July Jobs Report 2026: What 88,000 Jobs Means for Your Retirement

Good morning. This is Mike Milligan, Certified Financial Planning Professional, and this is the One of a Kind Financial Show Daily for Friday, August 7th. If you're hearing this, this is my last day of travel for the week. I've been up to Kittery, Maine, through New Hampshire, into Boston. Now I'm in Raleigh, North Carolina, making my way back to San Juan, Puerto Rico, and home today. I've met with some of the greatest minds, the biggest minds in the retirement space this week. Where we have looked at designing products, meeting the needs of retirees, and generationally providing for you, our listeners. Today, it's a big data day. The July jobs report, the first hard read on the labor market after last week's 9-3 Federal Open Market Committee split decision, and the number that goes a long way towards setting the September Fed meeting. And then to close the week, I want to teach the 5th pillar of the One of a Kind Financial Plan, legacy planning, the pillar that decides what happens to everything when you pass away. Educate, coach, plan. Never miss a moment. Let's go.

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As I record this on Sunday and you're listening to it on Friday morning, I have no idea what happened in the market this week. My general consensus is that the market had a good week. Some of the companies that announced this week disappointed, some went up, but I believe the rally is strong. We'll check that statement on Monday. And again, I say that from my context, looking forward with optimism. But today, Friday, it's where some data really hits That hits the, the pavement hard. The July employment situation for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Consensus is roughly 88,000 non-farm payroll jobs added in July, up from the June number of 57,000. The unemployment rate expected to tick to 4.3% from 4.2%. The average hourly earnings expected to grow by 0.3% month over month. 3 numbers. Any one of the 3 can move the markets. Watch this hierarchy. The payrolls headline first, then the unemployment rate second, then the revisions to prior months, May and June, which has— which have been the story quietly for 6 months. Downward revisions to prior months have been running larger than the current print and for most of 2026. And then also on Friday, there'll be a consumer credit report that comes out. For June. Not typically market moving, but I'm going to be looking at it to see what's happening with the consumer, to see if delinquency rates climb higher. And they matter because this story matters for middle America. I'll have more on that on Monday when we're back on our daily podcast with Real News. Earnings continues Friday, but the marquee names are done. Vista Energy for the power space reports, and that's relevant to AI data centers. Here's the expected narrative for Friday. If payroll comes in near the 90,000 mark and unemployment is 4.3, the prior months are revised down, the market reads the report as a soft but not too alarming September Fed. Odds shift modestly. The 10-year Treasury moves 5 to 7 basis points lower. Equities finish green modestly this week. This is the everything is held together outcome. We'll see if that's true. Now, if the unexpected happens, payrolls under 25,000, there's, there's an outright or an outright negative print. This is the growth scare. The Fed rate hike narrative reverses in the afternoon. On the other side, payrolls over 175,000 and unemployment holding at 4.2%. This is Warsh's dream number and puts its September rate hike odds back on the table. Or let's talk about the number nobody talks about a revision to the June that turns 57,000 into a negative revision that silently changed the trajectory of the whole year. I have no idea where this is going. We'll know Friday afternoon. I'll report back on Monday. And this is— so whatever happens, it's going to set the tape for the market all of Friday.

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Today's pillar is legacy planning. Legacy planning is not the same as estate planning. Estate planning is the legal instruments, the will, the trust, the power of attorneys, the medical directives, the beneficiary designations. Every household needs those. You gotta have 'em. The majority of houses don't have 'em, right? They have a, they, they have a will that is written by their state in putting code that would be executed for them if they pass away. Legacy planning though is broader.

