How often recently have you woken up worried or gone to bed at night with your mind racing? For most of us, our schedules have been turned upside down; we don’t know what’s going to happen with our businesses or jobs; we’re concerned for loved ones; and we’re apprehensive about the markets and the economy. We get it. We are living in unprecedented times and there is no crystal ball to tell us what our world will look like in three months.
As global markets continue their roller coaster ride due to fears surrounding the coronavirus, our most recent bull market officially turned into a bear market. But what does that mean? And are we on the verge of another recession like the one we had in 2008?
Social Security is an important piece of everyone’s financial future, but women face some unique challenges that make their Social Security claiming decisions even more crucial. Here’s why: Social Security is meant to cover 40% of your pre-retirement income, but over half of women expect their benefits to cover all of their retirement expenses. Thankfully, even though women generally live longer, have lower lifetime earnings, and take more time off to care for loved ones, you don’t have to live in fear of not having enough money in retirement. By gaining a solid understanding of how your benefits work, you can make decisions that will help you maximize your benefits.
The financial markets took a big dip early this week over fears about the spreading coronavirus, erasing gains from earlier this year. After the Dow lost over 800 points on Tuesday, it was down a total of 1,900 points in two days.
As a woman business owner, I understand how busy you are and how challenging it is to wear so many hats. You know that you need to be saving for retirement, but it’s difficult to find the time to understand all of the opportunities available to you, much less take advantage of them.
It’s that time of year for a fresh start and new resolutions. What are your goals for 2020? Eat healthier? Exercise more? Strengthen your relationships? Advance your career? Although these are all worthy goals, I encourage you to consider one more: set up your financial plan. You know you should do it, but you keep it putting off. Why not make 2020 the year you finally cross it off your to-do list?