Keen on Retirement

So much of our focus this year has been on Covid-19 that you might have missed a major milestone that we passed recently. We are now less than 100 days away from what promises to be a very contentious and impactful presidential election. The economic side of the debate has started to take shape now that former Vice President Joe Biden has released some new tax proposals. Of course, any presidentia...

In this webinar, Matt Wilson, Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer at Keen Wealth Advisors, will cover a macroeconomic update of the markets, plus the key things we are watching right now and our outlook for the rest of 2020. Some of the topics Matt covers in this webinar include: The best quarter for stocks since 1998. Update on Covid-19. What the leading indicators are telling us. Is t...

More often than not, the skills and processes that make folks successful in one business work in other businesses as well. I think that's a big reason why Keen Wealth Advisors has been able to establish such a strong relationship with the engineering community in Kansas City and around the country. Engineers respond to our checklist-driven planning process because they use the same kind of diligen...

The May 2020 jobs report could mark a turning point in our country's struggle to get back on its feet after the Covid-19 pandemic. While some experts were bracing for up to 7 million more lost jobs, instead we got a pleasant surprise: 2.5 million jobs added and a 1.4% drop in unemployment. The markets responded very favorably to this news. But with so many people still out of work and so many comm...

Recently I had the honor of participating in a video conference with CEOs and small business owners in the greater Kansas City area where we shared our perspectives on how to reopen our local economy safely and effectively. The organizer of that call was our region's advocate at the Small Business Administration, and my guest today, Adrienne Vallejo Foster. Adrienne is currently running for Congre...

Last week's job numbers have had a big impact on this week's main topic of discussion: reopening. Communities around the country are starting to establish guidelines that will, hopefully, allow more folks to get back to work while also keeping the spread of COVID-19 in check. In the meantime, folks who are hurting are starting to get some relief via extended unemployment benefits and federal tax r...

I'm really happy that clients and other friends of Keen Wealth have continued to ask us questions about their financial planning over the past month or so. Those questions tell me that even as we're dealing with all of the uncontrollable stresses surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, folks are keeping at least one eye on the things they can control. There is still business to be conducted, bills and...

We're getting our first small glimpses of light at the end of the COVID-19 tunnel this week. Spread of the disease could be peaking. The markets are starting to look a bit more stable. And our political and health care leaders are in the very early stages of discussing how and when to reopen businesses. Still, I know we're all dealing with a lot of anxiety and uncertainty, both in our personal liv...

The coronavirus pandemic continues to make recent market swings difficult to follow. Are the markets recovering or not? Are we still bearish or heading back to bullish? And what do these movements mean for your retirement planning? Today's episode is another up-to-the-minute look at the current economic situation.

We've all just gone through one of the most tumultuous weeks in recent American history – not just for the financial markets, but for how we live our everyday lives. So we're releasing this podcast episode a little earlier than usual so that you can get our latest take on the coronavirus situation and the broader economic picture.

For today's show, we put in some overtime to get you our up-to-the-minute take on how the coronavirus outbreak is affecting financial markets. The short version: Outside shocks to the financial markets, like the coronavirus, can't be predicted, but we do plan for them. Outbreaks like Ebola, Zika, MERS and SARS have rattled the markets before. And while past performance does not guarantee future re...

In this Market Update Webinar, Matt Wilson, Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer at Keen Wealth Advisors, takes a look back at what happened in 2019 in the markets and in the economy. And even more importantly, Matt takes a look ahead at what may be in store for 2020. Some of the topics Matt covers in this webinar include: Upcoming election Current corporate earnings outlook Recession ri...

Clients and friends of Keen Wealth have questions surrounding the Setting Every Community Up For Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act that was passed at the end of 2019. And with good reason! In many ways, the SECURE Act represents a significant rethink of retirement and estate planning. The government has recognized that as folks begin working longer at a wider variety of jobs, individuals need to...

I am honored that Anthony Fasano, Founder of the Engineering Management Institute, recently invited me to be a guest on his podcast, "The Engineering Career Coach." Anthony is a professional engineer who learned early in his career that the success of an engineering firm relied heavily on its employees' ability to communicate and mange effectively. Anthony founded the Engineering Management Instit...

At our annual Holiday Breakfast in December 2019, we presented "Forecast 2020: Silence the Noise."

At our annual Holiday Breakfast in December 2019, we presented "Forecast 2020: Silence the Noise."

Presents? Check. Tree? Check. Decorations? Check. Food and drink? Check. A thorough review of your tax-loss harvesting options? See, I knew you were forgetting something! Believe me, I understand that your checklist for the month of December is probably spilling onto another page already. And it's not much fun to sit around the fire and think about filing taxes in April. But there's less than two...

If I were to list some of the incredible things my good friend Joe Ratterman has accomplished in his life, the fact that he's a Guinness World Record holder might not even crack the top ten. After a successful career in which he worked to improve competitive balance in the financial markets, Joe had earned the potential for an easy, carefree retirement. But his values, his faith, and his commitmen...

Happy Medicare Season! You might not be getting any Hallmark cards marking this Fall tradition, but I know your mailbox is stuffed with notices from insurance companies, health care brokers, and the US government. That's because the open enrollment period during which seniors can change their Medicare policies runs from now until December 7 th . And even if you're planning on sticking with your cu...

In this Market Update Webinar, Matt Wilson, Managing Director and Chief Investment Officer at Keen Wealth Advisors, takes a look back at what happened in the third quarter of 2019 in the markets and in the economy. And even more importantly, Matt takes a look ahead at what may be in store for the remainder of the year.

Between 1992 and 2016, 56% of all workers age 50 and older were forced into an unexpected early retirement, according to a recent study by the Urban Institute and ProPublica. Some of these folks lost their jobs due to layoffs, corporate downsizing, and buyouts. Others decided to retire because of a pay cut or deteriorating conditions at their workplace. And still others retired due to health conce...

As regular readers and listeners know, I recently turned 50 and I do worry about the world that my generation is leaving behind for our children and grandchildren. If you get too caught up in chatter on cable news and social media, it can leave you feeling pretty scared and frustrated. And if you believe the stereotypes about the upcoming millennial generation, we're leaving some pretty serious pr...

My listeners in the Kansas City area are going to love hearing Darcie Blake's voice again! Darcie was a radio mainstay here for nearly 30 years as the morning show co-host on KUDL and as a host on WHB. After leaving KUDL, Darcie founded The Radio Dish, where she hosted her own show, and started her own advertising company. On today's show, Darcie Blake sits on the other side of the desk to share s...

"To all the clients I've worked with over the years, thank you for demonstrating that through hard work, character, and responsibility, it is possible to start from nothing and build a fulfilling retirement for you and your families." That dedication opens my new book, "Keen on Retirement: Engineering the Second Half Of Your Life." It's a summation of what it is we do every day at Keen Wealth Advi...

Generally, on Keen on Retirement , we don't like to discuss proposals that are floating around in Washington. There's so much politicized chatter in our newsfeeds every day that we prefer to wait until the facts get separated from the fiction, all the dust settles, and a new law is actually put into effect. But we're making an exception on today's episode for the SECURE Act of 2019, which passed t...