One of the primary concerns for most, after saving for retirement, is education planning. Well, great news! The recently passed Secure Act 2.0 gives savers greater flexibility regarding how they allocate funds accumulated in 529 plans. We’ll review updates to Alabama’s CollegeCounts 529 Fund this week and follow up next week on increased options related […]
Three years ago, the original Secure Act moved the Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) age from qualified pre-tax retirement accounts such as IRAs, 401(k)’s, 403(b)’s, etc., from age 70.5 to age 72. The Secure Act 2.0 passed Congress at the end of 2022 and has made further changes related to pre-tax retirement accounts, qualified charitable distributions […]
By The Welch Group Retirement planning can be an overwhelming process, and understanding Social Security can be a big part of that. Thankfully, there are resources to help you comprehend what Social Security is and how it fits into your retirement plan. Social Security benefits can be an important part of your post-retirement income, so […]
Last year was a challenging year for investors, to say the least. The overall stock was on the cusp of a bear market, declining close to 18%. Unfortunately, the bond market did not do much better and was down almost 13%. Good financial management demands that you periodically review and monitor both your portfolio performance […]
Access to lending on short notice can be a valuable asset. When we need to borrow money, we often think of traditional lending from a bank. However, one quick source of funds at competitive rates is a margin loan against your investment portfolio. With a margin loan, you put up your personal investment account as […]
In 2022, the market suffered a hangover after almost 12 years of fiscal and monetary accommodation on the backend of the financial crisis of 2008-09 and Covid-19 in 2020. What brought the party to its end was the emergence of inflation and the Federal Reserve’s response to it via increased short-term interest rates and quantitative […]