News & Insights

AA recent Washington Post article called to task no less than Warren Buffett with regard to the investment choices available to his employees in their retirement plans.

At West Financial, we believe that fixed income is an integral part of a balanced and diversified portfolio. Within the fixed income allocation, our primary focus is to purchase individual bonds for capital preservation, with income as a secondary consideration.

Spousal social security benefits allow a lower earning spouse to use the work record of a higher earning spouse to receive a higher social security benefit than they would have based on their own work record. Benefits are calculated based on the worker’s age and work record at the time of filing.

Included in the Senate’s recently passed tax bill is a provision that would make 529 plans much more useful. As a refresher, 529 plans are tax-advantaged savings programs designed to help families set aside funds for future education costs. 

In September, the Federal Reserve Board released their triennial Survey of Consumer Finances (SCF) which - collects information about family incomes, net worth, balance sheet components, credit use, and other financial outcomes.

As the year winds to a close, taxes and gifting starts to be part of many investor’s conversations.

It has been about a year since we launched our new client portal. Since then, we have continued to make changes based on client feedback to ensure the site contains the information you want most.

In April 2017, the US House of Representatives passed the American Health Care Act (AHCA), making good on seven years of campaign promises to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

Recently, a Reuters article quoted Warren Buffet that most investors, “should stick with low-cost index funds.” He reasons that index funds routinely outperform actively managed funds, and especially when adding in the high fees of Wall Street investment firms.¹ If you are paying higher fees for active management and not outperforming the index over full market cycles, then he has a valid point.

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In 2014, I wrote an article on how to freeze your credit union reports as a way to protect not only your credit, but your privacy. Placing a security freeze at the three credit reporting companies—Equifax, TransUnion and Experian—prevents any person or organization, including lenders, from accessing your credit information.