How to budget for a family vacation that you can afford

Planning a Family Vacation

More than 60% of adults are hoping to take a vacation this year, according to a 2023 Bankrate survey, but of those adults, 80% are making adjustments..

U.S. represented in blue on chart, dates span from 1975 to 2020

Chart of the Day

Chart of the Day: Opportunity in the U.S.

Today’s Chart of the Day from the Financial Times shows that the U.S. currently makes up about half of the world's stock market.

chart shows over 14,000 banks in 1980 and just 4,236 in 2021

Chart of the Day

Chart of the Day: Vanishing Banks

There used to be a bank on every corner; however, today’s Chart of the Day from BlackRock shows a 71% decline in US banks since 1980. Why?

S&P 500 only during the day after it went up the previous day in blue, owning it after it went down the previous day in orange

Chart of the Day

Chart of the Day: Don't Chase the Trend

Today’s Chart of the Day from Bespoke shows the difference in price, excluding dividends, if you owned the S&P 500 only during the day after it went..

Estate Planning Managing your Wealth Retirement

Securing Your Legacy: The Importance of Wills and Trusts

Creating a comprehensive estate plan is a critical step in ensuring that your wishes are honored, and your loved ones are protected. Two essential..

consistent growth on the chart is denoted by a blue line

Chart of the Day

Chart of the Day: GDP Per Person

Today’s Chart of the Day shows the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per person growing 2% per year since 1870.

Top 11 companies listed in the chart: Coca-Cola, Unilever, Pepsico, Kellogg's, Mars, General Mills, Mondelez, Johnson-Johnson, KraftHeinz, Nestle, P&G

Chart of the Day

Chart of the Day: Pepsi Does Not Just Sell Pepsi

Today’s Chart of the Day shows 11 of the largest companies and which brands/products they own and distribute.

38.7% in green represents people who own their home, 31.9% are mortgaged homes with more than 50% equity, 29.4% in blue represents mortgages homes with less that 50% equity

Chart of the Day

Chart of the Day: Tremendous Equity

Today’s Chart of the Day shows that a combined 68% of Americans have paid off their mortgage or have at least 50% in equity. If there is a “downturn”..

ETFs represented by light blue, Mutual Funds in dark blue

Chart of the Day

Chart of the Day: ETFs Win Again

Today’s Chart of the Day from OliverWyman shows the number of new funds being created each year in the U.S. since 2016.

chart shows world map with percentage of active funds outperformed by benchmarks over 1-, 3-, and 5-year periods

Chart of the Day

Chart of the Day: Index vs. The World

Over the last five years, 87% of actively managed funds in the U.S. underperformed their index. Today’s Chart of the Day from S&P Global shows this..

orange line represents stock performance since Jan. 1980

Chart of the Day

Chart of the Day: Stocks since 1980

Today’s Chart of the Day from iShares by BlackRock shows that, even though we've experienced numerous financial problems along the way, $100,000..

Business Real Estate Commercial Real Estate

Real Estate is Booming on I-4 Corridor. Here's Why.

The I-4 corridor in central Florida has become increasingly popular in recent years. This area, which stretches from Daytona Beach to Tampa, is home..

chart shows number of bank failures from 1940s to 2020 in bright pink

Chart of the Day

Chart of the Day: History of Bank Failure

Today's Chart of the Day is the history of bank failures from USAFacts. The year 1989 was the height with 531 banks failing from a savings and loan..

chart shows number of times the debt ceiling has been lifted broken down by presidency, political party is marked in either red or blue

Chart of the Day

Chart of the Day: Debt Ceiling

Today’s Chart of the Day comes from Morningstar.com. In the last 40 years, the debt ceiling has gone up 53 times.

chart shows an analysis from January 19997 to February 2012

Chart of the Day

Chart of the Day: First 10 Years vs. Next 10 Years

Today’s Chart of the Day is from a BlackRock research paper on concentrated portfolio risks. In it, they graph the top 25 performing stocks over the..

