Many of us cannot choose when we retire. Some of us just like to work and others must work for financial reasons. Whether we choose to retire, or the choice is made for us due to layoffs or health issues, there will likely come a time when we must live off our savings. COVID notwithstanding, the United States has experienced an extended period of economic prosperity following the Great Recession of 2008-2009. That prosperity becomes evident when you look at the market value of your retirement savings. For many of us, that retirement savings is predominantly held in a 401(k) and/or traditional IRA. Those are pre-tax savings accounts, meaning all distributions will be taxed at regular income tax rates upon withdrawal.

News from the Control Tower: Our weekly curated list of news stories affecting you and your finances. This week’s reads include: (1) SEC says brokers enticed by payment for order flow are making trading into a game to lure investors, (2) ‘Fiscal Justice Ratings’ Fight Police Brutality With Finance, (3) The Incredible Disappearing Hotel Breakfast—and Other Amenities Travelers Miss, (4) Oregon company’s iron battery breakthrough could eat lithium’s lunch, (5) Welcome to Britain, the bank scam capital of the world, and a Bonus article - Meteorite Crashes Through Ceiling and Lands on Woman’s Bed.

Over the course of the past year, during the Covid lockdowns and into the re-opening phase, we’ve seen a few key themes play out in the markets. One theme is what we refer to as “Shiny Objects.” Some of the shiny objects that siphoned a lot of funds and attention this past year were cryptocurrencies, meme stocks, NFTs (non-fungible tokens) and SPACs (Special Purpose Acquisition Company). Here I’ll focus on the bigger ones – crypto and meme stocks. First, I’ll cover some background to provide some context into how we think about these shiny objects.

News from the Control Tower: Our weekly curated list of news stories affecting you and your finances. This week’s reads include: (1) Amazon copied products and rigged search results to promote its own brands, documents show, (2) September jobs report hints at unemployment benefits' muted role in pandemic labor market, (3) USPS Begins Postal Banking Pilot Program, (4) Where the Suburbs End, (5) Fed’s Brainard signals that climate change guidance may be coming for big banks, and a Bonus article - Drone Photo Award winners capture a dizzyingly fantastic view of the world.

News from the Control Tower: Our weekly curated list of news stories affecting you and your finances. This week’s reads include: (1) The workers who keep global supply chains moving are warning of a 'system collapse', (2) El Salvador’s Bitcoin Law Is a Farce, (3) Pandora papers: biggest ever leak of offshore data exposes financial secrets of rich and powerful, (4)An Umpire Took One Too Many Foul Balls to the Face. He Invented a Solution., (5) Knoxville housing expert: Market unlike pre-2008 burst, and a Bonus article - Fat Babes in the Wild makes the outdoors sexy

News from the Control Tower: Our weekly curated list of news stories affecting you and your finances. This week’s reads include: (1) Rural America’s Roads Might Resemble Cuba in 20 Years, (2) Where’s the Cheap Beef?, (3) Portillo's files to go public as it continues adding locations, (4) 131 Federal Judges Broke the Law by Hearing Cases Where They Had a Financial Interest, (5) Ford, partner to spend $11.4B on four new plants in Tennessee, Kentucky to back EVs, and a Bonus article - How ancient footprints shed light on America’s first teenagers.

News from the Control Tower: Our weekly curated list of news stories affecting you and your finances. This week’s reads include: (1) Here’s why the Evergrande crisis is not China’s ‘Lehman moment’, (2) A Pandemic Space Race: Self-Storage Roars Back, (3) The Unconventional Weapon Against Future Wildfires: Goats, (4) Ben Dugan Works for CVS. His Job Is Battling a $45 Billion Crime Spree, (5) Scientists created the world's whitest paint. It could eliminate the need for air conditioning, (6) The pandemic has created a nation of insomniacs, and a Bonus article - The Gravity-Defying Mail Jumpers of Lake Geneva.

News from the Control Tower: Our weekly curated list of news stories affecting you and your finances. This week’s reads include: (1) Companies Need More Workers. Why Do They Reject Millions of Résumés?, (2) Poverty Declined In 2020, The Result Of Government Aid, Census Bureau Reports, (3) ‘Black Capitalism’ Promised a Better City for Everyone. What Happened?, (4) A new platform lets you buy shares of blue-chip paintings – but is art a wise investment?, (5) Senators demand cryptocurrency regulation guidance from SEC Chair Gary Gensler, and a Bonus article - How Japanese Artist Chiura Obata Came to Be an American Great

As financial advisors we spend a lot of time talking about retirement planning, but we can also help you navigate a college savings plan that’s best for your family’s situation. Those who make a plan save, on average, twice as much as those who don’t. First, I want to stress that your priority should always be your own retirement savings. There are no loans available for retirement like there are for college. Being a financial burden on your future children is not a legacy you want to leave.

News from the Control Tower: Our weekly curated list of news stories affecting you and your finances. This week’s reads include: (1) The Tragedy of America’s Rural Schools, (2) A Generation of American Men Give Up on College: ‘I Just Feel Lost’, (3) Bitcoin Uses More Electricity Than Many Countries. How Is That Possible?, (4) "The Sustainability Propaganda Got Completely Out of Control", (5) Nike’s ‘super shoes’ spark race with Brooks Running and others to outfit the world’s elite runners, and a Bonus article - Researchers Accidentally Discover World's Northernmost Island Due to GPS Error.