Rarely do I have a problem coming up with a topic to write about for my weekly missive. Not so this week. Do I write about the sluggish Santa rally? Do I talk about the vaccine? The stimulus package? The weird Christmas season? The loss of my older brother Roger? The new Congress and the…
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I recently took a spin in the wayback machine and found this column I wrote a year ago talking about low interest rates. Not too much has changed so I thought I’d do a little edit and send it out again. It’s funny how many of my clients remember the high interest rates of the…
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If you’re like me, Thanksgiving was a totally different experience from any past Thanksgiving, except for the one I spent in Japan back in the ’90s. Somehow our hosts brought in a turkey for our group. Looking ahead, we all know how strange Christmas and New Year’s will be. Will Times Square be filled with…
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With Thanksgiving just a few days away, we know Christmas and New Year’s can’t be far behind. Few of us can’t wait to put this year behind us. Nothing seems to be the same, including most likely your Thanksgiving celebration next week. So often when I’m talking with clients, they ask me the same question.…
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The election is 10 days behind us. We have an initial idea of who the likely victor will be, but we won’t know for sure until the Electoral College meets on December 14th. In the meantime, whether Trump wins another term or Biden is inaugurated on January 20th, both would likely face a divided government.…
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It’s Friday morning and we’re finally down to four days to Election Day. Figuring out when the whole thing will be done and knowing who the winner is will be a whole ‘nother talk show. Overall, we are a 50/50 country with mood swings one way or the other. So, like every other election, about…
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I get so many questions on Medicare and, having been on it for a few years, I’m learning the ropes. If it’s a government program then you know it will be complicated and confusing. Kiplinger recently put out a pretty good column explaining the seven things Medicare doesn’t cover. For those not yet on Medicare,…
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Buried in the newspaper this week was news of the annual cost of living adjustment (COLA) from the folks at the Social Security Administration. Benefits will be increasing 1.3% for 2021. With 18 days to go until the election, who doesn’t wish it was already over? The campaign season seems to keep getting longer. The…
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With everything we have all experienced in 2020, I know I’m tired of writing, seeing, and hearing the phrase “unprecedented times”. I think we’d all like to go back to precedented times. The good news—and the title promises good news so I’m going to deliver it—is that the big worries of the fourth quarter don’t…
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Seniors love COLA. No, not soda… though I assume there are some soda fans out there… but Cost Of Living Adjustments to Social Security. COLAs are the SSA’s response to inflation. From 2000 to 2020, inflation has averaged just north of 2% each year. A dollar in 2000 was worth what $1.51 is worth now.…
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