Late last week the government reported that the U.S. economy created 1.763 million new jobs last month. The expectations had been for 1.48 million. It’s good to see the numbers going in the right direction.
These are huge gains in employment, but it comes after even larger losses. To be sure, the economy is a long way from where it was just six months ago. The unemployment rate is down to 10.2%. We’ve had recessions that peaked with lower unemployment rates. The number of unemployed people dropped by 1.4 million to 16.3 million. The labor-force participation rate is 61.4%, which isn’t as bad as I had expected.
Let’s look at leisure and hospitality, which is a crucial sector for the economy. Leisure and hospitality added 592,000 jobs in July. In May and June, the sector added 3.4 million jobs. That sounds impressive, but leisure and hospitality lost over 8.3 million jobs in March and April.
We had more good news for the jobs market on Thursday, when the jobless-claims report finally fell below one million. The number of folks filing for jobless benefits fell to 963,000. That’s the first time in 20 weeks it came in under one million. Economists had been expecting 1.1 million.
While the jobs market is better, there’s still a long, long way to go. We also saw strong CPI numbers, which surprised me a bit as the increases were the largest in years. Something to continue to watch.
We’re also seeing another move towards cyclical stocks. By this, I mean stocks whose fortunes are closely tied to the broader economy. When cyclicals do well, that’s often though, not always an early sign of an improving economy. Perhaps Wall Street is sensing that the economy will reopen sooner than expected.
An Important Message For Parents Of College-Aged Kids
For those of you like me who are sending their children back to college, there is an important step to take now more than ever as we live through this health crisis and want to protect our kids as much as possible even as they are moving away to a college campus.
For my readers in Georgia, the law states that a person who is 18-years or older is considered an adult. At this point, parents cannot legally access their medical or financial matters. To help make sure that parents can continue protecting their children while they’re away at college, it is a good idea to create two essential estate planning documents: a financial power of attorney and an advance directive for health care. For my readers in other states and other countries, it would be wise to check your state’s laws.
Financial Power of Attorney
A financial power of attorney is someone who is legally authorized to act on another person’s behalf. A financial power of attorney can help with money, real estate, or legal matters. If the student gets sick or becomes incapacitated, the parent with the financial power of attorney can make sure that any bills are paid, and any legal issues are handled appropriately.
If a student becomes incapacitated and they have not named a financial power of attorney, the court will likely appoint a guardian or a conservator to help with any financial or legal issues. That court-appointed individual may not necessarily be the student’s parent.
Advance Directive for Health Care
An advance directive for health care is a legal document in which a person lists their health care and treatment preferences. It puts their doctors on notice about medical decisions if they are otherwise able to communicate those wishes due to an injury or illness. Within the advance directive, a person can designate their medical power of attorney. If a college student designates their mother or father as their medical power of attorney, that parent can speak to their child’s doctor, look at any health care records, and make decisions about their child’s medical treatment.
If a student gets hurt or seriously ill without having an advance directive in place, there could be delays in making urgent health care decisions. If the parent is not named the medical power of attorney, he or she might have to petition the court in order to act on their child’s behalf.
While I don’t practice law, I have a great group of legal experts in my network to help answer your questions. If you want to discuss this further, feel free to contact me and I will do my best to help!
My firm specializes in working with people that experience what we call “Sudden Income.” Typically the income came from one of these events:
1) Accessing and Managing Retirement Assets
2) A Performance Contract (Typically a Sports or Entertainment Contract)
3) Divorce Settlement
4) Inheritance or Insurance Payout
5) Sale of a Business or Stock Options
6) A Personal Injury Settlement
I believe the unique nature of these events requires specialized professional experience, empathy, and communication to deal with both the financial changes and the life changes that inevitably come with them.
My clients value my ability to simplify complex strategies into an actionable plan. They also appreciate that I am open, non-judging and easy to talk to about their dreams and fears. Each client defines financial success differently and my goal is to guide them from where they are now to where they want to be. As my client’s advisor, my goal is to provide them with a lifetime income stream, improving returns, protecting their funds and managing taxes.
Firm Specialties:
- Retirement Planning For Business Owners & Executives
- Woman’s Unique Financial Planning Needs
- Professional Athletes
- Investment/Asset Allocation Advice
- Estate Planning
- Risk Management
- Strategic Planning
Kevin was listed in The Wall Street Journal as “One of the Financial Advisors In The Southeast That You Need To Know”
Kevin was listed in Forbes Magazine’s Annual Financial Edition as a Five Star Financial Advisor
Kevin has been awarded the FIVE Star Professional Wealth Manager in in Atlanta Magazine in 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017,2018 and 2019.
Award based on 10 objective criteria associated with providing quality services to clients such as credentials, experience, and assets under management among other factors. Wealth managers do not pay a fee to be considered or placed on the final list of Five Star Wealth Managers.
KEVIN GARRETT, AWMA, CFS
Integrated Financial Group
200 Ashford Center North, Ste. 400 | Atlanta, GA 30338
Phone | 770.353.6311
Email | kgarrett@intfingroup.com
Website | kevingarrettifg.com