Haven Financial Group Radio - 5/5/24

You've worked hard for your money, but do you know how to make it work hard for you? You need a team with experience, vigilance, and a strategy to help you live the retirement you deserve. Find your financial safe haven with Haven Financial Group. Today, you're listening to the new and improved Haven Financial Group Radio Show, where we bring you comprehensive weekly financial wisdom from the professionals. It's all about helping you solve retirement problems so you can make

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Radio Show starts now. Welcome back, listeners, and good morning. I'm Larry Kolvick with the Haven Financial Group Radio Show, founder and CEO of the Haven Financial Group, and we're so glad you tuned in. We have a lot to talk about today. Cam It's good to be with you another week I don't know how the weeks go by this fast. I gotta tell you, Larry, looking at the calendar, it's May already. We're almost halfway through twenty and twenty four. I just don't know where the time is gone.

And you hear about it even more with people that as we get older and then they retire, And I bet you I had a handful of clients last week say we are busier now in retirement than we ever have been in our lives. And usually it's a comedy nominator of grandkids. And we had

our customer appreciation shredd event here in the last week and great attendance. We had sunshine, we support the veterans shredding truck and we have food trucks out in the parking lot, and so many people brought our clients brought paper. We had almost twelve thousand pounds of paper in four hours. Wow. So just a great time to see our clients and this you know outside And again to all the list again, thanks for listening in this morning. Yeah,

that's terrific. Congratulations on a very successful event and that always I think makes everybody feel really good. Today's show is really interesting. We're going to talk about the economic impact on your retirement. And when we get two years like this one, which of course is the election year, I think a lot of people start thinking about what the outcome of the election might be on their personal economy. And the fact of the matter is elections do have consequences,

whether that be good or bad. There are outcomes and there are changes when an administration changes. So I think it's really a great topic, one that I think is concerning a lot of people and looking forward to hearing a little bit about what you think a presidential election might mean for someone's personal finances and most specifically their retirement plans. We're going to talk about oil and your finances,

which affects everyone, the price of oil. You know, there's common denominators in the world, Larry, I think of this the weather that affects everyone, and oil prices that affects everyone. Of course, so does our food prices, which are affected by oil prices. So we'll get into that. Interest rates in the FED been keeping an eye all of us have this last week on the FED because of course they had their meeting and not a lot of changes going on there. I don't think there's a lot of surprises

to anyone, but it's certainly a topic worth chatting about. And then finally, is our retirement system broken? I think that's one again that so many people listening to this radio station have contemplated, and so we'll get some expert opinion. You're going to have one of your advisors come in and join us a little later in the show. Yeah we are. There's a segment three and four Kyle Thomas, who's part of the investment team, also a certified

financial planner and an investment advisor with us. I'm going to have him come in and share his opinions with mine on a couple of those last topics that we're going to discuss. Fantastic. Let's tell everybody the number. If you hear things this morning that certainly resonate with you, we'd love for you to call, come in and sit down with Larry and members of him his team. Very possibly Kyle. It's six one two five zero four eight four zero

zero six one two five zero four eight four zero zero. You can also reach them at Havenfinancialgroup dot com. Let's get started with this issue of presidential election. Again, it depends on who's sitting there in the White House, whomever it is that individual, whether it's a continuation of the administration we currently have or if our administration would change and go back to a Republican president, that being Donald Trump, it appears, you know, how could that affect

someone's personal finance? So let's talk just a little bit about that, that the impact on the markets that a presidential election might have. Yes, certainly with the presidential election around the quarter and all the other chaoss that's going on in this country. Unfortunately, it does get people thinking a lot of and I've had a lot of conversations recently, so it's really top of the mind

that being politics and individual values, voting important to shape this America. And I remind folks that, actually I was reminded of it, that voting is a privilege, and sometimes we take that for granted, and I hate to see that. But your question, you know, how does presidential election years? Look, how do presidents impact markets? You know, I've been through quite a few of these now. Unfortunately or fortunately fortunately, depending on which

way you look at it, data show is not much. So don't make any financial moves, you know, right now, knee jerk reactions. Oh, it's an election year, I got to turn everything upside down and do something different. It's interesting because when a Republican is elected, the average return in those years is about fifteen and a half percent. When the Democrats elected, it's close to eight percent. The average return on the S and P

