ReShelle Barrett, CFP® Important Dates for Investors Remember the excitement of turning 16 so you can get your driver’s license? And 21 to be a legal adult? Important birthdates don’t end there. As you head toward retirement, consider the following dates as they may be critical in ensuring your financial plan’s success: Age 55 Possible […]
Author Archive | ReShelle Barrett
2018 Contribution Limits for Retirement Plans
ReShelle Barrett, CFP® Nobody wants to think of filing tax returns at this time of year but the following limits should help in planning for your 2018 retirement account contributions. There is plenty of time to make IRA/Roth contributions (April 15, 2019 is deadline for 2018 contributions) but if you are trying to maximize your […]
Time to Rebalance Your Portfolio – Market Update
ReShelle Barrett, CFP® It seems as though the markets continue to reach new highs almost daily. And the good news is the economy is relatively healthy which to some degree supports higher market levels. For example, unemployment is very low at 4.4%, household net worth continues to climb, interest rates and inflation remain low, personal […]
Saving for College – 529 Plan Account
ReShelle Barrett, CFP® Despite rising costs of college and higher education, a degree or certification is more important than ever, but one way to combat those costs are by contributing to a tax-efficient 529 plan account. These plans are for anyone that wants to save for higher education including parents with children of any age […]
Leaving a Legacy of Income
ReShelle Barrett, CFP® Are you over age 70 ½ and being forced to take income from your IRA? Wouldn’t it be nice if you could spread that income over future generations? Fortunately, you can. Let’s start with determining when you need to start taking Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs). The IRS allows retirement accounts to grow […]
How Hard is Your 401(k) Working?
ReShelle Barrett, CFP® Are you one of those employees who enrolled in your company’s retirement plan and haven’t looked at the investments since? Or worse yet, haven’t even enrolled in the plan? At least once a year, many will be asked to make decisions regarding your 401(k) plan i.e. would you like to enroll in […]
Bonds in a Rising Interest Rate Environment
ReShelle Barrett, CFP® Most investors believe that owning bonds means an investment with low or no risk. However, bond investments are inherently exposed to certain risks including interest rate risk. And according to most recent comments by the Federal Reserve Board, there is likely at least one interest rate increase on the agenda for this […]
How Will the Markets React to the Election?
ReShelle Barrett, CFP® I tend to get the question “How will the market react if so-and-so wins” often in presidential election years. If I had a crystal ball (and I have one on my desk but it actually only looks pretty), I would be able to answer that question. Even with historical statistics, no one […]
Inheriting an IRA
ReShelle Barrett, CFP® The term “IRA” tends to be used fairly loosely. Although most investors know that it means individual retirement account (or sometimes annuity), many don’t realize there are multiple types of IRAs which are similar on one hand but can be very different on the other. Types of IRAs include traditional, Roth, SIMPLE, […]