Montgomery Community Media

Many economists and market analysts have predicted that we will continue to see heightened market volatility for the near future. As a financial advisor, I’m asked about volatility often. People first want to know how they should react. I tell them that these periods of volatility underscore why you need to have a financial plan […]

During these uncertain times, it’s easy to get caught up in the market volatility news coverage. While we know that we should look beyond the markets, it can be hard to imagine an alternative. Near retirees, your alternative is to look inward and assess not only your current financial status but also your future financial […]

With graduation around the corner, high school seniors and their parents are focused on graduation requirements and what will be needed to start their college education off to a great start. But what about their personal finance education requirements? Are financial skills included in a student’s formal education? Not usually. In fact, I am astonished […]

The Markets:   If you still want to participate in the axiom “sell in May and go away” you haven’t missed your chance.  In May, most U.S. stock market indexes were relatively unchanged (see the chart below.) The clear loser in May was the emerging market sector which continues to be plagued by concerns that the […]

This is the second installment of my two-part series on top financial mistakes to avoid in your early 30s. Earlier, I spoke of how detrimental a lack of discipline or to a written financial plan can be. In the final four mistakes below, I address the most common missteps with 401(K) investments, taxes, and insurance. 1. […]

Do April showers bring May flowers or does the April tax filing date bring us face-to-face with our non-flowery tax realities? According to Bloomberg, the average federal income tax rate in 2015 was over 10 percent, but for a family earning over $100,000 that rate can quickly climb. After adding the average 9.5 percent paid […]

I previously wrote an article on core savings strategies for Millennials in their early 30’s. Millennials in their early 30s are often overlooked in personal finance media which got me thinking about more financial advice that is specific to you. While these early working years are the perfect time to set up your future financial […]

If you’re in your 30s, now is the time to save. There are countless articles on the need for Millennials to save, but they tend to target people in their 20s and often overlook the early 30s crowd. I like to call you early-30-somethings “young accumulators.” You have careers and skills that you have sharpened […]

The Markets:  Have you seen the 35% rally? Typically a monstrous 35% price movement in just over three months would grab major headlines if it was for stock prices or even interest rates. But this price movement in oil prices hasn’t created a lot of buzz. While there may not be front page headlines on […]

According to a recent Gallup Poll, about half of Americans believe they do not have enough money on hand to “make a major purchase, such as a car, appliance or furniture, or pay for a significant home repair” if they needed to. As expected, individuals with higher income were more likely to be prepared for […]