Michael R. Craggett Jr. RICP - Financial Strategies Group

One investment gained 270 percent in the first five months of 2026. Two months later, it gave back 67 percent. 😳

Why do smart people chase numbers like that? Psychologist Daniel Kahneman said it best: "Stories trump statistics." 🧠

A hot streak always comes with a story. The story is what sells. The math is what stings.

Riches to rags is an old pattern, and so is the reverse. When a return looks too good to be true, give the story the same scrutiny you'd give the number.

If a market headline has your attention, run it past us before it runs your portfolio. 💬

The investments you’ve made in your life so far have helped prepare you for the future. We can help, too.

Investments You’ve made investments your whole life. Work with us to help make the most of them.

Discover the YOLO Economy and why Millennials are prioritizing experiences over material things in this thought-provoking article.

How Boomers and Millennials Differ The YOLO Economy is a focus on experiences over material possessions, prompting Boomers to consider a similar mindset.

Nationwide's 2026 study surfaced three key lessons from parents:

🎯 Not starting early enough.
More than 25 percent of recent retirees wish they had started sooner. Fifteen years of compounding early in a career can make a HUGE difference.

🎯 Not raising the contribution rate as your income grows.
Thirteen percent of recent retirees wish they had contributed more to their savings each year.

🎯 Claiming Social Security at 62.
More than a third of boomers plan to claim benefits the moment they become eligible, even though doing so cuts the monthly benefit by 25 to 30 percent for life.

According to the SSA, waiting past full retirement age adds 8 percent per year, up to age 70.

Across the research, three things seem to matter most:

1️⃣ Starting early
2️⃣ Getting an outside perspective rather than relying on instinct alone
3️⃣ Treating retirement as something that unfolds over decades rather than a single date on the calendar

The sooner you begin investing, the longer your money can work for you.

Just a moment...

You face sequence of returns risk. Know what it is?

The Investment Risk No One’s Ever Heard Of You face a risk for which the market does not compensate you, that can not be easily reduced through diversification.

How many years before you are ready to be “retired”?

It’s one of the most important numbers yet.

TIAA's 2026 longevity literacy research found that workers who expect a shorter retirement save less consistently than those who expect a longer one.

That makes sense, but it also means the people who assume their retirement will be short are the same ones who may be building portfolios with shorter time horizons.

Once someone has already reached 65, the numbers shift.

According to Social Security Administration data:

📌 A 65-year-old man has roughly a 24 percent chance of living past 90

📌 A 65-year-old woman's chances are higher, closer to 35 percent

📌 For a 65-year-old married couple, there is about a 50 percent chance that at least one spouse lives past 90

The practical implication is not "assume you will live to 100."

It’s that a retirement income strategy built around the “average lifespan” often assumes a person will die on schedule. Most people do not.

If retirement is on your horizon, the question to ask is, "What happens to my income strategy if I live to 95?"

You may not be able to stop floods from wreaking havoc, but insurance can manage some of the financial loss.

Protecting Your Home Against Flood Loss Protect yourself against the damage that your homeowners policy doesn’t cover.

Trust & Will's 2026 Estate Planning Report found that 56 percent of adults don't have core documents in place, including:

📝 A will: who gets what, and who is in charge of making it happen

🏥 A healthcare directive (or living will): what you want if you cannot speak for yourself

✍️ Two powers of attorney, one for medical decisions and one for financial decisions, each naming a specific person

📄 A letter of instruction: the practical map to where accounts live, who your professionals are, and what your kids or pets need

The friction is that estate work forces a family to sit with mortality, name specific people for specific roles, and make decisions that feel too permanent to rush.

Without something in writing, though, families are left improvising during one of the most difficult moments of their lives.

Most say they fully intend to get to it, but too many put it off until it's too late.

Don't put it off. Talk to a financial professional who can help.

Investors should understand the ways in which financial professionals are compensated for the services they provide.

How Financial Professionals Are Compensated Read this overview to learn how financial advisors are compensated.