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During my 25 year career in the financial services industry, I have had the pleasure of working with more people than I can accurately count. I have seen people make some incredibly smart choices with their money. I have also seen some folks that were incredibly lucky despite their mistakes. Unfortunately, I have also seen my share of people pay dearly for their financial mistakes.The following is a list of the 10 financial mistakes I have seen, and continue to see people make most often. This l

Are You Getting Financial Advice from a Sales Person?Three questions to ask in order to find out.Through years of endless marketing campaigns and beguiling sales practices the financial services industry has managed to convince the public and themselves for that matter, that their commissioned based, "Financial Advisors" are more than just sales people; in fact, they would have you believe they are "Trusted Advisors" They have gone to great

Want to Accomplish Something Important?Three ways a financial plan can help you reach your goals. Some things in life are just too important to leave to chance such as: accumulating the funds necessary to finance a comfortable retirement, paying for your children's college education, providing lasting care for a child with special needs, leaving a legacy for your family, church, or charitable organization, and on it goes.These are all long-term financial obligati

Most Americans envision spending their golden years traveling, playing golf, fishing, enjoying their grandchildren, or volunteering. Some will use retirement to start that dream business while others will finally get the chance to write the book that's been bouncing around in their heads for decades.Everyone has a retirement dream and rarely does it ever include stocking shelves at the local department store or flipping burgers at the

Are you planning the retirement of your dreams or are you just dreaming about retirement? If you are just dreaming, you had better get started planning. As the saying goes, "you get the retirement you can afford not necessarily the one you dream about." Your retirement will probably be the most expensive thing you ever buy. In case you haven't noticed, fully funded, corporate pensions, once the backbone of retirement planning, are rapidly disappearing.

Who says money doesn't grow on trees? That's one of the biggest lies ever told.Money does in fact, grow on trees. The key is in knowing how to plant and grow one. Would you like to have your own money tree? There are three essential ingredients you need in order to grow one of your own. Those ingredients are saving, investing, and time.Saving: Savings are the seeds of wealth. Those seeds are generated by spending less than you make. For example, if a 25 year old

The Federal Reserve's announced a quarter of a point rate hike last week. Finally! This has to be the most telegraphed rate hike in history. Now that rates have gone up a little, what's next? New projections show that central bankers expect three more rate hikes for 2017. This is good news for fixed income investors because low interest rates are good for just about everybody except for people who make money by lending money. As rates rise, income investors should be able to roll o

Imagine being able to speak freely about the things you would like to accomplish financially in your life without having your thoughts used against you as a sales tool. Imagine a world where you could get unbiased financial advice and guidance from an advisor who doesn't begin with the end in mind. Just imagine how much better off you could be in the long run without a portfolio full of expensive mutual funds and variable annuities. Imagine being able to look at your investment portfol

&We are currently enjoying a bull market. This bull market started on March 9, 2009. It has been in full swing now for more than 8 years.I will never forget the day this bull market began, the sick feeling in my gut on the way home from work on that day marked the culmination of one of the worst bear markets of the modern era.The S&P 500 bottomed on that day after having fallen a stunning 57% from the high it reached on October 9, 2007.A $100,000 investment i

For most people, success in retirement requires balance. You are trying to live comfortably and enjoy life, while at the same time, conserving your precious, financial resources. Keep in mind that your financial resources must last for at least, one day longer than you do. Hoping for the best but, planning for the worst is your key to avoiding late life disappointment.Whether you are in mid-career or just about to enter the golden gates of retirement, you would do well to think long

A 25 year retirement with a pre-tax annual income of $100,000 and an annual inflation rate of 2.5% will cost a total of $3,415,776.If you can achieve an annual return of 4.0% on your invested capital during retirement, you will need $2,111,577 of capital at retirement's door. That's just the price of admission. Additionally, if you want to create a reasonable cushion, a reserve so to speak, just in case things do not go as planned, you will need another $308,328.00.