Congratulations to Hoan Taussig on successfully completing the rigorous requirements of becoming a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional. Hoan has been an integral part of the Timothy Financial team for several years but we look forward to her taking on a bigger role in serving our clients. What does the CFP® designation really mean?  Many people don’t realize that anyone can [...]

One of the strangest laws on the books, when you think about it, is the rule that at an arbitrary age–when you reach age 70 1/2–you have to start taking mandatory distributions (RMD) from your IRA accounts.  Of course, that also means you have to stop the tax-deferred compounding on those distributions and pay taxes on [...]

Five Star Professional, a company that provides research and evaluations of a variety of top professionals, recognized Mark Berg and Timothy Financial Counsel to receive the 2011 Five Star Wealth Manager award. The Five Star Wealth Manager Award is given to professionals that have received the highest overall satisfaction score based on feedback from customers, peers, and regulatory [...]

One of the advantages of Timothy Financial is our hourly model where clients can call in any time any where with any question and this week is no exception. As the market does cartwheels and somersaults, we’re here to help you navigate the circus.  Mark Berg even gave an example to the Wall Street Journal and [...]

Ever wonder how Mark stays so calm and cool during your hard hitting financial questions?  That’s because he sweats it out on the race course.  On June 11th, 2011, the 8th annual Run for the Stars 5k will take place in Wheaton and Mark Berg and his family will be competing in the event.  The race [...]

Mark and Kris participate in a free consumer event sponsored by Kiplinger Magazine:  “Jump-Start Your Retirement Plan” that provided financial advice via Kiplinger’s online chat room.  See the retirement planning questions and the answers provided by financial planners across the nation discussed during the live sessions.  January 21, 2011 Live Discussions January 25, 2011 Live [...]

Mark was quote in the Chicago Tribune on an article about DRIPs (dividend reinvestment plan), “Money Down the Drain?” by Carolyn Bigda.  Previously a low cost way to own individual company stock by offering small investors an opportunity to buy company stock directly (instead of through a brokerage who would charge trading or account fees), DRIPs have been adding [...]

Mark was recently quote in an International Business Times article about refinancing and how difficult the process has become – even for stellar borrowers.  Al Yoon’s “Special Report:  What’s it take to get a loan in this town?” discusses how far the pendulum has swung from the easy credit days of the ‘no income, no [...]

  We are thankful that we have been named a 2010 FIVE STAR  Wealth Manager, which will be published in the November 2010 issue of Chicago Magazine.  Unbeknownst to us, we had been recommended by one of our clients. The process involves the independent firm QMI Research to administer a survey by mail and phone, to [...]

Mark Berg was recently interviewed by Emily Brandon for a US News & World Report article on the first steps of good retirement planning for new graduates as they become employees. Start Early. Money you tuck away for retirement in your 20s has decades to compound. Make savings automatic, beginning with your first paycheck, and try [...]