Investor’s Behavior During Market Fluctuations

Written by: Nathan Boxx, AIF®, CFP® | Director of Retirement Plan Services If you watch financial news, especially during market fluctuations, you have undoubtedly heard “the markets hate uncertainty” phrase repeated ad nauseam, and I hate it. It’s a tired cliché and offers no insight into the present or future issues at hand. The future is always uncertain,[...] Continue reading

Consolidation of Financial Statements

There are a variety of things you should consider when consolidating accounts and organizing your finances. At Fort Pitt, it’s a priority of ours to help clients organize their financial lives and help them with their financial planning goals. There are several benefits that come along with consolidating old accounts, such as 401(k)s from previous employers. When[...] Continue reading

Your Emergency Fund – How Much, Plus Why, How, and Where

It is times like these that stress the importance of planning a healthy savings strategy and how much of an emergency fund you should have. If you are experiencing your own personal recession amid these times of Social Distancing and are among the almost 40 million Americans that have filed for unemployment since March, this probably is not your top priority. Times of[...] Continue reading

How to Avoid Tax Penalties on Your 529 Refund

Did you or your child receive a refund from college?  If so, that refund could be subject to taxation and a 10% penalty. The IRS could consider this refund as no longer being used for Qualifying Education Expenses.  This refund would then be recharacterized as a taxable distribution. In order to avoid this, consider recontributing the refund back into the 529 plan. [...] Continue reading

Markets Don’t Wait

There were two distinct phases to the first quarter. The first was characterized by an equity market surging to all-time highs. This phase quickly faded into what seems like a distant memory following the emergence of COVID-19 as a global pandemic, largely shutting down the global economy. Financial markets were derailed as investors attempted to assess the extent and[...] Continue reading