Keen on Retirement

If you're only judging based on what's happening in the world and the financial markets, there's never a "perfect" time to retire. But 2025 is throwing a bunch of extra variables at seniors that are adding more complexity to an already complicated decision. Businesses are changing. The rules around investing are changing. And, most importantly, your life is changing. Your financial plan has to be flexible enough to keep pace while also maintaining focus on the best path towards your personal long-term retirement goals. On today's show, we discuss two listener questions that touch on alternative investments and how to think about portfolio management at various stages of your life.

Last week, I discussed how Keen Wealth's comprehensive planning process might assess a multi-million-dollar nest egg. I think these hypotheticals, including some back-of-the-napkin math, are useful in illustrating how retirement planning can work, and also the limits of focusing exclusively on your numbers. However, in the Keen Wealth offices, we don't work with hypotheticals. We work with real people, their real savings, their hopes, dreams, worries, and goals for the future. Every day, we help hardworking folks navigate complex financial issues that touch every part of their lives. We're honored that our clients have entrusted us with the responsibility of managing assets they've spent decades earning, and we want them to feel confident about their path to retirement. On today's show, we explore the Keen Wealth Advantage in action as we help a couple answer one of life's most important questions: Can we retire?

According to a report from the Federal Trade Commission, Americans lost $12.5 billion to scams in 2024, a 25% increase from 2023. That's why episodes like this one are among my least favorite to record and also among the most important. We’ve all heard about so many folks losing large sums of money because they answered the wrong phone call or clicked on the wrong email link. The greed, cruelty, and, yes, ingenuity of today's fraudsters is only growing along with the technology available to them. Keeping our audience updated on the latest scams is an important part of Keen Wealth's educational mission. On today's show, we discuss warning signs that you may be dealing with a scammer, as well as best practices for safeguarding your personal information and your nest egg.

Well ... we were wrong. During our previous discussion about The One Big Beautiful Bill, we predicted that the final law would probably pass with a different name. But, instead of the acronyms we're used to seeing lately, like the SECURE Act (Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement), President Trump and Congress stuck with the original title. For the most part, the final bill also maintains the big picture tax policy objectives that President Trump has been discussing since the start of his second term. On today's show, we focus on the portions of the One Big Beautiful Bill that could have the biggest impact on retirement planning.

I believe that The Keen Wealth Advantage helps folks feel more confident about comprehensive financial planning and their road to retirement. I also believe wholeheartedly in the consumer being as educated as possible on their various options before entrusting their planning and investing to any financial advisor. This is one of the key reasons we are now in our 10th year of producing this podcast and blog, answering listener questions and giving listeners a candid “look behind the curtain” on all things personal financial planning. When you're meeting with professionals who could be managing your life savings for the rest of your life, there has to be more than just a personality fit. While personality is important, you also need to know what questions to ask and what warning signs to look for. Do they have a disciplined process and the depth and breadth of experience and resources to undertake this most serious responsibility? Are you able to confidently discern what your overall client experience will look like and know that they take the appropriate steps to ensure your confidential information is protected and that rules and regulations are being complied with? On today's show, we answer two discerning listener questions that will help you have more productive meetings with potential advisors.

By the time it works through Congress to President Trump's desk, The One, Big, Beautiful Bill will probably have a few different details, and a different name. But the version of the bill that recently passed in the House gives us a fair indication of where tax policy could be headed for the next few years. On today's show, we discuss the current version of the 2025 tax bill, potential changes that Congress might make, and potential ways this bill could affect your financial plan.

According to a recent Wall Street Journal article, there were 580,887 pending Social Security claims in March 2025. That's an increase of more than 80,000 from a year ago. Many of those claimants are seniors who have not yet reached their reach full retirement age. I'd love to believe that the majority of these folks are taking Social Security early as part of a carefully considered plan to achieve a specific goal, such as early retirement. But, unfortunately, fear and short-sightedness often play far too big a role in the Social Security decision, especially for seniors who aren't working with an advisor. On today's show, we clear up some of the misconceptions around Social Security and explain how Keen Wealth incorporates this important benefit into our comprehensive planning process.

Matt Wilson, Chief Investment Officer and President of Keen Wealth, sure had a lot to work with when he put together his 2025 Q2 Market Update Webinar! It's been an eventful few months for the economy, and Matt delivered a clear analysis of everything from growth trends and interest rate expectations to the potential impacts of tariffs. On today's show, we complete our Q2 outlook by discussing some of Matt's broader points and answering follow-up questions from webinar attendees.

Folks reach out to Keen Wealth for all sorts of reasons, at all different points in their lives. We talk to young couples just starting out who want to put themselves on a path towards financial security. New retirees want to feel secure about transitioning away from work. Older seniors come to us looking to secure their legacies and make life a little easier for the next generation. And, sometimes, a person realizes they've been receiving bad financial advice, and they're hoping my team can help them clean up the mess. On today's show, we discuss some warning signs that the person managing your money might not be putting your best interests first, as well as how Keen Wealth's comprehensive process can restore your confidence in your financial planning.

