Financial Articles

Why Life Insurance Will Always Matter in Estate Planning March 6, 2018 by Todd A. Gaswick With or without the estate tax, it addresses several key priorities. Every few years, predictions emerge that the estate tax will sunset. Even if it does, that will not remove the need for life insurance in estate planning. Why? The reasons are numerous. You can use life insurance proceeds to equalize inheritances. If sizable, illiquid [...]

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Managing Student Loan Debt March 6, 2018 by Todd A. Gaswick A review of some options for federal and private loans. Are you dealing with student loan debt? Have you explored ways to try and restructure it or have it forgiven? No one wants to carry five figures of education debt into middle age or retirement, but some do. The burden is not just financial. Last [...]

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Cybercurrencies: A Risky Choice in 2018 March 6, 2018 by Todd A. Gaswick This year, we have seen the downside of bitcoin & other altcoins. Bitcoin. Ethereum. Litecoin. Ripple. Ether. As 2017 ended, the prices of these cybercurrencies were soaring. In early 2018, they have plummeted. Opportunistic investors have been left to wonder: Are these digital currencies really the next big thing, or the scariest investment around? The [...]

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Good Reasons to Retire Later March 5, 2018 by Todd A. Gaswick Working longer might work out well for you. Are you in your fifties and unsure if you have enough retirement savings? Then you have two basic financial choices. You could start saving and investing more of your pay than you currently do, or you could work longer so you have fewer years of retirement to [...]

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Why You Should Have an Online Social Security Account March 5, 2018 by Todd A. Gaswick In monitoring your Social Security profile, you may help to thwart fraud. Could your personal information soon be stolen? The possibility cannot be dismissed. Sensitive financial and medical data pertaining to your life may not be as safe as you think, and thieves may turn to a vast resource to try and mine it – [...]

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The Dow Dropped. Do Not Drop Out of the Market. February 16, 2018 by Todd A. Gaswick Last Monday’s plunge was hardly the disaster that some media outlets claimed. On February 5, the Dow Jones Industrial Average took an unprecedented fall. The benchmark dropped 1,175 points, and it was down 1,500 points at one moment during the trading day.1,2 Monday’s Dow loss was severe, but not as catastrophic as certain headlines trumpeted. [...]

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The Blended Retirement System Rolls Out February 9, 2018 by Todd A. Gaswick How does the BRS differ from the LRS? The U.S. military has made a major change to its retirement program. Many active duty, Reserve, and National Guard members are eligible to choose between two retirement savings and pension options: the new Blended Retirement System (BRS) and its predecessor, now termed the Legacy Retirement System (LRS). [...]

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