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Claiming Social Security from an Ex
Can you claim Social Security from your Ex-Spouse? You sure can! You just have to meet a few specific rules. Make sure you read on to find out all about claiming a Social Security benefit from an ex!
Read MoreShould you take out a 30 year mortgage or a 15 year mortgage?
30 year or 15 year?A mortgage loan is the largest debt most folks will take out in their lifetime. It's a major financial decision. The big question when it comes to mortgage lending is should you take out a 30 year fixed rate loan? Or...
Read MoreWhat Are The Dividend Aristocrats?
What's a Dividend Aristocrat??Dividend Aristocrats are a group of companies that have consistently increased their dividend payouts to shareholders for at least 25 consecutive years. As of the typing of this blog there are 66 companies...
Read MoreWhy Are Bonds Losing Money?
Why Are Bonds Losing Money?Bonds are a type of investment that pay a fixed rate of interest to the bondholder over a period of time. Most bond investors hope for slow steady returns. No one gets into bond investing looking for a "wild...
Read MoreHow Much Life Insurance Do You Need?
How Much Life Insurance is Enough?When it comes to determining how much life insurance you need, there are a few key factors to consider. The first thing that I'll tell you is that you likely need more insurance than you think you do....
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Fixed Annuities Explained
All About Fixed AnnuitiesA fixed annuity is a type of insurance contract that is designed to provide some sort of guarantee. Whether it is a guarantee of the principal balance of the annuity, or a guarantee of a specific interest rate,...
Read MoreIncrease Your Retirement Saving Each Year
You can’t overestimate how important a small change, over a large period of time will make when it comes to planning for retirement. Putting away additional money now if you have a long time until retirement can have a huge...
Read MoreExplaining Inflation
Exactly What is Inflation? It's all over the news today, but how exactly did we get here?
Read MoreCashflow is King in Retirement
Why Cashflow Matters in RetirementCash flow in retirement is one of the most important financial considerations for retirees, as it determines their ability to maintain their standard of living and ensure their financial security....
Read MoreInvesting in your 30's
How Should You be Investing in Your 30's? Let's paint a picture. You're in your thirties, you got a lot of life coming at you. Maybe you just got promoted at work. Maybe you're thinking about getting married. Maybe you're looking at...
Read MoreWhy Time in the Market Matters
In Investing, Time is Your Most Important AssetWhat's the one thing you can't make more of? Time. Ask anybody. Time is the most important thing that we have, our most valuable asset. No plan is that is more true than in investing. You...
Read MoreFixed Indexed Annuity Basics
The Basics of Fixed Indexed AnnuitiesFixed index annuities might be the favorite all time topic of any advisor with a Saturday morning AM radio show. You know the ones, there's an advisor dispensing financial generalities and often...
Read MoreThe Difference Between Stocks and Bonds
What's the Difference Between Stocks and Bonds? A question that I'm asked all the time is what's the difference between stocks and bonds? It's a very basic question, and is perhaps the first thing that you need to understand when...
Read MorePassing your IRA after the SECURE Act
What did the SECURE Act do to your IRA? At the end of 2019 a piece of legislation was passed called the SECURE Act. It drastically changed the way an IRA is passed to a beneficiary by essentially eliminating something called the...
Read MoreWhat's an RMD?
What a Required Minimum Distribution (RMD)? One of the most popular questions I'm asked is what is a Required Minimum Distribution or RMD, and how do they work? It got repetitive enough that I decided to make a video about it. After I...
Read MoreWhen should you start Social Security?
When should you start Social Security? Social Security is and probably will remain one of the most misunderstood topics in financial planning. The dangerous part about that is that Social Security, and specifically the decision of...
Read MoreWhat is Government Pension Offset?
What is Government Pension Offset? Government Pension Offset is a provision that pertains to Social Security and whether a survivor benefit will be paid to you in the event that your spouse passes away and you receive a Government...
Read MoreHow Do Annuity Fees Work?
How Do Annuity Fees work? It's a question I hear regularly from clients. The short answer is that each annuity and annuity type have different fees or expenses. Keeping reading to find out more. Up First: Fixed Annuities I'll get...
