Keen on Retirement

Do I have enough money to retire comfortably? That's the most common question I get asked. And my answer is always the same--let's go through the financial planing process, put a plan together, and see what the numbers indicate. In today's show, we take you behind the curtain and discuss our financial planning process. You'll learn what goes into a plan, how numbers are calculated, and how they ar...

Chances are you've received a call from the "IRS" saying you owe money and that you have to pay up immediately. This type of "IRS" scam can be spotted pretty quickly if you are armed with some basic information. As you'll learn in today's show, there are ways to protect yourself from these frauds. So please listen in as we discuss how you can avoid being the victim of a scammer.

If you died today, would you feel comfortable that all your assets are properly titled, your beneficiary designations are in order , and your assets would go to exactly who you want them to go to? Many people have worked a lifetime to accumulate assets but then fail to take the final step to ensure they are distributed to the right people after they pass. In today's show, I'm joined by estate plan...

How will the change to a new president in January affect our economy? Our country? The financial markets? To help us explore these questions and get an inside look at what's going on in Washington, we have a special guest on today's podcast. Greg Valliere has 40 years of experience following Washington issues for institutional and retail investors. He's widely quoted in the national media on polit...

It's hard to find places to get a decent return on your money. Around the globe, there is now $13 trillion of negative-yielding government debt , according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Even in Italy, a country with massive banking problems, more than $1.5 trillion in government debt has a negative interest rate. In an earlier blog post, we discussed the problems caused by negative interest ra...

Where do bonds fit within a portfolio? Do they still make sense even though interest rates are near historic lows? Today's episode is a basic primer on bonds and how they are a key building block in a diversified portfolio. As a result of the Great Recession a few years ago, the Federal Reserve lowered short-term interest rates to historically low levels. The thought was by lowering rates, it woul...

Finding the right financial advisor is not easy because it's a decision that most people only do once or twice in their life. Unlike buying a car, which you might do dozens of times throughout your lifetime, finding the right financial advisor is not something you can get "experienced" at doing. Today's episode will give you some excellent tools to shorten that learning curve and help you find a f...

Today, we're going to discuss what we learned by attending the Berkshire Hathaway annual meeting in Omaha. Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger are considered two of the most successful investors of all-time and each year, they answer questions in front of tens of thousands of people at the Berkshire Hathaway annual stockholder's meeting. At Keen Wealth Advisors, we believe it's critically important...

Are you maximizing your life? If you could categorize your life satisfaction into 10 dimensions and then start making intentional decisions to become happier and more fulfilled in each area, would that be worth spending some time on? Last episode we introduced the concept of maximizing your life and today we're going to discuss the 10 dimensions of the Money/Life Index. By understanding what these...

Most financial people talk about return on investment. Today, we're going to talk about "maximizing your life" with author and retirement expert Mitch Anthony. Mitch describes maximizing your life in a couple ways. First, it's about getting the best life you can with the money you have and second, it's about managing your money in a way that improves your life. This is Part I of a two-part show on...

Should retirees "work" in retirement doing something they love? How does that affect your Social Security income? Is paying off your mortgage before you retire a good idea or are you better off with the extra cash cushion? What should you do when you inherit an IRA from your spouse? Those are just a few of the questions we'll answer in today's podcast. You asked them and we're answering. There are...

Is retirement a concept that has outlived its usefulness? Does retirement kill more people than hard work ever did? Is retirement a one-way trip to insignificance? Some people think the answer is "yes" to all three of these questions. Today, we'll explore these questions and a few more as we take a look at what other people are saying about retirement and whether we think they're correct...or just...

I've been a wealth advisor for more than 20 years and I've seen many people absolutely love and thrive during their retirement years. They planned well, they knew what to expect, and even when life threw them a curve ball, they found effective ways to deal with it. But I've also seen folks who for one reason or another, never quite experienced the retirement they hoped for and are failing at retir...

Do you remember back in the late 1990s when the stock market was soaring and technology stocks reached astronomical valuations? Or how about the mid-2000s when real estate prices soared and people were making money flipping houses? Those are just a couple examples of how emotions and psychology led people to bid up prices way beyond a reasonable value. In recent years, a new field of study called...

Thanks to Ibbotson Associates, a Morningstar company, we have reliable data on the historical returns of several major asset classes dating back to 1926. Going back that far covers the Great Depression as well as numerous bull and bear markets, the stock market crash of 1987, the Great Recession of 2007 - 2009, and the ensuing bull market that is still in place today. In today's show, we discuss f...

"Fear sells" is perhaps one way to describe why financial media plays upon human emotions to draw more readers. Unfortunately, investors who are drawn to scary headlines sometimes make bad investment decisions because they let their emotions get in the way. One way to overcome the "noisy headline" problem is to better understand the cyclical nature of the economy and the financial markets. To help...

When it comes to your money, certain decisions are triggered simply because of your age. For example, age 62 is the earliest you can start receiving Social Security payments, other than receiving a widow’s benefit. Other important ages for financial planning include 55, 59-1/2, 60, 62, 65, 66, 67, 70, and 70-1/2. Join us as we explore the age-related decisions you need to make to ensure you end up...

By the time people reach their early to mid-60s, they can expect to live another 20 - 30 years. What will you do to make sure those retirement years are filled with the right mix of family, fun, meaning, and vitality? You've no doubt heard stories of people who retire and suddenly find themselves less happy than their pre-retirement days. It doesn't have to be that way. With some basic planning an...

Do I have enough money to retire? That's one of the most popular questions people ask financial advisors and usually it's a pretty straightforward calculation. Unfortunately, having enough money to retire is only one piece of the retirement puzzle. Often times people forget the emotional aspect of retirement and how a lack of preparation in this area can derail what was otherwise a sound financial...

Historically, the phrase “financial plan” conjured up images of a 200 page book filled with charts and spreadsheets. While they contained valuable information, often times they were reviewed once then put on the shelf to collect dust. Today, new technology and a better understanding of how people consume information have combined to make the financial planning process a practical and effective way...

In our inaugural episode, you'll learn why we're doing this podcast, what some of our upcoming topics will be, and you'll learn the backstory of wealth advisor Bill Keen and the life experiences that shaped him. Throughout the podcast, we’ll take you through the financial planning process to help ensure you make smart decisions about your money and your life. Whether you’re on your way to retireme...