This summer, Steve Starnes, MBA, CFP® was invited to serve as a guest instructor in an undergraduate business ethics class. He enjoyed the experience, and the questions students asked about sustainable investing. What is it? Can it “work” as an investment strategy? Can environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG) ratings help make the world a better place? Inspired by his classroom conversation, Steve covered sustainable investing in a recent Grand Rapids Business Journal article.

Did you take a Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) from your IRA earlier this year? If so, to help with the financial fall-out from COVID-19, the IRS is allowing you to reverse your 2020 RMD distribution … but you must act by August 31. In a July 28th Grand Rapids Business Journal column, Anastasia Wiese, JD, CFP® describes how the RMD “put-back” works, and whether to consider taking advantage of the opportunity.

In a June 25th Grand Rapids Business Journal column, Anastasia Wiese, JD, CFP® described how current uncertainties may expose retirees to “sequence risk,” or the risk of encountering negative investment returns early in retirement. Specifically, the random sequence — or order — in which you earn your returns early in retirement can impact your lasting wealth. How does sequence risk work, and how can you manage it if it happens to you?