Finding the Ideal Place to Live in Retirement

Planning for retirement is rife with big questions — not just how you want to spend your golden years, but where? For some, retirement offers the opportunity to spend more time with family; for others, it’s the chance to venture into a different climate.  For the most part, seniors are planning to spend their retirement […]

Active vs Passive Investing

Investors and advisors alike have long debated the merits of active versus passive investing. As the markets have taken a downward turn over the last year in response to rising interest rates, this age-old question has emerged again.  Passive investing seeks to generate average market returns and involves hanging on to investments over a long […]

Get to Know Your Risk Tolerance

When constructing a portfolio, it’s critical to understand three important factors: your goals, your time horizon, and your risk tolerance. Of those three, risk tolerance can be the trickiest to get a handle on, especially since it can be determined in large part by your emotions and how well you handle turbulence in the market. […]

Growth Stocks vs. Value Stocks

Stock investing is an important engine of growth in your portfolio, but deciding on an investing strategy and particular stocks can be challenging. When designing a diversified portfolio that minimizes risk, it can help to think of stocks as falling into one of two categories: growth stocks and value stocks. Both growth and value stocks […]

The Advantages of a Family Trust

Family trusts are an important tool for managing wealth across multiple generations. They can help you avoid the time-consuming and costly process of probate, keep your assets private, minimize taxes, and ensure that your wealth is distributed according to your wishes.  Family trusts tend to be most appropriate for families with large estates or a […]

Understanding Mutual Funds, Index Funds, and ETFs

It’s common knowledge that investing in mutual funds, index funds, or exchange-traded funds (ETFs) can help build a diversified portfolio. These funds hold diverse baskets of securities, including stocks, bonds and other assets from real estate to derivatives. By investing your money in a variety of investments, you help minimize the risk that your investments […]

The Benefits of Donor-Advised Funds

As tax planning season and end-of-year charitable giving begin, it’s a good time to consider the benefits of donor-advised funds. Charitable giving has many facets, most notably as an opportunity for you to support the causes and organizations that reflect your values. But giving is also a significant tax and financial planning opportunity, helping you […]

Investing During a Bear Market

Lately, financial pundits seem to be constantly warning that a bear market is coming, arguing over whether one has begun or predicting when one will end. It’s less common for them to actually define one. From their ominous tone, you can tell it’s less appealing than its counterpart, a bull market. But what is it […]

Smart Ways to Save for Your Child’s Education

If you’re a parent, the start of a new school year may have you considering how much you’re able to set aside for your child’s college fund.  Average annual tuition in the U.S. is $38,185 for private college and $10,338 for public college.1 And those numbers may rise by 2%–3% in the coming school year.2 […]

Understanding the Charitable Remainder Trust

The charitable remainder trust (CRT) is a popular retirement- and estate-planning tool. It can be a convenient way to create a stream of lifetime income for yourself and others or donate to a charity while minimizing and deferring taxes. But there are many choices to make when establishing a CRT and, in some cases, these […]