CARES Act Provides Relief to Individuals and Businesses

On Friday, March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was signed into law. This $2 trillion emergency relief package is intended to assist individuals and businesses during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic and accompanying economic crisis. Major relief provisions are summarized here. Unemployment provisions The legislation provides for: An additional $600…

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2020 First Quarter (Q1) Market Commentary

Most economic slowdowns occur over time with a slow deterioration of Employment, Consumer Confidence, and Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Companies generally tighten their belts and the Fed and Government make monetary and fiscal policy changes to help soften the blow and eventually we come back slowly. It’s called the business cycle. We have been going…

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Federal Student Loan Borrowers Get Some Relief Due to COVID-19

On March 20, 2020, the Department of Education announced terms for student loan relief for tens of millions of borrowers in response to COVID-19.1 Here are answers to some questions about the new rules. For more information and to follow subsequent potential rule modifications, visit the federal student aid website. Does the relief apply to all student loan…

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Coronavirus Concerns? Consider Past Health Crises

During the last week of February 2020, the S&P 500 lost 11.49% — the worst week for stocks since the 2008 financial crisis — only to jump by 4.6% on the first Monday in March.1 By all accounts, the drop was largely driven by ever-increasing fears about the potential effects of the coronavirus (COVID-19) and its…

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There’s Still Time to Contribute to an IRA for 2019 Taxes

Even though the tax filing season is well underway, there’s still time to make a regular IRA contribution for 2019. You have until your tax return due date (not including extensions) to contribute up to $6,000 for 2019 ($7,000 if you were age 50 or older on December 31, 2019). For most taxpayers, the contribution…

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2019 Q4 Market Commentary

One year ago, the market was convinced that our economy was headed for a recession and we began 2019 on the heels of one of the worst quarterly market returns in more than a decade.  This could not have been further from the truth.  Once the market figured out that a recession was not happening,…

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Financial Tips for Unmarried Couples

If you are in a long-term, committed relationship, you have many of the same financial concerns as married couples. However, you lack many of the legal protections and advantages that married couples enjoy. Here are some tips that can help you and your partner stay on the road to financial security. Talk about your finances…

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What to do When You’re Suddenly Wealthy

What would you do with an extra $10,000? Maybe you’d pay off some debt, get rid of some college loans, or take a much-needed vacation. What if you suddenly had an extra million or 10 million or more? Now that you’ve come into a windfall, you have some issues to deal with. You’ll need to…

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2019 Q3 Market Commentary

During the quarter we saw two major market indicators, both with drastically different signals for market watchers.  The first and most publicized was the inversion of the yield curve.  There are many different measures for this; but in a nutshell, the yield on the 2-year Treasury note was higher than the yield on the 10-year…

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