Retirement 360 Podcast: Recent Episodes
Alan Mercurio
Alan Mercurio is the Chief Financial Advisor, founder and president of Mercurio Wealth Advisors in Louisville, Kentucky. For over 30 years, Alan has been helping his clients find the best possible solutions to investing, social security, healthcare, tax and estate planning issues. “Retirement 360” is a well-rounded look at the challenges that face today's retirement saver.
Do you know the difference between a .42% fee and a .03% fee in your 401(k)? You should. It could cost you thousands.
Market pullback and corrections are part of market cycles. Whether it’s 10% or 40%, are you positioned to handle it?
There are some politicians that are putting a number on what they think will “be enough” for a comfortable retirement. And if you have saved more, it’s time for more taxes.
As the market, the economy, and your age changes, how should your retirement accounts change?
There are many missteps you can make getting ready for retirement. This one affects what could be your biggest asset.
On a scale of 1 to 10, where are you on the risk scale? Does your retirement account match that number?
The older we get the less we like roller coasters. Is it the same for the stock market?
The Federal Reserve says inflation is higher than what they had planned, and they may move up interest rates sooner. What conversation should this spark with your advisor?
There are 3 ways the Government will pay for the stimulus after the pandemic, and most of them are at your expense.
True or False? - No matter what your age, if you want your money to grow you HAVE to be in the market.
The market is up, and all the analysts are talking about another pullback. The market always comes back...right? Why is this time any different?
While Congress dreams up new ways to tax us, they are also thinking about taking current tax savings away.
Be a good citizen and pay your taxes...sure. Don’t do anything illegal to avoid taxes...of course. But why OVER-pay taxes in retirement? Many people do.
This is the time of year to sit down with your CPA and talk about taxes. It is also a great time to sit down with your financial advisor and see how your tax situation affects your retirement.
April 17th is Tax Freedom Day. It takes us over 4 months to pay all the taxes we owe to Uncle Sam. But what about retirement? Will it ever end?
There is plenty in the news regarding taxes and markets. Don’t believe everything you hear.
1 in 5 retirees reduce their lifestyle because their financial plan came up short. How can you avoid this mistake?
Warren Buffett tells us not to look at the forecast, just build an ark. What kind of financial ark do you need?
When you claim Social Security may be one of your most important retirement decisions. What should go into it?
It’s hard to ignore the soaring price of Bitcoin. Is it something that should be a part of your portfolio?
The financial product that some love and some hate, but like broccoli, in the end it may be good for you.
Over the next 10 years, Social Security will send out 650 billion dollars that they will claw back in taxes. How do you avoid that happening to you?
President Biden is proposing a change in the capital gains tax. Could that affect your 401(k)?
The big worry among retirement savers has always been, “I don’t want to run out of money.” In a new survey, that has changed.
Government needs money to fund programs. When looking for new tax revenue, it only makes sense that they go where the money is…your retirement accounts.
"Barron’s" highlighted 3 missteps retirement savers make. Are you guilty of any of them?
There’s a study that says retirement confidence is based mostly on how much you’ve saved. But are their other factors to consider?
It’s time to evaluate your year. The Dow is up 9,000 points since March. How did you do?
Are you a good candidate for a Roth conversion? Alan walks you through all the details to consider.
66% of wealthy people use an advisor. Why? Is it because they are already wealthy, or does the advisor make them wealthy?
Building a financial plan gives you a Financial Game Plan to age 100, and it helps to maneuver through the ups and downs you might see in the next 20 to 30 years.
It’s time to see a financial advisor to talk about retirement. What do you need to know? What papers should you bring? How long should this take? What questions should you ask?
Many investors believe having 10 mutual funds or a S&P 500 index fund makes them diversified. Alan shows how that is not really true.
The strategies that President Trump used to reduce his tax bill are available to you. Do you want to use them?
Should the upcoming election mean you should be doing anything different with your retirement accounts?
The classic movie line was "Greed is good". What positive lesson can we learn from that and this market?
Many of us have an old 401k from a previous employer. Alan explains some of the options that you may not know about.
In just over a year, there will be a new number added to your 401k statement, and it’s more important than your account balance.
Is Monopoly a game of luck or skill? What about financial planning? How can you tip the “luck” in your favor?
