Tenured Wealth Management of Raymond James

10/23/2026

The Social Security Administration has announced a 3.6% cost-of-living adjustment for 2027. While the increase may affect monthly benefit amounts, it can also be a useful time to revisit retirement income, spending needs and how Social Security fits into a broader financial plan:

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10/22/2026

What a finish to the 2026 High School Golf season for Stella and the Northville Mustangs Golf team!

This past weekend the State Finals for Girls Division 1 High School Golf were held at Bedford Valley Golf Course. The top 20 D1 high school teams in the state of Michigan competed for the state title, as well as individual qualifiers competing for the Individual state title.

The weather on Day 1 on Friday was absolutely dreadful. The ladies had to deal with cold weather, rain and wind gusts up to 20 miles per hour throughout the day. We as parents were in awe of their focus and resilience as they persevered to shoot some very good scores, despite the bad weather. Day 2 was even colder, with the start time being pushed back to 11 am due to frost but at least it was sunny and dry.

Our Northville Mustangs were the 2 time defending State Champions in Division 1 High School Golf and they had the biggest target on their back. The Lady Mustangs stayed focused throughout the 2 day tournament and finished in 1st place, winning the State Championship for the 3rd year in a row!

As parents, watching our daughters enjoy the win after working hard all year around, we felt an immense sense of pride, joy and relief.

These were some of the highlights of the Northville Mustangs Golf Season in 2026:
- KLAA Conference Champions for the 3rd Year in a row
- Regional Champions for the 3rd year in a row (shooting a school record 290)
- Going 7-0 in KLAA Matches and not having lost a match in 3 years (broke a Northville Girls school record this year by shooting a 142 (-2 under par) as a team
- Won 5 out of the 6 Invitationals they played in.

My daughter Stella also had some personal achievements her Sophomore year and 2nd year of playing Varsity Golf for Northville:
- Stella made the All Conference Team by finishing in the top 15 individual scores
- She shot 4 rounds in the 70s this season with a personal best round of 78 at the Oakland University Invitational
- She took 1st place as a Co-Medalist shooting a 79 at American Dunes Golf Club and helping her team win 1st Place
- Finished in the top 30 individual players at the State Finals.

The girls will enjoy this 3rd State Title for the next few days but then they will keep training throughout the winter so they are ready for the 2027 Golf Season to defend their title and go for 4 State Titles in a row.

As their head coach likes to remind the Lady Mustangs "Champions are made in the off-season, when nobody is watching!"

Isn't that true of almost anything you want to do well?

10/21/2026

Your spouse held up a Medicare mailer at the breakfast table.

"This one makes it sound like we'd pay less for prescriptions than we do with your MPSERS coverage. Shouldn't we at least look?"

This year, that might be true. Medicare itself expects average drug premiums in Medicare Advantage plans to drop 38% in 2027.

A premium is only part of what the two of you pay for prescriptions, though. (It also happens to be the number that fits on the front of a mailer.)

Every Medicare drug plan caps what you pay out of pocket. Your MPSERS plan just sets the cap lower: this year, $1,750 for each of you, where Medicare allows up to $2,100. Once you reach it, the plan pays the rest of your drug costs until January.

The other thing about your MPSERS drug plan is that it comes with your medical coverage. Switch to a different drug plan, and you'd need to find other medical coverage and pay for it yourself. Your spouse's coverage could end right along with yours.

When your spouse asked, it was with both of you in mind. This year, that's a good reason to take a look together.

10/20/2026

Strategic adjustments now can have major tax benefits later. Find out what moves you could make before year end:

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10/19/2026

Salem Hills is where my daughter Stella beat me at golf for the first time.

It was April, a couple of years ago, and she was still in middle school. We went out for nine holes on Northville High School's home course.

She was driving the ball really well that day and wound up shooting her lowest round, finishing a stroke ahead of me.

I don't think I've ever been happier to lose.

Last fall, as a freshman, she joined the girls' team at Northville, and they repeated as Division 1 champions.

This month, she and her teammates won their regional on that same course, which put them in Battle Creek this past weekend for the state Finals, with a third straight title on the line.

If you've ever taught anybody anything, whether it's fractions or parallel parking, and then watched them go further than you could take them, you know exactly how I feel this week.

For you, it might be the student who used to stay late for extra help and stopped you at Meijer to tell you she's an engineer now, or the son who took out the curb on every turn and just drove himself across the country to start his career.

Those are the moments that make all the behind-the-scenes work worth it, aren't they?

10/16/2026

As the midterm elections approach, political rhetoric can intensify and contribute to short-term market volatility. Explore the potential impact of the elections on the equity market and sector-specific policy.

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10/14/2026

I was 17 when I came to Michigan from Albania, a country just emerging from communism at the time.

I know talk about the "American Dream" can start to sound cliché pretty quickly. But my alma mater, Walsh College, showed me what that dream can look like.

And my professors gave me the skills to go after it.

Walsh also gave me a community I'm still part of. That's the thing about being an alum. You know you'll always be welcome when everyone gets together.

I certainly was this past August at the college's annual Golf Classic.

The event raises money for current and future students, and it's a great way for us grads to give back.

And after everything Walsh gave me, that's the least I can do.

That's why Burmeister, Hassan, and I are glad to help sponsor events like this one through Tenured Wealth Management. We know that's how communities get built and values get passed on.

And if you're a teacher, mentor, or parent, there's nothing like seeing those values take hold in the next generation, is there?

10/13/2026

Last month, I attended a Fireside Chat with MSU Hall of Fame basketball coach Tom Izzo. What stayed with me most had nothing to do with basketball.

It was about leadership, business, and life.

His first point was that you can't push someone to their limits until they trust you. That holds for coaching athletes, managing employees, teaching students, and advising clients. Trust comes before growth.

He also brought up Magic Johnson. Good players make plays, but great players make their teammates better. Great leaders make their teammates better and lift the people around them.

He warned against the "greener grass" mindset, too. It's never been easier to jump to the next job, investment, or idea. His advice was to figure out what matters most, commit to it, and do your best work where you are.

Failure is part of the process. How you respond to tough times matters.

And self-evaluate so you can self-motivate. The people who keep improving take ownership of their own growth.

My biggest takeaway?

A player-led team is often stronger than a coach-led team. Strong organizations are built on a culture where people hold each other accountable and pull in the same direction.

I see this with the college professors, physicians, and business owners I work with. Success comes from people who stay committed through challenges and help the people around them get better.

Thanks, Coach Izzo. Great leadership goes well beyond sports.

10/12/2026

Your office manager, the one who's been with you the longest, turns 65 in January, and she just stopped by with a question.

"Everybody says I can wait on Medicare as long as I'm working. Is that right?"

When a teacher asks me that, the answer is yes. A school district is big enough that its health plan keeps paying first (big enough means 20 or more people on the payroll, part-timers included).

A company the size of yours is a different story, though.

When a company has fewer than 20 people, Medicare pays first, and the health plan you've kept in place for her all these years only picks up what's left. If she isn't signed up for Medicare when she turns 65, your plan might not pick up anything at all.

That's why Medicare itself says to ask the employer that provides her health insurance. At a school district, that means a benefits office. At yours, it means coming to you.

Her answer is in the plan itself. Your plan documents say what it does when someone on it turns 65.

And if you're on that plan yourself, it's your answer, too. The same rule applies to an owner at 65, so Medicare belongs in your own retirement planning as much as it does in hers.

10/09/2026

The AI revolution presents a unique opportunity for small business owners. But that potential comes with a few obstacles. We cover both here:

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