Baldwin Wealth Strategies

10/15/2026

How much money do you need to retire?

10/15/2026

Credit cards get a lot of attention in conversations about identity theft.

They’re not the whole story.

Someone could use stolen personal information to file a tax return, claim a refund, get employment, use health insurance, receive medical care, or fill prescriptions.

That’s why tax records, medical documents, insurance cards, Medicare information, and Social Security numbers deserve the same care as bank and credit card details.

A few everyday moves can help lower risk:
Keep sensitive documents in a safe place.
Shred paperwork you no longer need.
Be careful with unexpected calls, emails, or texts asking for personal information.
Review medical bills and Explanation of Benefits statements for care you didn’t receive.

Identity theft can show up in more than one part of life. Knowing that makes it easier to watch the right places.



Sources
FTC Consumer Advice, 2026
FTC Consumer Advice, 2026

10/14/2026

Credit freezes and fraud alerts can both make it harder for someone to open new credit accounts in your name.

But they don’t work the same way.

A credit freeze limits access to your credit report. While it’s in place, no one can open a new credit account in your name, including you, unless you lift the freeze.

A fraud alert tells businesses to check with you before opening a new credit account in your name. There are different types, including initial fraud alerts, extended fraud alerts, and active-duty fraud alerts for service members.

The setup is different, too. To place a credit freeze, you contact all three credit bureaus. For an initial fraud alert, you only contact one bureau, and that bureau must tell the other two.

Both are free. Both can be useful. And both are worth understanding before something feels urgent.



Source
FTC Consumer Advice, 2026

10/13/2026

A teenager may not be thinking about credit yet.

That’s exactly the problem.

A child’s personal information can be valuable because it may sit unused for years. No credit card applications. No apartment checks. No loan paperwork. No obvious reason for anyone to notice something is wrong.

The FTC notes that children under 18 generally won’t have credit reports. If they do, it could be a sign of identity theft.

That makes this worth talking about before they’re filling out financial aid forms, opening first accounts, applying for jobs, or heading out on their own.

Not as a scary lecture. As a normal part of growing up financially.

Which details stay private?
Which forms matter?
Which links deserve suspicion?
Why is a Social Security number not just another school-form field?

Their credit history may not have started yet, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be damaged.



Source
FTC Consumer Advice, August 6, 2026

10/12/2026

Identity Theft Awareness Week is a good time to look twice at the details most people skim past.

A bill stops showing up.
A withdrawal looks unfamiliar.
A new account appears.
A charge doesn’t match anything you bought.

None of those are things to panic over on their own. But they are worth checking.

The FTC says bills that stop arriving, charges you don’t recognize, unfamiliar withdrawals, and unknown accounts on a credit report can all be signs that someone may be using your information.

A few regular habits can help: review statements, open account notices, check bills, and look through your credit reports for anything that doesn’t belong.

If something looks wrong, IdentityTheft.gov can help you report identity theft and find recovery steps.



Sources
FTC Consumer Advice, 2026
FTC Consumer Advice, 2026

10/08/2026

If you want to retire in five years, what should you be doing today?

10/08/2026

Stocks finished the third quarter mixed. The S&P 500 gained 2.03%, and the Nasdaq Composite rose 2.47%, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 2.70%. Halloween is next on the calendar, with U.S. consumers expected to spend \$13.5 billion USD this year and 6.26 million Canadian children in their trick-or-treating years.

Stocks were mixed in the third quarter as economic, geopolitical, and corporate earnings news pushed the broad market higher while weighing on the Dow Industrials.

10/07/2026

U.S. credit card debt is approaching a record high.

Americans’ credit card balances reached $1.26 trillion in the second quarter, rising by $21 billion, according to new data from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

That puts credit card debt just below the all-time high of $1.28 trillion set late last year.

Strong consumer spending is one factor behind higher balances. Rising prices for essentials like groceries and gas may also be contributing.

Delinquencies remain a concern. The share of credit card balances more than 90 days delinquent rose from 7.6% to 12.8% from mid-2022 through early 2026.

Total U.S. household debt now stands at $18.8 trillion. Auto loan debt also reached a new high of $1.71 trillion.

For households, rising debt is a reminder that everyday expenses, interest rates, minimum payments, and emergency costs can all affect financial flexibility.


Source: https://abcnews.com/US/credit-card-debt-rises-126-trillion-nearing-time/story?id=135556533

10/06/2026

Is your estate strategy full of cobwebs? Does your investing approach have too many tricks and not enough treats? Does your retirement timeline read like a ghost story?

These things have a way of going bump in the night.

Knowing where you stand is the first step.

10/02/2026

The power of tax-free growth in a college 529!