An Estate Planning Checklist for Your Head and Heart 

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

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…

Cash Flow Plan – How To Create One

In our video “First Step Cash Management: Simplify and Automate Your Finances” you’ll learn about a cash flow plan called First Step, which aims to help individuals align their spending, saving, and investing with their values and goals. Why First Step Cash Management We start by emphasizing the importance of knowing where our money goes…

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Medicare: Understanding Coverage Options and Costs

Second to income replacement, healthcare coverage is one of the more important planning opportunities to consider as you transition to retirement. Whether you’re working or already retired, this post is designed to give you a high-level overview of Medicare, what Original Medicare covers (and what it doesn’t), and your options around supplemental policies. What is…

Can I Appeal Medicare Surcharges?

Planning for Medicare and adequate healthcare coverage is central to retirement planning. Often, unknown Medicare surcharges lurk for those over certain income thresholds. This post discusses those fees, thresholds, and your options for reducing them. What is a Medicare Surcharge? Medicare surcharges (also known as income-related monthly adjustment amount or IRMAA) increase the premiums paid…