Overreliance, emotional strain, and long-term impacts to your own retirement plans… It can be difficult to prepare your children for the world AND prepare them for financial independence. Unfortunately, we have seen first-hand how our clients’ own plans for retirement can be negatively impacted when children remain financially tethered to their parents for too long.

The business of giving financial advice has changed dramatically over the past 30 to 40 years. When Peg and I started, the relationship was mostly transactional: investors came to you to help them pick stocks and manage portfolios. At most firms, the emphasis was on “beating the market” and finding the next “hot stock.” Financial planning was nowhere to be found.

Passed in 2017, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) made several massive changes to tax laws that were intended to provide millions of Americans with significant tax savings.

Written By: Natalie P. McNeal Data Work By: Wade Zhou It's well-documented that the surest, and often best, return on investments comes from playing the long game. But between stocks and real estate, which is the stronger bet?

By Dom DiFurio Americans have long understood that their birthplace can significantly affect their futures, and academics have increasingly been able to connect tangible early life factors like where they live and the friendships they've cultivated with potential future income.

Second marriages offer an opportunity for a fresh start. Couples are given a chance to wipe the slate clean, learn from past mistakes, and experience love and happiness.They’re also given an opportunity to correct previous financial missteps, build a prosperous shared financial future, and leave a legacy behind for their children and beneficiaries.

Retirement planning is crucial for everyone, but it introduces particular challenges for women. With longer life expectancies, as well as reduced earning potential due to the gender pay gap and other factors, women face a unique set of obstacles in preparing for retirement compared to men.

Losing a spouse is never easy. In addition to processing the profound emotional impact, you and your family must address various financial issues. The challenge can be exacerbated when your spouse was the primary income earner or dealt with your finances independently. The greatest challenge is not to determine the "perfect" next steps to take. Rather, you must figure out how to grieve, process, plan, and grow—all in the context of this life-altering event. 

Financial planning is all about living the life you want to live. A comfortable retirement might be your ultimate goal, but what does that look like for you? Beyond that, how do you expect to get there? You need a financial action plan, and no plan is complete without a starting point. After all, you can only plan to reach a destination if you know from where you're starting.

Everyone has their own unique retirement timeline, needs and strategies. But thanks to factors like Social Security, Medicare and IRS rules, just about everyone will face retirement planning milestones in approximately the same order and at the same stage in life. Here are the major milestones you’ll face in retirement and the ages at which you’ll face them.