Anthony Isola

Two Steaming Piles Of 403B.S.

Teachers in Pennsylvania and Texas are waking up screaming from a midsummer night’s 403(b) nightmare. Traditionally, large insurers enjoy blasting teacher’s retirement accounts with high fees and unnecessary products.  Two states are willing accomplices to mass financial exploitation. Pennsylvania and Texas passed some of the most blatant anti-consumer 403(b) legislation in modern history. Deciding it…

It’s Monday Again…..When Is My Retirement?

Saving for retirement isn’t easy, neither is living your golden years without enough money. Make the right choice. Start by reading this week’s terrific links. Here are 10 awesome retirement charts. Retirement Field Guide Is a personal trainer more important than a financial advisor for retirees? MarketWatch The new Texas 403(b) law is pretty heinous….

Don’t Let China’s Devaluation Permanently Devalue Your Portfolio

Markets can be very scary. China Devalues Its Currency To 7 Yuan To The Dollar And Markets Plunge! – scream the headlines. The media loves throwing kerosene on investors combustible emotions. When markets fall 5% in a week, it’s pretty frightening. Even scarier is not knowing why. We have hundreds of teacher clients and other…

The 1 Minute and 17 Second Financial Plan

Rule #1: Everything ends. Rule#2: Remember Rule #1. Keep this in mind the next time you find yourself freaking out about the markets. (Or anything else) Recognizing proper perspective about our puny existence is simultaneously shocking, and comforting. Humans have existed a little over one minute in a 24-hour context. That includes everyone from the…

It’s Monday Again…..When Is My Retirement?

Retirement can be filled with work – just make sure it’s stuff you love doing. Start your plan by reading this week’s terrific links. Roth 401(k)s and 403(b)s are very underused. CNBC A Democrat has a plan to fix Social Security. Financial Advisor You better watch your 401(k) if Congress gets its way. Bloomberg It’s…

Historical Amnesia Can Be Fatal

Over 800,000 Italian soldiers died during World War l; another million were horribly wounded. Like many other nations in “The War to End All Wars”, these casualties resulted from: The arrogance of the commanding officers; Hopeless tactical procedures running wild; The savagery of military justice; The horrors of friendly fire; and Diseases generated in the…

Repetition, Reiteration, and Replay

Repetition, not novelty, makes for sound investing advice. Though sometimes it makes me want to rip my face off and scream. Before ordering the anti-psychotic medication, let me explain. Unlike the Earth’s climate, the iron laws of investing don’t change. Saving more than spending, diversifying assets, keeping costs low, knowing the investment time frame, and…

It’s Monday Again…..When Is My Retirement?

If you don’t worry about saving money for retirement now, when you’re older that is ALL you will worry about. Avoid this unpleasant situation by reading this week’s terrific links. You may live pretty long in retirement. Fortune Three important things you need to know in retirement. CNBC Retirement is a state of mind. Ramp…

The Truth Is…

There are many unpredictable variables regarding investing, the truth shouldn’t be one of them. “I’m sick to death of hearing things from uptight, short-sighted, narrow-minded hypocrites. All I want is the truth.” – John Lennon Who knew this Ex-Beatle would be such an acute observer of the shenanigans of Wall Street’s financial salespeople and their…

It’s Monday Again…..When Is My Retirement?

Retirement planning is about your spending and savings rates. This will determine your financial future. Learn how to control both by reading our weekly retirement links. Is the retirement crisis overblown? MarketWatch The Japanese may have to start saving for retirement like Americans. The Wall Street Journal Be very careful when purchasing an annuity. Barron’s…