in all election years has been about eleven and a half percent. So typically and historically, electioneers are not nearly as bad as people think. Now there's a lot of things going on that can change things, and I hope for the better. But in two thousand and eight, we all remember that I knew, I know exactly where it was. The market collapsed that year. In two thousand and eight when Obama was in the SMP was down thirty seven

percent. We'd like to forget about that. I hope it never happens again. But it's why retirees need to be aware that history has a tendency to repeat itself, even though I hope it doesn't. And if you look back in history, when Reagan in nineteen eighty the market was up thirty two and a half percent, we love that. And the all time best, if you're a history buff, was when nineteen twenty eight, when Hoover was in it was up almost forty four percent in one year. Went that'd be nice.

But wouldn't that be nice? Yes, here, portfolios and smiles would be abundant. If that happened, it would be a lot of people retiring too, Larry, right, Yeah, it'd be very very busy, which would be a great thing, even though we're very busy now and we're very blessed and fortunate of that. But you know, let's face it. On one side, when Trump was in the stock market was rolling. It really was, whether dislike or like, it was rolling. We weren't in any

wars. There was the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which changed some things for tax wise that really in many cases help people in not all cases. But then some would say, well, if that happens again, there could be a lack of Social security is always on the docket when it comes to that side. And let's face it, with the current administration in we have

a lot more wars, we got higher taxes. If they're kept in, you know, social security might it might be handled a little differently, and it would be handled differently, and lives are affected by these decisions, and it's very divisive out there. I understand that. But typically electioneers are not as bad as people make them out to be, So don't do anything drastic. Continue to have the same conversations as you would putting yourself in a good

position, a balanced position, as retirement relates to your timeline. So we don't want to get off track, but we want to stay the course. Let's talk a little bit about Congress. We obviously know that if the two houses would change hands, of course, there can be a lot of changes. But if they stayed the way they are, which is very close on both sides of a capitol hill, what is this grid luck doing to our personal finance? Well, for all political beliefs, it seems like nothing ever

gets done. It's really close. Nothing gets done. The can gets kicked on the road, it does, you know, for our individual finances. Seems to hold some people accountable. But the thing that worries me and others that I've talked to recently is in March, the President signed a one point two trillion dollars spending package. Yes, keeping the government funded for another six

months or whatever that is. But the problem is our national debt. I just looked, and I have a tendency to do this, and I don't get depressed, but it sure is frustrating. It was at thirty four point seven trillion dollars and that's a lot of zeros. Nobody talks about it. Add another trillion, no big deal. And I briefed through this a little bit, and there was money's in there. And I know this is a political debate for Hamas and Gaza as well as the It's just crazy some of

the things. And I know all this stuff can be is important, but how far and debt can we go before we actually talk about this? And we'll talk later in the show. With all these conflicts going on, what that could do for the economy and oil and stuff you alluded to at the very beginning. But I had one of my clients in for a quarterly review

this past week. And anytime I get a retired veteran, in which he is and he served in the military, and he also retired from Homeland Security, and I asked him, I said, point blank, what's your thoughts on the military, because obviously that's in the news all the time. Sure, And he's like, he goes, you know what, I'm glad I'm not in there now, even though I think all of the military men and

women that are. But he goes, we have wimpy leadership. Wimpy leadership, and that's a problem, and somehow we got to get grips on it one way or another. And I thought that was a very interesting perspective from a guy that pretty much served his life for the country. Sure. Absolutely, Well, let's talk about government spending on some of these international conflicts when we come back, and how that does have an effect, including our oil

prices. We want to remind everyone that if you are in a situation where you know, maybe you have a lot of concern about these geopolitical issues, maybe you have a lot of concern about it being an election year and you'd like to sit down with someone review your retirement plan, or maybe you don't have a retirement plan and you want to get started to make sure it's protected. Then you'll want to visit with the folks at Haven Financial. You can

reach them at six one two five zero four eight four zero zero. That's six one two five zero four eight four zero zero. Call that number, tell them that you heard us here on the radio and that you'd like to come in set up a free consultation with members of the staff. You can also go to Havenfinancialgroup dot com where you can see some of the upcoming educational

