Unbelievably, this year marks 25 years that I have been helping people plan for their retirement – most of that as a retirement financial advisor here in Columbia, SC. Over those years, I’ve talked about retirement planning with literally thousands of people; and I cannot remember a single time in which the person I spoke…

When you invest money, you are putting it at risk — all investments can lose money. The key is to gauge your risk, and to not put more money at risk than you are willing to lose. This is a relative concept. If you have only $10,000 to invest, then putting $9,000 in a high-risk…

In a recent survey by the American Psychological Association, more than 80% of American adults said they were feeling increased financial stress due to: Higher inflation (87%) Ongoing supply chain issues caused by the pandemic (81%) Global uncertainty due to the war in Ukraine (81%) Furthermore, hardships related to the pandemic — including poor health,…

Global turmoil and rising inflation have presented today’s investors with some pretty daunting risks. But remember, this is the situation for which you built a long-term asset allocation strategy. If you haven’t developed such a strategy yet, we are happy to help you do so. We can help identify your long-term goals, particularly with regard…

As with any major global conflict, we learn things. The pandemic taught the U.S. the importance of reshoring manufacturing jobs, so we aren’t beholden to other nations, like China, for many of our consumer goods, from medicines to electronics. One of the key lessons emerging from the Russia-Ukraine conflict is self-reliance for energy sources, such…

Retirement planning was historically a little easier. For instance, the average life expectancy in 1950 was 68 years old.  If you retired at age 62, your retirement plan might need only six years of retirement income. Additionally, with the decline of defined benefit pension plans, only 14% of private industry employees receive a pension today.…

Have you ever thought about what you would do if a windfall dropped in your lap? It’s not that unusual. After all: The U.S. is experiencing the greatest wealth transfer in history. Nearly $68 trillion, mostly held by baby boomers, will be transferred to heirs in the next 25 years. Since 2018, individual lottery windfalls…

When Putin invaded Ukraine in late February 2022, President Biden announced sanctions targeting Russian banks, the country’s sovereign debt and Russian oligarchs, warning that Russia would pay an even steeper price if it did not cease its aggression. In the early days of the conflict, European banks braced for the fallout. However, U.S. bank executives…

It’s been two years since COVID-19 hit U.S. shores, but are we anywhere near pre-pandemic normal yet? It doesn’t look like it. The stock market, while volatile, recovered nicely from the initial shock and sustained overall performance for much of the pandemic, until recently. One contributing factor appears to be inflation, which has been rising…