I would like to start off with a basic introduction to retirement-based target date and lifecycle mutual funds : Larger mutual fund companies and similar entities create these particular funds and the composition of this type of investment universally is the following: Layer 1: “Umbrella” Mutual Fund – Let’s use the Vanguard Target Retirement 2050 Fund that is simply just a placeholder for underlying mutual funds (Layer 2) Layer 2: Multiple underlying mutual funds created by

This is a great question that I get quite often. Many married couples have one income earner in the family and in many circumstances, this can limit their ability to save in tax-advantaged retirement accounts. Let’s say a married couple in their early-40’s has one income earner making $190,000/year and they want to save 15% ($28,500) of their income for retirement. The working spouse has a company 401(k) as well as a Roth IRA. Because the income earner is under 50, the maximu

If you are currently holding cash that is above the comfort of your emergency fund, you may be stuck in what is called “analysis paralysis”. That is, with extra money to invest, you are holding back as an investor due to uncertainties in markets. A volatile equities market and a low yielding bond market due to low interest rates can do that to you. So, you are keeping money in cash for the time being, all while we are dealing with the highest inflation numbers in 40 years. If

A few years ago, I had a choice to make. Not a super important one, but even still it was going to affect our family’s monthly budget and...

Here at Whitaker-Myers Wealth Managers, we think it is really important for you to know what your Financial Advisor’s goals are. Knowing...

Now that you have taken the first step and decided to start budgeting, let’s talk about creation of it. When trying to set up a budget,...

This is a common question for many people new to the budgeting world who aren’t quite sure what’s the first thing they should do. Many...

I’m not sure if there is an actual definition of success tax, however if I were to locate one, it might state that the Required Minimum...

The word “sinking” can be a little intimidating when you associate it with your money, but in reality, a sinking fund can be a way to...

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Proverbs 13:11 (NIV): “Dishonest money dwindles away, buy whoever gathers money little by little makes it grow.” Tonight’s talk started...

Welcome to 2022! What a year 2021 was – coming out of 2020 and the COVID lockdowns we anticipated a strong market and that is certainly...

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Disclosure: This article will most likely apply to high-income earners or those that are financially healthy and extremely aggressive savers. Let me just start off with mentioning that if you are maxing out your Roth IRA & 401(k) year in and year out, this is a great choice for your future as long as other financial factors allow you to do so. A quick reminder on current (2021) contribution limits for these two accounts are as follows: Roth IRA - $6,000/year (under age 50), $

It's back to school time which means stores are filled with parents and their kids, picking out all the items needed to start a new...

We often talk about the reason you should remove debt from your life is because it eats away at the largest wealth building tool that you...