and sign up and if you see one that you're interested in. Folks, Larry always tells us be sure you go ahead and sign up because they do fill up fast. All right, Coming up next, we're going to talk about the impact of geopolitical issues that are going on around the world, as well as oil prices on your personal economy. This is the Haven Financial Group Radio Show. Don't go too far. We're gathering more important insights and retirement

ways. Devin, The Haven Financial Group Radio Show. We'll be right back. Stick around. You've got questions, We've got answers. Your tune to the Haven Financial Group Radio Show with your host Larry Kolvig and Kim Karrigan. Now back to the show. Welcome back to the Haven Financial Group Radio Show. I'm founder and CEO Larry Calvig, and again good morning, great to be with you. Visit our website, Havenfinancialgroup dot com. Great tools on

there, newly revamped, some really neat stuff weybe on. My comprehension as a non technical person, I think you'll have a lot of fun if you go to our site. See when our classes are give us a call. We've been getting several calls recently six one two five zero four eight four zero zero and with questions, concerns, or set up a time just to come

in and visit. Get to know us, We get to know you, because that's what it's all about as we get closer to retirement and talk about all these retirement puzzle pieces that kim aren't necessarily fun and exciting, but they are so important and it's why we talk about it every single week. Absolutely, And can we just back up for a second and remind people that by giving you a call, coming in and sitting down with you, guys, first off, you don't charge that first initial meeting, correct, They can

just come in and sit down, come in. It's really you get to know us, We get to know you. We take you through our proprietary process. We're in no rush because we do need to take the time and a lot of people are not getting the time necessary to understand the complexities or or not complexities of what you're doing doing as far as employment and work and monies and family, and so we'll ask a lot of questions. It can be a thirty minute meeting it could be an hour and a half meeting.

So we do provide flexibility, and we talk social security and all these different things. And the truest compliment we get, and it happens often weekly, is we're so glad we took the time to come in. We feel so comfortable. And comfortable is important because sometimes stress can creep in when we talk about some of these these topics, and that's the last thing we want. So although serious, we like to have as much fun as possible. That's

terrific. And I also want to remind everyone that by coming in and sitting down, you're talking about your retirement plan. But it's a holistic approach. I mean you can talk about tax issues, you can talk about estate planning, social security as you mentioned, and then of course just putting together a great retirement plan. So it's one stop shopping. I like to say, yeah, medicare, taxes, all of the above, none of the or you can piecemeal. We're not in all or nothing company. But you're right

the holistic approach. These retirement things they should be working together in retirement, they should be coordinated, and so often they're working in opposite directions where it's no wonder the outcome isn't what people want to So again, putting these pieces together, so you have the whole puzzle put together, not just a few of the pieces. So let's talk a little bit about the issue related to oil and those financial issues and how they impact your personal economy. Oil to

me, seems to be at the basis of our economy. Everything is sort of based on what the price of oil is, because that's going to affect certainly what we pay at the pump, but it's going to affect trucking, and it's going to affect then as a result, everything that comes into a store that we need to purchase in the winters, it affects our heating. There's just so much to be said about oil and its impact on our economy.

So let's back up just a bit and take a look at some of the the historic moments in time and how they've affected oil, which has ultimately affected our economy. And let's start in the nineteen seventies, which you know, I was a very young person in the nineteen seventies, Larry, but I do remember lines backed up and people being very upset about oil prices. Well, as we go back in history, in the early seventies. I just came into the world at that time, not to date myself, but

I do remember my parents talking about it. The seventies where there was an Arab coalition of Syrian and Egyptian forces, and then there was the Cold War, the oil embargo where I think Nixon was involved back then. And yes, anytime we're talking oil and oil supply, this can drastically change prices. And we saw a huge spike in the late seventies, and we saw a huge spike in two thousand and eight. So again we can learn from history.

