PharmD Money

Are we in a recession? Is one right around the corner? No one can be certain. However, the likelihood of a recession continues to grow. So it would make sense for people to start preparing their finances accordingly.

In this podcast episode, Derek discusses how he would recommend people structure their finances in the face of an upcoming recession.

Derek is joined by Shawn Bjordahl, owner of RPhAlly. This is a recording of a recent webinar that was held on the RPhAlly platform.

Enjoy the show!

2022 has been a wild year. Investment markets are dropping and our economy seems like it's heading straight into a recession. For many people, these concerns are exactly why they hired a financial advisor to begin with. They wanted someone to help them monitor, maneuver, and lead through difficult times.

However, financial consumers all over the country are starting to realize that as difficult times continue, their advisor is nowhere to be found. This is leading many to ask the question, "Should I Fire My Financial Advisor"?

In this podcast episode, Derek talks about how you should go about making this decision and some key questions you should be asking during your evaluation process.

Enjoy the episode!

The stock market has been a scary place so far in 2022. We are currently experiencing negative investment returns (both stocks and bonds) we haven't seen in quite some time. So what are people supposed to do who find themselves holding on to extra cash?

Is buying into this market while investments are "low" a good idea? Or would you be crazy taking safe money and putting into this market?

It's a question many people are wrestling with right now. So, in this podcast episode, Derek explains the thought process you should be using when determining if buying into this investment market should be your next move or not.

Enjoy the episode! 

Inflation has been hitting our economy hard for the last 10 months. Most people, regardless of economic status, have experienced the effects of inflation. For many people, it's starting to become concerning because the impact it's having on the economy.

So in this podcast episode, Derek talks about what caused inflation, what the Federal Reserve is doing to combat it, and what the ultimate outcome will be after it's all said and done.

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Student loan forgiveness is a hotly debated topic. Both sides make very good points on why student loans should and should not be forgiven. I, like many others have an opinion on the matter as well. 

During this podcast episode, I will explain why student loan forgiveness is not the right answer. However, my reasoning is not because I don't like relieving the debt of borrowers who need the help. Instead, my opinion is that is can be done in a much smarter way.

Enjoy the episode!

Retirement can be both a beautiful and terrifying endeavor to think about. It becomes even more nerve racking as it goes from a thought in your mind to something that you need to start seriously planning for.

However, retirement planning can consist of hundreds of decisions and avenues for you to explore. This usually leads many people to focus on the wrong stuff. Having your fundamental areas of retirement planning taken care of is key.

But what are those areas?

In this podcast episode, Derek walks through his four pillars of retirement success. If you can get these four areas of your retirement plan in place, you've given yourself a great shot a achieving retirement success!

Enjoy the episode.

Have you ever found yourself presented with an investment opportunity that sounds to good to be true? However, you don't want to miss out on the opportunity if it is indeed exactly how it was presented to you.

It can be a confusing and stressful situation you might find yourself in dealing with this type of decision. In this episode, Derek outlines five tips you can use to better evaluate whether an investment opportunity is truly to good to be true or not.

Enjoy the show!

Pension's are a phenomenal tool for retirement planning. Having a stream of income you can't outlive is one of the holy grails of retirement finance.

However, the decision on what to do with your pension isn't as easy as just turning it on when you get to retirement. Many pension payout options exist and many of those offer payouts that are available to your spouse if you were to pass away first. 

Unfortunately, those payout options for the surviving spouse mean that the original pension holder will have to take less in income. Sometimes this can mean a 25% - 40% cut in income.

So what can pension owners do in order to maximize their own payout while also making sure their spouse is financially secure should they pass away at a younger than anticipated age?

Pension maximization using life insurance is one great option to explore and in this podcast episode, we do just that!

Enjoy the show!

Estate planning can seem like a overcomplicated and time consuming endeavor. For many people, that is a fair description. However, it's not a good reason for ignoring it completely. Once a proper estate pan is in place, it becomes much easier to manage as you age.

In this podcast episode, Derek talks about the importance of estate planning and how a little effort and planning can make big positive impacts down the road. Not only for you but for your future beneficiaries as well.

Enjoy the show!

Investing on it's own is very difficult. It becomes even harder when you are forced to make decisions based on macro economic conditions. Unfortunately, most people don't have access to advanced levels of data.

Often times, this leads people to make decisions based on the current economic environment they are in right now. But this isn't how investment markets operate. They are forward looking and do their best to price in what they feel is fair value based on future events.

So making decisions based on today's economic conditions could lead you to making poor investment decisions, which almost never ends well for most people. 

In this episode, Derek explains why this is so important to understand.

Enjoy the show!