Category: Financial Planning
How to get more in tune with technology
Because of the pandemic, more people have become familiar with videoconferencing and interacting virtually with financial professionals, which might make them more curious about ways technology can enrich them. Jason Scuglik has tips for how to learn more about devices and applications. […]
Mortgage debt in retirement: Worth a talk
By Joel Dresang In our 30 years as homeowners, my wife and I have had occasional conversations about the urgency of retiring our mortgage. Math always settles it: At a fixed rate below 4%, our home loan is costing us less than the average 6%-7% a year that balanced investments have returned historically. […]
Staying ready for uncertainty
By Joel Dresang Like news editors, investors can plan and prepare with the best information available at the time, but they cannot foresee every possible cataclysm. […]
Checklist for circumstances beyond control
By Joel Dresang It’s only human to want to do something, so here are actions I have taken, specifically on investments. […]
When should I …check my accounts?

Track the progress of your investments and watch for unexpected changes.
Investing for the long run can vary
By Joel Dresang The point of talking about the long term is to prompt us to plan, allocate and adjust so that we don’t outlive our resources. Whether we want to consume as much as we can while we’re able or to leave a legacy to our heirs, we don’t want to run out of…
No more Money in my mailbox
By Joel Dresang The death of Money is another reminder of the tougher time individuals have at discerning how best to conduct their financial lives. […]
Plan affordable vacations or avoid Facebook
By Joel Dresang Vacations seem a bigger deal now, with bigger bills. They can upset the spending plans of retirees. They can divert workers’ earnings from retirement savings. They can contribute to family debts. […]
Social Security and my future
Only about 1 in 15 Americans has an online Social Security account and checks their benefits estimates once a year.
Measured steps toward education, retirement
By Joel Dresang My wife and I have provided our daughters with limited financial assistance in college. That’s because a) We want our children to have some skin in the game, and b) We’ve needed to save for our retirement. College has presented a serious lesson in what we have hoped to instill in our…