Nurses and other healthcare professionals in the Berkshires and across the United States find themselves in a unique retirement situation: the 403(b) offered by their employer can be stewarded by the financial management firm of their choosing while they are still working and paying into it. We love helping nursing professionals to build the retirement they deserve. And we like to support them throughout their careers, too, by having their backs during tough times. As financial advisor Lauren Russo, CEPA, FPQP™, CVB, says, “why worry about something that we can help you with?” If you are a healthcare professional…
Insights & Advice
Lauren Russo
Student Debt Relief Plan: What you need to know
President Biden and the U.S. Department of Education announced a plan on Wednesday, August 24, to provide further assistance to federal student loan borrowers. If you have private loans only, unfortunately this won’t apply to you. But this is an exciting announcement for millions of borrowers with federal student loans. Long story short, if you have a Federal loan, take a moment to review your options (more on that below). It is also important to note that President Biden does not want to stop here. He hopes to make further changes that will make college more affordable for the…
College Planning: Where to start?
Does the word “college” give you heart palpitations? You’re not alone. In fact, far from it. Data from Statista says there are approximately 17,245,000 high school students across the U.S. in 2022. That’s a LOT of students. And a lot of stressed parents and family members. Whether you’ve gone through the college application process yourself or this is your first brush with it, know that you will be okay. You just need a plan. Ok…where do I start? You may have more than one child but for simplicity’s sake, let’s assume you have one daughter. What grade is she in?…
What’s a FAFSA?
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) is an online form used to assess your family’s financial ability to pay for college. It’s free to apply, but you will need to set aside some time (and mental energy) to devote to completing it. To begin, both parents AND the students will each need to establish a FSA ID. Essentially, this is just an online account with FAFSA. There are varying rules if parents are divorced or separated, depending on where the student lives and who is providing the majority of support. So, you may or may not need information…