History has a way of repeating itself, and right now it has people on edge, and rightfully, oh, because there is if one hasn't noticed, and I don't know how you can't notice, but the conflict in the Middle East with all these different countries, Oh my goodness, there's a lot of fear out there of what could happen, may happen, Hope it doesn't happen if this conflict escalates in the Middle East, And to be determined, I mean, we can't live in fear, but at the end of the

day, we have to be prepared. You know, Americans with inflation and COVID and all the things. We've endured a lot and we will again. But again, oil is a major player in this in this part of the world, in production is a major thing, sure, and of course our access to it is so very important. So let's talk about how you approach this, because I think you probably have a lot of customers and clients who come in and they say, I don't like what I see happening in the

Middle East, and that worries me. About the second half of the year, when you know, it starts to get cold and we start to get concerned about oil prices, talk to us a little bit about that. Yeah, well, in reflection, you know, the past administration pretty much became non dependent on these other countries for oil, and the current administration quickly put

made some abrupt changes after they came into office. I mean, that got some people riled up because we were now back to being dependent on this and where we weren't so independent we were more independent with the previous president. But at the end of the day, it affects the consumers, us, our

budgets, It really affects everything. The gas Liane prices they haven't drastically gone up, although they have gone up quite a bit, but there's a threat that if there is an outbreak that we could be looking anywhere from one hundred and fifty dollars a barrel, which fuels inflation. It results in higher interest rates for longer periods of time, and that just came out from the World

Bank here this past week. They share the same mindset that this is a major thing that could come quickly, but we're obviously hoping and praying that it does not, so that trickles down into to our personal economy if it does happen. So how can retirees protect against this? Again, we've said, you've said earlier in the program not to get too terribly concerned and not to make big, huge moves in an election year, and yet these could be

issues. So how do you protect against it? Well, I bring it back to the fundamentals of what we like folks to do is sit back, have a plan. Maybe your plan is outdated, maybe you don't have a plan, you're not sure what your plan is, and talk through, well, what does it look like, what are you doing, how are you prepared? How is your liquidity? You know, what is your investment mix?

Do you have some investments protected, you know, stress testing that portfolio, the fundamentals what we do no matter if things are crazy or not crazy, of just making sure you're in the right place at the right time. The element of time comes into play as people are getting close to retirement. In retirement, how much risk are you taking? Are you well diversified? And you know, let's face it, not everybody likes this tossion. Not

everybody likes talking about investments, but it does matter. And just this last week, I had two spouses that go that were in my office with their spouse and they say, we really don't enjoy this whatsoever. And I said, well, you know what, I'm so glad you're here because this affects you and at some point you could be the one in charge even though your spouse is taking care of it right now. And they go, that's precisely

why we're here. Because you don't want to wait till God forbid something happens. You want to be proactive, develop that relationship, whatever that may look like. So if something does happen, you're well prepared. As one of the couples said, his husband is to do it yourself or he goes as soon as I'm gone, She'll be in your office before I'm even buried. I'm like, well, I wouldn't go that far. But being prepared and well prepared in all of these areas of retirement, you'll just sleep better and

at the end of the day you'll just feel much better. Absolutely. So let's set up an appointment, right, Larry, and let's have folks come in and visit with you. Like you said, get that initial visit down, whether it's half an hour, if it's an hour and a half, whatever the case may be. Get to know one another. Seat if the two sides are meant for one another, it's Haven Financial Group. You can reach out at six one two five zero four eight four zero zero six one

two five zero four eight four zero zero. That's the number to call and set up that initial appointment. You can also go to Havenfinancialgroup dot com. I'm very much looking forward to meeting our next guest. Who's going to join us and chat a little bit. Tell everybody about our next guest. Yes, Kyle Thomas, certified financial planner and an investment advisor with the Haven Financial

Group team. Correct, It's great to have him. He sits down as we all do with folks and kind of maps out a plan behind the scenes, end directly with customers. And he's one of several on the team, but it's nice to bring him to the forefront and actually speak our show and shed some light on these from it. Maybe a different perspective, but just

having somebody else hearing it from somebody else. Yeah, well, let's talk to you a little bit about some of the things that happened this last week with the FED and interest rates and where he sees all of this going in the near future. You're listening to the Haven Financial Group Radio Show. Ready to find your financial safe haven. Your dream retirement is in reach. Don't

go away, The Haven Financial Group Radio Show will be right back. Are you worried that your financial strategy might be missing something, Well, you're in the right place. Larry Kolvig is back and ready to help you find your financial safe haven. Welcome back to the Haven Financial Group Radio Show. Give us a call at six one two five zero four eight four zero zero or visit our website at Havenfinancialgroup dot com. So glad you're listening in. We

