ArcaMax

Every so often, there’s a new twist on an old financial planning idea. A recent example was the “FIRE” movement (“Financial independence, retire early”), which became mainstream in the early 2010s.

The idea behind it was to become an ultra-saver as soon as possible, in order to have more flexibility later in life. Peter Adeney, aka ...Read more

A friend recently contacted me asking whether I had time to review her investment accounts. She prefaced the meet-up with this note: "I'm waiting for the market to drop before putting my recent, big commission payment into the market."

This came within days of another message from a listener: "Should I do something with my 401(k) before the ...Read more

Once again, the U.S. government has shut down (since 1976, there have been 20). Beyond shuttered national parks and museums, there are plenty of direct and indirect financial consequences.

Here are the questions that I have been fielding:

Federal workers will bear the brunt of the stalemate. During the 2018-19 shutdown, which lasted 34 days, ...Read more

September is Life Insurance Awareness Month, which made me think of our diets.

Stay with me here. When it comes to our nutrition, we know that sweet treats tempt us with their deliciousness, but we also know that they can divert our attention from the nutrient-rich vegetables that contribute to our health and overall well-being. So too with a ...Read more

The long-awaited resumption in the Fed’s interest rate cuts occurred, as the central bank weighed the risk associated with a decelerating labor market and accelerating inflation and determined that the job market was the bigger risk to the overall economy.

The central bank reduced short term rates by a quarter of a percentage point (0.25 ...Read more

The August jobs report showed a further cooling of the labor market in 2025 and is consistent with what many businesses have been saying since the spring: It’s tough to operate and plan for future hiring under a cloud of tariff-related uncertainty, high interest rates, and mercurial consumers, who may retrench their spending.

As a result, ...Read more

Time for another Q&A column! If you have a question, send an email to: askjill@jillonmoney.com.

Question: I have been investing for decades, and I now want to transition into a safe, non-volatile, income producing account without penalties or capital gains. What are my options?

Answer: Who wouldn’t want a consistent return without risk or ...Read more

A podcast listener writes: “For the past nine months, there have been five houses for sale on my block. As a nosey neighbor, I have attended an open house for each and have learned from the agents that while there have been a few nibbles, essentially there has been no action. Is this the case across the country? What’s the outlook for ...Read more

As families prepare to send their kids off to college or to start their first jobs, it's time to foster the next phase of their financial growth. Start by having an honest conversation about what you're willing to contribute financially.

Many parents help their young adult children, often at the expense of their own retirement plans, so it's ...Read more

Potential changes could be coming to your workplace retirement plan.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order that would pave the way for riskier assets to be included in 401(k) plans. The order asks the Labor Department (DOL), which oversees workplace retirement plans, along with the Treasury Department and the Securities and Exchange ...Read more

With the labor market downshifting and many industries consolidating, many workers feel like a job loss is just one day away.

To help prepare — or if tomorrow is your unlucky day — here’s what to do if you lose your job:

Even if you weren’t crazy about your job, losing it still can be disarming and emotionally rough. Give yourself some...Read more

Over the past couple of weeks there has been enormous attention on President Donald Trump's verbal dressing down of Fed Chair Jerome Powell, which will heat up again after the July Fed policy meeting.

Until there is something new to report on the frenemies, I am more focused on understanding what’s going on in the economy, which appears to be...Read more