Keen on Retirement

On October 14th, the Social Security Administration announced the highest cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) since 2023: a 3.6% benefit increase for 2027. That's about an additional $900 for an average retiree over the course of next year.  Any extra support for retirees is good news. But Social Security's annual COLA announcement is also an annual reminder that there's more to managing retirement t...

Election cycles can stir up some intense emotions. And while everyone is entitled to have their individual beliefs, as well as causes and candidates that they support, there's one area where we all need to draw a very strong line: between our politics and our money. In the run-up to any election, folks across the whole political spectrum ask the Keen Wealth team the same questions. If Candidate X...

The leaves are changing. Sweaters are coming out of closets. Ghosts and monsters are popping up in neighborhood yards.  And the Social Security Administration is about to announce the cost-of-living adjustment for 2027. That's why October can be one of the spookiest – and most dangerous – months for seniors.  Any time the government makes major announcements about Social Security or Medicare, frau...

Giving back is one of our core values at Keen Wealth. Every year, my wife Carissa, who leads our Keen Community Impact Committee and the Keen Wealth Foundation, works with the committee to bring philanthropic opportunities to our broader team. Together, we identify key initiatives to support through fundraising, volunteer work, and our financial expertise. If you visit our offices during the week...

Dolly Parton's songs and movies will live on forever. But when the 80-year-old entertainment icon passed away last month, she also left behind an impressive financial legacy that we all can learn from.  In a 2020 interview, Parton made it clear that she had no intention of becoming another celebrity cautionary tale about poor estate planning, saying, "You don't want to leave that mess to your fami...

"Save more than you spend" sounds like a timeless piece of money advice, as true today as it was two hundred years ago.  But in the mid-1800s, many folks believed you needed to spend your money as soon as possible. In fact, saving too much back then could lead to financial ruin! That's just one example of how Americans' attitudes about money have evolved throughout history. But it's not just rules...

Housing is one of the biggest line items on just about any retirement budget. Whether you're still paying a mortgage, looking to escalate your payment schedule so you can retire debt-free, or thinking about relocating or buying a vacation home, where you live plays a significant role in how you spend your time, who you spend it with, and what your financial plan looks like.  On today's show, we gr...

"Ute" (SUV), "chips" (French fries), "sunnies" (sunglasses), and "mates" (friends) are just a few of the slang terms I picked up earlier this year when the Keens visited our family in Brisbane, Australia.  Another was "super," which is short for "superannuation." This mandatory savings program is central to Australia's retirement planning. And recently, President Trump floated the idea of implemen...

Keen on Retirement listener "Joe" is 51 and his wife is 60. They are thinking about an early retirement before either of them turns 65. Joe wrote in asking about the best strategy for coordinating Social Security benefits around that retirement goal. Should they take his wife's benefits now? Delay benefits to keep their income low and make Roth conversions? And since they're both too young to coll...

Are you feeling a little more anxious than usual about your money? Given everything that's happening in the world right now, that's perfectly understandable.  What concerns me is the rising number of Americans who say that their money worries are nudging them towards high-risk speculation in crypto, meme stocks, and prediction markets.  And what's even more concerning is that folks aren't taking m...

Your phone buzzes with a text message that appears to be from your bank: "Did you authorize a purchase on your debit card at a local apparel shop today? Reply YES if you recognize this. Reply NO if you don't, and a fraud specialist will contact you." You reply, "No." A minute later, your phone rings. The man on the other end is calm, professional, and sympathetic. "I'm from the fraud department. I...

Are you ready for the Great Wealth Transfer? Financial analysts estimate that older Americans will pass on as much as $124 trillion of personal wealth to their spouses, heirs, and charities over the next 25 years.  And, unfortunately, much of that wealth won't survive for another transfer. According to one study, 42% of heirs fall back to their pre-inheritance net worth in about 12 months. Meaning...

"Tom and Linda" are a married couple. They're both 55-years-old. Tom works as an operations manager for a regional manufacturer, and Linda works in corporate finance. They are both targeting retirement at age 65. Complicating that 10-year runway is a situation that's becoming more and more common among Tom and Linda's generation: they're "sandwiched" between taking care of Linda's parents, who are...