have Kyle Thomas with us as part of the Haven Team. Certified Financial planner, and an investment advisor with the team. Great to have another personality on with me and Kim to talk about these things that are, you know, so pertinent to the lives of people today. And a big week when it comes to interest rates. Kim, Yeah, absolutely, FED meeting this past

week, and of course they walked away from that FED meeting unchanged. I think what was probably one of the most interesting things we found out is that they do not plan to raise rates, but we don't know exactly what they're going to bring them back down. I'm not sure of the idea that another three cuts this year yet could possibly happen. Let's talk to Kyle about that. He's certainly the expert. Kyle, obviously, interest rates holding steady right

now because the FED feels that inflation has not come down enough. Do you anticipate cuts before the year is out? In the original conversation of three, yeah, thanks for having me, and you know, I don't really anticipate

anything coming this year in terms of cuts. It just seems like everything is still a little up in the air with how how everyone's going to react and how the market's going to react, and it just seems like there's too much murky water right now for anything to be cut at this point, or for any of us to project something like that, which obviously both of you gentlemen can address this. The outcome of that is that the consumer is still going

to be affected by these higher rates. Yeah, the consumer will definitely be affected by this. You can see it, especially in the housing market with mortgages. Mortgage rates are, you know, higher than we've seen in the last few years. Historically, they're probably lower than what people of older generations might see. But if I may add to that, Kim, you know, with these higher interest rates, there's pros and cons to this, and

he mentioned the mortgage rates, Yeah, they continue to be high. Also credit card, you know, with credit card, I just looked at this this week and the US has one point one three trillion dollars in credit card debt. And I have a shot because I have not looked at this in a while. The average percent the APR and a credit card is almost twenty eight percent. And as we talked to retirees and those that are planning for retirement, you know, debtload is a major discussion and some people have built

a pretty big hole. And unfortunately it's because inflation on people's pocketbooks, and be careful with that credit card debt because it's a whole you might not be able to get out of. And that's just a really huge number, you know. On the positive side of things with them holding steady, Yeah, money market and CDs now at five five and a half and we'll finally be able to make something on those fixed income types of accounts, and so that's

really positive. And because I reflect on this, the Fed funds rate from twenty twenty to twenty twenty two, they were zero or almost negative, and today that Fed funds rate is almost five and a half percent. So we've seen a drastic change and a relatively short amount of time. There's good in the bad that comes with it. People just have to reflect and say,

how is it affecting me and what can we do about it? Absolutely, I would imagine that you have a number of retirees who come in and they maybe are talking about, you know, we want to sell our current home and get into something a little bit smaller. But the problem is that they're financed at two and three percent and to sell and then to go buy even if it's smaller, they've got an issue. Correct so what is it that you tell them, Yeah, I mean to go and move from a house

that you have a two or three percent interest rate on. It's definitely not an attractive thing to be doing, you know, if it's something that you really need to do and it's a move that you want to make. I have realtor friends and they say date the rate and buy the house, so you can always adjust that rate, especially when if they do come down in the future, you can refinance there and make a more attractive mortgage payment for

yourself there. But it's really it's up to you if that's something that you really need to do. But I mean, I like these low interest rate mortgages. I mean I have one myself at three and an eighth, so I don't really want to get out of that one, absolutely, Kim. There are a lot of folks that are a house locked, though, who they have maybe a low interest mortgage and they want to purchase, but now they're looking at seven percent. That could be very, very frustrating, and

people are not getting what they think they're going to be getting. What I'll say, though, is a comedy nominator over the years for people that do retire, and it comes back to the fundamentals, in my opinion, is some of the happiest people in retirement. I mean, we see this don't have mortgages. Now, I know that's not feasible for everybody, but if

you can go into retirement without a mortgage, more power to you. If you can't, try to get down as low as possible, there's a comedy nominator with successful retirees that we've seen, and it comes back to being disciplined, in some cases, being frugal. Now maybe that word isn't very appealing, but watching your monies, not living a lavish lifestyle, managing expenses.

