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CEO Salaries
My hometown of Rochester, New York was, for the longest time, a “Company Town.” Many of you may be familiar with that phrase, but, for those of you who are not, it refers to a city where one firm is the dominant...
Read MoreUnderstanding The Social Security Cost of Living Adjustment of 8.7%
You may have read or heard about the new Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) for 2023 of 8.7%. This represents the largest COLA since 1981. This is a direct response to the inflationary economy we’re...
Read MoreThe Recession Question
The Recession Question . . . If I wanted to see if it was raining in, say, Zimbabwe, all I’d have to do is load my favorite weather app and I’d know within seconds. Similarly, if I wanted to find out if the...
Read MoreCollege Savings Plans
The day after I graduated from High School in 1972, my parents sat me down to inform me that “they were done.” They said that, now that I was 18, and an adult, that I was on my own. That, if I wanted to go on to...
Read MoreTeenage Jobs in 2022
Teenage Part-Time Jobs . . .We were all teenagers at one point, and I’ll bet a lot of us had some kind of a part-time job, either during the school year, or, especially over Summer Vacation.
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Financial Planning Considerations for Single Women
For various reasons, the state of a woman’s financial security often depends on her marital status. A study from the U.S. Government Accountability Office says that women’s household income dropped by 41 percent after divorce
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Questions You Were Afraid to Ask #3: What’s better, stocks or bonds?
What is a stock, exactly? How does it compare to other kinds of investments? Even folks with a lot saved for retirement aren’t always sure
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Senior Scams
Recently there were a couple of articles in the local newspaper about three elderly residents who were fleeced financially . . . and it reminds me of the fact that Senior Scams are, unfortunately, becoming more and more prevalent
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Questions You Were Afraid to Ask #2: Why is the price of the Dow so much higher than the S&P 500?
I recently started a new series of blog posts called “Questions You Were Afraid to Ask.” Each month, we will look at a common question that many investors have but feel uncomfortable asking. Because, after all, when it comes to your finance
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Questions You Were Afraid to Ask #1: What’s the Difference Between the Dow, S&P 500, and NASDAQ?
When we were kids, most of us were taught that “The only bad question is the one left unasked.” As a financial advisor, I’ve found that statement to be proven true time and time again. Every day, my clients ask me...
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The Elizabeth Holmes Trial
You’ve no doubt heard the phrase, “If something looks too good to be true, you need to be skeptical.” Well, this is certainly the case when it comes to Elizabeth Holmes, and the company she founded – Theranos....
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Social Security – Spousal Benefits
One of the simplest rules for Social Security spousal benefits is also one of the trickiest. The rule is that, in order for a spousal benefit to be paid, the other spouse must have filed for his or her own benefit first. Let’s...
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Ezra Meeker, The Old Oregon Trail
To honor and acknowledge the upcoming holiday, I decided to take a break from my typical financial-related blog post, and, instead, decided to share a little piece of American lore that, to me, reflects just how important it is to...
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Providing for Adult Children and How It Impacts your Financial Plan
According to Bankrate, a website dedicated to helping people take control of their finances, 50% of Americans are putting a percentage of their retirement savings at risk to help their adult children financially. The impact of this...
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Why I Became a Financial Advisor
A career is always a remarkably interesting journey. Some people know at an early age what they want to be when they grow up. I wanted to play second base for the New York Yankees . . . but, shockingly, that didn’t happen! And,...
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The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021
About a year ago, Congress passed the CARES Act, a massive $2 Trillion stimulus package designed to help boost the economy as it struggled from the impact of COVID-19. The bill was generally considered a success – but we still...
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What are some of the items on President Biden’s agenda that could impact Retirement Plans?
First, there has been a plan discussed to replace the current tax deduction for both IRA and 401(k) plan contributions with tax credits. This is a very novel approach to try and encourage Americans to save more for their future...
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What could President Biden’s tax-plan look like?
President Joe Biden’s promise to tax the wealthy may include an increase in how dividends and capital gains are taxed. He has called for those making more than $1 million annually to pay the same rate on investment income, such...
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2020: The Year in Review
Every January, it’s customary to look back at the year that was. What were the highlights? What were the lowlights? What events will we always remember? Most importantly, what did we learn? Here’s the problem, though: How...
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Has Covid-19 affected Social Security and Medicare?
Unfortunately . . . yes! Let’s start with the OASDI (the “Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance” program) report that came out at the very beginning of 2020, before the pandemic really gained a foothold. It...
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A Look at Some Interesting Stats!
In the course of my work and my personal reading, I come across several cited statistics that I find enlightening, infuriating and sometimes, just plain entertaining! I thought I would share some of the more memorable ones here...
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The IRS Unveils Their “Dirty Dozen” List of Tax Scams for 2020
Every year, the IRS compiles a list of the twelve most-common tax frauds, and, unfortunately, one of the more sobering realities of any pandemic is that it tends to give rise to new disturbing tax scams. The 2020 IRS list that just...
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What can we talk about?
Well, I’m sure by now you’re about as tired as I am talking, reading and listening to anything related to Covid-19 . . . . . so, let’s not start there. OK, then, how about politics? After all, I hear there’s an...
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Are you eligible for a stimulus check from the Treasury Department?
As of Friday, April 24, the Internal Revenue Service said it had issued 88 million payments to individuals across the country. It plans to send out more than 150 million payments as part of the overall Economic Impact Payments program...
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SECURE Act: What you need to know
At the end of 2019, Congress passed the most sweeping change to retirement rules in over a decade.1 Known as the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (SECURE Act), this legislation went into effect on January 1,...
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THE 2020 CARES ACT
Many of you may know that the tax deadline has been delayed until July 15th, and you may be somewhat familiar with some of the other emergency legislation that has recently been enacted, but I wish to use this forum to help you...
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