Welcome to our blog: Permission Granted, where we encourage you to explore all the richness that life has to offer. At Karp Financial Strategies, we want to help you Dream It, Plan It, and Pursue It. In over twenty years of working with our clients, we've found that throughout life and especially in retirement, most people don't feel empowered to go out and do the things they've always wanted to do. Our goal is to help you give yourself the permission to pursue the life you want.
At first glance, a Roth IRA might seem an unusual college savings vehicle. Upon further examination, it may look like a particularly smart choice.
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Did you recently graduate from college? The years after graduation are important not only for getting a career underway, but also for planning financial progress. Consider making these money moves before you reach thirty.
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Do you fear you are saving for retirement too late? Plan to address that anxiety with some positive financial moves. If you have little saved for retirement at age 50 (or thereabouts), there is still much you can do to generate a fund for your future and to sustain your retirement prospects.
Are you upset by what is happening on Wall Street? It may help to see this pullback within a big-picture context. Corrections have become so rare as of late that when one occurs, emotion threatens to influence investment decisions.
So far, February has been a rough month for equities. At the close on February 8, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was officially in correction territory after a slide occurred, which included two 1,000-point descents within four days. Additionally, nearly every U.S. equity index had lost 7% or more in the past five trading sessions.1,2
How much does the average American household have in the bank? Estimates vary, but the short answer to this question is “not enough.”
Last year, a GoBankingRates poll discovered that 57% of U.S. households had less than $1,000 in deposit accounts (although, 25% reported having at least $10,000). A 2017 analysis from Moebs Services, a research firm consulting banks and credit unions, noted that the average U.S. checking account contained around $3,600.1,2
Where are we in the current economic cycle? Why may fiscal support and better business fundamentals be key themes in 2018?
It is agreed that the earlier you start saving for retirement, the better. The big question on the minds of many savers, however, is: “How am I doing?” This article will show you some rough milestones to try and reach. (Keep in mind that you may need to save more or less than these amounts based on your objectives and lifestyle and income needs.)
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I believe that each of us can learn from the attitudes and experiences of those that have come before us. This belief prompts me to glance through obituaries, looking for inspiration on how to live my life.
Thus far in 2017, an important shift has taken place in this economic cycle. The Federal Reserve has shown increasing trust that the economy has recovered and that market forces can keep it steady. Fiscal policy may now provide the backstop to the economy that monetary policy has provided throughout the expansion. The gauges say growth engines and market drivers may have changed: power down monetary policy, power up business fundamentals, and potentially take fiscal policy and economic growth off standby.
First question...how many stocks are in the S&P 500 index? Did you get the hint, hidden in the question? Second question…through mid-April, how many stocks in the S&P 500 index accounted for over 50% of the index returns in 2017?
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