HOW CAN PARENTS’ GENEROSITY TOWARD THEIR CHILDREN CAN HURT THEIR RETIREMENT? There was a great article in Barron’s this past week that highlighted the many ways parents can put their retirement at risk by prioritizing their children financially. In a 2018 Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Age Wave survey, nearly 3 in 4 of […]
This morning we are talking about the stock market again. What’s on tap today? Saturday marked a big day. On March 9, the current stock market run turned 10. Ten years ago in March of 2009, the financial crisis and the resulting Great Recession were in full swing. The financial system was destabilized, the economy […]
WHAT’S THE NEWS ON MINIMUM WAGE? Put simply, we are seeing progress around the country when it comes to raising the minimum wage. Since 2016, five states and the District of Columbia have raised their wage floor to $15 per hour. My home state of Illinois was the latest state to get on the bandwagon, […]
VALENTINE’S DAY IS THURSDAY AND TODAY WE ARE TALKING LOVE AND MONEY. While millions of people are making plans for Thursday, a much smaller number is thinking about the role finances play in their relationship. And while talking about money isn’t exactly romantic, it is a mistake to ignore the role it can play in […]
Why is open enrollment season for health insurance important? Open enrollment is the annual period when you can enroll in or change your health insurance coverage for the upcoming year. Additionally, if you receive other benefits through your employers – life insurance, unemployment insurance – this is a great time to make any adjustments to […]
What do the mid-term results mean for the economy and for everyday Americans? We are unlikely to see significant changes to economic policy, at least in the short term. As a result, while the results will certainly have ripple effects, they are unlikely to affect the core foundations of the economy. As Warren Buffett says, […]
FRIDAY SAW THE RELEASE OF THE OCTOBER JOBS REPORT. WHAT WAS IN IT? Overall, Friday’s jobs report contained really positive news. According to the Labor Department, the economy added 250,000 jobs in October. That did not change the unemployment rate, which held steady at 3.7%, tied with the lowest rate December 1969. But most importantly, […]
YOU JOIN US THIS MORNING WITH CREDIT SCORE NEWS. WHAT DO YOU HAVE FOR US THIS MORNING? An interesting story broke last week that could benefit some of our listeners with below average credit. Fair Isaac Corporation, the company responsible for the widely used FICO credit score, announced it would soon be testing a new […]
WHATS GOING ON WITH THE MARKETS THESE DAYS? In the past few weeks, the markets have sent investors on a bumpy ride. Last week, the S&P 500 and the Dow both fell a little over 4 percent. This week they recovered some of the losses. These ups and downs amid otherwise good economic news can […]
YOU JOIN US THIS MORNING WITH AN UPDATE ON THE ONGOING TRADE WARS. WHAT IS THE LATEST? Last month, President Trump imposed a 10% tariff on an additional $200 billion of imports from China. Those tariffs went into effect on last Monday, and will rise to 25% in January. With this move, the Trump administration […]
We are talking about our 401k accounts. Why? There is a new study out that highlights a challenge to retirement saving for many Americans. As you know, employer sponsored 401k accounts are the backbone of many people’s retirement saving. In recent years, many employers have embraced automatic enrollment, meaning they sign employees up for 401k […]
Why do we need to pay more attention to childcare these days? According to a new study by Care.com, the cost of childcare has gone up for the fifth year in a row. In fact, a division of real estate site Zillow analyzed the study and found that at $1,385 a month, the average cost of child care in […]
