Posts by Curt Lyman

Top Fears of Retirees

October 18, 2019

It’s October, the month that we typically celebrate “scary stuff” right up until the last day, when Halloween arrives on the 31st. Pretending to be afraid is one thing. But being fearful and anxious in real life, especially as you get older, is not fun at all. The fears that go along with retirement are exactly why we established Alpha Gamma Wealth Management in the first place. It’s our goal to address retirement risks and help ensure our clients have contingency plans in place so they are prepared—doing everything possible to make sure they won’t get shocked, surprised, or thrown
Read More

What You Should Know About Life Insurance

September 4, 2019

September is Life Insurance Awareness Month, and thus the focus of this month’s blog post. Here are some of the things you should know about life insurance: Life insurance is a contract. A life insurance policy is basically a contract between you and an insurance company. As with any contract, the terms and conditions should be examined carefully before signing. With a life insurance policy, a trusted financial advisor can help you understand the fine print and compare between different policies to help find the right coverage for the most economical premium. There are four parties to a
Read More

5 Retirement Pitfalls to Plan Ahead For

August 22, 2019

We talk a lot about “risk” in retirement, because there are a lot of issues to consider. That’s why retirement planning is so important—it includes contingency plans to cover potential adverse events. Here are five examples: Incapacity Even young people face the possibility that they will become disabled or incapacitated in some way, like getting hurt in an accident—it’s far more likely to happen than we realize. But aging brings with it the risk of slow health deterioration; our bodies and minds can start to slip. It’s important to have all our estate planning documents and various provisions in place
Read More

Listen to Curt Lyman’s Latest Podcast Appearance

July 18, 2019

PODCAST: “Money and Politics” July 13, 2019 Here are some of the points made by Curt Lyman on the show: The stock market is hot. The economy is good. Building and construction is occurring all over the nation. Housing inventory is low/in short supply. The sense of consumer confidence is driving this economy to new heights. Taxes are driving behavior—the Trump Administration implemented tax changes for people who are willing to take risks and invest. In terms of interest rates and the Fed, there is pressure from president to reduce rates
Read More

“Longevity Risk” in Retirement

May 28, 2019

Longevity means “long life” or “length of life.” Longevity risk is the risk that someone will outlive their money or available income—something we are very concerned about at Alpha Beta Gamma Wealth Management. It’s a fact that people are living longer. A woman who has reached age 65 can expect to live to age 86-1/2, while a 65-year-old man can anticipate living to age 84 on average. One out of every three 65-year-olds living today will live past the age of 90, and one out of seven will live past 95.1 Longevity means people may be living in retirement for
Read More

Financial Planning Considerations for 7 Major Life Events

April 29, 2019

Retirement It’s a fact that 10,000 Americans per day1 will continue turning 65 up until the year 2030. For the people who have money saved in, say, a 401(k), which is the most common retirement vehicle, you are facing stock market volatility which can have a devastating effect on your portfolio, along with rising interest rates which could devalue bonds, not to mention rates still hovering at around 2% on CDs, savings accounts and money markets. Then there are RMDs (Required Minimum Distributions) that kick in at age 70-1/2, triggering taxation for many when they least expect it. There
Read More

New Paradigms for Retirement

March 21, 2019

The old notion that you should withdraw from life and sit in a rocking chair during retirement has been completely overturned as today’s older population demonstrates on a daily basis. Here are some recent facts and new ideas about retirement that you should consider before you take that last paycheck. People are living—and working—longer.1 According to the Bureau for Labor Statistics, the labor force participation rate is expected to increase faster for the oldest segments of the population than for any other segment during the 2014–2024 decade. Since the turn of the century, older workers age 55+ have grown as
Read More

How to Make “For Better or Worse” Better in Retirement

February 22, 2019

At Alpha Beta Gamma Wealth Management, we’ve worked with hundreds of couples in our 30+ years serving as financial advisors. And one thing we’ve noticed is that some husbands and wives appear to enjoy their retirements more, seem happier overall, and demonstrate poise in handling life’s unexpected events and transitions. How do they do it? Here are our tips based on direct experience. Both of You Need to Get and Stay Involved When It Comes to Your Money Although one spouse usually ends up taking on the lion’s share of the load when it comes to paying bills and/or managing
Read More

What To Do During Times of Market Uncertainty

February 1, 2019

By Curt Lyman At Alpha Beta Gamma Wealth Management, we have been helping clients for decades, and we’ve worked through Black Monday, the dot com bubble, the housing market crash of 2008, as well as many other times in recent history when markets went sideways. That’s why our approach is always to hedge against the many financial risks you face as you get closer to retirement or are already retired, including market risk. In addition to managing wealth in a way that helps us move your money to safer accounts in challenging economic times, we also have specific strategies we
Read More

Happy New Year!

December 31, 2018

All of us at Alpha Beta Gamma Wealth Management look forward to serving you and your family in the upcoming year, and we are committed to finding the best strategies for every economic condition. Let’s schedule your annual review! If you are not a client yet, but are looking for new or alternative ideas for your retirement plan, call us for a complimentary consultation at (561) 207-6399.
Read More