MidWestOne Investment Services Blog

Many people are familiar with the scammers who promise to pay millions of dollars in exchange for briefly holding funds in your bank account or those who offer to enhance certain body parts risk-free. Today's scammers are clever at making their offers seem legitimate. How can you spot scams before they happen? We discuss the five biggest red flags of a potential scam.

American Express created Small Business Saturday in 2010 to provide small businesses with a holiday season boost on the heels of Black Friday. The day comes after one of the biggest shopping sales events and serves as a reminder to spend some of your holiday funds with local shops. Those shops may on your support to stay in business.

The public school system is a vital component of the American education system. We celebrate the country's teachers and staff and the education system as a whole during the week of November 16th through the 20th this year. These are the people that help shape and mold the future of the country's children.

It may be easy to forget we're nearing the end of the year. Even during the busy end of year rush, it's a good time to reevaluate your 2021 finances and turn an eye toward 2022. What can you do now to potentially improve and streamline your 2022 budget? Below, we discuss three year-end planning steps that may make your 2022 finances run more smoothly.

LPL Research is downgrading its 2021 U.S. GDP growth forecast from 6.25–6.75% to 5.75–6.25%. Growth is likely to come in at an annualized pace near 5% over the second half of the year. So, while expectations have been tempered, the recovery still has a lot of momentum, which is likely to extend well into 2022.

Whether you're still living at home, in school, or starting your career, your late teens and twenties present a prime opportunity to think about your financial future.

It is common for people to put off planning their estates. After all, no one wants to anticipate his or her own death. In addition, many people may believe that only the wealthy require estate planning or that all that is involved is tax planning, which can be done “later.” They may well be wrong on both counts.

Many people routinely plan for vacations, their children’s college education, home renovations, and, of course, retirement. But when it comes to planning for long term care, most would rather not think about it—or at best, they’d rather think about it at a later date.

Whether you're still living at home, in school, or starting your career, your late teens and twenties present a prime opportunity to think about your financial future.

It is common for people to put off planning their estates. After all, no one wants to anticipate his or her own death. In addition, many people may believe that only the wealthy require estate planning or that all that is involved is tax planning, which can be done “later.” They may well be wrong on both counts.