Debt complicates not only our finances, but our emotions too. Much of the stress surrounding debt simply comes from not addressing it in the first place. It’s time to change that! Paying Down Debt Paying down debt can make you more financially secure and give you more flexibility when deciding what to do with your

Inflation numbers, interest rates, and earnings have received a lot of attention around their impact on the crazy markets we continue to experience in 2022.  However, I thought it was pretty interesting that last week a key piece of data was released which played into the continuing saga of “good news is bad

If you are an avid reader of our blogs (if avid readers of our blogs even exist!), you may recognize this blog’s title from a previous post years ago. For those who aren’t aware, it refers to the song Changes by David Bowie. One of my favorite lyrics in that song is “turn and face […]

Not everyone has a budget and you certainly might have worked very well without one prior to now, but being aware and making a cash flow plan is a fantastic tool for helping you chart a path forward! Step one: Lay it all out there If you haven’t had any conversations about money in your […]

As much as I try to avoid the noise and focus on what matters to our clients and the investments we hold, I still find myself getting frustrated when I see the financial (and many other) news outlets reporting on the levels of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (aka The Dow or DJIA). Why is […]

Happy Summer Solstice! I just returned from a wonderful week at Lake Michigan with my family. I love them dearly and a great way to look after them is to make sure I have beneficiaries named on my accounts. Beneficiary designations are the way that certain types of assets are passed on to heirs, regardless of

Are solar panels worth it? This week’s blog features a client request on how to calculate if it’s a wise decision to have solar panels installed at your home. Yellow ribbon back home at the yellow barn after earning the last score for our USDF Bronze Medal! Most of us are aware of the great […]

If something you own goes up in value and you sell it, then you’ve made a profit. That profit is called a capital gain, and a capital gains tax is the tax you may owe on that profit. This tax isn’t just for wealthy investors. Capital gains tax can apply to anything of value, even […]

As the calendar turns to 2022, many people immediately start to think about filing taxes. While it’s generally a good thing to avoid procrastination (which I try to tell myself all the time!), you must wait for a) the IRS to actually accept your return and b) your tax forms to get prepared. Believe it […]