Brower Financial Group Articles

WEEKLY TIP

How large should an emergency fund be? Large enough to cover at least three months of expenses in cash. In fact, building your emergency fund to twice that size is a worthy goal.

SOLID GAINS In CONSUMER SPENDING, CONFIDENCE

Personal spending rose 0.4% in May, according to the Department of Commerce, complemented by a 0.2% advance for personal incomes. April’s consumer spending increase was revised up to 1.1%. The Conference Board’s monthly consumer confidence index also improved in June, heading north 5.6 points to a reading of 98.0.

Summer Travel Tip

Will you soon be using a credit card outside the U.S.? Call the card issuer before your trip, and let your bank know the exact countries and territories you will be visiting. Otherwise, you may run the risk of having your card suspended on suspicion of fraud.

BREXIT VOTE BATTERS GLOBAL MARKETS

The world reacted to the news Thursday night that U.K. voters had decided to leave the European Union. Germany’s DAX, France’s CAC-40, and Japan’s Nikkei 225 respectively ended their Friday trading sessions with losses of 6.82%, 8.04%, and 7.92%. Wall Street was not hit as hard, but the Dow fell 3.39% Friday, while the Nasdaq declined 4.12% and the S&P 500 retreated 3.60%.^1,2

WEEKLY TIP 

Self-employed? Note that you can deduct 100% of your health insurance premiums (for yourself and your family) as an adjustment to gross income. 

Did any economist foresee payrolls expanding by just 38,000 jobs in May?

The median forecast compiled by MarketWatch projected a gain of 155,000, not the worst number since September 2010. The Department of Labor reduced March and April payroll gains by 59,000 in its new report, meaning monthly job creation averaged 116,000 in the past three months. As labor force participation declined 0.6% in May, the headline jobless rate fell to 4.7%. Annualized wage growth was at 2.5%.^1,2

WEEKLY TIP 

If you sense that you may need some extra income during the first decade of your retirement, explore ways to turn your favorite hobby into a part-time job. Do some networking in your metro area and among fellow hobbyists.

WEEKLY TIP - Share with your Children/Grandchildren!    

Starting your career? Beware of spending money to maintain an image. If you are tempted to “fake it ‘til you make it,” you may soon be awash in consumer debt.

INCOME OUTDISTANCES SPENDING

Personal income rose 0.4% in March, yet the Commerce Department reported personal spending up just 0.1%. That mild uptick contributed to a poor first quarter for GDP; last week, the Bureau of Economic Analysis estimated Q1 growth at 0.5%.¹

WEEKLY TIP      

Think twice about canceling an old whole life insurance policy. If it has sufficient value, you may be able to convert it to a term policy at no charge.

WILL THE FED MAKE A MOVE IN THE FALL?

Headlines for the week include:

Headlines for the week include: