Thoughtful Insights

Your trusted resource for mastering wealth management, financial planning, and smart investing. Explore thoughtfully curated articles, and clear, in-depth guides that help you to make informed decisions at every stage of your financial journey.

New Year’s Resolutions: 6 Steps Toward Financial Well-Being
Knapsack Creative Knapsack Creative

New Year’s Resolutions: 6 Steps Toward Financial Well-Being

It’s a new year, and that means new resolutions. Like many people, you may have made financial well-being one of your resolutions for 2019, but how do you go about achieving it? In this article, we’ve included six easy-to-implement steps to help increase your financial health and meet 2020 with confidence.

Read More
Social Security 101: What You Should Know About Your Benefits
Knapsack Creative Knapsack Creative

Social Security 101: What You Should Know About Your Benefits

Social Security can be pretty complex, and even basic questions can feel overwhelming. We wrote this article to help answer some of the most common questions about the program. Please feel free to share it with any family or friends who may be wondering about the what and the when of their benefits.

Read More
How to Catch Up When You’re Behind on Saving for Retirement
Knapsack Creative Knapsack Creative

How to Catch Up When You’re Behind on Saving for Retirement

If you’re worried that you haven’t saved enough for retirement, then you’re not alone. Nearly half of American families have no retirement savings to speak of. It really is easy to get sidetracked. The immediate needs of raising a family may seem to take precedence over funding a future retirement. However, that retirement will come sooner than you think.

If you’re behind on your savings, here are six steps to help catch up.

Read More
What You Should Do During Medicare’s Open Enrollment
Knapsack Creative Knapsack Creative

What You Should Do During Medicare’s Open Enrollment

Medicare’s open enrollment begins this month, and if you are already receiving Medicare, now is an ideal time to review your coverage. Even if you plan to keep the coverage you have, you should make sure you take a look at your plans’ changes for 2019, such as price increases for prescription drugs. By taking a little time now to review your options, you may be able to get a better deal, can help prevent expensive surprises later, and can feel confident that you have the right coverage—at least, until next year’s open enrollment.

Read More
Making an Estate Plan? Don’t Forget Your Digital Assets
Knapsack Creative Knapsack Creative

Making an Estate Plan? Don’t Forget Your Digital Assets

The digital revolution has enriched our lives in many ways. We can stay in more frequent contact with family across the country, meet new friends around the world, enjoy the convenience of online banking, and buy practically anything we need without leaving the home.

Read More
Social Security for Divorcees
Knapsack Creative Knapsack Creative

Social Security for Divorcees

Many people are aware that married couples can receive Social Security based on their spouse’s work record. But what a lot of people don’t know is that divorced individuals can do so too. This option could help increase your Social Security benefits in retirement, although you should be aware of the caveats as well.

Read More
Is a Cash Balance Plan Right for You? The Pros and Cons
Knapsack Creative Knapsack Creative

Is a Cash Balance Plan Right for You? The Pros and Cons

Cash balance plans are an increasingly popular retirement planning tool. Given their generous contribution limits, you could quickly build a sizable nest egg while reducing your income taxes. But are these plans right for you? To help you decide, we take a look at what they are, who they work best for, and their potential pros and cons.

Read More
5-Minute Financial Risk Assessment
Knapsack Creative Knapsack Creative

5-Minute Financial Risk Assessment

Every day talented CRNAs perform pre-anesthesia evaluations on their patients. In essence, CRNAs perform indispensable patient risk assessments before administering anesthesia. If the evaluation does not look satisfactory then a surgery postponement or cancellation may be necessary. Patient safety always comes first! Otherwise, the results can be catastrophic.

Read More
Does a Reverse Mortgage Ever Make Sense as Part of a Retirement Portfolio?
Knapsack Creative Knapsack Creative

Does a Reverse Mortgage Ever Make Sense as Part of a Retirement Portfolio?

For most people, their greatest asset when they hit retirement is not their 401(k) account. Rather, it is the home in which they live. Until fairly recently there was never an economical way to access that value without selling the home. Let’s be honest; you still need to live somewhere, so selling your home may not be much of an option.

Read More