Feeling happy? That could be because spring has finally sprung here in the Midwest.  Or, more specifically, it could be because you're part of the Keen Wealth audience right here in Overland Park! A recent report by WalletHub ranked the 182 "Happiest Cities in America." The researchers evaluated 29 "key indicators of happiness, including depression rates, income growth, and average daily leisure t...

It's "a tradition unlike any other." The $1.50 pimento cheese sandwich. Every year at the Masters, you'll hear TV commentators wax nostalgic about what makes the world's most famous golf tournament unique: the course, the history, the cell phone ban. And those sandwiches, which, at the very first Masters in 1934, cost just $0.30. If the pimento and cheese had kept pace with the rate of inflation s...

When I think about the start of spring, I think about spending the Easter holiday with my family, the colors returning to our green spaces, a little more sunshine, and maybe a shower or two. Hail the size of baseballs? Not a part of my vision! But that's what a massive storm brought to Kansas City a few weeks ago. Like so many folks, I'm still fixing broken windshields and dents on my family's car...

The 2026 news cycle is spinning at a dizzying pace. Technology is rapidly upending how we work and live. With midterm elections on the horizon, our leaders in Washington are sharpening their visions for the future and policy proposals. And geopolitical tensions across the globe are giving investors something new to react to -- and worry about -- on a daily basis. On today's show, we unpack some of...

Matt Wilson, Keen Wealth's Chief Investment Officer and President, recently hosted an excellent webinar on Tax Planning Through the Four Stages of Retirement. In addition to providing a thorough overview of the tax issues that seniors should be prepared for, Matt also wanted to remind folks that the best time to ask questions about retirement is before you retire.  And I'm glad that several of our...

According to the most recent available data, the IRS collected $5.1 trillion in taxes in 2024. Just ten years earlier, it collected $3.1 trillion. We all grumble about paying the government this time of year. And gathering all our forms and statements while we're in the middle of a partial shutdown isn't going to make Tax Day 2026 any more pleasant. But those trillions are also signs of a healthy...

When was the last time you checked your penny jar? If it's looking a little emptier than usual, that might be because we're in the middle of a penny shortage! The U.S. Mint has ceased production of the penny because the cost of making one ($0.0369) is now almost four times what it's worth as legal tender. While this is yet another step towards a more digital, cashless economy, you might want to ta...

During my recent trip to Australia, I learned that navigating a foreign country can feel normal but different all at the same time. On the one hand, my family and I enjoyed the familiar experiences of being on vacation, such as unplugging from our daily routines, relaxing on a long flight, seeing the sights, and spending time with loved ones. But once we arrived in Brisbane, we had to get used to...

The freshness of the New Year can also help us gain a fresh perspective on what's really important and what we want to accomplish.   From a comprehensive financial planning perspective, that might mean looking beyond your numbers and thinking about what your money is really for. On today's show, my Keen on Retirement co-hosts and I share a few words of wisdom that I hope will help you maintain bal...

Longtime Keen on Retirement listeners and friends of the firm are probably familiar with The Big Hat. Matt Wilson, our Chief Investment Officer and President, is the proud owner of an oversized Dow 100,000 cap that he wears on our show from time to time. And when folks visit our offices, such as during our annual Holiday Breakfast, they often spot Matt's hat in his office and have a bit of a chuck...

"How am I doing?" "Am I falling behind my peers?" "Do I have enough money?" "How does my nest egg measure up?" My team at Keen Wealth spends a lot of time talking folks through these kinds of questions. And, as the years go by and folks enter their 50s, 60s and beyond, that conversation evolves and begins to coalesce around another question: "Can I retire?" You might try to answer these questions...

Does your financial team provide you with comprehensive tax planning, or just annual tax reporting? When you file your 2025 taxes next April, you're essentially just reporting your financial data from the previous year.  At Keen Wealth, tax planning is a proactive, year-round process we use to put your annual report in the best shape possible before the ink dries and windows close.  And when it co...