U.S. Debt Ceiling Crisis
If the U.S. Congress is unable to come to an agreement on budgetary items and raise the debt ceiling by June, the U.S. government could default on its debt, leading to a global financial crisis. So how did our elected officials on the Hill allow us to get to this point? What needs to be […]
New RMD Ages
Most of us know that in retirement, you will be subject to RMDs or Required Minimum Distributions from your qualified retirement accounts, such as a 401K, 403B, traditional IRA, SEP IRA, Simple IRA, etc. The actual RMD amount is calculated by dividing your retirement account’s year-end market value (December 31st) by a factor listed in […]
Banking System Fears Persist
The recent news about the banking industry is an unpleasant reminder of the Great Recession of 2008, and the banking failures of the Great Depression. We all hoped these instable markets of the past were no longer a present day concern, but the persistent negative headlines in the banking industry have brought about concern to […]
Banking Industry Uncertainty
The recent news about the banking industry is an unpleasant reminder of the Great Recession of 2008. In the past week, both Silicon Valley Bank (SIVB) and New York-based Signature Bank (SBNY) were shut down by regulators. According to a joint statement issued by the Federal Reserve, Treasury, and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC), all […]
Retiring in a Recession
To be clear, the U.S. is not in a recession currently. However, due to current economic factors, such as persistently high inflation, record low unemployment, supply and demand imbalance, and continued quantitative tightening by the Fed, many wonder if the U.S. might be in a recession before the year is over. Fed Chairman, Jerome Powell, […]
Is ChatGPT the New AI Revolution?
ChatGPT stands for Generative Pre-Trained Transformer and it’s the “it” thing in the AI (Artificial Intelligence) world. One month after its launch, the platform already had over one million users. I heard of the computer model a few weeks ago, and now, not a day goes by where I don’t hear someone talking about the […]
Helping Japanese Americans Reach Their Planning Goals
The hallmark of Kondo Wealth Advisors is the deep understanding its advisors have of Asian cultures and mores and, like many other Asians, hard work and hard-earned money that then leads to good growth from investments is also important to Kondo’s Japanese clients.
How Will SECURE Act 2.0 Affect Me?
With the holidays in full swing, many missed the headline that SECURE Act 2.0 was passed by Congress on December 23, 2022 as a part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023. President Biden signed the Act into law on December 29, 2022, as a part of the government’s year-end spending bill. SECURE stands for […]
Protecting Yourself from Financial Scams
Criminals are getting smarter and their scams are more creative! Due to Covid, so much more of our daily lives are on the web, including emailing, social networking, online banking, and even home purchases. Criminals have been taking advantage of this and cybercrimes targeting unsuspecting victims have increased. Here are a few tips to help […]
2023 Social Security Benefits From Inflation
In 2022, we experienced the highest inflation in four decades. While the sky high inflation has caused pain at the pump, and misery at the market, there is one silver lining on the horizon. The Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) will be 8.7% in 2023! This year’s increase tops the 5.9% boost in benefits we […]