Two years ago the S&P 500 hit an all-time high, just shy of 3000 points in the fall of 2018.  It was a level that seemed almost unthinkable.  Bulls were arrogant and bears were skeptical or maybe just jealous because they missed out on the rally.  By the end of the year sentiments had switched […]

Not everyone gets to choose when to retire.  Quite often I meet people who have been forced out of the workplace for any number of reasons.  When this happens, retirement decisions have to be made when people are not mentally prepared.  This year it has been a much more common occurrence because of Covid layoffs […]

SPOILER: I really don’t think so. Regardless, dozens of people have commented that they either need to do something before or after the election.  There is a fear from both sides that things in this country will go south if the preferred candidate doesn’t win.  Will taxes go up?  How will health care change?  Will […]

Two years ago I walked onto a car lot to take a look at new trucks just to see what was available.  My truck is old but in good shape so I have no expectation of needing a new model for several years.  That didn’t keep the salesman from telling me how much better a […]

This one takes me back to the very beginning of this website.  In the early years of my career, variable annuities came out with guaranteed income riders.  Since VAs have mutual fund sub-accounts the cash value of the contract goes up and down with the market.  But the guaranteed income rider assured the owner that […]

Yes, it is possible but you have to think about it differently than most everyone else.  The annuity itself may or may not beat the market but how you use it can definitely give you an advantage.  Too many people get stuck on evaluating a single assets rather than finding ways to build a portfolio […]

Steady, reliable, strong, intelligent and tough is a good start.  Anyone who uses the first word ‘stubborn’ to describe a mule needs to look in the mirror.  Between mules and annuities, the only people that don’t like them are the ones who don’t understand them. A few years ago I took Kerry Pechter of the […]

It has been an up and down year, to say the least and coming off of the holiday weekend I thought it best to remind everyone where we were a year ago.  Perspective is valuable when analyzing options for long-term financial health.  Two contracts I wrote about last year are up for renewal again so […]

I didn’t get a direct payment from the federal government because of Covid-19.  Some of you who are still working did but I’ll bet most did not.  This isn’t about welfare, rather that every one of you has been propped up financially by federal spending whether you realize it or not.  In order to truly […]

I guess it’s not enough for me to just tell you what products to avoid.  After a couple weeks of pointing out hidden issues and over-hyped contracts, a few people reached out to disagree or say they don’t want to hear about what doesn’t work.  So again I will encourage any of you who can’t […]