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June 2024
Summary Stocks were mixed in June and interest rates rallied in the month to what’s becoming a familiar tune – data indicating a slowing economy and inflation that is gradually declining. In the U.S., unemployment ticked up slightly and the housing market continued to cool, leading markets to price in more optimism for a Fed…
Read MoreSecure Act 2.0 Student Loan Match – Lightening the Student Debt Load to SECURE a Better Retirement
photo credit: istock “A hundred wagonloads of thoughts will not pay a single ounce of debt.” – Italian proverb As of 2023, 43 million Americans held $1.6 trillion[i] in student loan debt. That’s a wagonload of debt accumulated in the pursuit of higher thought. That burden of student loan debt is hindering retirement savings. Case…
Read MoreMay 2024
Summary Investors who chose to follow the old market adage of “Sell in May and go away,” ended up disappointed, as stocks and bonds rebounded with strong performance following April’s selloff. With inflation and economic data cooling, interest rates moderated and equities rallied during the month. Equities Stocks bounced back in May as global equities…
Read MoreHappy 5/29 Day!
photo credit: Unsplash Happy 5/29 Day! Today we celebrate the 529 Plan, a college savings vehicle with tax-free withdrawals. What Is a 529 Plan? What Are the Benefits? This beneficial tax treatment comes with a few strings attached: While not federally tax deductible, contributions in certain states are state income tax deductible The money must…
Read MoreApril 2024
Summary After a robust start to the year, stocks pulled back for the first time in April. The broad selloff was fueled by diminishing hopes for Fed interest rate cuts, geopolitical worries, and a lower than forecast level of GDP growth in the first quarter. Interest rates moved higher for the month as bonds continue…
Read MoreForecasting Equity Returns – What Can I Count On in 2024? Part Three: Smoke and Mirrors Day – A Celebration of Small Caps, Global Funds and Emerging Markets
Photo credit: Pixabay A three-part conversation with Highland Consulting Associates. Over the past several weeks we have been considering what you can expect from investment returns in 2024—or, rather, whether you can count on 2024 predictions at all. We’ve organized this series into three parts (see Part One and Part Two) to cover the major…
Read MoreThe Power of the PENsion: Am I a Plan Fiduciary? What Does That Mean?
Photo credit: iStock If your job responsibilities include involvement with an employee benefit plan, you may be a fiduciary, and so might others be who help manage the plan or its assets. Given that, it is important to know what a fiduciary is, who is deemed to be a fiduciary, and what the responsibilities are…
Read MoreForecasting Equity Returns – What Can I Count On in 2024? Part Two: What are the Pieces of the Pie? (And Is Your Pie Getting Smaller?)
Photo credit: Pixabay A three-part conversation with Highland Consulting Associates. In the next several weeks we’ll consider what you can expect from investment returns in 2024—or, rather, whether you can count on 2024 predictions at all. We’ll break this series into three parts to cover the major areas of investment opportunities beginning with historical returns,…
Read MoreMarch 2024
Summary Returns were positive across the board for major global asset classes in March. For large cap developed markets stocks, the close of the first quarter of 2024 marked the 5th consecutive month of positive returns, while for bonds, March offered some welcomed relief after a slow start to the year. The rally was truly…
Read MoreThe 401(k) Forfeiture Kerfuffle and What it Means for 401(k) Plan Sponsors
photo credit: istock On February 21, 2024, yet another lawsuit was filed against a 401(k) plan sponsor over alleged misuse of forfeited retirement plan savings of terminated participants. This is the seventh lawsuit filed by the Pasadena-based law firm of Hayes Pawlenko LLP in federal district courts throughout California. This latest claim against Tetra Tech…
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