With the new year comes new opportunities, new goals, and a fresh start. What a great time to get your finances back on track or do a little adjusting to make sure your financial house is in order. Here are 5 smart money moves you can make right now to kick off this year in a great way. Refinance your mortgage if you haven’t already taken advantage of the great interest rates right now. Rates are at all-time lows. My…
The recovery from the March 2020 low was the fastest and most dramatic in stock market history. Investors were already feeling more confident by May 2020 and then on top that, they were rewarded with lower interest rates, stimulus packages, greater home valuations, and a surge in cryptocurrency values. “There’s no way 2021 can be better than 2020, they surmised.” And then it was. Some investors tried to call the top and sell their house or cash out from the…
There are many, many advantages to owning a small business—unlimited upside, work your own hours, better free time, and tax deductions, just to name a few. Many professionals choose to have a side hustle in addition to their normal 9-5 simply for the tax and retirement strategies. I recently helped a client realize that she could save thousands of dollars in taxes and deferred taxes by starting her own LLC. She decided to implement this before year’s end so she…
I’ve had a few friends and clients reach out and ask about ESG investing so I wanted to write a blog about its importance in the investing space right now. ESG is an acronym that stands for an approach to investing that focuses on investing only in companies that align with one’s values in terms of the company’s environmental, social, and governance policies. The governance piece is not to be confused with the U.S government, but is more the way…
Keep contributing to an IRA. Did you know that you can keep contributing to an IRA no matter how old you are? The IRS changed the rules so that after 2020 you can continue contributing to an IRA at any age as long as you or your spouse has earned income (wages) for that year and it is under $125,000. At age 72 you have to start taking RMD’s (required minimum distributions) out of your account, but if you have…
2021 has been an interesting year for the stock market and investing. Many Americans have taken the challenges presented in 2020 as well as the runup in the stock market, as an opportunity to retire. Others were forced into an early retirement because of circumstances outside of their control. With all the uncertainty of 2021, it can be difficult to make decisions about retirement. If you’re retiring in 2021 or soon after, here’s what you need to know. In the…
Many investors are wondering when the bottom will fall out for both the stock and real estate markets. We know people who “called the top” and sold their personal residences with the intent to rent for the time being and then buy another house once the market normalizes. With the Dow Jones and S&P 500 setting new records seemingly every day, many investors are leery of buying in at all-time highs, but are also fearful of missing out on potential…
Have you noticed the prices edging up not just on homes and gas, but also on groceries, lumber, used cars, and home improvement items? My friend told me a story last week about how he works in a large home improvement store and over the last year, he’s watched the same 100 ft. spool of electrical wire go from $65 to $95 to $165. Used cars went up in price by 10% across the country in just one month. The…
I was recently invited to be on Derek Wiley’s “You Can’t Deposit” excuses podcast. We had a great discussion centering around the power of good financial advice. Watch the video to hear our thoughts about fiduciary, serving others through one’s career, life transitions, recreation, retirement, investments, insurance, and more. Derek is a highly successful insurance agent who specializes in home, auto, and life insurance. He has built up his own agency in Daleville, VA where he also lives with his…
I was recently asked to be on a panel discussion for a professional group of Virginia lawyers where the discussion centered on surviving an economic downturn during one’s career. The coronavirus pandemic brought its own set of challenges professionally, financially, socially, physically, academically, and even spiritually, but there are a plethora of other disasters that could potentially wreak havoc on your life. Some of these unexpected events can include loss of a loved one or business partner, disease, loss of…
