Blog Posts

No matter where you are in your life, saving for retirement is likely one of your most important financial goals. But, even if you have professional guidance and a clear strategy for your desired future, you could still be missing some straightforward ways to maximize your savings.

The reality is: Most people do not save enough money for retirement. In fact, the National Institute on Retirement Security estimates that Americans have at least a $6.8 trillion gap between the amount they have saved and the amount they need. Alarmingly, they found the gap could be as high as $14 trillion.

Financial envy is even more of a thing now than it was back in 1913 when cartoonist Arthur R. “Pop” Momand debuted the comic strip “Keeping Up with the Joneses,” which centered on the misadventures of Aloysius P. McGinnis and his family, who were always trying to keep up with their never-seen neighbors, the Joneses.

Today, we not only have television shows displaying lifestyles of the rich and famous, we’re punched with images and status updates in social media, too. We not only see the “Joneses” on television, but we are likely connected on social media to colleagues and friends who post frequent photos and statuses about their new luxury car, boat, or 3-carat diamond ring.

By Michael J. Searcy

According to the Medscape Physician Compensation Report for 2017, the top physician earners were orthopedists, plastic surgeons and cardiologists, earning an average of $446,333 per year. The lowest earners were pediatricians, endocrinologists and family physicians, earning an average of $210,333 per year. By many accounts, these salaries are high, but they don’t show the whole financial story of a physician. They don’t show that in 2016, the average salary for a resident was $56,500 and that many are in the resident stage for 6-8 years. They don’t show that 40% of residents have over $200,000 in medical school debt or that 41% of physicians in their early 40s are still trying to pay off their student loans. Physicians are not immune to debt; here are some questions about debt we frequently hear:

By Jessica Kmetty

Does retirement sound like a stress-free period of life where you aren’t exhausting yourself for a paycheck and can make your own schedule? For the 80 percent of Americans who believe they won’t have enough saved for retirement, “stress-free” may be the last term they would use to describe it. If many of us are already concerned about having enough money saved to retire, why would we hinder our savings ability by taking a loan from the very account where our nest egg should be growing? One answer: because we can.

A loan provision on an employee-sponsored retirement plan allows participants to take out a loan from their account for any reason they deem necessary. We’re not talking about a “hardship provision” which lets employees distribute money for a specific hardship; rather, a loan provision is an unregulated way for an employee to borrow whenever, for whatever they want. Christmas gifts? A vacation? Are these really reasons to put your financial future in jeopardy? Consider these pitfall examples:

Ways to Reduce Your Liabilities in 2017

Debt in America is a real issue facing most people today. To date, 70% of Americans carry a debt burden. That means the vast majority of individuals are trying to navigate a tricky balancing act of financial wellness. To help you get ahead in your financial life in 2017, and to set you on a path toward the prosperity you desire, take the time to look closely at your own liabilities.

From analyzing your budget to addressing your credit card interest rates, you have a variety of approaches to help minimize your debt. Here are some key ways you can declutter your debt this spring and move closer to financial freedom: