As the year draws to a close, it's the perfect time to reflect on your financial health and set the stage for a prosperous new year. In this week’s show, Chris and Scott share seven essential financial strategies to consider before year-end.

Here’s are some of the things we discuss in this episode:

• Review your estate plan and make sure it’s still designed
• Shoring up your emergency fund is crucial.
• If ​you ​are ​73 ​or ​older and ​you ​have ​money ​in ​a ​401k ​or ​IRA, have ​you ​taken ​your ​RMD ​this ​year? ​
• Audit your subscriptions and cancel what you aren’t using.
• Max out your retirement contributions if you can.

WAYS TO CONNECT:

Book a 15-minute discovery call with the team here: https://calendly.com/rachel-bwg

Visit https://bulmanwealth.com/marcos-lemus to learn more about Marcos Lemus and the other members of the team.

If you have any questions about what we discussed or anything else in your financial plan, email us at ask@bulmanwealth.com. You can also reach the team by phone at (916) 458-8199.

This week’s episode is all about busting some common myths that we hear and read about. A recent article from Fidelity spared the idea and Scott and Shawn are going to debunk six money myths. We’re covering things like income planning, healthcare, legacy planning and more.

Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode:

• Myth number 1: It’s not worth saving if I can only save a small amount.
• Myth number 2: The stock market is too risky for my retirement money.
• Myth number 3: I’m young so I don’t need to save for retirement.
• Myth number 4: There’s no way of knowing how much money I’ll need in retirement.
• Myth number 5: All debt is bad.
• Myth number 6: Credit cards should be avoided.

WAYS TO CONNECT:

Book a 15-minute discovery call with the team here: https://calendly.com/rachel-bwg

Visit https://bulmanwealth.com/marcos-lemus to learn more about Marcos Lemus and the other members of the team.

If you have any questions about what we discussed or anything else in your financial plan, email us at ask@bulmanwealth.com. You can also reach the team by phone at (916) 458-8199.

All too often, investors get hung up on the mistakes they’ve made instead of moving forward and thinking about what they need to do next. This week’s show is all about finding opportunities for improvement when mistakes are made so you’re optimizing your financial strategies in the future.

From income planning to understanding your risk number, they provide great insights to improve their financial health and achieve their long-term goals.

Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode:

• How we help our clients organize and structure their finances and investments.
• Why you should be investing for income.
• Educating clients on the case for growth.
• How some younger investors are perhaps too conservative in their investments.
• Navigating withdrawals as we enter retirement.
• How advisors can serve as intermediaries when discussing family finances.

WAYS TO CONNECT:

Book a 15-minute discovery call with the team here: https://calendly.com/rachel-bwg

Visit https://bulmanwealth.com/marcos-lemus to learn more about Marcos Lemus and the other members of the team.

If you have any questions about what we discussed or anything else in your financial plan, email us at ask@bulmanwealth.com. You can also reach the team by phone at (916) 458-8199.

It seems like all the news is doom and gloom these days, and the US economy often falls into that bucket of negativity. People are often looking at worst-case scenarios and playing on the fear that drives them to react. The sky always seems to be falling.

It’s time to reverse that trend on this week’s show. There are plenty of reasons to be optimistic about both the economy and even the world at large. It’s important to have a full picture of what’s going on, and in this episode, Shawn and Scott will go through reasons to have a little bit more optimism.

Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode:

• How we convey optimism and hope to our clients.
• While Social Security may not be what it used to be, part of that is because we are living longer, happier lives.
• How we can use modern technology to best serve our clients.
• Tax rates are actually historically low.
• When recessions do happen, they generally do not last that long.
• The global extreme poverty rate is significantly down.

WAYS TO CONNECT:

Book a 15-minute discovery call with the team here: https://calendly.com/rachel-bwg

Visit https://bulmanwealth.com/marcos-lemus to learn more about Marcos Lemus and the other members of the team.

If you have any questions about what we discussed or anything else in your financial plan, email us at ask@bulmanwealth.com. You can also reach the team by phone at (916) 458-8199.

When people think of their money and working with a financial advisor, the primary risk that comes to mind is the stock market and volatility. That’s obviously the biggest and the most talked about, but there are many more risks to your retirement that don’t always get the attention they deserve.

This week’s show will highlight seven risks we must address with planning: market, liquidity, concentration, reinvestment, inflation, horizon, and opportunity loss.

Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode:

• The role of financial advisors as risk managers.
• How market volatility risk might play a factor for folks getting closer to retirement.
• How we help our clients understand their risk tolerance and how it relates to their current portfolio.
• Defining different types of risk and how they affect you financially.

WAYS TO CONNECT:

Book a 15-minute discovery call with the team here: https://calendly.com/rachel-bwg

Visit https://bulmanwealth.com/marcos-lemus to learn more about Marcos Lemus and the other members of the team.

If you have any questions about what we discussed or anything else in your financial plan, email us at ask@bulmanwealth.com. You can also reach the team by phone at (916) 458-8199.

In this week’s show, Scott and Shawn discuss the intricacies of market drops, explaining what they mean and how you can prepare for them. They discuss various market events such as corrections, bear markets, recessions, and depressions, breaking down what each term means and how often these events occur.

Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode:

• Key definitions when it comes to market cycles.
• The origins of the terms bear market and bull market.
• How do we forecast and predict future markets?
• How we help our clients manage their emotions when it comes to investing.
• Understanding your risk tolerance and the risk level of your portfolio.

WAYS TO CONNECT:

Book a 15-minute discovery call with the team here: https://calendly.com/rachel-bwg

Visit https://bulmanwealth.com/marcos-lemus to learn more about Marcos Lemus and the other members of the team.

If you have any questions about what we discussed or anything else in your financial plan, email us at ask@bulmanwealth.com. You can also reach the team by phone at (916) 458-8199.

As we journey through life, each decade brings its own set of financial challenges and opportunities. Even though retirement planning is best when it’s customized to the individual, there are milestone dates and ages that everyone needs to pay attention to. This week’s show is all about those key ages and why they’re so important for planning.

Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode:

• Strategies to save more, both before and after you turn 50.
• What does being 59.5 or older have to do with accessing retirement funds?
• The key ages around Social Security and strategies for deciding when to claim.
• When you have access to Medicare and making sure that you get enrolled in it at the right time to avoid a penalty.
• Planning around Required Minimum Distributions and the rules surrounding them.

WAYS TO CONNECT:

Book a 15-minute discovery call with the team here: https://calendly.com/rachel-bwg

Visit https://bulmanwealth.com/marcos-lemus to learn more about Marcos Lemus and the other members of the team.

If you have any questions about what we discussed or anything else in your financial plan, email us at ask@bulmanwealth.com. You can also reach the team by phone at (916) 458-8199.

Retirement should be a time of relaxation and enjoyment, but for many, it brings a host of financial fears. In this week’s show, Scott and Shawn will walk through the four biggest fears people have in retirement by explaining what they are, what they mean, and how we can help address them.

Here’s some of what we discuss in this episode:

• The fear of outliving your money in retirement.
• Concerns with inflation and high interest rates and how they could impact your retirement.
• What are black swan events in the stock market and how can we be prepared for them?
• Demystifying the relationship between the stock market and daily life.
• Why you should consider setting up a trust.

WAYS TO CONNECT:

Book a 15-minute discovery call with the team here: https://calendly.com/rachel-bwg

Visit https://bulmanwealth.com/marcos-lemus to learn more about Marcos Lemus and the other members of the team.

If you have any questions about what we discussed or anything else in your financial plan, email us at ask@bulmanwealth.com. You can also reach the team by phone at (916) 458-8199.