All these are factors that we're going to sit down with folks and talk through to make sure that they're really watching what they're spending, especially in these inflationary times, and sometimes things get out of whack quickly and we want to stay in the track and not get off course. Sure, absolutely so, Larry, We've talked about that, and I know it earlier in this segment. You spoke a bit about some of the advantages to these interest rates being a

little bit higher. But let's walk through that again for folks who are trying to find the silver lining in the idea that interest rates, it was announced this week, are not coming down right now and may not come down before twenty four is out. Yeah. Banks, you know, they can't lend

us freely. Businesses are going to pay higher interest rates for the loans, so things get tighter if interest rates rise, which did come out this week that there's not any plans for them to rise, but inflation will dictate if that does or doesn't. You know, business must they must cover their costs, which are going to be higher, and everything's more expensive on the interest side of things. So again, this is all has a trickle down effect

from the businesses to the US as the consumers. It affects everybody and you can only be accountable for what what we can do individually. Absolutely. What's the silver lining in this though, Well, remain optimistic that we too, just like every other time, we'll get through this and at the end of the day, there's a lot. It's a cycle, and we've been through these cycles before. You know, as we look back when bad things are

bad times hit, we think this has never happened before. But if we go back and we really reflect, oh yeah, that's right, we've been through this before. Oh yeah, but every single time in the moment, it feels like this has never happened. Now the only difference is now we're that much older and it has that much of a different effect on our lives or spouses if you're married, and families. So again, where are you at in the timeline of life, and that's what matters. How it affects

your individual lives. And certainly there are some investments out there that benefit from the interest rates staying a little bit higher. Yeah, I mean, there are advantages to the higher interest rate environment that we're seeing, so you can take advantage of those things. And you know, like CDs and treasuries and you know, even some annuities are giving out higher interest rate products. So you know there is things out there that you can combat the higher interest rate

environment with and try to take advantage of that. Absolutely. So when clients come in, I bet you review some of their investments in these higher interest times to make sure that they're in the right places to benefit them as opposed

to maybe taking hits. Obviously you take care of that, yes, definitely, and especially right now with the inverted yield curve that we're seeing, we position a lot of our clients on a shorter duration part of their bond portfolio, and in terms of the equities, you know, the markets don't like uncertainty, so that's one of the biggest things that we're seeing with the volatility

and these big swings on daily basis. Is just what Jerome Powell says, So, I mean, we try to take advantage of that specific values we might see in the market and rebalancing, especially on those volatile swings, to make sure that the portfolios are aligned correctly with how we set out for them on a long term basis, because that's how you want to be. You just want to be a consistent investor, stay in line with the targets that you've set, and you know in the long run you should be fine.

Absolutely So, maybe you're someone who's a little bit concerned about your investments as we learn more and more news about the FED and interest rates, and you want to maybe check your investments and see if you're in the places that make the most sense for you. You can call the Haven Financial Group at six one two five zero four eight four zero zero six one two five zero four eight four zero zero, or you can go to the website. It's Hanfinancialgroup

dot com. Bring in your portfolio man, Larry and a member of his team. They can all sit down with you, take a look at it and determine if you're in the best place for yourself and for your investments at this stage in the economic world, which is ever changing. It's really crazy thing. So Larry, when we come back, let's talk about whether on the retirement system is broken. I think a lot of people are very concerned

about whether the social security system is actually going to fail. And again this goes back to maybe who's in the White House. So let's talk a little bit more about that when we come back. This is the Haven Financial Group Radio Show. Don't go too far. We're gathering more important insights and retirement pays Devin The Haven Financial Group Radio Show. We'll be right back. Stick around. You've got questions, We've got answers. Your tune to the Haven

Financial Group Radio Show with your host Larry Kolvig and Kim Karragan. Now back to the show. Welcome back to the Haven Financial Group Radio Show. I'm Larry Kalvig, founder and CEO of the Haven Financial Group. Again, we got a lot to talk about here today. Thanks for listening Kim, social Security and retirement. Is it failing us? That's a really big question.

