At the end of 2022, the SECURE Act 2.0, short for Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement, became law. It expands earlier legislation, changing many aspects of the savings and retirement landscape for Americans. The rule changes make various accounts...
By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education Follow Us on X: @theslottreport Maybe you made a Roth IRA contribution for 2022 and then discovered your income was too high. Maybe you contributed to a traditional IRA but later discovered that the contribution...
Monthly Commentary – June ’22 -Darren Leavitt, CFA It was just an ugly month of June for investors and for that matter the 1st half of 2022. All asset classes seemed to fall except for the US dollar. The month started with a “peak inflation” narrative...
Monthly Market Commentary – April ’22 -Darren Leavitt, CFA Global financial markets had a rough month in April. Inflation continued to be top of mind for investors as data continued to show historic increases in prices. The Federal Reserve still appears to be behind...
Monthly Market Commentary – March ’22 -Darren Leavitt, CFA In March, global financial markets continued to be volatile, focused on the Russian/Ukraine war and inflation rates not seen in decades. Countries worldwide condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine...
Monthly Market Recap for January 2022 -Darren Leavitt, CFA It was not a pleasant start to 2022 for investors as global financial markets took a few steps back. Increasing inflation concerns and the prospect for higher interest rates dampened sentiment. The Omicron...
-Darren Leavitt, CFA US financial markets rallied in December in volatile trade. It seemed markets would take two steps forward in one week only to give up a step in the following week. The emergence of the Omicron variant rattled markets initially, but investors were...
-Darren Leavitt, CFA September proved again to be a difficult month for financial assets. A narrative that the growth of global economies has peaked was evident during the month. Market sentiment was further dampened by fears that inflation has become persistent...
-Darren Leavitt, CFA Global markets rallied in August as economic data revealed strength across the globe. However, delta variant infection rates soared during the month, especially in unvaccinated populations, which dampened sentiment and global growth...
Monthly Market Review for July 2021 -Darren Leavitt, CFA US equity markets forged new all-time highs in July despite fears of a slowdown in global economic growth due to the delta variant of Covid. A bipartisan infrastructure bill made its way through the House and...
Going from saver to spender is mostly a matter of psychology It’s Time to Wind Down You’ve done all the right things—financially speaking, at least—in saving for retirement. You started saving early to take advantage of the power of compounding, maxed out...
Monthly Market Recap – June 2021 -Darren Leavitt, CFA US financial markets were able to rally to new records in June despite a more hawkish Federal Reserve and rhetoric that suggested the US economy had seen peak growth and peak inflation expectations. A...
-Darren Leavitt, CFA Financial Markets ended the month of May with mixed results. A prominent rotational trade was again present throughout the month. Inflation was top of mind and debated by investors as some economic data fueled concerns of a systemic increase in...
-Darren Leavitt, CFA A prominent rotational trade out of mega-cap growth stocks into value-oriented cyclical issues extended US equity indices gains in March. Covid-19 inoculations continued to ramp up in the US as broader segments of the population became eligible...
-Darren Leavitt, CFA Financial markets started 2021 in strong form but lost some ground in the final week of trade. Covid-19 vaccines continued to be developed, and inoculations continued to be administered to front line workers and the elderly. A light at the end...
-Darren Leavitt, CFA Financial markets rallied in December on the prospects and ultimate agreement of another tranche of Coronavirus stimulus. Covid-19 vaccine emergency use approvals from the FDA aided market sentiment even as daily infection rates,...
-Darren Leavitt, CFA Global markets rallied in November. A historic US election played out as one of Wall Street’s best-case scenarios. Three effective Covid-19 vaccines were announced over the month, which further stocked investor enthusiasm. Third-quarter earnings...
-Darren Leavitt, CFA Global financial markets had mixed performances in October. Investors were hoping for another tranche of stimulus from Washington, but the politicians were too far apart to get a deal done in the end. The US Presidential election continued to...
-Darren Leavitt, CFA Global equity markets continued their ascent in August. Developed international markets increased by 4.72%, while emerging markets increased by 2.89%. The S&P rose 7.01%, the Dow gained 7.57%, the tech-heavy NASDAQ led gains with a 9.59%...
-Darren Leavitt, CFA Covid-19 infections continued to hobble the reopening of specific geographies around the world, while efforts to produce a vaccine continued to show positive progress. Central banks were reasonably quiet during the month, keeping policy rates low...
