Oregon PERS Benefit Estimate – How to Read Yours Your Oregon PERS Benefit Estimate – An Important but Confusing Document I recently attended a continuing education event where a representative from Oregon PERS spoke and walked us through a sample Oregon PERS Benefit Estimate. The room was filled with about 75 advisors. As we neared…
I enjoyed catching up with fellow advisor Josh St. Laurent on his podcast, Wealth in Yourself. Together, we discussed the opportunities and challenges for those approaching and entering retirement, what it means to align your money with what you care about, and more. You can listen in or read the transcript below: Josh: Welcome to…
What Happens to Your Tax Liability With Proper Financial Planning? When we think about managing our finances, it’s impossible to ignore the impact of taxes. Taxes are integral to our financial lives, affecting everything from our income and investments to estate planning and retirement. The decisions we make in our financial planning have direct consequences…
Highlights After three straight quarters of positive returns in equity markets, stocks pulled back during the third quarter of 2023. While gaining meaningfully over the prior year, US, international developed, and emerging markets were all down roughly 3-4% for the quarter. The recent market performance continues to be heavily influenced by interest rates and the…
When individuals set goals that are especially meaningful to them, they experience a sense of mission. They feel enthusiasm for the tasks that lie ahead and for what they intend to accomplish. At every stage of life, having a mission gives them a reason to get up in the morning, bounce back from setbacks, and…
An Estate Planning Checklist for Your Head and Heart Your estate plan isn’t just about distributing your assets; it’s also about ensuring your loved ones are taken care of, your wishes are honored, and potential complications are avoided. In this comprehensive guide, I’ll walk you through an essential estate planning checklist to help you make…
How to Read Your Oregon PERS Statement – A Step-by-Step Guide The Oregon Public Employee Retirement System (Oregon PERS) is the retirement program for all Oregon’s public service employees. Unlike other states, which have individual pension programs for various professions (one for nurses, one for teachers, one for police/fire, etc.), Oregon has just one pension…
Over the last decade, I’ve noticed a theme when working with my client families. While the question may not come out exactly this way, the essence usually distills to, “How should we allocate our hard-earned dollars?” One of the key concepts in financial management is cash flow – the inflow and outflow of money in…
Highlights After a choppy start to the second quarter, stocks gained meaningfully in June. This marks the third straight quarter of positive returns for stocks, both in the US and internationally. Reversing the trend from last quarter, the US stock market led, followed by developed international, with emerging markets trailing. While fixed-income markets pulled back…
The concept of retirement is undergoing a metamorphosis. Demographic, societal, and workplace trends have all converged to offer a stage of life that is much more fluid and flexible than what most of us previously imagined. In fact, retirement has become a matter of personal definition. If you prefer to listen to this post, click…