Insights, Advice & a Whole Lot More
Give it Away, Give it Away, Give it Away Now
Forgive the Red Hot Chili Peppers song reference, but it was the first thing that came to my mind when I thought about gifting money to others. I have had many clients ask me about giving money to relatives recently (around the holidays), and there are certainly some misconceptio
Sarah YakelJan 12, 2016Three New Year’s Resolutions Everyone Should Make
Building from Nathan’s post last week…and in the seasonal spirit of making resolutions for the New Year…here are three New Year’s resolutions that we highly recommend you add to your list for 2016: “Live Life to the Fullest” — In a recent survey from GoBanking Rates, this idea ra
Nathan GilbertJan 5, 2016Resolve to Increase Your Retirement Savings Contributions
These days, saving for retirement is completely up to you. The days of working for one company your entire career and of counting on a guaranteed monthly income in retirement are over. Why? Most companies have decided that having a defined benefit plan (a pension) for employees i
Nathan GilbertDec 29, 2015Christmas Town and Failure to Plan
This past weekend, we took our family to Busch Garden’s Christmas Town for the first time. As you probably expect, I usually plan our excursions with military precision, being a planner by trade and all. But this time, I decided to wing it. The park opened at 2pm, but we chose to
Nathan GilbertDec 21, 2015Think the Stock Market Will Go Down? You’re Right.
Much like a stopped clock is right two times a day, a prediction that the stock market will decline will also come to fruition at some point. The more difficult part of the equation is figuring out when exactly that will happen. Further, how far will the market go down and over w
Nathan GilbertDec 15, 2015Time for a Hike
It is the season of anticipation—children are eyeing the presents under the tree, families are preparing for holiday guests…and investors are looking to December 16th to see if the Federal Reserve will finally raise interest rates for the first time since 2006. Given the recent g
Nathan GilbertDec 7, 2015Parents: Ask Santa for a College Savings Contribution
If your children are anything like mine, they already have way too much “stuff” and are likely to get much more in the coming month. My wife has already started hiding boxes in our unfinished basement, and it certainly appears as though Santa will get a lot of credit yet again! W
Sarah YakelDec 2, 2015Abundance
My son and I were picking up Thanksgiving flower arrangements yesterday, and he asked me why horns were holding all of the flowers. I explained that they were cornucopias—traditionally signs representing abundant fall harvests. Moving on, he just liked saying the word “cornucopia
Sarah YakelNov 25, 2015To Plan or Not to Plan
A TIAA-CREF study published in October 2015 highlighted the most common barriers to seeking financial advice. The study found that the top reasons that Americans don’t seek help with their finances is because they either think they don’t have enough money to invest, they feel adv
Nathan GilbertNov 20, 2015What’s Broken in the Brokerage Industry
Admission: I worked in the brokerage industry for over 10 years and feel as though I was successful for my clients, my employer, and myself. That being said, there are many things in the brokerage world that incentivize behavior that is not in a client’s best interest. The most g
Nathan GilbertNov 10, 2015Measuring a Different Bottom Line
This week, I was awed and inspired by the speaker at women’s luncheon—Columbia professor, Ms. Geeta Mehta. Ms. Mehta is the founder of several global non profit organizations, and is a passionate pioneer in the social capital conversation, attempting to tackle poverty while also
Sarah YakelOct 25, 2015You Can Take It With You
Leaving one job and starting another is a busy and sometimes stressful time. In the rush of learning the ropes of a new position, you may forget about your 401K account with your old employer. But, we highly recommend that you take that account with you when you go. After all, if
Sarah YakelOct 21, 2015