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Thursday, May 25, 2023

What You Should Know About the Debt Ceiling DebateOn Monday, May 22, President Joe Biden and House Speaker Kevin McCarthy met at the White House to discuss raising the statutory limit on U.S. government debt, generally called the...

 

Wednesday, March 22, 2023

U.S. Banking Crisis: Should You Be Worried?Unable to meet withdrawal requests triggered by depositor panic, Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) was placed into receivership by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) on March 10, 2023....

 

Friday, February 17, 2023

50 and Older? Here's Your Chance to Catch Up on Retirement SavingIf you are age 50 or older and still working, you have a valuable opportunity to super-charge your retirement savings while managing your income tax liability. Catch-up...

 

Sunday, November 20, 2022

• 2022 has dealt a blow to the 60/40 portfolio. While losses in a 60/40 portfolio are not unusual, losses in stocks and bonds simultaneously are unusual.• Since 1928, with nearly 100 years of track record, the...

 

Wednesday, September 7, 2022

Mainstream vouchers provide federally funded housing assistance to persons aged18 to 61 with a disability, who are homeless, are living in an institution, or are at riskof homelessness or institutionalization. Mainstream vouchers are...

 

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Tuesday, August 30, 2022

New Cancellation for Federal Student Loans and Delayed Repayment to 2023On August 24, 2022, just a few days before federal student loan repayment was set to resume, PresidentBiden announced a plan for additional student loan debt...

 

Wednesday, August 17, 2022

Record high inflation and negative economic growth, as measured by US GDP growth, have fueled recession fears. The bond market is similarly flashing recessionary signals. Despite this, the S&P 500 through Friday, August 5, 2022, has...

 

Monday, August 8, 2022

Investing seems easy when markets rally and are generally calm. But markets don’t just move up or in a single direction. Markets adapt, gyrate and create new cycles with each being slightly different than the one before....

 

Monday, July 25, 2022

Highlights:Inflation hit 9.1% in June—its highest level in four decades.1The Fed raised interest rates in an effort to slow US growth and moderate inflation. Fed officials are signaling another 0.75 basis points (bps) hike at the...

 

Wednesday, July 6, 2022

There’s a “hurricane” coming for the US economy. Headlines from titans like Jamie Dimon, JPMorgan Chase CEO, have fueled predictions about the next recession. This has clearly spooked investors, who are left wondering...

 

Wednesday, June 22, 2022

Interest Rates on Federal Student Loans to Increase for 2022-2023Every May, interest rates on federal student loans are recalculated for the upcoming school year. The ratesare calculated by combining the yield on the 10-year U.S....

 

Monday, June 13, 2022

As the markets remain volatile it's important to look back at history to remind ourselves why investing needs to be for the long-term.Please read the following to put today's volatility into perspective.  History of...

 

Monday, May 16, 2022

 

Friday, April 29, 2022

 

Friday, April 22, 2022

 

Sunday, March 13, 2022

 

Monday, February 28, 2022

 

Friday, February 18, 2022

 

Friday, January 28, 2022

 

Friday, January 14, 2022

 

Wednesday, December 22, 2021

Each year the markets bring new surprises and 2021 was no different. Despite a slew of concerns including new COVID variants, inflation, and supply chain disruptions, here are three surprisingly positive events that have shaped the...

 

Monday, November 15, 2021

In the November Federal Reserve Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting, Fed policymakers left interest rates near zero but also announced a plan to start winding down or ‘tapering’ its bond purchasing program[i]. What happens...

 

Tuesday, November 2, 2021

Key Takeaways Inflation remains an ongoing concern in 2021. While inflation is higher and likely to remain elevated due to challenges created by the pandemic, a look into the structural composition and the types of inflation may...

 

Monday, September 20, 2021

A safe haven during the 2020 pandemic, gold rose 20.9%[i] and outperformed the S&P 500 index which gained 18.7%. However, the commodity has slowed down in 2021 and is down -4.7% for the year[ii] despite widespread inflation concerns....

 

Monday, August 30, 2021

Is there a Bubble in the Real Estate Market? Key Takeaways Rising home prices have many worried about a real estate bubble like 2007. While rising home prices may look a lot like 2007 on the surface, the circumstances driving home...

 

Monday, March 22, 2021

Key Takeaways Rising rates and the likely scale of US fiscal stimulus has raised concerns of inflationary pressures. Rising inflation does not differentiate between temporary and long-term sustainable inflation. This near-term increase...

 

Wednesday, February 17, 2021

When a Dad wanted to save money for his daughter with a disability and realized things weren't fair, he set out to change the law. And thus the ABLE Act was born, giving people with disabilities the ability to save money without losing...

 

Wednesday, February 17, 2021

Key Takeaways With stock markets at all-time highs, concerns about an impending crash is a recurring theme that keeps investors with cash on the sideline. History shows investing—even at market peaks— has generated strong...

 

Monday, January 18, 2021

Key Takeaways Despite the economic upheaval bought on by COVID in 2020, 2021 remains a year of hope. The start of the new year is a great time for investors to evaluate how their portfolios have likely drifted after a wild ride like...

 

Tuesday, December 22, 2020

Investors who own stocks through an index fund like the S&P 500 or bonds via bond index funds often assume their portfolios are diversified and constant. Market dynamics and the construction of indexes can lead to concentration in...

 

Friday, November 27, 2020

Key Takeaways With the election fog (mostly) lifted, stock markets celebrated the best of both worlds, a Biden presidency and split Congress. While markets are influenced by elections in the short term, it’s important to...

