February 2015

I hope everyone is well. We're off to a rocking start so far this year, and Kelly and I have been keeping quite busy. We just got back from our annual advisors conference last week. It was held in Orlando, and as always it was very informative, educational, and enlightening on the very important changes that are happening in our industry.

Wow! It's not easy to keep up with, but thank goodness we're blessed to be working with teams of financial and insurance professionals that work very hard to keep us abreast of all the changes and back us up to make life a little easier. A few very important things I'd like to throw out that we discussed at our conference are these:

1) The importance of managing risk in retirement, especially within the current economic cycle. Folks, there are a lot of things that have happened, are happening, and will be happening that will have a real effect on our lives. In my opinion, it's best left up to professionals that are skilled in preservation and income planning strategies moving forward, especially for retirees that rely on their assets for income. I know you've all heard me say this before, but there's a reason we do so. With the current "bull run" approaching 6 years, and the current massive bond bubble we're currently in, retirees need to be very careful (all bubbles burst). This was made very clear to us by financial industry leaders, and it's our responsibility to pass the information on to our clients and potential clients.

2) Tax planning will become more and more important as we move forward. In other words folks, taxes are going to be going up! There's no way around it, no matter what our government officials and professional politicians tell us. It's just math folks, think about it. Rising debt, implications of the Affordable Care Act, and baby boomers retiring at the rate of 10,000 per day (this rate is expected to rise to 20,000 per day within 8 years)! If you add up our national debt, all of our "unfunded liabilities" like social security, Medicare & Medicade, we're under water by about $120 TRILLION DOLLARS! This is a serious problem. We all need to wake up and take action to protect ourselves against excessive taxation, especially folks that are retired.

So, what does all this mean? LIFE INSURANCE IS AND WILL BE OUR GREATEST PLANNING TOOL WHEN IT COMES TO PROTECTING OURSELVES AGAINST TAXATION OR LEAVING A LEGACY FOR LOVED ONES!

Life Insurance has actually become another asset class that we use quite successfully at our practice and will continue to do so. I highly encourage people, both young and old, to learn how life insurance can benefit you and potentially change your life. I'll even share my own personal story about life insurance and how it's helped me with anyone that's willing to listen. I know it will be an eye opener for most folks, but you have to take the time to learn about your options. For those of you that "don't believe in life insurance", well I guess it's just you're loss. But again, it's your choice.

Enjoy this month's article from Lake Norman Magazine and "The Thoughts for the Week" from our team at Global Financial Private Capital.

As always, don't forget to check out our website where all of our radio shows and Lake Norman Magazine articles are uploaded for your enjoyment. Also, last month I mentioned that my new book "Finding Safe Harbor In Retirement" is now published! If anyone wants a free signed copy, just let us know and we'll be happy to get one to you. If anyone would like a free consultation, a free portfolio stress test, a free "Hidden Levers Analysis", or any of our free reports, just let us know.

Until next month,

James Stillman

NOTE: Kelly is now a Notary Public and will be offering notarization to any of our clients free of charge. Just let her know if you need something notarized, and she can help you out.

Finding Higher Yields in a Low-Yield World

Lake Norman Magazine, February 2015

Yes folks, there has been a war declared on "senior savers"! Not long ago, you could build a reliable portfolio of income-producing investments with just a few simple steps. Not so these days with safe money options lucky to get 1%-2%. I wrote an article addressing this a few years ago, but since then things have not changed much in the fixed income marketplace. So, I thought I'd run it by you again.

In my humble opinion, traditional fixed income portfolios could be in for a rude awakening since we've built a massive bond bubble. As soon as the Fed raises interest rates, don't be surprised to see the value of your bond portfolio crash. So, although bond strategies will continue to work, it'll be very important to manage them carefully as time goes on.

Yields of 5% - 7% are attainable, but you have to think "outside the box" of what might seem familiar. One must always balance risk with return (risk adjusted return) when choosing income options. Attaining a 5% - 7% income flow can be done relatively safely when structured properly.

All content is intended for informational purposes only. Any guarantees are for insured products only and are dependent on the claims paying abilities of the insurer. All investments carry some risk and you should be advised by your personal financial advidor before implementing any strategies discussed, as they are not suitable for everyone. James D. Stillman is an Investment Advisor Representative of JDS Wealth Management Corporation and Global Financial Private Capital.

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This Month

Finding Higher Yields in a Low-Yield World

Why Do We Even Try to Predict the Future?

When Will Interest Rates Rise?