Pension plans, a type of employer-sponsored retirement plan that provides ongoing income after retirement, used to be very common. However today, about 15% of private sector employees and 75% of government employees have pensions, with the remainder of workers having 401k/403b plans instead. Pensions are defined benefit plans, meaning that as a participant, you are […]

A new year has arrived! The turning of the calendar tends to spark the question “wait, is there something I’m supposed to do now?” There is certainly no shortage of messaging around the new year and things you should be doing (set resolutions, improve your health, write out new goals, and countless others every where […]

A client reached out this week to inquire about her performance (rate of return) since we started working together. As I drew her attention to that section of her quarterly reports, I also explained a couple of things to keep in mind when calculating and evaluating performance returns. These are important concepts for all investors […]

I’ve had quite a few client meetings this week as we all re-enter the real world after a nice Thanksgiving break (hope you enjoyed the holiday!). During each of these meetings, I’ve provided clients with year-end action items that need to be taken care of before we turn the calendar to 2024. If you are […]

Inflation has been a headwind for many of us in many areas of our lives over the past few years. One way it has helped us (perhaps without us even noticing) is its impact on income taxes. I explained this dynamic to a client earlier this week and thought it was worth pointing out here […]

With open enrollment season approaching, I was talking with a client about health care coverage and the accounts that are offered to help fund health care costs. Under her health insurance plan, she has the option to use a Flex Spending Account and under her husband’s plan, he can use a Health Savings Account. We […]

We’ve written about education savings accounts (known as 529 plans) in the past (you can read initial post here). I was working with clients on 529 plan funding approach this week and they asked what happens if the accounts are overfunded. While this doesn’t seem to happen all that often, it certainly is a possibility, […]

It’s almost that time of year when you start to think “what was it that I needed to get done before 12/31 again?” – both on a personal and financial level. A popular item in the financial column is the processing of Required Minimum Distributions from pre-tax investment accounts. We covered this question/topic in detail […]

This week, I’ve had a few discussions with clients concerning areas of their financial journey beyond investments – areas such as income taxes, life insurance, and estate planning. A common theme to those discussions is the need to surround oneself with qualified and trusted advisors. Let’s take a closer look! Beyond Investments At Windermere, our […]

I spoke with a client this week about funding a Roth IRA for their child. This is a great gift idea, as well as a sound financial strategy, so I thought I’d review it this week I’ve written quite a bit about Roth IRAs versus traditional IRAs in the past. (you can find one such […]