Read MoreHow To Create Income For Life
What is Income for Life and How Does it work? You often hear of investment vehicles and advisors talking about creating "Income for Life". I don't know about you, but income for life sounds like a pretty good idea to me. That being...
Read MoreHow To Convert to a Roth IRA
How Do You Actually Make a Roth Conversion? Everyone is always talking about Roth conversions. As we have seen more and more government spending, and as balances in tax deferred accounts like Traditional IRA's and 401(k)'s grow and...
Read More3 Things You Have To Do Before You Retire!
3 Things to do Before You Retire! Retirement is tricky! It involves a number of life-altering decisions that you only make once in your lifetime. Most of these decisions will have a major impact on your life from your retirement date...
Read MoreRetirement Planning – The Right Way!
Planning for Retirement? There are so many different ways to plan for retirement that it can be overwhelming. Because of this, many people are trying to find answers online and come across what is called the "4% Rule." What is the 4%...
Read MoreHow Much Money Should You Save for Retirement?
You'll see commercials and read articles that tell you exactly how much money you should have for retirement. This is also called your "Retirement Number," and it's kind of a myth. There is no set amount of money that you should have...
Read MoreCollecting Social Security While Working
What are the Rules Regarding Working While Collecting Social Security? This is a very commonly asked question; social security has a lot of layers, and there is a lot that goes into it. That being said, the information in this...
Read MoreEvaluate the Risk in Your Portfolio
No matter how old you are, no matter what type of savings vehicles you are using, assessing the risk in your portfolio every so often is essential. Why is Right Now the Best Time to Evaluate the Risk in Your Portfolio? Right now is a...
Read MoreTax Deferrals and Investments
What is a Tax Deferral? Tax deferral is really one of the most misunderstood aspects of investing in financial planning. Tax deferral is essentially are you going to pay taxes on the money when you earn it, or are you going to pay...
Read MoreBackdoor Roth Conversions
As we have discussed in previous blogs, the main advantage of a Roth IRA is that it can provide tax-free money in retirement. You put money away, and it grows tax-deferred so you can use it tax-free in retirement. The main drawback or...
Read MoreRoth Contributions in a 401k
What is a Roth IRA? The Roth IRA was established in 1997, named after the Senator William Roth of Delaware, who proposed the idea. Basically, Roth money, whether it goes into a Roth IRA or Roth 401k, is money that goes in after-tax....
Read MoreThe Death of the Stretch IRA
In December of 2019, the Secure Act was passed. The secure act was a major piece of retirement legislation that created a lot of changes for retirement planning - some good and some bad. This act pushed back when you could take a...
Read MoreTop 3 Retirement Withdrawal Mistakes
1. Waiting Too Long As odd as it sounds, waiting too long to start drawing from those accounts. Many people who are early in their retirement are hesitant to start withdrawing from their retirement savings. It is important to remember...
Read MoreWhat is an Annuity and is it Right for You?
What is an Annuity? An annuity, in its most basic form, is an account or a contract with an insurance company. The thing about annuities is that there are many different types just like cars. Some people need larger cars to move their...
Read MoreWhat is a Roth Conversion?
What is a Roth Conversion? This is one of the most commonly asked questions in the retirement savings world. A Roth account is another way that you can save for your retirement. But let's start by talking about your traditional saving...
Read MoreHow to Build a Retirement Savings
There is no one way to build your retirement savings- everyone is different, has different bills and other expenses that they will have to pay each month, and therefore, the way you build your savings will be different. Let's Look at...
Read MoreRedefining Financial Services
Everyone wants to have a financially secure future, but more often than not, people are overwhelmed by all of the terminology and strategies used by financial advisors. Our team is here to help our clients really understand the...
Read MoreBucket Financial Strategies
What is a Bucket Financial Strategy? A bucket financial strategy or bucket financial plan is a method of separating your money into different categories, or buckets, to help you manage your finances and plan for a successful future....
Read MoreFinancial Planning for All Stages of Life with Antonio Cibella
We work with individuals and families who really value having someone in their corner to help them plan for their financial future. We act as a financial coach, guiding them through all of the different decisions in their financial...
Read MoreWhat is Financial Planning?
In its simplest form, a financial plan is a way of taking control of your finances and realizing your goals for the future. There are a lot of steps along the way, but at the end of the day, a financial plan really is an essential...
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