Here are a few sample posts from the MV Social Media library.

Market volatility tends to produce two very different reactions: Some investors see falling prices and feel compelled to act quickly—often by selling. Others step back and ask a different question: “Is there an opportunity here?” Declining markets sometimes create opportunities to: • Rebalance portfolios • Complete tax-loss harvesting • And put available cash to work Volatility may not feel good in the moment. But it can still be useful when approached opportunistically.

Most people picture retirement lasting 20 years or so. But the statistics often tell a different story. For a healthy couple retiring at 65, the joint life expectancy is about age 92. That means there’s a 50% chance one spouse will still be alive at that age. There’s also roughly a 10% chance that one spouse will live to 100. If those outcomes are difficult to imagine, it’s easy to see why many people underestimate how long their retirement might last.

The #1 argument against purchasing a long-term care insurance policy is: "What if I never use it?" While this sounds like a reasonable question on the surface, it's really not. Think about it: No sane person rides around in their car hoping they get into an accident so they can use their car insurance. Nobody hopes their home floods or burns down so they can use their homeowners' insurance. That's because NOT using your insurance is the BEST-CASE scenario! Insurance isn't something you WANT to use; it's a blanket of protection in the event that you need to use it. And the likelihood is that you'll need to use it, considering that about 70% of Americans age 65 or older will need some form of long-term care at some point in their lives. Thus, the question isn't whether you're likely to need care, but whether you'd like to transfer that risk to an insurance company or take it on yourself. I'd argue that's a much more useful framing.

There’s a strange paradox in investing that most people eventually notice: "The market always feels like it's either too expensive or too risky." When stocks have risen for several years, the conversation tends to revolve around valuations. P/E ratios look stretched, so commentators warn investors about bubbles. Investors begin to worry that they may be buying near the top. But when markets decline, the conversations shifts. Suddenly, we turn our focus to economic risks. Recessions. Credit problems. Or, like right now, geopolitical tensions. And investors begin to worry that something much worse may be coming. In other words, the market rarely provides a moment when everything feels both cheap and safe at the same time. If it did, everyone would invest aggressively at that exact moment. And the opportunity would disappear. This is one of the reasons successful investing tends to rely less on perfect timing and more on discipline. Because waiting for a moment when the market feels completely comfortable often means waiting forever. The market may feel expensive. Or it may feel risky. But over time, patient investors learn that those feelings are simply part of the journey.

Many retirees think Medicare premiums are fixed. They’re not. And in some cases, they can be double (or more) than the base Medicare premium. Here’s the surprise many new retirees run into: Medicare premiums are based on your income from two years ago. So imagine this: You retire this year, and your income (unsurprisingly) declines dramatically. The "problem" is that because Medicare bases your premiums on your income from two years ago (when you were earning your highest salary), your premiums could look like this: Instead of paying the standard Medicare Part B premium of $202.90/month... You could pay the higher-income premium of $405.80/month (or more!) per person! This is what's known as IRMAA charges, which stands for Income-Related Monthly Adjustment Amount. For a married couple, that’s over $4,800 per year in additional premiums. So, retirees often ask: "How can my premiums be this high if I’m retired now?" Fortunately, there may be a solution. Medicare allows you to request a “new initial determination” if your income dropped due to a life-changing event like retirement. In other words, you can ask Medicare to recalculate your premiums based on your current income rather than income from two years ago. Common qualifying events include: • Work stoppage (retirement) • Work reduction • Divorce • Death of a spouse • Loss of income-producing property If your income has fallen enough to move you into a lower IRMAA bracket, your premiums may be reduced. How do you do it? You submit Social Security Form SSA-44, which allows you to report the life-changing event and estimate your new income level. Two additional points retirees often don’t realize: 1️⃣ Medicare won’t automatically tell you about this option. You have to request it yourself. 2️⃣ If approved, you may even receive a refund of excess premiums already paid. Even if your request isn’t approved, there’s still some good news. Medicare will reevaluate IRMAA every year, and because of the two-year lookback, many retirees only face higher premiums during the first couple of years after retiring. The key lesson: Your Medicare premiums aren't necessarily final; they may just be based on outdated information. And if your income has changed, it may be worth asking Medicare to take another look.