With the election recently behind us, there are those still saddened by the results and those who are elated. I am hoping we’ll all find common ground as Americans and move forward together. Like it or not, we now have what I consider a Quasi Republican President, a Republican-controlled Senate, and a Republican-controlled House of

Since the downturn in 2008 and the bankruptcy of General Motors in 2009, many employers have discontinued defined benefit plans – commonly referred to as pensions. Many have either discontinued the plans or have frozen them as “cost saving” measures. Others have replaced these costlier plans with the less expensive 401k plans. A 401k is

As a result of this year’s market volatility and the unexpected news of Great Britain leaving the Eurozone, I’ve recently been approached by multiple people regarding the merits of having gold or goldminers as a part of their investment portfolio. I will make this very clear: the answer to this question is very situational and

As a father of two very active daughters ages 12 and 10, I’m always looking for things to keep my family engaged while trying to fully experience Genesee County. We are very fortunate to have so many unique local attractions, many of which are provided at no or little cost to the community and offer

When it comes to this year’s financial markets, a few words may come to mind: volatile, frustrating, confusing, uncharted territory. All are very fitting when used to describe a market that began the first three weeks with a record-setting “worst start to the year ever” as reported by Bloomberg.com. This start of 2016 was met

Often, life’s lessons are learned through trial and error. When I was nine years old, I learned that I needed to wear a helmet doing tricks on my BMX bike. Unfortunately, I learned this when I had 47 stitches in my head after attempting an “Evil Knievel” long-distance jump and vaulting head-over-heels on the landing.

I have worked in the financial industry in Genesee County for a number of years. Our average clientele are hardworking, fun-loving people in their 50s-70s. They know what it means to put in a hard day’s work, and realize that Ben Franklin wasn’t kidding when he said, “A penny saved is a penny earned.” Although

The word “investing” typically has a different meaning for everyone. Throughout our lives, we need to make choices regarding our finances, and many of them are based upon our phase of life. For those of you wondering what steps you should be taking given your current age, I have laid out a little road map

America is the land of opportunity – a land of prosperity where hard work is usually rewarded with positive results and advancement possibilities. However, the status quo in the U.S. seems to be that people will live right up to their income level and delay saving for “some other time.” In general, when it comes

Six years have passed since the financial collapse of 2008 and 2009, and I feel it appropriate to re-visit some of the lessons learned during that crisis period. One of the most important lessons: operate your financial investments from a position of strength. A prime example of this strategy in action is the concept of

If you’re not frustrated with the markets by now, you must be taking better medication than I am (ha ha). Bloomberg TV, one of the largest investment reporting firms in the world, described 2015 as “the year that nothing worked.” The point? All types of money-making strategies – active strategies, passive strategies, alternative strategies –

Happy New Year, Everyone! I’m not sure how your year went, but I know that mine seemed to go by faster than usual. I hope that you and the ones you love enjoyed a successful year – not only personally and professionally, but financially, as well. There may not be many of us stateside who