On Our Minds

List Grid

06/12/23

More than 60% of adults are hoping to take a vacation this year, according to a 2023 Bankrate survey, but of those adults, 80% are making adjustments to their plans due to rising costs. Making adjustments to your family vacation doesn’t have to mean sacrificing on traveling, and it doesn’t have to drain your bank account, either. We’ve put together some tips and tricks to help you plan for your family vacation, because no one wants to stress about money while traveling.

Chart of the Day

06/8/23

Chart of the Day: Opportunity in the U.S.

Today’s Chart of the Day from the Financial Times shows that the U.S. currently makes up about half of the world's stock market.

Chart of the Day

06/7/23

Chart of the Day: Vanishing Banks

There used to be a bank on every corner; however, today’s Chart of the Day from BlackRock shows a 71% decline in US banks since 1980. Why?

Chart of the Day

06/6/23

Chart of the Day: Don't Chase the Trend

Today’s Chart of the Day from Bespoke shows the difference in price, excluding dividends, if you owned the S&P 500 only during the day after it went up the previous day (blue) vs. owning it after it went down the previous day (orange).

Estate Planning, Managing your Wealth, Retirement

06/2/23

Securing Your Legacy: The Importance of Wills and Trusts

Creating a comprehensive estate plan is a critical step in ensuring that your wishes are honored, and your loved ones are protected. Two essential components of any effective estate plan are wills and trusts. While both serve to distribute assets upon your passing, they possess distinct features and advantages. Let’s explore the importance of having wills and trusts and shed light on how they can provide peace of mind and financial security for you and your family.

Chart of the Day

06/1/23

Chart of the Day: GDP Per Person

Today’s Chart of the Day shows the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per person growing 2% per year since 1870.

Chart of the Day

05/31/23

Chart of the Day: Pepsi Does Not Just Sell Pepsi

Today’s Chart of the Day shows 11 of the largest companies and which brands/products they own and distribute.

Chart of the Day

05/30/23

Chart of the Day: Tremendous Equity

Today’s Chart of the Day shows that a combined 68% of Americans have paid off their mortgage or have at least 50% in equity. If there is a “downturn” in the real estate market, it will not look like ones in the past.

Chart of the Day

05/25/23

Chart of the Day: ETFs Win Again

Today’s Chart of the Day from OliverWyman shows the number of new funds being created each year in the U.S. since 2016.

Chart of the Day

05/24/23

Chart of the Day: Index vs. The World

Over the last five years, 87% of actively managed funds in the U.S. underperformed their index. Today’s Chart of the Day from S&P Global shows this trend also holds true around the world. Why?

Chart of the Day

05/23/23

Chart of the Day: Stocks since 1980

Today’s Chart of the Day from iShares by BlackRock shows that, even though we've experienced numerous financial problems along the way, $100,000 invested in the stock market in 1980 grew to $11.2 million today.

Business, Real Estate, Commercial Real Estate

05/23/23

Real Estate is Booming on I-4 Corridor. Here's Why.

The I-4 corridor in central Florida has become increasingly popular in recent years. This area, which stretches from Daytona Beach to Tampa, is home to a diverse range of businesses and industries, making it an attractive location for investors and entrepreneurs.

Chart of the Day

05/18/23

Chart of the Day: History of Bank Failure

Today's Chart of the Day is the history of bank failures from USAFacts. The year 1989 was the height with 531 banks failing from a savings and loan crisis. For perspective, there have only been three in 2023.

Chart of the Day

05/17/23

Chart of the Day: Debt Ceiling

Today’s Chart of the Day comes from Morningstar.com. In the last 40 years, the debt ceiling has gone up 53 times.

Chart of the Day

05/16/23

Chart of the Day: First 10 Years vs. Next 10 Years

Today’s Chart of the Day is from a BlackRock research paper on concentrated portfolio risks. In it, they graph the top 25 performing stocks over the past 10 years, starting from 10 years ago, and their subsequent underperformance over the next 10. (Resulting in their total performance over the last 20 years.)

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