Newsletters

Forty-three percent of Americans spent more time planning their most recent vacation than planning for their retirement.^1
1 AARP, 2008

Will you outlive your retirement income?  How much liability insurance should you have? Should you add stocks to your portfolio?  Are your financial expectations for the coming year realistic?

Our financial newsletters are designed to provide helpful information on a wide variety of financial topics.  Simply click on one of the newsletter topics below to read the article in its entirety.

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• June

  When Investing Pays Dividends
  Aside from the potential for steady payments, dividends can be a good way to assess a company's health, quality of earnings, and future prospects.

  Get to Know Your Beneficiaries
  It's a good idea to review your beneficiary designations on a regular basis to help ensure there is no debate over who will inherit your retirement assets and receive your life insurance benefits.

• May

  How Health-Care Expenses Could Affect Your Retirement Lifestyle
  Given the discussion over the future of U.S. health care, is it time to recalculate how much money you will need to pay for medical care in retirement?

  Protection for a Price
  Variable annuities give contract holders the ability to purchase guarantees to help protect against downside risks.

  Test Your College Funding Knowledge
  If you want to help your children or grandchildren accumulate enough money to afford college, a good first step is to become familiar with 529 plans and the Coverdell Education Savings Account.

• April

  Interest Rates: Be Ready for Anything
  There is a strategy to help bondholders limit the risk of continued low rates and put them in a position to benefit if the rates go higher.

  Shelter Your Retirement Lifestyle
  An umbrella liability insurance policy takes effect in the event that the limits of your primary insurance policies are exhausted.

• March

  Pursuing Both Growth and Value
  Maintaining a balance of growth and value investments may help investors add a new dimension of diversification to their portfolios.

  Don't Let a Disability Cripple Your Family's Finances
  One way to help protect against the financial ruin that a disability can bring is through disability income insurance.

  A Simple Way to Help Your Family
  A letter of instructions, while not a legal document, can help your family cope during a difficult period by providing information that has no place in a will.

• February

  HOT TOPIC: Does the Estate Tax Have a Future?
  For the first time since 1915, the federal government has no law in place to tax large estates when they are transferred to heirs. But will Congress allow the estate tax repeal to stand?

  Are You Making These Cash Mistakes?
  With interest rates at historic lows, what should you do with the money you save?

  Tips for Healthy Life Insurance
  If you are about to retire or have recently entered retirement, it's a good time to consider whether your current life insurance policy meets your needs.

• January

  Love and Marriage and Retirement
  More than 80% of married couples 45 to 72 say they don't agree on when they should retire, what their retirement lifestyle should look like, or whether they will work in retirement.

• December

  Hot Topic: 2010: The Year of the Roth Conversion?
  Starting in 2010, anyone, regardless of income, can convert retirement plan assets to a Roth IRA.

  Getting the Right Mix
  Asset allocation is the process of dividing investment dollars among asset classes that often behave differently in different market cycles.

• November

  Confident in Consumer Confidence?
  The consumer confidence index can be a useful tool, but it should play only a minor role in an investor’s overall outlook.

  Playing Catch-Up with Contributions
  Something as simple as increasing your contributions to tax-advantaged retirement programs can go a long way toward helping you pursue your long-term financial goals.

  Measuring the Jobs Situation
  Many people understand that a rising jobless rate is one of the hallmarks of a shrinking economy. But the national unemployment rate does not always reveal a complete picture of the jobs outlook.

• October

  Estate Conservation You Can Trust
  Trusts are popular estate conservation tools that can help facilitate the smooth transfer of estate assets and maintain the family’s privacy.

  Fixed Annuities May Offer Stability
  A source of guaranteed income may help remove some of the uncertainty associated with retiring when the financial markets are fluctuating.