Prescott Financial

09/09/2026

were on their way to becoming a relic in corporate America. Now some companies are bringing them back.

The lost benefit is being revived by a small but growing number of companies to settle negotiations with labor unions or win over employees in fields where recruiting and retaining workers is especially competitive.

Matthew Cronin, 27 years old, is among the 600 workers who recently won the benefit from PECO, Pennsylvania’s largest electric and natural gas utility. He plans to keep contributing to his , but is counting on the pension to help offset the cuts to Social Security he’s anticipating.

Some companies are turning to the lost benefit to recruit employees or settle negotiations with labor unions.

09/08/2026

Life is often something we purchase, file away, and rarely revisit. But as your life changes, your coverage may need to change with it.

A periodic life insurance review can help determine whether your existing policies still align with your family, financial situation, and long-term goals.

A few questions worth asking:

✓ Is your current coverage still enough?
✓ Are your beneficiaries up to date?
✓ Does the type of policy you own still fit your goals?
✓ Are the premiums and policy structure still appropriate?
✓ Have you experienced a major life event—marriage, divorce, a new child, career change, or business ownership?
✓ When was the last time you actually reviewed your policy?

Life insurance isn't simply about a death benefit. It's about protecting the people you care about and making sure the plan you've worked hard to build can continue—even when life doesn't go according to plan.

Life Insurance Awareness Month is a good reminder to pull out those policies and make sure they still accomplish what you intended them to do.

09/05/2026

A market downturn is never pleasant. But when it happens during the first few years of retirement, it can have consequences that last for decades. That’s the essence of sequence of returns risk, and it’s one of the least understood threats to a plan, not because the math is complicated, but because it runs against a lifetime of assumptions about how works.

"Sequence of Returns Risk" is a critical threat to retirement plans; it occurs when market downturns coincide with withdrawals, forcing retirees to sell assets at a loss.

09/03/2026

When it comes to conservative investments, nothing says the safety of principal like Treasury securities. These instruments have stood for decades as a bastion of safety in the turbulence of the markets—the last line of defense against any possible loss of principal.

The guarantees that stand behind these securities are indeed regarded as one of the key cornerstones of both the domestic and international economy, and they are attractive to both individual and institutional for many reasons.

Treasury securities are backed by the U.S. government's full faith and credit. They include Treasury bills, Treasury bonds, and Treasury notes.

09/02/2026

Roth IRAs offer savers a way to set aside money for with after-tax dollars and withdraw it tax-free later. But unlike a 401(k) or other workplace plan, contributions aren’t deducted automatically from your paycheck. You have to move money into the account yourself.

So how common is it to contribute the maximum allowed? The latest IRS data show that fewer than 3 in 10 Roth contributors reached the annual limit in 2023. Here’s how the numbers break down and how your contribution compares.

According to the latest IRS data, just 29% of Roth IRA contributors maxed out, meaning more than 7 in 10 fell short of the annual limit.

09/01/2026

From Target and J.M. Smucker to farm-equipment maker Deere, companies spanning the breadth of the U.S. are ringing up heftier sales and . In recent days, many have raised financial outlooks for the year, citing robust sales as just one of the reasons.

Chalk the good times up to a confluence of fortunate events: red-hot artificial-intelligence spending, federal and the windfall companies are getting in the form of refunds of some of their past tariff payments. Plus, a booming stock market and high home values are helping many shoppers keep spending, even as plenty of others struggle to absorb rising prices.

Tariff refunds and the ever-resilient U.S. consumer are fueling the heftiest rise in big-company profits in years

08/27/2026

Some people believe they need $1 million. Others aim for $2 million or more. Financial headlines often reinforce the idea that reaching a certain savings milestone is the key to retiring comfortably.

Having a goal is important. The problem is that a number by itself doesn't tell you whether you're actually ready to .

You may have a specific number in mind for when you'd like to retire, but that isn't all that you should consider.

08/26/2026

Many are holding record cash reserves, totaling $7.93 trillion, despite the S&P 500 reaching new highs, driven by market timing fears. However, studies by Schwab, J.P. Morgan, and Vanguard indicate that staying out of the market poses the greatest risk. Even consistently buying at market peaks historically yields significantly better than holding cash. Record highs are not deterrents; on such days has often been profitable. The method of , whether lump sum or dollar-cost averaging, is less crucial than simply getting invested...

Here's a framework that satisfies both the head and the heart.

08/25/2026

It’s easy to assume that most adults are saving for retirement—but whether that’s true depends a lot on age. Federal Reserve survey data show that participation rises quickly in early adulthood, peaks in midlife, and then gradually declines.

Roughly half of Americans under 35 report having , according to the Fed’s Survey of Consumer .
That share climbs to around 62% for people at ages 35–44 and 45–54, a period when many Americans gain access to workplace plans or begin contributing more consistently.

It’s easy to assume that most adults are saving for retirement—but whether that’s true depends a lot on age. Federal Reserve survey data show that participation rises quickly in early adulthood, peaks in midlife, and then gradually declines.

08/21/2026

Tax-loss harvesting can turn an investment loss into a potential tax-planning opportunity.

The strategy involves selling an investment that has declined in value to realize the loss. That loss can then be used to offset realized capital gains elsewhere in your portfolio.

If your capital losses exceed your capital gains, up to $3,000 of net capital losses may generally be used to offset ordinary income each year, with additional losses carried forward to future tax years.

The key is that selling an investment for tax purposes doesn’t necessarily mean abandoning your investment strategy. The proceeds can often be reinvested into a similar—but not substantially identical—investment to maintain market exposure while avoiding the IRS wash-sale rule.

Tax-loss harvesting may help:

• Offset realized capital gains
• Reduce taxable income in certain circumstances
• Make market downturns more productive from a tax perspective
• Improve the tax efficiency of an investment portfolio over time

Investment performance matters, but so does what you keep after taxes. Thoughtful tax management can be an important part of a comprehensive investment strategy.