• College,  Kids and Money,  Planning

    How To Talk About Student Loan Debt With Your Teen

    Feeling overwhelmed about the high cost of college? You’re not alone. A 2016 study Citizens Financial Group survey said that 57% of millennials wished they hadn’t borrowed so much money to attend college. This statistic leaves parents in a difficult position. Selecting a college tends to be a highly individualized and stressful situation for the student (and their family). We want to support our children’s choices, but we also want to make sure our children’s choices are as informed as possible. Talking to our kids about their choice of college can become even more confounding when you consider this tidbit from a 2014 study by Citizens Financial Group: 46% of…

  • Investing

    When The Stock Market Drops (5 Things To Know)

    You’re trying to do everything right. You started saving in an investment account. You did some research and have a reasonable asset allocation. You stopped putting all of your 401(k) into your employer’s stock (...you did stop that, right?) and you’re starting to accumulate something significant. It feels good, until one day you hear the stock market is starting to sell off. The market keeps going down and your friends and co-workers are starting to talk about it. Perhaps the term "bear market" is being thrown around. You start checking out financial media sites...every day. People start talking about the “trades” they’re making. How they are putting all of their 401(k)…

  • Investing,  Planning

    Is My Financial Advisor a Fiduciary?

    Listen, there are a couple of “F” words you really need to know. In fact, you might have heard this “F” word in the news before and thought - that sounds like something only old people care about. I mean...the elderly. [Sorry, Mema.] Well, the word of the day is “fiduciary.” And if you are wondering how to know if your adviser has your best interest at heart, it matters to you. In fact, not knowing what the fiduciary standard is could be costing you big bucks and reducing your future wealth. Not good. Curious? Knowledge is power, so read this quick post and protect your wallet. In today’s post…