The Woodward Financial Advisors Blog

When I began my financial planning degree program in 1996, it really didn’t occur to me that I was entering a male-dominated profession. My mother had always been the leader in financial decision-making in our family, which didn’t seem unusual to me at all. Through her, I learned the value of a dollar and the value of giving back. Almost three decades later, it is now the norm for women to direct their own as well as their family’s finances. In fact, two separate studies show that women’s investment returns were .4%1 to 1%2 higher annually than their male counterparts. They suggest the main reasons for women outperforming men with regard to investment returns boil down to “overconfidence” and “overactivity.

Happy New Year from all of us at Woodward Financial Advisors! Three years ago, the original SECURE Act (Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement) passed, bringing a host of changes, including an increase to the Required Minimum Distribution age from 70 ½ to 72 and the elimination of the “Stretch-IRA.” On December 29, 2022, the much-anticipated SECURE Act 2.0 was signed into law.

If you are reading this post in the hopes of “knowing your worth” as it relates to your moral character, societal contributions, or, more literally, how much you can get for your plasma, I am sorry to disappoint. But before you click away from this page, this article may give you something more valuable: education on the calculation and application of your net worth. It might not sound exciting, but this could help you focus on goals and live your life to the fullest, and what could be more thrilling than that?

You’ve just landed your dream job with a new employer or have finally made the transition into your long-awaited next phase (aka retirement). After taking some time to celebrate these milestones, you may ask yourself, “What should I do with my old 401k now that I’m no longer contributing to it?”. Here are some reasons that you may or may not decide to move your 401k into an IRA.

“Spring cleaning” isn’t just for your home life – the same process can be applied to your financial life as well. If you’re going to do some financial “spring cleaning” here are a handful of tips and different things to consider while you are cleaning up.

Financial planning reminds me of New Year’s resolutions sometimes. Our financial goals are usually well-intentioned, aren’t they? We hope to retire one day, to own a home, to pay for our education or that of our loved ones, and to give generously to charitable causes, among other things.