Blog
Generations of Retirement: Who is Right?
Over the past thirty years, I’ve had a front row seat to the evolving definition of retirement. Sometimes, I feel like a translator with words like “pension” or “annuity payments” to my younger peeps and with words like “passive...
Read MoreHow Paying Taxes today can help set up a Future free of tax
In the spirit of everyone’s favorite holiday, Tax Day, this month I’d like to talk about how paying taxes today can help set up a future free of tax for both you and your heirs. You probably have heard of it: The Roth IRA. But wait,...
Read MorePlanned Giving vs Legacy Planning
Planned Giving and Legacy PlanningThe Lowdown: Often, when we think about being charitable with our finances, not a lot of thought is put into the “how” … it’s usually just about the “how much”. I’d like to spend a bit of time this...
Read MoreQCDs and RMDs: How being charitable can avoid IRA taxes
As we start thinking about tax season, many of our readers own Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) and are very familiar with the mandatory distribution rules that are required after the tender age of 70 ½ . Or 72. Or 73 as it stands...
Read More2026: The Year of Abundance
As we being the new year, I would usually write about one of my favorite topics: Goal Planning. Setting them, achieving them, not achieving them…all of it. But this year, I’m going to deviate from regularly scheduled programing and...
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When less can be more when it comes to making progress
As the year comes to a close, I often think about how far we have come. The collective we: myself and those in my care. And what exactly does that mean to me...and to them. Does it mean that the portfolio made money...or lost money?...
Read MoreMichigan Income Tax rules are changing for IRA’s and pensions, are you keeping up?
If you live in Michigan, and have retirement income from Social Security, a pension or an IRA…listen up! This is kinda sorta a big deal and I’m shocked that nobody is talking about it. So, I’m going to talk about it. Again. Have you...
Read MoreDon't be scared of life insurance, be scared of the way it was sold to you.
Life insurance gets a bad rap. I don't think the problem is with the life insurance contracts themselves, but more with the way they are sold. If you felt pressured to purchase it through a convincing conversation that promised the...
Read MoreEstate Planning is for everyone, even if you think it's not for you.
Did you know that you have an estate plan? It may not be the fancy black leather binder that sets you back two grand. It also may not be the inexpensive one you got using your union benefit or workplace voucher. If you live in United...
Read MoreThe consequences of jumping out of the stock market during rough air
Many times over the years, I've written about volatility in the stock market and compared it to encountering turbulence while flying on an airplane. One blog in particular stands out in my mind. I wrote it while flying on a commercial...
Read MoreFinancial Freedom: not just for the 65+ club anymore
As we celebrate the independence of our country this month, I tend to spend the holiday reflecting on what it means to be independent. Independent from a sovereign nation’s rule is the obvious one. How about independent in our careers?...
Read MoreStart Smart: Finance Hacks for Young Professionals Entering the Workforce
It’s June- a month usually reserved for the ever-so-popular “Dads and Grads” marketing schemes. This got me thinking about the advice a dad would give a Grad about money and investing, but I thought I’d jump on the bandwagon this year!...
Read MoreHow a Wall Street trader enters volatile equity markets
After strong bull runs in the equity markets, experiencing a pullback (or decline) is normal. Markets do not go straight up, and they often have to stop to catch their breath even in bull markets. A 10% decline is called a correction....
Read MoreSports and Taxes, a winning combination
Have you heard of NIL? If you’re a sport fan, or student-athlete, then this has been a great topic of conversation in the last few years. Since 2021, student-athletes have had the opportunity to profit from endorsement agreements and...
Read MoreThe Mindset of Retirement Income
Have you ever wanted something so badly…and when you finally get it, you don’t know what to do with it? Or how to enjoy it? Or if you will even use it? What comes to mind for me is a new set of golf clubs. The new graphite shaft...
Read MoreWhen natural disasters strike: how to be prepared financially
Emergency planning has come to the front burner of conversation lately as we continue to witness devastating natural disasters across the country. Wildfires, hurricanes, mudslides, tornadoes, flooding, draught and yes even snow in...
Read MoreFor my people who hate goal planning: a non-planning retirement plan
Goal planning is hard-wired into me. As a young girl, I always loved New Year’s Eve. Watching the ball drop, toasting my “champagne” apple juice and pouring over my new year’s resolution. That desire to create and chase goals has been...
Read More2024 Year End Reflection
Well folks, we finally made it back to the bull markets of yesteryear, but it has come at a steep price: inflation. As of this writing, 2024 should end on a very positive note with portfolios hitting new all time highs this past year...
Read MoreIs it too late to start?
