OUR BLOG
June 2019
Retirement the Machiavellian Way
When someone says “Machiavellian,” you might think of a lying schemer, a power-hungry politician, or ruthless individual who believes the ends justify the means. But this characterization isn’t quite fair to the political philosopher Niccolo Machiavelli. He gave practical advice to the prince [...]
Stocks Touch Record Highs – Weekly Update – June 24th, 2019
The Week on Wall Street The S&P 500 hit an all-time peak of 2,964.03, in intraday trading Friday, while improving 2.20% across five market days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and Nasdaq Composite posted respective, 5-day advances of 2.41% and 3.01%. In addition, [...]
A Plan to Help Minimize Your Taxes in Retirement
Your steady source of income might disappear in retirement, but unfortunately your taxes probably won’t. Did you know that up to 85% of your Social Security benefit could be taxed? And, retirement account distributions are taxed differently than investment income. If you’ll have [...]
Covering Long-Term Care Costs
Some of the major expenses you’ll need to anticipate in retirement are your healthcare costs. There are many choices to make when it comes to choosing a Medicare plan, using an HSA, and qualifying for Medicaid. One healthcare cost that is easy, but [...]
Special Update: Further June Gains Weekly update – June 17th, 2019
The Week on Wall Street Stocks advanced for a second straight week. The S&P 500 benchmark rose 0.47%; the Nasdaq Composite, 0.70%; the Dow Jones Industrial Average, 0.41%. Overseas shares, as tracked by the MSCI EAFE developed markets index, added 0.20%.[i],[ii] The market [...]
Are You Ready for Endless Summer?
It’s time to start planning your summer, and whether you’re going to laze around on the beach, visit friends, or take a trip, it’s important to also start thinking about your retirement plan. On average, we spend more time every year planning for [...]
Social Security’s Decreased Buying Power
Some are worried about the state of Social Security since the latest report found that starting next year, the program’s annual cost will exceed its income. Some speculate that since the program’s trust fund is expected to be depleted by 2034, cuts are [...]
What is a Phased Retirement Program?
Some look forward to their last day of work, some are disappointed to leave coworkers and a purposeful career, and others are somewhere in between. There are many things to love about retirement, like the COMPLIMENTARYdom to travel, spend time with family and [...]
Disclosure: This commentary reflects the personal opinions, viewpoints and analyses of the O’Donnell Financial Services, LLC employees providing such comments, and should not be regarded as a description of advisory services provided by O’Donnell Financial Services, LLC or performance returns of any O’Donnell Financial Services, LLC client. The views reflected in the commentary are subject to change at any time without notice. Nothing in this commentary constitutes investment advice, performance data or any recommendation that any particular security, portfolio of securities, transaction or investment strategy is suitable for any specific person. Any mention of a particular security and related performance data is not a recommendation to buy or sell that security. O’Donnell Financial Services, LLC manages its clients’ accounts using a variety of investment techniques and strategies, which are not necessarily discussed in the commentary. Investments in securities involve the risk of loss. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.