We might need another show for this, right. I don't know if we can get it all in here, but I do know that a lot of people are very concerned about whether there will be social security when they ultimately get there, and I do think that's become a real political football. So let's talk a little bit about it. There's talk that it won't last to twenty fifty. Others say that, you know, in another ten years, there's going to be some issues and it's going to mean benefits are going to have

to be brought down subtracted for some people. So what do you think, Larry, is the social security system failing and what do you predict is going to happen? Well, it's precisely why we teach a lot of social security classes and just this past week in Northfield we had a full house. People are concerned, they want to be educated, they are worried. Soci security has been highly politicized for years. It's still here. Are there changes on the horizon, Yes, does there need to be changes? Yes? Are

we going to like any of the changes? No? But the reality is there's just not been many adjustments along the way. It's just kind of in status quo. And we're not going to get into argument. Do the politicians get into the cookie jar and start taking money out of the Social Security Trust Fund for other things? But you're right, by twenty thirty three, we have a deficiency where we're not going to be able to pay all the obligations.

And that may seem like a long ways away, but you and I both know, and the listeners, I'm sure the old saying time flies, it won't be long. And next thing you know, here we are, and both sides of the aisle somehow need to get on the same page. Some of the reforms they're talking about, as I mentioned, we're not going to like them. Is changing the retirement age. They've already done that a couple times. I read that seventy maybe closer than you think. It is

reducing your benefits. Well, none of us are going to like that means testing. There's been politicians that have been run on that. We'll see if there are this year too. About hey, if you've done a good job on your own, you're not going to get Social Security. Maybe they changed where they tax all of your income. There's a whole bunch of reform things. It could be a combination of one or all of the above. And the takeaway is don't panic and again, come to our Social Security and tact

class. We'll talk through how it affects you, your spouse and your family. Should you take it? When should you take it? Why shouldn't you? So you're educated making educated decisions into your well prepared when you get there. Because so often, again nobody's fault, people want to sock it to the government. I'm going to turn on social security right away. Yet in our discussions, not because we're trying to sway on either direction, it comes

out that, well, it doesn't make sense. I'm still working. Why would I take it now? I compare it to people when they turn on a pension, if they're blessed to have a pension. I don't know anybody that will turn on their pension early and get less. They want to maximize the pension. Well, it should be no different of a conversation than maximizing

your social security benefit. And that's not the same for everybody. It's going to be different from an individual to a couple because of circumstances individual preparation, life management. There's just a whole bunch of variables, and we help people filter through that, and we provide a Social Security Maximization Report that people really benefit from. It makes it a lot easier for them where they can help navigate that decision making for that important decision as to when they take it.

Sure, but Larry you mentioned earlier, a lot of people come in and say, I'm turning it on at sixty two because I'm going to stick it to the government and I want to get my full benefits because I think it's going to go away. That's really the fear out there that so many people believe that social security won't exist in another ten or fifteen years. You say, what to that. I am not of that mindset because they've been saying it for years now. Reform and change it has to happen to some degree.

What will be like when I get there? Who knows? When my girls get there and they're eighteen to twenty three right now, all four of them. Who knows? But if you ask my opinion, do I think they're going to take it away? Absolutely not. There are many Americans, more than we probably want to admit, that are living on Social Security only, and it would be chaos. Not that there isn't chaos in the world Erica as well today, but there would be utter chaos. And lives rely

on Social Security. So I can only imagine in some way, shape or form, the government is going to somehow come through and not nullify something that so many families and individuals rely on. So let's talk about that. Kyle Thomas is with us. He's a certified investment planner with the Haven Financial Group. And Kyle, we just heard, you know, Larry say a lot of families are relying solely on Social Security because they didn't do a great job

of saving along the way jen Xers. It's been studied and it's already known have not saved as much money as possibly they should. So can you have a comfortable retirement if in fact you haven't saved enough money? Well, you know, the biggest question I get as a planner is can I retire? And you know, short answer is yes, But longer conversation would be needed

because it's how do you want that retirement to look like? So, yeah, they can retire, but comfortability, I don't know if it would be necessarily comfortable because if they're not saving right now, they're probably living a pretty nice lifestyle. If they're spending all their money, that's not something they're going to be used to if they retire and they don't really have a good savings bucket. And the Social Security it was never meant to be a full funding

of retirement. It was a supplemental source in retirement. And when it came out, it was kind of this idea of a three legged stool where you would draw from Social Security, pension, and then savings. Granted there isn't too many pensions around anymore, but you kind of get the point whereas social Security is just a portion of what you're supposed to be living on. And even then, when it was created, the average life expectancy of men was