Have you ever started something so late that you wonder if it’s worth doing at all? The bargaining that happens within your mind of “is it still worth it?” or “I’ll never get it done, so why should I start it now?” and the ever famous...
Read MoreWhen finances are scary
Everyone loves scary stories. From telling ghost stories under a blanket as a child, to watching thrillers at the movies as a teenager and evolving to political headlines as an adult…there seems to be a natural allure of a good scare....
Read MoreHow often should we “watch” our finances?
I was interviewed recently regarding the notion of checking in on your money (both in banking and investments) and how much time one should allocate to this activity. I immediately thought about the twentysomethings that have their...
Read MoreWhy a 403(b) needs more TLC than their retirement plan cousins
If you do not work for a public school, hospital or religious organization you may never have heard of a 403(b) plan. Think of it as the cousin of the 401(k) plan with yet another cousin named 457 working in the municipal field. They...
Read MoreTalk to kids about money, they know more than you think.
Recently, I was asked what topics I would choose if a children’s book about money was in my future. Of course, the first thing that came to mind was teaching all humans under the age of 18 to save 10% of all of their wages in a...
Read MoreTax relief is back! A snapshot to Michigan’s 2024 Retirement Income Tax Repeal
If you are currently taking income from a taxable IRA account, pension or most any taxable retirement plan as a Michigan resident…tax relief may be coming your way! The May 2011 legislative decision to make these types of retirement...
Read MoreEveryone Deserves a Retirement Plan
It is a widely accepted fact that almost half of all American workers are not covered by a company sponsored retirement plan. It is also a widely accepted fact that almost half of all American workers in the private sector are employed...
Read MoreSpring into Tax Season!
April is my favorite month of the year. Not just because Spring has finally arrived in the Midwest. Or because the days are getting longer, and the temps are getting warmer. Not even because it’s my birthday month! It’s because the...
Read MoreContingency Planning: It’s what makes a Financial Advisor the #1 draft pick
I am a professional planner. Kinda like a professional football player, just not as cool. My craft is looking into the future and trying to predict what will happen in a person’s life, what their retirement may cost...
Read MoreHistory of Retirement Plans
Retirement is a modern idea….and when I say modern I mean when you look at the history of civilization kind of modern. The idea of working for X number of years to save enough money to not work for X number of years at the...
Read MoreWhen New Year’s Goals Evolve
Goal setting has to be one of my favorite activities. Some people are wine connoisseurs, die-hard sports fans or home decorating geniuses…but my undeniable talent is setting (and sticking with) goals. For this reason, I get...
Read More2023 Year End Reflection
As the year comes to a close, I reflect on the conversations I have had with people about their money during 2023. When you talk with over 300 people about the same subject, trends start to emerge. You see, in my line...
Read MoreHow a Financial Planner is Born
Insurance is one of those financial tools that everyone seems to love to hate. If you are lucky, you hate it: paying all those premiums for a benefit that never happens. If you are unlucky, you find insurance to be a...
Read MoreLegacy and Money
Recently, I had a conversation with a friend about legacy. We talked about how legacy is viewed a bit differently when you have spent your career working in the wealth management field. While the term legacy has...
Read MoreSummer Vacation: Why I Travel
I often think about the old Charlie Jones statement that says personal growth is through the people you meet and the books you read. His thesis was that without these two actions in your life, we will remain the same person five...
Read MoreRetirement Readiness Checklist
Want to know how the retirement sausage is made? Here is my family secret recipe for getting ready for retirement! No matter if you are 52 or 72, calling this transition time in your life “retirement” or...
Read MoreThe unsung hero of personal finance: The Emergency Fund
Emergency Funds have a unique place in the family tree of personal finance. Most of us know the Golden Rule of having ‘”3 to 6 months of living expenses” held in a separate account in the case of a financial...
Read MoreHappy 401(k) Plans are Compliant 401(k) Plans
In the retirement planning universe, a lot of emphasis is put on the investment selections of 401(k) plans. I get it, that is the sexy side of the retirement universe, but a compliance infrastructure provides the solid foundation...
Read MoreHarnessing the power of the tax code
Taxes. A topic almost everybody deals with, and hardly anybody understands. Kind of like how I feel about my car…. I drive it every day but have no idea how it really works (besides me just putting gas in it)...
Read MoreFinancial Literacy vs Financial Intelligence
I was recently asked about my views on young women learning the ropes in the world of personal finance and the common “mistakes” young ladies make in this arena. This seems to be a re-occurring topic in 28 of my 28...
Read MoreWHAT IS FINANCIAL PLANNING?
When I talk to people about what I do as a Financial Planner, there tends to be a lot of variances about what exactly “financial planning” means and what a Financial Planner does. Some think I only make investment...
