generations. That’s not their only benefit. Trusts also can be used to help reduce taxes, avoid probate, give to charity and even manage assets if the trust owner becomes disabled. While sometimes considered the domain of the ultrawealthy,

Imagine, for a moment, a functioning, well-developed system for improving the lives of frail older adults. Imagine that, instead of our current chaotic, dangerous, and needlessly expensive patchwork of care for seniors, the U.S. had a well-coordinated care model that leverages and supports paid aides, family caregivers, safe and appropriate housing, and new technology. And

Every financial advisor, wealth manager and financial institution will offer to help customers reach a “successful retirement”. They manage investments, and the focus is on making money last for life. Great. But they leave out a critical piece of the picture: successful retirement takes much more than adequate financial planning. What else is there? A

Topline The stock market fell in volatile trading on Tuesday, adding to sharp losses in recent weeks as investors assessed the latest round of better-than-expected economic data, which points to more aggressive interest rate hikes from the Federal Reserve. Key Facts The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.6%, nearly 200 points, while the S&P

The median net worth of retirees aged 65-74 was only $266,000 in 2019, of which $240,000 was in their homes. All indications are that in the last few years, the problem has gotten worse. Bottom line, at least half of all retirees today live in fear of having to live on meager social security benefits.

When Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act, it secured funding for a myriad of projects, from green energy to potential reduction in prescription prices and increased tax rates on certain corporations. It also allotted an additional $80 billion to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) over the next 10 years, including $45.6 billion for enforcement of

Who won the $1 billion+ Mega Millions lottery drawing of July 29, 2022? No announcement has been made as of yet, and in fact, it is possible that we may never know the identity of the winner. (The winning ticket was purchased in Illinois, a state that permits lottery-winner anonymity for those who win prizes

Topline Stocks rebounded slightly on Thursday—reversing some of the steep declines in August—as investors continue to worry about a period of prolonged rate hikes from the Federal Reserve, while market experts warn of further volatility ahead and rising recession risks. Key Facts Stocks were on pace for a five-day losing streak before a rebound late

“I thought you retired,” I say teasingly to an old friend. He turns swiftly and in a somewhat irate tone, responds, “I am retired!” The 66-year old ‘retired’ engineer goes on, “I simply do what I want, when I want.” Pausing, he says, “And, for now, I want to work a bit.” His words sum

Topline The summer stock market rally appears to have fizzled out after steep declines in August, and experts warn investors should expect more volatility in September, which is historically the market’s worst month—especially when stocks are already down for the year. Key Facts Stocks struggled to kick off September on a positive note Thursday, moving

The headline of Wednesday’s New York Times report announces, “U.S. Life Expectancy Falls Again in ‘Historic’ Setback,” and the just-released data from the CDC is shocking: During the second year of the pandemic, life expectancy not only didn’t recover from its 2020 drop, but it dropped further, from 78.8 years in 2019 to 77 in

Life expectancy in the United States fell again, from 77.0 years in 2020 to 76.1 years in 2021, according to a recent report from the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS). Even worse, life expectancy has declined by a total of 2.7 years since 2019 (pre-pandemic). Should you be worried? The answer depends on who