"Jim" (66) and "Karen" (64) both retired in the last six months. Jim has an IRA with $900,000, and Karen has a Roth IRA with $300,000. They inherited a brokerage account with $600,000 and a cost basis of $500,000. They have $100,000 in an emergency cash fund. Jim is receiving his Social Security benefits of $2,600 per month. He also has a pension of $1,800 per month. Karen is planning to start receiving her Social Security benefits at 67, for $1,900 per month. Their total net worth is $2.7 million. And now, just months into their retirement, Jim and Karen are wondering if they retired too soon. Do they need to jump back into the workforce to protect their financial plan against current market volatility? On today's show, we analyze "Jim and Karen's" situation in the context of our broader economic moment and comprehensive planning principles. I hope this case study will help anyone who's close to retirement gain some perspective about whether market movements should affect your short-term or long-term financial goals.

Tariffs are nothing new. They've been implemented at several points in U.S. history, including as recently as 2018. But there are a confluence of factors surrounding President Trump's current round of tariffs that make it worth discussing. On today's show, we round up questions we've been receiving at Keen Wealth about tariffs to provide a comprehensive rundown of why Wall Street is interested and what you should discuss with your financial advisor.

With about a month until Tax Day on Tuesday, April 15th, you should, ideally, have all your financial documents collected. It might be a good idea to check in one last time with your financial advisor before you send your 2024 data to your CPA or start plugging away on your favorite tax software. But as you put a bow on last year, it's important to keep an eye on the future, especially for retirees. Cracking open your nest egg and sequencing how and when you use your assets and benefits is a complex process. Decisions you make today can affect your lifetime tax liability, the lifestyle you can enjoy during your Golden Years, and your legacy planning. On today's show, we use this combination of short-term and long-term perspective to tackle some listener tax questions and explain how the Keen Wealth Advantage can help you feel more confident about how taxes fit into your comprehensive planning.

The words “fun” and “taxes” probably don’t go together in your mind. But, as I mention on today’s episode, they do at Keen Wealth! Helping folks be good stewards of their money so that they can enjoy life to the fullest is one of the most rewarding parts of being a financial advisor. And as Tax Day approaches, I love seeing my team in action, working through our checklist-driven process to make sure folks aren’t overlooking any details or making any mistakes that might not be fixable. Whether you’re working with professionals or preparing your taxes solo, make sure these four common filing errors are on your radar.

If you're spending a lot of your day scrolling on social media or glued to cable news, you might feel like your emotions are running a little high right now. Major life transitions can also cause our feelings to spike, whether we're getting ready to send a kid to college or thinking about retiring. But while letting your feelings in is just part of being human, letting too much emotion seep into your financial decision-making can be catastrophic for your long-term security. On today's show, we discuss financial biases that we all should be on the lookout for as we try to manage both our emotions and our money.

A New Year brings excitement, hope, and a little extra motivation to achieve some major goals. But 2025 has also brought some uncertainty as well. Political, economic, environmental, and technological events have all made big headlines, sometimes all on the same day. If you're feeling a little unsure about your financial planning right now, you're not alone. So, on today's show, we answer three timely listener questions that hopefully will give folks some perspective on where the economy is right now, where we could be headed, and how to set the best course for the rest of the year.

Happy 2025! At Keen Wealth, we're often of two minds at the beginning of the New Year. On the one hand, Tax Day is just around the corner, so we're helping folks put a bow on last year's financials and making sure they not missing out on any potentially advantageous moves. But this New Year also means a new president, a new congress, new laws, new facts and figures, and lots of new legislative proposals. On today's show, we discuss some important changes coming to Social Security and retirement accounts in 2025, as well as the items that could be at the top of President-elect Trump's economic agenda.

What might be even better than having a Happy New Year? Having a purposeful 2025. Longevity experts who study "blue zones" where folks live the longest have popularized the Japanese concept of "ikigai," meaning roughly, "having a purpose in life." Their research shows that seniors who are motivated to get out of bed in the morning don't just live longer, they also feel more fulfilled and have healthier habits that nourish their minds, bodies, and souls. On today's show, we discuss various ways that focusing on purpose could help you set better goals and achieve more in the year ahead.

Reviewing your estate plan is an important part of the year-end review sessions that we hold at Keen Wealth. At least annually, folks should make sure that their plan is still in sync with how they want to be cared for, how they want their assets distributed, and who they trust to settle their estate and preserve their legacy. But an estate plan check-up is also a good opportunity to review your feelings around what your money means to you, both while you're still around to enjoy it and after the next generation takes over. On today's show, we discuss lessons from two different approaches to estate planning that all seniors should think about as they prepare their financial plans for a new year.

"Sam" is 58 and he retired at the end of the first quarter of 2024. His wife, "Alice," is 65 and still working as a paid caretaker for the couple's son with special needs. Sam has $400,000 in a Roth IRA, $2 million in a traditional IRA and they have $400,000 in a joint taxable account. In 2024, Sam earned $75,000 and Alice earned $20,000. And, like so many couples in their age range, Sam and Alice want to know if their nest egg is ready to support them as they prepare for retirement. On today's show, we use Keen Wealth's comprehensive planning process to help "Sam and Alice" analyze their financial situation and identify some key decisions they'll need to make to keep their money and their lives in sync.

If there's one thing we know that the financial markets like, it's certainty. And since the 2024 presidential election was settled overnight -- rather than the weeks it took to count votes in 2020 -- the markets have reacted to the certainty of our new political reality with very strong returns. But as Donald Trump prepares to return to the White House, there are still many lingering questions about how the economic vision he laid out on the campaign trail will or won't materialize. On today's show, we explore some of President-elect Trump’s policy proposals and how they could affect your retirement planning.