Caring for aging parents
Many adults have aging parents who are in need of living and health care assistance. There are a number of resources today that can help them grow old gracefully, either in their existing home or in a facility, along with…
bwi2022
Breaking Down the Real Costs of Purchasing a Home
You’re finally ready to move up from your rental unit to your own home. Before you start searching for a home, understand how much money you’ll really need. Be prepared for the myriad expenses that you must add to the…
Factoring Health Costs in Retirement
Health costs rise with age and the level of a retiree households modified adjusted gross income. Typical costs can be either transitory or persistent. Transitory costs, such as breaking an ankle playing pickleball or the slip of the knife in…
Are Retirees’ Estimates of Retirement Risks Accurate?
A 2020 white paper by Wenliang Hou for the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College looked at the differences between how retirees perceived retirement risk issues compared to what empirical evidence shows. The five key risks evaluated were 1.)…
Investor Behavior and Portfolio Growth
Legendary college basketball coach John Wooden once said something particularly applicable to long-term investing strategy when he said, “What’s important is what you do once you know what you are doing.” Investors cannot control the market returns, but they can…
Basics of Investing
There are five basic considerations when investing money. Before discussing the five basics, it is important to stress the distinction between saving and investing. Saving is used to accomplish financial objectives that are near to medium term which require a…
The Impact of Investment Costs
Investment costs and taxes are two well-known features of investing money. The impact of taxes is a familiar expense unique to each investor, while the impact of investment expenses is more opaque requiring diligence on the part of the investor…
Investment Insights
The most basic question the average person should ask before hiring an investment consultant is, “Can I do this on my own, or do I need help?” Those that believe they can invest on their own should also ask themselves…
Costs of Owning a Mutual Fund
One important feature of a sound retirement portfolio is to be mindful of costs associated with maintaining your investments. At Bill Westcott, Incorporated we have specialized in conservative cost efficient strategies to help clients meet their retirement goals for over…