The wealth effect impacts consumer spending as inflation and interest rates climb
Understanding the wealth effect Economists know that consumers spend more when their wealth increases, even if their income remains the same. However, if wealth decreases, the opposite occurs. The concept, known as the wealth effect, has spurred the economy for well more than a decade as savers’ 401(k)s and other retirement accounts increased year-after-year. At…
By Bill Schmick
May 26, 2022
How much does health care cost in retirement?!
Let’s not bury the lead. According to the Fidelity Retiree Health Care Cost Estimate, an average retired couple aged 65 in 2021 may need approximately $300,000 saved (after tax) to cover healthcare expenses in their retirement. Fidelity has been tracking this data for years. I cover how retirees can prepare for this in my still-untitled…
By Allen Harris
July 6, 2021
Can the Federal Reserve engineer a soft landing?
Can we talk about how crazy the first quarter of 2022 was? From Volodymyr Zelensky to Will Smith. The so-called “Don’t say gay” bill and the woefully mislabeled “Billionaires’ tax.” From the vetting of Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Olympics (well, maybe not the Olympics), the world was buzzing about serious news and outright nutso…
By Allen Harris
April 11, 2022