Insights

The first step to goals-based planning is to sit back, relax and day-dream. Or, break out a bottle of wine and sit with your partner and just talk about what you see your life looking like in the future. Ask yourself, “What is it that I really want?”

Published by Paul West Do you remember when your parents forced you to do something you didn’t want to do? Go to a museum; take a long Sunday drive to see where they grew up; etc. It seemed painful then; however, if you could have the chance, wouldn’t you not blink an eye if asked …

Once upon a time, I walked into an educational institution wearing cargo shorts and carrying a pen, one hundred dollars and a whole lot of excitement. Four years later, I walked across a stage carrying a diploma, intelligence, confidence and a whole lot of debt. Many people lie in bed each …

Published by Teresa Milner Calling all parents of teenagers – Let’s be proactive and teach our teens to NOT follow the majority of Americans when it comes to saving! We can teach our teenagers to be managers of their money and learn effective money skills. Over 10.4 million people are …

Published by Beth Schanou, Director of Wealth and Estate Planning A trust can be a necessary tool for an estate plan. But, you may ask, what is a trust? Put very simply, a trust is created with a formal legal document to manage assets for beneficiaries. The trust is created by a person call …

Published by Mark Petersen and the Carson Group Partners Investment Committee Every new administration in Washington D.C. has an agenda which results from the November election results. Candidates have talking points on the campaign trail. The winner believes that he or she has a ‘mandate’ …

Published by Scott Kubie, Senior Investment Strategist The French elections starting on April 23 are the biggest market moving political event until the recently called British elections. Below are five things to keep in mind that may prevent you from overreacting to a negative outcome in round one:

Published by Pete Mullen, Relationship Manager Have you ever been in a hurry at the grocery store and decided to use the automated check-out line, instead of waiting the extra minute to get in line and have a human check your groceries out for you? Well, if your experience was anything like …

Published by Paul West We’ve all been there. Something we wanted to do in our lives we let time go by and we missed it. Family trip. Drink with a friend. Kid’s school program. Why does this happen? It’s simple. I’ve experienced it too. We end up always trying to do too much.

“Finances” doesn’t mean just one thing for most Americans and “Financial Planning” means much more than just investing. Bringing all the pieces of your financial journey together is a challenging task. With many moving parts in each individual’s/family’s financial life, there can be differe …