 

Wednesday, November 11, 2020

Many IRA and retirement plan limits are indexed for inflation each year. While some of the limits remain unchanged for 2021, other key numbers have increased. See attached for what has or hasn't changed.

 

Wednesday, October 21, 2020

Key Takeaways Despite the assumption many have that increasing tax rates would sink stocks, historically, markets have produced better-than-average returns in the wake of tax increases. Other economic factors, such as ongoing stimulus...

 

Friday, October 9, 2020

There are clear differences between President Donald Trump and Former Vice President Joe Biden (and the political parties they represent) when it comes to tax policies, spending priorities, and overall economic strategies. For this...

 

Wednesday, September 23, 2020

Key Takeaways The Fed recently changed its inflation-targeting stance, a move that may appear trivial but could have significant implications for investors. This new policy means that the Fed will likely hold off on raising short-term...

 

Friday, August 21, 2020

Historically, a bear market and a recession have not served the incumbent party well during elections. Markets don’t see red or blue but simply green. Since 1933, the markets, over the long-term, have gone up regardless of party...

 

Wednesday, August 12, 2020

June 30, 2020, marked the implementation date of regulations passed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) more than a year ago. Called "Regulation Best Interest" or "Reg BI," the rules include a new standard of care for...

 

Friday, July 24, 2020

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE July 24, 2020 Brooke Napiwocki Promoted To Director of Financial Planning at Crescendo Wealth Management Crescendo Wealth Management announces the promotion of Brooke Napiwocki CFP®, MBA to Director of...

 

Friday, July 17, 2020

Key Takeaways The stock market rally in 2020 has been led by a handful of stocks in the technology sector. The concentrated returns in a select handful of stocks have also impacted the divergence in US and International stock...

 

Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Addressing the Income Challenge Key Takeaways Low interest rates are likely to persist, limiting the income and return from cash and government bonds. Investors need to remain flexible on ways to address the income challenge by...

 

Tuesday, June 16, 2020

The Square Root Recovery Jerry Chafkin, Chief Investment Officer, AssetMark Summary The stock market rebounded sharply in Q2, rising almost as quickly as it fell in Q1, returning 18.2% for the first two months of the second quarter....

 

Friday, May 1, 2020

Crescendo Notes - Special Needs

 

Wednesday, April 29, 2020

 

Thursday, April 23, 2020

Key Takeaways Fear of a COVID-19 led recession sent US stocks into the fastest bear market in history in March 2020. The stock market is typically a leading indicator, it tends to fall before the start of an economic recession and...

 

Saturday, April 4, 2020

At Crescendo we emphasize the importance of providing good communication to our clients. More specifically we want to educate our clients on all aspects of their financial well-being. With the recent passage of the CARES Act –...

 

Wednesday, March 25, 2020

Six Planning Ideas in response to COVID-19 COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus) is a pandemic that will have a lasting impact due to health and mortality implications in our nation and across the globe. The virus has also created financial...

 

Monday, March 9, 2020

We understand that there has been a lot of market volatility due to several factors, one of those being the Coronovirus. At Crescendo, we do our best to communicate to our clients about the importance of staying calm and trying to keep...

 

Wednesday, February 26, 2020

Join Crescendo's Kathleen Oberneder @ Portal, Inc. in Grafton on Thursday March 5 to learn more about 529 ABLE Savings Accounts and how they help with Special Needs Financial Planning Coffee House Flyer

 

Wednesday, January 8, 2020

 

Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Check out a couple Brooke's usefull tips for saving money in Real Simple Magazine: https://www.realsimple.com/work-life/money/saving/how-to-save-more-money

 

Tuesday, October 1, 2019

Brooke gives her expert tips on dealing with financial stress in this Health Magazine article: https://www.health.com/stress/manage-financial-stress

 

Wednesday, September 11, 2019

Please click on the highlighted text to see my video blog: Four Tax Planning Questions to Ask Before Year-End...

 

Thursday, September 5, 2019

Six Investing Questions Every Mid-Career Woman Needs to Ask… By the time most professional women reach mid-career (self-defined as mid 30’s to mid-50’s) they have started to accumulate an eclectic mix of investment...

 

Thursday, September 5, 2019

Enjoy this series on video here: Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 Be a Severance Superhero with Financial Planning Senior to executive-level professionals often face job loss at some point during their professional lives. This employment...

 

Monday, February 11, 2019

Eight Steps to Start Living Your Ideal Financial Life in 2019! January is the time of year we declare year-long goals and put our ambition to the test. More than one-third of Americans make a Financial Resolution with the top three...

 

Tuesday, January 15, 2019

Wisconsin 529 College Savings Plan Tax Updates: Wisconsin residents can still reduce their 2018 state-taxable income, dollar-for-dollar, up to $3,200 per beneficiary by contributing to a Wisconsin 529 College Savings Plan. You do not...

 

Thursday, December 14, 2017

I am often asked to describe my ideal client. Two demographics that I truly enjoy working with are mid-career professional women and couples. What I like about this stage of life are the multitude of financial priorities these...

 

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

It is almost impossible not be proud of the many accomplishments of our children – honor roll, athletics, acts of kindness. This pride continues when young adult children approach their college years and report impressive ACT/SAT...

 

Thursday, July 27, 2017

What is Financial Wellness? Financial Wellness parallels other areas of wellness such as emotional or physical. Before attempting to commit to our own health, we often begin with a “Reason Why”? This reason may have a deep...