Resources

Events like we have seen in early 2020 leave many investors wondering: Is volatility management part of my plan for retirement? And if not, what do I need to do to make that happen?

Recently on CNBC, financial experts took turns predicting the stock market and discussing how it is way over-priced due to the very bleak economic circumstances. During that same time frame, another half-dozen suggested the worst was over. How can experts be so far off?

You do not need to inherit a long-lost relative’s estate or even win the lottery to set yourself up for success, you just need to follow practical financial fundamentals and stick to it for the long-term. So today, let us celebrate “National Be a Millionaire Day” by looking at real-life millionaire money hacks.

Since the start of the pandemic that’s rocked the world, rattled the stock markets and significantly altered the way we live and work, what we’ve come to realize is that investing in community isn’t about money. It’s about seeing a need, realizing you are in a unique position to meet that need and then doing it, taking action!

In honor of the greatest movie franchise of all time, my favorite movie ever, some of the best characters to grace the silver screen, the best quotable lines, the first love of my life (Princess Leia) and of course today’s date, I give you this blog post…

The last 45 days feels like we’ve been punched in the mouth. We all had plans, we all had strategies to grow our practice, grow our clients, grow our savings and SMACK, a right hook to the jaw that changes everything. What do we do now? There are so many unanswered questions.

The term relájate (pronounced: rreh-lah-ha-tay) is a Spanish command which, calmly, implores you to relax. It’s a word I came to know while living in the laidback Yucatan peninsula of Mexico over a decade ago. When you say it, you feel its meaning. This is a feeling participants in Unified Trust’s UnifiedPlan® Managed Account Solution, can embrace.

Amid so much uncertainty, we should all follow the basic recommendations for relieving stress and practicing self-care. Here are some tips and recommendations for exercising control and managing risk that will ultimately provide for successful financial outcomes.

The global pandemic has created a very interesting, sometimes surreal, collection of experiences for many of us. We watch the investment markets flying in all directions with incredible volatility. It really is that ‘interesting time’ that we’ve all heard we would be living through.

Grab your popcorn, movie awards season is upon us! From year to year, the winning genre varies depending on trends, current events and even the whim of the audience. Not unlike the movie awards, investment categories also prove to be hard to predict which one will be the big winner for the year.

You’re likely familiar with the idea of (or have personal experience with) a personal financial advisor. However, you may be asking what exactly a nonprofit financial advisor is and what do they do? You’re not alone.

October is Financial Planning Month! Questions about charitable giving are asked quite often, especially around this time of year, and can easily be addressed in a personal financial plan.

If you are over 70 ½ and have a traditional IRA or a qualified plan account like a 401(k), the tax rules require you to take withdrawals from your account annually. In most cases you pay income taxes on the RMD amount. But what you do with the distribution – the money itself – is your choice. Here are a few thoughts on what to do with your RMD.

While there are many fiduciary roles, the key concept to grasp is the difference between a discretionary trustee and a directed trustee. If you can understand this distinction, you should be able to help turn fiduciary confusion into fiduciary clarity. There are five things you need to know....

As a fiduciary, we at Unified Trust Company take pride in our goal-based planning approach. This is the game plan that helps clients achieve their goals by managing the downside risk and staying the course.

A recent survey asked foundations and endowments about how much risk they're willing to take to get their target return. Can you guess what the results found?

If you think about your current expenses, most of them are monthly. You receive a monthly mortgage/rent bill, a monthly phone bill, a monthly car bill and so on. You likely budget other variable expenses like gas, groceries and spending money by the month. So why is it when it comes to retirement, everything is a lump sum?

Like a complex recipe, planning for retirement can have a lot of ingredients with a lot of instructions. To enjoy a successful retirement, you need all the ingredients, in the right amounts and in the correct order.

On this date 75 years ago (June 6, 1944), the Allied Forces took on a task that some thought impossible – gaining a foothold in German occupied territory during WWII. In some ways, it feels as though investors and advisors alike are fearfully awaiting their own “D Day”. A day that we all know is eventually coming whether we like it or not - economic recession and bear market.

The classic Abbott and Costello comedy skit, Who’s On First?, used a play on words to teach the names of the players of the baseball team. The peculiar names of the players—Who, What, I don’t know—result in a back-and-forth conversation full of confusion, perplexity, and, by the end of the skit, notable irritation. Sound somewhat familiar?