Keen on Retirement

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...

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...

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 th...

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 achie...

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 so...

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, sometim...

"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 rec...

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...

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 retire...

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...

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 y...

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 ti...

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 p...

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 hea...

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...

"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...

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 abo...

At Keen Wealth, we often describe tax-planning as an ongoing process, not just something we help folks accomplish every spring. And while Tax Day is certainly circled in red on our annual planning calendars, the end of the year is also an important deadline for some moves that could lower your tax bill.   On today's show, we discuss three financial strategies that you and your advisor should consi...

With the presidential election less than a week away, I know many folks are feeling like the present is on pause while we're waiting on some important answers about the future.  Matt Wilson, Keen Wealth's Chief Investment Officer and President, analyzed the latest data surrounding the election, the health of the economy, and the early outlook for 2025 in his recent 2024 Q4 Market Update Webinar. T...

If I were to make a list of the most common money worries that I've helped seniors deal with in my 30-plus years as a financial advisor, running out of money in retirement would probably be number one. Even folks who have been following a comprehensive financial plan and building wealth for decades can struggle with the idea of cashing their final paychecks and living off their nest eggs. So, I un...

Between the 24/7 news cycle and the two-year election cycle of our government system, I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels like our country is in a permanent state of campaigning. And that means some folks who do follow politics and their investments closely are often hearing our leaders talk about tax policy every time they turn on the news. However, it's very important to distinguish between...

On the morning of September 11, 2001, I was driving on Southwest Trafficway, heading to my office on the Country Club Plaza in Kansas City. When I walked inside the world had changed. My colleagues were huddled around TVs watching the horrific, surreal footage from the terrorist attacks in New York. About a month later I was in New York for business meetings and I saw the destruction first-hand. E...

Most of us try to help our loved ones whenever we can and however we can. But when that "help" is money, our best intentions can turn bad very quickly. As uncomfortable as it may feel, if you don't integrate giving and lending into your overall financial plan, you're not just potentially enabling poor financial habits -- you could be jeopardizing your retirement. On today's show, we discuss five k...

You should delay taking Social Security until you reach age 70. Unless, of course, you shouldn't. Or can't. Yes, my team at Keen Wealth generally advises folks to delay their benefits as long as possible so that those checks will, eventually, be bigger. But, like just about every detail of your comprehensive financial plan, timing your Social Security benefits is a complicated decision that depend...

At Keen Wealth, "tax season" is never really over.  Our checklist-driven, comprehensive planning process is constantly taking in new information about the folks we work with and changes to tax law. By staying ahead of tax issues, we believe we can help limit surprises when April does roll around, especially for retired seniors who are living on a fixed income.  I'm glad to see that there are folks...