Insights, Advice & a Whole Lot More
Time Keeps on Ticking, Ticking …
As a reminder every morning, my daughter announces the days until Christmas and New Years Eve…in case you’re wondering, there are 46 days left until Christmas and 53 days left in 2021). The television is playing Christmas commercials constantly, and all the stores are decked out
Sarah YakelNov 9, 2021End of Year Planning Checklist
Happy November! We are officially in the home stretch of the year. Including today there are only 60 more days left in 2021 of which there are approximately 40 work days! Here at Meridian, we are taking advantage of every one of those days and are continuing to work through end o
Sarah YakelNov 2, 2021Open Enrollment Season is “Falling” Upon Us
October officially kicks off one of the busiest times of years for most as holiday planning, fall breaks, and extracurricular activities fill our schedules. This also seems to be the time bucket lists are drawn and we feel we need to check off every seasonal and holiday themed ac
Sarah IrvingOct 26, 2021
Wait, My Bonds Went Down Too??
If you are an investor in the markets, you are probably aware that the stock market can go up and down (news flash!). September lived up to its reputation of being a historically bad month for stocks, but many bond investors may also have been disappointed when they opened their
Nathan GilbertOct 19, 2021
WILMA!!
My two boys have been fascinated with TV shows, music, and movies from decades past—or as they like to call it: “stuff from the 1900s.” ☹ To my heart’s delight, we’ve been binge watching the A-Team at night–with occasional diversions to Knight Rider and MacGyver. My husband educa
Sarah YakelOct 12, 2021
Happy Fall Y’all
Break out the calendars and flip the page to October – we’re officially ¾ of the way through 2021! Can you believe it?! Time to dig up those new years resolutions you made for the year and revisit your goals. Did you resolve to save money this year? Commit more to savings? Make s
Sarah YakelOct 6, 2021Do You Have A Plan By Chance?
Recently I had my first experience playing Blackjack at a casino. Anyone who knows me well knows that I don’t tend to gamble, mostly for the reason that winning requires skills, which I have not had the experience to acquire, and in my opinion a hefty dash of luck (although some
Sarah IrvingSep 28, 2021
What Happens When My Work Retirement Plan Dissolves?
We recently helped a business owner who is nearing retirement unwind his company’s work plan. This can happen for several reasons, but it is usually because the business is closing or the plan itself is ending. Either way, it’s important for the participants to know their options
Nathan GilbertSep 21, 2021
It’s Just Math
Schools are back in session, and for parents, the tradeoff of having kids at school all day is the added chore of helping kids do their homework at night. When the Yakel kids were in elementary school, it was sort of fun to feel smart helping with 3rd grade spelling or 2nd grade
Sarah YakelSep 14, 2021
5 Reasons You Need a Health Savings Account
Imagine for a second that you had a little financial fairy godmother sitting on your shoulder, promising to save you money on your healthcare expenses and help lower your taxes all while helping you invest for retirement. It would seem too good to be true, right? Well, here is th
Sarah YakelSep 7, 2021
Calling All Super Savers
Is there such a thing as overdoing it when it comes to contributing to your 401k / employer sponsored plan? If you are in the position to be questioning this, then congratulations, that is an excellent place to be financially! Obviously yes, there are limitations as to how much y
Sarah IrvingSep 1, 2021
Dealing with Uncertainty
TL;DR: more cute dog pics below 😊 Over our 20+ years in the industry, my partner Sarah Yakel and I have heard the refrain ‘I’ll get out of the market now and get back in when things look better’ countless times. In the least accusatory tone possible, that is almost never the rig
Nathan GilbertAug 24, 2021