By now, you’ve probably heard about changes to a couple of the rules governing the claiming of Social Security benefits. These were “buried” in the recent two-year budget bill passed by both houses of the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Obama on November 2, 2015. In this same law are provisions that will soften the impact of premium increases for certain Medicare enrollees.
Read MoreWhat is your story?
My home phone rang the other day. No one calls us anymore. They text. They email. They facebook. I heard the answering machine say, “ Cass, it is your Uncle Dint.” I put down my iPad and raced to answer. I didn’t even know my uncle had my phone number. But, he did. At age 87, and in poor health, he is calling the people who mean something to him and the list is long. He has at least 28 nieces
Read MoreFor several weeks now we have been experiencing a turbulent period in global financial markets. As is their habit, many in the financial media have seized on this opportunity to forecast yet another crisis scenario, so I’m reaching out with a few thoughts that I hope will assist you in addressing some of the concerns you might have.
Read MoreSocial Security is complicated. With over 2,700 different rules, there is no getting around it. Unless you have never been married, your options and overall strategy for collecting Social Security benefits will probably be complicated. Articles and resources abound about Social Security, but the challenge for someone to take the information from those various resources and turn it into a personalized plan for his or her own retirement is huge. Many avoid it. Others just make a quick decision to get it over. That’s why we are here.
Read MoreSummer is a great opportunity for our team to reflect, and to focus valuable attention on ways of improving our overall interactions with clients. With a few new folks at Lucien, Stirling & Gray, we have been putting effort into “getting back to basics,” which is also helpful for our senior advisors to revisit. What do we consider the “basics” of our business? Our core philosophy can be summed up by answering these two important questions:
Read MoreJune is the most popular month for weddings, and often wedding expenses are the first big-budget items couples handle together. How well a couple handles these decisions has the power to set the tone, good or bad, for future financial decisions, which is important because financial differences of opinion can be one of the big challenges in a marriage. Unfortunately, nearly half of the couples tying the knot in 2014 went over- budget and another 23% did not even have a budget – so they may have started off on the wrong foot.
Read MorePicture this: relief washes over you as you file your annual tax return—just in time for the April 15th deadline. But then a notice from the IRS informs you that more than one return was filed for you and a refund has already been issued. Where do you go from here?
Read MoreFor certain people tax season serves as the once per year review of their financial situation. Marking April 15th off of the calendar with a sigh of relief may equate to putting finance-related records away in a drawer to collect dust until next year. Now that the looming tax filing deadline is gone, it would be a good chance to do a thorough financial record review.
Read MoreDo your kids deserve the best of everything? This could be a short essay. In a word -No.
The capacity for delayed gratification is a predictor of adult success and happiness. It is also a common trait of the most successful investors. I do not believe it is totally an inherited trait.
Read MoreBy - The LSG Team
Why are we having a moving expert and organizational guru come to talk to our clients and friends? What on earth does this have to do with what we do?
Because everywhere we look, clutter takes a toll on our mental, physical and financial health. It keeps us from moving forward and from getting the life we want. It keeps us feeling stuck, overwhelmed, drained of energy and unable to chart a clear direction forward. Look around you and tell me it isn’t so…
Read MoreCan I just say that I find all these organizing tips for the New Year discouraging? Why? Because I start out with good intentions, just like we all do, and then life gets in the way.
Life is messy. It is even for the ultra organized. Remember Martha Stewart? She has a perfect life on Pinterest and in her magazine, but she did go to prison. That little fact always helps keep things in perspective.
Read MoreDo you love your family? Do you REALLY love your family? If so, please don’t be like more than 60% of all Americans and fail to do any estate planning.
The list of rich, famous and just ordinary people who die intestate (without a will) is long, and the stories of what their survivors have to go through after their deaths are enough to scare the most seasoned horror film fanatic. But still they persist…
Read MoreDoes anyone feel rich anymore? We meet with clients all the time who are wealthy by many standards. But they often say they do not live extravagantly and should not be considered rich.
A big factor in this phenomenon is that it is human nature to compare our lives “up” and not “down”. We’re far more likely to point to one person who appears to have more wealth than we do, and…
Read MoreSo-called “alternative investments” are a hot topic nowadays. For the last several years the world of professional money management has seemingly been obsessed with finding novel ways to diversify beyond traditional asset classes.
But I have some suggestions for alternative investments you will never hear about in the Wall Street Journal or on CNBC, and they probably make sense for just about everyone. They too will…
Read MoreOver the course of the last several months my fellow advisors and I have had a remarkable number of comments and questions from clients, friends, and acquaintances regarding the possibilities of investing in real estate. We get comments like, “I know Austin Real Estate very well, because I have lived here all my life,” or “Real Estate investing is a lot less risky than investing in stocks, and at least as profitable.”
The assumption on the first quote is that…
Talking to my aging parents about their money and their lifestyle was more difficult for me than having the sex talk with my kids. Even with the best of intentions and, in my case, professional experience and training, it is a challenging conversation
Read More
