When it comes to Social Security, many people assume there must be a single “right” answer: a claiming age that maximizes the numbers and settles the question once and for all. In practice, it’s rarely that simple.
Estate Planning Is Really Life Planning
When many people hear “estate planning,” they imagine wealthy families dividing inheritances or dramatic will readings in a lawyer’s office. It can feel intimidating, morbid, or irrelevant—especially if you’re not Warren Buffett or Oprah Winfrey. But the truth is, estate planning is really about life planning.
Don’t Be a Fraud Magnet: Protect Yourself from Identity Theft & Financial Fraud
We all have enough to worry about and better things to deal with — the last thing you need is a shadowy hacker opening a new bank account or credit card in your name. Yet identity theft and financial fraud are on the rise. In one year alone during the COVID-19 pandemic, from 2019 to 2020, identity theft cases in the U.S. increased by a whopping 45%, according to the Federal Trade Commission.
2024 Market Summary
Last year the S&P 500 delivered a whopping 25% annual return, continuing its momentum from 2023 and marking its best two-year stretch since 1997–1998. Other major asset classes, modest by comparison, also delivered positive returns in a year when prominent economists had predicted a recession: