This post was last updated on 20 June, 2023, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.
Money touches everything in our lives, but it doesn’t need to be the focal point of everything we do. Scrutinizing your money habits is a good thing, but you don’t want to constantly worry about each tiny detail of your spending. A full understanding of your money is good, so you don’t get carried away either – just don’t go overboard.
This post was last updated on June 16, 2023, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.
Check out Clint’s interview on the Crushing Debt podcast! In the episode Clint and Shawn talk about the Financial Freedom Blueprint course and the financial planning process NextGen Wealth uses to help clients. You can listen to the episode on your favorite podcast player or just click the play button below.
One of the key functions of retirement accounts is they “lock up” your money until you’re ready to retire. What happens if you need to access your money sooner? There are several reasons, and options, to gain access to your retirement funds early.
As with anything, you need to understand the consequences of pulling money out of your retirement accounts – early or otherwise. There may be options which may be better suited to your situation. Just make sure you know what you’re getting yourself into.
Retirement is an exciting phase of life where you can finally relax and enjoy the fruits of your labor. However, it's essential to maintain good health in retirement to make the most of it. As we age, our bodies undergo various changes, making it crucial to take extra care of our health.
In this article, we'll explore some tips for maintaining good health in retirement, including staying socially engaged, pursuing hobbies and interests, practicing mindfulness and relaxation techniques, regular check-ups with healthcare providers, and staying up to date on preventative health measures such as vaccines and screenings.
This post was last updated on 31 May, 2023, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.
It’s helpful to break your financial life into phases so you can focus on what’s most important right now. Understanding how decisions you make today affect what tomorrow looks like is vitally important. Keep in mind, these phases blend together and don’t always look the same as someone else’s journey.
This post was last updated on April 30, 2023, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.
The IRS established required minimum distribution (RMD) rules on IRAs and similar tax-deferred savings plans to eventually collect on the taxes previously deferred. RMD rules require you to begin making withdrawals from certain retirement accounts when you reach age 73.
The safety of your money is important when working with a financial planner for the first time. You worked hard to save for retirement. Protecting your assets may be why you’re hiring a financial planner in the first place.
The type of financial planning professional, compensation models, business structures, and legal protections are all important considerations. Not all firms manage investments the same - some don’t manage investments at all.
Earning a pension is a feat all to itself. Maintaining the security of your pension becomes even more important once you enter retirement. Luckily, there are programs like the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) looking out for your pension as well.
Although the name can be misleading, the PBGC is ran by the federal government to ensure retirement security for pensioners. There are laws governing what benefits you might receive if your covered pension fails. This could be another consideration for whether you should take a lump sum instead of a pension.
Kansas City is one of the most interesting and fulfilling places to live in the country. There are three big reasons why you should consider staying in Kansas City for retirement – the people, lifestyle, and affordable health care. Sure, there are many other places in the country to retire to, but there really is something special about Kansas City.
Where you stay or move in retirement is critical to many aspects in retirement planning. Actually, many important decisions in retirement revolve around physical location. You and your financial advisor need to plan out taxes, housing rates, medical care, and so many other variables tied to where you live.
Inflation can really eat into your retirement if you’re not careful. However, with proactive planning, you can effectively combat inflation. You don’t have to let inflation slowly erode your lifestyle over time.
To be clear, there’s little we can do to eliminate inflation completely. However, you can avoid losing purchasing power over time. A properly constructed portfolio can withstand the damage of inflation.
This post was last updated on April 28th, 2023, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.
If you have a retirement account like a 401(k) or IRA, Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) can be a real drag in retirement. Knowing if RMDs will affect your retirement is critical so you can make the right adjustments now and moving forward.
This post was last updated on April 29th, 2023, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.
If times are tough, a hardship withdrawal from your 401k might sound like a good solution. Hold your thoughts and do lots of research first. There are irreversible consequences to taking a hardship withdrawal for emergency situations.
When talking about retirement planning, most of the focus is on how and where you’ll be saving money. While that should be your primary concern, you also need to figure out what comes after - withdrawing money to fund your retirement.
In this article, we’ll talk about the different rules regarding traditional and Roth IRA withdrawals. Depending on your situation and your needs in retirement, you can maximize your earnings while minimizing your tax burden. Here are the tips that you need to know.
There may be several points in your life that are ideal to retire, but when is best for you? As you approach retirement, you might be wondering, “Is there an ideal age to retire?” Of course, this depends on your unique personal and financial situation.
It’s understandably difficult to pinpoint exactly what retirement will look like. Did you know five years ago exactly what your life would look like today? Yeah, we didn’t either.
Roth conversions are one of the most powerful methods for maximizing long-term tax savings. If you believe that a Roth conversion might be something you could benefit from, the next question is how much to convert. The right amount will vary based on your situation.
Once you’ve decided to implement a Roth conversion strategy, you’ll want to look at areas of opportunity. We usually look at projected cash flows throughout retirement and attempt to find any dips in income. Dips in income may be opportunities for additional Roth conversions.
You hear the words “diversified portfolio” all the time, but what does diversified even mean? At first, we’re not even comfortable asking because it feels like something we should know, but don’t. Let’s explore what being diversified really means and why you need a diversified portfolio.
You might be surprised at how little it really takes to be “diversified.” There are a lot of technical terms surrounding portfolio construction, but you don’t need to get too wrapped up about those. We’ll talk a lot more about your overall risk in your portfolio.
Recessions and down markets are scary, but they can also offer lots of opportunities too! If you’re wondering what to do with your money, you’re not alone. When markets get sideways, folks tend to look to make moves to protect their assets.
Depending on what your financial life looks like, you can employ a number of tax saving strategies and other methods to boost your financial stability. There are some particularly useful strategies for down markets.
This post was last updated on December 31, 2022, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.
No matter how well things are going, disaster can always strike. The best way to turn a disaster into an inconvenience is to have a solid emergency fund. A large setback can have significant consequences for your financial stability and security.
This post was last updated on October 27, 2022, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.
If the company you work for has an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) or profit-sharing plan, you’ll want to pay close attention. Company stock in your 401(k) you could potentially be eligible for tax rules to help you save money on your taxes.
In today’s day and age of the internet, you can find just about anything in no time. Looking for a restaurant nearby? Go to the internet. Need a place to get a haircut? Go to the internet. Looking for background information on a financial advisor? Yep, go to the internet.
It amazes me how we found things before we had the internet. I guess we just asked for referrals from our friends, looked things up in the phone book or drove around until we found out what we were looking for…the indignity.
