The 30-year Treasury bond had a total return in October of -4.25% as the yield increased 19 bps, from 1.45% to 1.64%, demonstrating that the current low yields heighten the risk of fixed income instruments with small yield changes resulting in noticeable price movements. (Source: Benjamin F. Edwards, Eaton Vance)
$2.37 million is the cutoff to rank in the top one-tenth of 1% of all U.S taxpayers.
By Jeffrey R. Wolfe, Senior Vice President, Manager of Wealth Planning Strategies
Today, October 19, marks the start of the National Association of Estate Planners & Councils (NAEPC) National Estate Planning Awareness Week, the thirteenth year of the campaign. The purpose of the week is let people know they need to implement an estate plan for themselves or assure that their plan is up to date. Doing so allows individuals to control their personal care,
By Dan Schulte, Senior Vice President and Manager, Annuities and Insurance
All businesses, regardless of their size, have key employees who are invaluable to the success of the company. In a small business, each employee usually has a more direct effect on a company’s profitability because there are fewer employees interacting with customers, creating products and performing services. As a result, the loss of a key employee due to death or disability can be especially difficult for small businesses to operate until a replacement employee is found.
Addressing the Retirement Savings Gap Remains a Focus of National 401(k) Day
The month of September is often connected with the celebration of Labor Day, a holiday to honor and recognize the American labor movement and the contributions of laborers to the development of the United States. But over the past several decades, September has also included the celebration of National 401(k) Day which is scheduled for September 11 and is designed to promote retirement savings education.
By Jeffrey R. Wolfe, Senior Vice President, Manager of Wealth Planning Strategies
We all look to create the best portfolio for our personal goals. Some of the important choices to help do that include whether you should invest in a stock as opposed to a bond, selecting growth or value-oriented investments, following industry trends, certain sectors, etc. Making these decisions can become overwhelming, but you also need to consider another deciding factor: taxes.
By Jeffrey R. Wolfe, Senior Vice President, Manager of Wealth Planning Strategies
If 2020 has shown us anything, it’s that you never know what may be around the corner. Quarantines, closings, video meetings; no one saw that coming. In short, what this means is you need to plan for the unexpected.
One key area of planning – especially highlighted by the pandemic – is the need to have a health care directive or a living will.
Although the stock market is currently on an upward path, it’s likely that a rise in infections could lead the stock market to sink suddenly as the second wave of the virus begins winding its way through the population. We have very little we can do about the pandemic other than observe all of the safety measures in place to keep us safe. But is there a way you can help safeguard your portfolio?
These five tried-and-true investment strategies are designed to work whether the market is rising or falling fast.
By Debbie Placke, Vice President and Manager, Financial Planning Strategies and Marketing
As we were ringing in 2020, who could have imagined what the following months could hold. In February, as news about the virus began, the economy started to spiral. There have been about 47 million unemployment claims since the beginning of the pandemic. That means that millions of Americans are now searching for financial solutions to keep them above water.
By Theresa Fry, Senior Vice President and Manager, IRA’s and Retirement Planning
With the first round of stimulus checks delivered and another round being discussed in Congress, now is a good time to review ways to make the most of the income you have received. For many, the stimulus checks were a welcome relief – calming anxieties over how to pay bills such as rent, mortgages, and utilities or provide food to put on the table.
By Theresa Fry, Senior Vice President and Manager, IRA’s and Retirement Planning
The year 2019 may feel like a lifetime ago, but if you haven’t yet filed or paid your federal income taxes for 2019, that deadline will be here before you know it. After the coronavirus reached pandemic status in March, one of the first announcements from the IRS was the extension of the 2019 federal income tax filing and payment deadlines to July 15,