fifty eight and sixty two for women. If you couldn't even draw that until sixty five, you kind of see the life expectancy wasn't even as high as the drawing age. So that's it right there. It was just supposed to help fund elderly retirement. So that's why we need people of my generation to

start saving more and not rely on that. I typically say at least ten percent, but do as much as you can, and especially when you're younger, not earning as much in your lower income professional careers, try to get into roth as well because that'll grow tax free and eventually you'll be able to

take money from that account tax free as well. And for those gen xers who maybe have not saved as much as they should have but still have a little time, I would imagine you suggest things like taking advantage of four toh one k catch up that kind of thing. Yeah, absolutely take advantage of those catch up contributions if you're over fifty years old, and take advantage fully of the matches that these companies are providing to you as well. That's free

money that you're getting right there, and it'll grow over time. But yeah, especially especially for the people over fifty, take advantage of those extra or the extra contributions that you can make and get that invested for you for your retirement. Larry, when it comes to coming in and seeing you guys at Haven Financial people who maybe have not saved what they should have, should that deter them from coming in and seeing you guys, No, it absolutely shouldn't.

You get to start somewhere, to get somewhere, and the important thing is developing a discipline where you're putting some money away. And there's a lot of excuses out there, especially from the younger generation, which we won't get into two debt deep today, but you know I've heard that said that will I don't have any money to put away? Well, start somewhere, Start

with a small percentage, trying to incremanently increase it. The power of compounding interest and compounding returns at a young age will prove to be very beneficial in retirement. And investing is key, whether it's in safe assets or risky assets. But start somewhere. Take advantage of company matches. You know, I don't understand how anybody would take advantage of a company match, but I hear

and see it actually more often than i'd like to. So again that discipline of saving, putting it away, and for retirees look at is then as they approach retirement or in retirement, making sure that they have a good amount of liquid funds. There's benchmarks that we like to talk about and most people don't meet those benchmarks. Some people do for liquidity, and then having stock market investments relative to your risk comfort, and then maybe some investments you know,

on the fixed income side that have some principle protection. What's the right balance is different for everybody. What we do find though, is a lot of times is people get more in retirement depending upon what assets they have. To take the foot off the gas pedal a little bit and just understand how

much risk you are taking at this stage of the game. The problem is they get stuck in a rut and they're doing everything that the same that they were doing when they're thirty, forty and fifty, and now they're mid sixties.

It might require some change to avoid some of the pitfalls and downfalls along the way, because now you're at a different stage of life and you know, Larry, Sometimes it just takes someone like you or members of your team to sort of point out how those changes need to come about and how maybe they can even take place and it not be so painful and can extend your

monies out into retirement. So if you are someone who maybe hasn't planned the way you should have, and if you're someone who has planned really, really well, you may want a professional taking a look at what it is that you're planning to do. It's six one two five zero four eight four zero zero six one two five zero four A four zero zero. That's even Financial Groups telephone number. You can set up a free consultation with a member of

the team where you can go to Evenfinancialgroup dot com. I know that Larry was talking about those social security seminars and tax seminars, and you can learn more about them there. Larry and Kyle, we have certainly covered a lot of ground today, all of it very very helpful, I think for the

people who are listening. Yeah, whether you're in good shape for retirement, whether you're nervous about it, whether you're confident, or maybe you just don't know, or you've just kind of been lack lester in the big picture of things, give us a call. There is no cost to sit down with us. We appreciate you listening. Our number is six one two five zero four eight four zero zero. Make sure you have all the retirement puzzle pieces,

that they're coordinated together. We'd be honored to help you. And thanks for tuning in. Kim. We'll see you next week. Kyle. It's great to have you with us today. We'll see you next week, Kim. All right, see you then, Larry. Investment Advisory Service is offered through Guardian Well Strategies LLC. Haven Financial Group and Guardian Well Strategies LLC are not affiliated companies, and investments involve risk, and, unless otherwise stated,

are not guaranteed. Please consult with the qualified financial advisor and we're tax professional before implementing any strategy discussed herein and comments regarding it safe and secure. Investments and guaranteed income streams only refer to fixed insurance products. They do not refer in any way to securities or investment advisory products. Fixed insurance and annuity product guarantees are subject to the claims paying ability of the issuing company.