If you are divorced and were married for 10 years or longer, did you know you may be eligible for an ex-spousal Social Security benefit? Every time I say this I am amazed at the shocked expressions on people’s faces. Then I typically get the following questions: Continue reading “How Divorce Affects Your Social Security Benefits”
Working as a financial planner gave me the opportunity to meet so many people and to hear their amazing stories as to how they became wealthy. Most came from humble means, from former refugees who did not speak English, to former teenage moms, to those that grew up in foster care. Their stories are an inspiration. Continue reading “Passing On Your Money Skills”
Okay, I will admit it. I am a little bit of a health nut. I love to run, do obstacle races, and do CrossFit and decided to also do the Insanity videos because I felt I needed a little something extra. My husband just looks at me, shakes his head, and loves me enough to give me the Epson salt when he sees me struggling to get off the couch – without commentary. Now that is true love. Continue reading “Eating Healthy On A Budget”
I recently spoke to a friend who wanted to ask my opinion about her current financial advisor. Knowing that I have a slight addiction to chocolate, she offered me her homemade Godiva Hot Chocolate with a chocolate coated bottom for my trouble. Of course I would have offered my opinion at no cost, but who am I to turn down her homemade hot cocoa? As I listened, she started to describe how she was referred to him though a family friend so she did not feel the need to do a background check or ask him questions about how he gets paid. She took it on faith that if her family member recommended him then she would be fine. Continue reading “Do You Understand Your Advisor’s Recommendations?”
My husband and I facilitate a class for newly married couples. In light of today’s environment, I am finding that many of the “newlyweds” range from young couples in their 20’s to executive in their 40’s to grandparents in their 60’s. Surprisingly, the biggest conflict is the same with all the couples: different money philosophies. Continue reading “Do You and Your Spouse Have Different Money Philosophies?”
Spring is an awesome time of the year. You can finally climb out of the 5 layers of clothes you wore during the winter and actually see more than the eyes of the people around you. This is also prime wedding planning time. One of our resident financial planners, Kelley Long, recently got married and shared her story of how to make sure a honeymoon does not follow you two years later in credit card bills: Continue reading “5 Tips For a Debt-Free Honeymoon”
I recently spoke with a friend who has been talking to advisors about retirement planning. Since I am always curious about the client-advisor experience, I asked her what she was told. After hearing her, I told her that she was not getting advice. She was getting a sales pitch. Continue reading “How To Tell If You Are Getting Advice Or A Sales Pitch”
Not to date myself, but I used to love the Smokey the Bear commercials about how, “Only You Can Prevent Wildfires.” Well, when it comes to financial fires, the same rule applies. Although everything around you seems like it is out of your control, there are things within your control that you can do. Continue reading “Only You Can Prevent Financial Fires”
Whew!! We survived another winter, and what a winter it was. I moved from NYC in eager anticipation of a milder southern winter. Continue reading “What Spring Cleaning Means To Our Family”
Years ago, I had a friend who was trying to get her finances together but she was struggling as to how to do it. She was a single, recently divorced, full-time working mother of four, with three of the kids under the age of 5. I knew whatever strategy we developed had to be easy and automated. Continue reading “Money Management For a Busy Single Mom”
A new buzz word in the financial service industry is “holistic wealth management.” This is an approach to managing wealth that looks at all of the areas of someone’s finances – not only their investments but taxes, insurance and even legal needs. One of the areas I feel gets the least attention is an approach to passing on the legacy of wisdom from one generation to the next. Continue reading “The WWII Generation Has More to Pass On Than Just Assets”
I was talking to a young married couple who was fighting over money. What fascinated me the most was that they just got back from their honeymoon. The ink is not even dry on their wedding certificate and they are already screaming divorce. They then came to me for advice. As l listened, it sounded like my husband and myself during our first year or marriage and I shared some of the lessons learned in how to manage money as a couple, especially when you are very different people. Continue reading “How to Manage Money as a Couple”
Recently, I was talking to a friend and she told me that she was selling her home because her American Dream of Home Ownership has become an American Horror Story. She then sighed and said if only she can go back and advise her former self. I asked her what she would say and she began sharing her lessons learned. Continue reading “Lessons Learned From A Home Ownership Dream Gone Sour”
Years ago, I had a brilliant WWII veteran as a client, one of the smartest women I had ever met. She told me that she was so glad that women were finally advisors because it took her almost a decade to find the right advisor when she started looking in the 1950s and I asked her why. Her answer was that her due diligence saved her from many “Bernie Maddoffs” over the years. Her process can be almost a textbook case for how to look for and work with an advisor: Continue reading “A Time Tested Approach to Financial Advisors”
It always amazes me how people overlook their employee benefits and will pay out-of-pocket for what they can in some cases, get for free. Years ago, I worked with a couple in which the wife was diagnosed with breast cancer about 5 years ago but thankfully, is in remission. They were trying to get their estate plan in order and had hired their friend’s attorney to help them. Several thousand dollars later, they wondered if they made the right choice. Since I am not an attorney, I would never give legal advice, but I had to admit to them that considering the simplicity of their estate and wishes, they had an amazingly complex plan. Continue reading “Your Best Financial Services Provider Might Be Your Employer”
When I tell people what I do for a living, I almost always get questions on how to become financially secure. As I started to talk to people, I noticed that a pattern started to emerge. People started connecting themselves to their financial situation vs. seeing their situation as a temporary situation. Continue reading “You Are Not Your Financial Situation”
Family gatherings are a great time to catch up on the latest happenings of family. I love seeing how much taller my nieces and nephews have grown. I especially love watching the new parents, with a look that is a combination of wonder and terror mixed with love as they look at their newborn babies. Continue reading “Making the Most of Family Gatherings”
If someone were to ask me what I am the most proud of, next to my husband and daughter, I would say that I am the most proud of serving in the military. The military is where I developed a strong work ethic. I also learned to think of others before myself and I learned to lead even though I may not have had all of the answers. I enjoyed every crazy moment in the military (well, if I am honest, the port-a-potties were not fun, yuck!) and I grew close to many of the servicemen. Continue reading “Lessons From a Veteran to Today’s Soldiers”
