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Should I Use Gold or Bitcoin in my Diversified Portfolio?
With the quarter ending Thursday, March 28th, 2024, and the S&P 500 returning over 10%, the Russell 2000 coming in around 5%, and the...

John-Mark Young
Mar 31, 20246 min read


Election Coverage 2024: Presidential Elections & Their Impact on Markets
How about some good news as it relates to your retirement and investment portfolio? It's 2024, and it's an election year! That might seem...

John-Mark Young
Mar 5, 20245 min read


How to Navigate a Bull Market: Lessons Learned from 2023's Exceptional Returns
2023 marked an inflection point for markets with strong gains across both stocks and bonds. The S&P 500, Dow, and Nasdaq generated...

John-Mark Young
Jan 7, 20246 min read


Seasonal Patterns: What Do They Mean? Santa Claus Rally, January Effect and Sell in May and Go Away
The Santa Claus Rally sounds great, right?! The Jolly Saint Nick comes to town, bringing little Johnny a nice new toy and simultaneously...

John-Mark Young
Dec 9, 20234 min read


Financial Planning & The Bible: Retire to Something - Not from Something
I recently stumbled upon a stat that got me thinking. It said, "that people who work longer are living longer". We've all heard the...

John-Mark Young
Nov 7, 20235 min read


Israel War & My Portfolio: Pray, Give & Stay Disciplined
We truly are blessed in America. A phrase we often say but it's meaning takes on a crisper form when you can compare how easy our lives...

John-Mark Young
Oct 11, 20237 min read


The Benefits of a Sale-Leaseback Arrangement for Elderly Clients and Their Families
By a mile, the most asked question I get is, "am I ready to retire?" Retirement is technically the single largest expense you'll ever...

John-Mark Young
Oct 4, 20236 min read


Ben & Arthur: Why Investing Early Is the Key to Achieving Financial Goals
Ben and Arthur - I wonder if any parents having two sons have ever named their children Ben & Arthur. I would assume so, but hopefully,...

John-Mark Young
Sep 2, 20236 min read


Why Bonds Are Still Essential for the Retirees Portfolio
My wife is a high school women's basketball coach. As such, and considering we have one daughter in junior high and one in late...

John-Mark Young
Sep 2, 20236 min read


Personal Savings, Record Credit Card Debt & Their Effect on the Economy
About two weeks ago, we were all hit with the clickbait headline, "credit card balances hit $1 trillion". Immediately, people used this...

John-Mark Young
Sep 2, 20236 min read


WHAT THE HOPE OF A SOFT LANDING MEANS FOR THE FED AND INVESTORS
Hopefully, you'll excuse my two-week hiatus from "What We Learned in the Markets." I'll be back next week and better than ever when I...

John-Mark Young
Jul 23, 20235 min read


WHY COLLEGE PLANNING IS A CORE PART OF ANY FINANCIAL PLAN
Activate Baby Step 5. Your mission, should you choose to accept it is to create financial independence for yourself by saving 15% of your...

John-Mark Young
Jul 15, 20235 min read


2023 WHITTIE AWARDS & HOW THE MARKET RALLY AND INTEREST RATES IMPACT VALUATIONS
A few highlights to hit before we dig into "market stuff" over the following few paragraphs. This last Friday, the Whitaker-Myers Wealth...

John-Mark Young
Jul 9, 20235 min read


MONTHLY COLLEGE PLANNING UPDATE: JULY 2023
That's right! For those of you with kids that are nearing college or college planning has been in your mind lately - it's a two-for July!...

John-Mark Young
Jul 9, 20237 min read


MONTHLY COLLEGE PLANNING UPDATE: WHITAKER-MYERS WEALTH MANAGERS
The months of June and July are primarily known for: Weddings The First Day of Summer Vacations Graduations By now, for those students...

John-Mark Young
Jul 4, 20234 min read


7 MARKET & ECONOMIC INSIGHTS FOR THE SECOND HALF OF 2023
Major stock market indices made significant gains in the first half of the year due to improving inflation, slowing Fed rate hikes, the...

John-Mark Young
Jul 4, 20237 min read


15% OF MY INCOME: BEFORE OR AFTER MY EMPLOYER MATCH?
Things like a savings rate for retirement seem so trivial in the grand scheme of life, right? I’m reminded of that as I watched my...

John-Mark Young
Jul 2, 20236 min read


CREATING A COMPREHENSIVE FINANCIAL PLAN FROM A CFP PROFESSIONAL
Lately I’ve been engrossed in the world of watching my LinkedIn feed. Now remember LinkedIn is supposed to be the anti-Facebook social...

John-Mark Young
Jul 1, 20236 min read


LOOKING TO RETIRE - LOOK AT THE LONE STAR STATE, TEXAS
It’s a rainy Sunday, and there’s not much to do – no swimming, no basketball with my son, and we just enjoyed a wonderful lunch at The...

John-Mark Young
Jun 11, 20235 min read


What the Looming Debt Ceiling Deadline Means for Investors
Let me start out by saying if Dave Ramsey would do a solid for his country and run for President, we wouldn't be in this mess. With...

John-Mark Young
May 22, 20235 min read
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