Read MoreTHE GOAL THAT GOT AWAY
Goal setting. It’s my favorite January topic and something I think about the entire month of December. While most people are planning holiday meals or family vacations, I spend most of the month reflecting on the year...
Read More2022 Year End Reflection
For me, this past year will be the year another generation learned the meaning of risk when investing in both the capital markets and digital assets. We all talked about it, knew it was there, but many had never really felt the...
Read MoreMarket Turbulence
Turbulence. Most often used when describing those invisible bumps in the air on your flight from Detroit to LA. I often use the word to describe stock market volatility. Both are seen as the necessary evil to get you to your...
Read MoreFinding Your Tribe
I consider myself to have many tribes. I have my close circle of women business owners, parents of my daughter’s friends, online-only conversations and local neighborhood peeps. I have my high school friends, my...
Read MoreFor those that don’t “fit in”
Sisterhood on Wall Street isn’t something talked about often. Sisterhood in finances is not as natural as sisterhood in raising families or a sisterhood in your personal community. But I’ve been fortunate to be a part of a...
Read MoreYou deserve the best
What inspires you to do your best? Where does the motivation come from that excites you to reach for your dreams and not stop until you achieve them? Now, how often does this same surge of energy get applied to your...
Read MoreFinancial Freedom
In the last few years, I’ve seen a tremendous shift in the way people think about money…specifically about the concept of “financial freedom”. For decades, this was associated with the popular concept...
Read MoreLets Talk Inflation
Inflation. It’s quite the buzzword right now, but it’s something I’ve talked about my entire career. Like many CFP’s, I’ve been projecting 4% inflation in my financial plans for the last 25 years...
Read MoreStaying Financially Fit
When I think of being physically fit two images come to mind: the high strength / high impact weightlifter and the slow moving / high endurance yogi master. Both are well known pathways to staying physically fit and to...
Read MorePushing Past the Fear
Fear. That is a complex word. Fear is a word that I talk about almost everyday. Fear is a concept that rivels only “greed” as one of the most misunderstood concepts when thinking about personal finance...
Read MoreSetting Goals PART 2: How to keep it going
Have you ever set a New Year’s Goal for yourself with all the good intentions of the world only to have forgotten or abandoned it before winter is over? Unfortunately, this is a very common occurrence and something that I...
Read MoreLets Get Started
I like to hit the ground running when it comes to New Year’s Resolutions and tend to have my goals for the year in place well before the ball drops in New York City. I have them written down and find that I start...
Read MoreWomen Owned Businesses by the Numbers
When I hear the quote “A rising tide lifts all the boats”, most often associated various economic policy, I think of when benefits provided to a few may lead to conditions that are beneficial to all. This may or may not be...
Read MoreDivorce Planning – Leveraging the CFP® Practitioner
Divorce Planning – Leveraging the CFP® Practitioner By Kimberly Enders CFP® CWS™ Taxable ramification of the changing of ownership, or liquidation, of both after-tax and pre-tax investment accounts. Nuance...
Read MorePreparing your Estate Plan
Questions to ask yourself before preparing your Estate Plan 1. What is the “flow” of liquid assets (i.e.: cash, IRA’s, stocks, etc..) after my death? How much should go to my spouse versus how much should go to my...
Read MoreGetting Smart About Financial Education
In my humble opinion, the way to empower women in the realm of personal finance is through financial literacy. As adults, access to financial education tends to come from three main sources: friendship, education and advising. Some...
Read MoreLets Talk Real Estate
In the world of personal finance, we often talk about having a diversified portfolio. You know, the pie chart with all the different colors. What we don’t often talk about is what exactly this means
Read MoreFinancial Best Friend
My name is Kimberly and I am a financial planner in Detroit, Michigan. The one wearing a suit, pearls, slicked back hair and 26 years of experience in the world of personal finance. Confidence in spades. Yep, that’s me. Right?...
Read MoreWomen & Wealth - Closing the Gender Retirement Gap
When I was a little girl I wanted to have a job where I carried a briefcase. I remember my mom saying “then you better go to college and get a good job”. Never did she tell me that I had to ‘find a husband’ to...
Read MoreLife Insurance. What's In It For My 20-Something Year Old Self?
In the days gone by, life insurance was purchased by individuals to pay off the house or fund college education in the event of an untimely death of a spouse. Maybe “something for the kids" should mom or dad die early or a bridge...
Read MoreLiquidity in Retirement
June 27, 2012 Liquidity in Retirement In the new FINRA Suitability Rule, effective July 9, 2012, the generally held definition of liquidity is as follows: Liquidity is the extent to which a customer desires the ability or has financial...
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