Retirees have decisions to make on where to take income. Is now a good time to sell stock? RMDs are optional this year, should you take them?
Financial Author Suze Orman says the 60-40 mix of stocks to bonds doesn’t work anymore. Why not and what should we replace it with?
Investment Fees pull away at your retirement nest egg. People are getting wise to it and are not happy about it. Is Wall Street starting to listen?
The Corona Virus has changed the projections on what the market will return over the next 10 years…and it’s not 7%.
A Harris Poll found 70% of people thought retirement planning was too complicated. Why is that and how can you simplify the process?
You may come to your retirement with 401(k)s, IRAs, CDs, and more. Which of these buckets do you dip into first? And, does it make sense to take Social Security while you are still working?
If you could check off these 5 financial boxes, you would be on your way to having a good financial plan.
Warren Buffett is sitting on billions of dollars and not seeing a good opportunity right now. What can we learn from that?
Is your financial focus solely on your account balance right now? There is another number you should be looking at.
There is a Bank Rate survey that says a lot of people aren’t making any moves with their money during this recent downturn. Is that a reasonable option?
All the financial experts are being asked, “Are we at the bottom yet?” See how Alan answers that question and how you could react with your money.
This huge market pullback is bringing up comparisons to 2008. That brought on a recession, massive unemployment and a recovery that took years. Is that what we are looking at?
Market events like this tend to paralyze us. What are some quick steps to put you in a better position for recovery?
Huge losses on Wall Street have ended the 11-year Bull Run. What is your next move to protect your money?
Warren Buffet and Suze Orman weigh in on how they find return during tough times in the market.
The Corona Virus shows up on Wall Street with some of the worst numbers in 2 years. How do you react as a retirement saver?
Hotel taxes, airline luggage fees, extra fees on your cell phone bill: What is the most hated fee we pay? We’ll tell you, AND a fee that should get you upset that nobody thinks about.
There are long held ideas about how to determine your monthly spend and the size of your next egg. Do these rules still apply?
There are plenty of moments at the conference table when people might say, “I had no idea about that!” Alan outlines some of those retirement topics.
Many people believe that when they get into retirement, they’ll pay fewer taxes. The studies prove that may not be true.
Over 80% of people either don’t have a financial plan or it’s in their head and not written down. Dad always said, “Get it in writing!”
2019 was a huge year for the stock market. Does that mean you should lean toward more money (and more risk) for 2020?
If a financial advisor puts your 401k under the microscope, what will they find? You might be surprised
Over time the market is said to average a 7% return. What do you think is more dangerous to your retirement: Losses or lower returns?
The financial strategy of dialing back your risk as you get toward retirement has been a staple. According to one banking institution it’s time to think differently.
We mark the anniversary of one of the worst days in market history and discuss if it could happen again.
GE is freezing pensions for 20 thousand workers and offering buyout to 100 thousand more. If you are looking forward to a pension check there are some things you need to know.
The new buzzword on the financial networks is recession. What has prompted all this talk and should you be preparing for it with your retirement accounts?
What happens if the year you retire the market takes an ugly turn? Can you prepare for that?
Congratulations you’ve saved for retirement! You are doing better than 40% of Americans. But now the real work begins. What are your first steps to making your money last in retirement?
If you are looking for financial advice why not go to the top? What does Warren Buffet say about protecting your money?
Football is back and it’s time for sports analogies! We’ve heard offense wins games and defense with championships. How can you apply that to retirement?
Many financial plans make a critical mistake in their attempt to forecast the future. Troy Bolton of Mercurio Wealth explains.
This week on Facebook, a young man learned a hard financial life lesson through the game of Monopoly.
Sky Net took over on The Terminator and HAL took over on 2001 A Space Odyssey. Should you trust your money management to an app or a Robo-Advisor?
What happens when you sit down with a Financial Advisor for this first time? Should you have a list of questions? What papers should you bring? What should your goals be? How do you know if this is the right person?
OK, so you love your work and say “I don’t ever want to retire.” That attitude could really hurt you financially.
Each week we bring you the financial giants: Warren Buffet, Jack Bogle and more. Today and important lesson from…Forrest Gump.
How do you use the tax laws to your advantage in retirement? Alan explains how to by-pass the Government Toll booth.