Valerie Schmitz, CEPA, CPFA President
Welcome to our Web site, where you’ll find a wealth of information in the form of newsletter articles, calculators, and research reports.
We hope your visit will help you understand the opportunities and potential rewards that are available when you take a proactive approach to your personal financial situation. We have created this Web site to help you gain a better understanding of the financial concepts behind insurance, investing, retirement, estate planning, and wealth preservation. Most importantly, we hope you see the value of working with skilled professionals to pursue your financial goals.
We’re here to help educate you about the basic concepts of financial management; to help you learn more about who we are; and to give you fast, easy access to market performance data. We hope you take advantage of this resource and visit us often. Be sure to add our site to your list of "favorites" in your Internet browser. We frequently update our information, and we wouldn’t want you to miss any developments in the area of personal finance.
Newsletters
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How Savers and Spenders Can Meet in the Middle
Couples who have opposite philosophies regarding saving and spending often have trouble finding common ground. This article offers some tips to learn to work with financial differences.
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A Mortgage Recast Is an Alternative to Refinancing
This article explains how a mortgage recast works to enable a homeowner to reduce a monthly mortgage payment without having to refinance and why it may be an appealing solution in certain situations.
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HOT TOPIC: A Cautiously Optimistic Economic Outlook for 2024
The U.S. economy grew in the third quarter of 2023, despite high interest rates and unsettling geopolitical conflict. This article discusses market conditions and economic forecasts for 2024.
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Home Energy Tax Credits
There are two separate federal tax credits available for home installation of certain energy efficient or clean energy property. Learn more.
Calculators
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Retirement Plan Early Distribution
Estimate how much would remain after paying income taxes and penalties if you took an early distribution from a retirement plan.
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Mortgage Acceleration
This calculator can help you determine how soon you can pay off your mortgage.
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Cost of Retirement
Use this calculator to estimate how much income and savings you may need in retirement.
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Roth IRA Conversion
This calculator can help you determine whether you should consider converting to a Roth IRA.