How? Legacy planning.

is the answer to a bigger question. What am I trying to pass down and to whom and why? Money is only one piece of it. Let me give you the framework to the way I teach it inside the One of a Kind Financial Plan. Legacy has 4 dimensions. One, the financial legacy. How much money passes, in what form, to which beneficiaries, and with what tax treatment? A Roth IRA passes to a non-spouse beneficiary now has the 10-year rule attached to it under the SECURE Act. Which changes how you plan for that account. Beneficiary designations matter more than most wills because beneficiary designations override the wills. Nobody checks them until it's too late. Number 2, the values legacy. What did this family stand for? I just last week on Saturday had the chance to stand in front of a family at a funeral and speak About the values legacy. I got to stand up and tell Kay, John, Jeffrey, Sherry, the grandkids. I had to tell them all about the value that the patriarch stood for. Common sense. Tell the truth. Never miss a moment. See, John, who passed away on July 1st, became a— became more than a client. He became a friend. And I talked and I talked to the family about these values and what it means when he cared about tomatoes. He cared about the buildings and the bridges he built. He cared about his partner in life, Kay. He cared about listening to her, never said a bad word about her. And when you modeled that the way you live, and somebody gets to stand up at the end and tell the family, he truly loved you. In my experience, that's what makes generations, 2, 3, 4 generations preserve the family name. And almost in all families that are intentional about the values, not just the financial one, stay together. Number 3 is the practical legacy. Where is the file? Where are the accounts? Where's the password vault? Who is the attorney? Who's the tax provider? Who's the financial planner? Who's the— where's the safety deposit box key? What's inside of it? Most surviving spouses and kids spend, you know, the first 6 months of widowhood or missing their dad or mom in grieving, looking for the stuff, hunting for paperwork, playing hide and seek. A one-page household summary, and I call it the family blueprint, solves that. And then number 4 is the charitable legacy. If you want to give to a cause in life or at death, what is the most tax-efficient vehicle to do that? Is it donor advised fund? Does it qualify charitable distributions? Is it charitable remainder trust? Maybe charities as beneficiary of a portion of your retirement account. Different mechanics, different situations. Now, the never miss a moment line lands harder here than anywhere because a legacy plan is written for the position of I will not be there. for that moment. I'll not be there if, if my daughter gets married. I will not be there for the birth of that grandchild. I will not be there physically for that moment. That moment. That moment. Legacy planning is how you show up for those moments. Even when you're not there. The written plan is the letter you leave behind that says, I saw this moment coming, I prepared for it, I love you. Here's what I did to protect you. We're not chasing returns, folks. We're building the one-of-a-kind financial plan. Legacy planning matters. It's the pillar that carries the plan forward past the day. You stop showing up.

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5 pillars, folks. That's the one of a kind financial plan. Monday, I reviewed tax planning. Tuesday, retirement income. Wednesday, investment planning. Thursday, long-term care. Today, legacy. Show up even when you're not here, because as the famous philosopher Macklemore said, legacy is the day you die. In the day your name is last spoken on this earth. Show up even when you're not there. Never miss a moment. Well, guys, that was fun this week. To be honest with you, I do miss recording daily. I'll tell you that. But trying to predict what's going to happen in the market, I probably flopped tremendously. Can't wait to come back Monday to tell you what actually happened in the market that week. I can't wait to come back to tell you what I learned in my classes, masterminds, conferences, and the people I was with at dinner at night. All week long, I told you what to look for and what would happen if the unexpected played out. Peloton Monday, AMD Tuesday, Disney, Airbnb, payrolls on Friday. Join us next week, same show, same time, and we'll look back day by day, pillar by pillar, and see whether my past self called it right, called it wrong, or what unexpected things showed up when I was out and about. This is what makes The Play of the Play. And the markets, the markets. Have a beautiful weekend with your family. If you or somebody you know wants to talk about taxes, retirement income investments, long-term care, or legacy, the 5 pillars of the One of a Kind Financial Plan, text the word ideas to 600-700 or call me directly at 757-909-7151. I fly back to Puerto Rico. I can't wait to be on the beach. I can't wait to be back with you.

Thank you.

This has been the One of a Kind Financial Show Daily. I am an investment advisory representative with Advisory Alpha LLC. Ideas by Mike, doing business as One Oak Financial, is an unaffiliated entity of Advisory Alpha LLC. This has been for education purposes only. Never miss a moment. Educate, coach, plan. That's my mantra and my mission. Please consult a licensed financial advisor. licensed financial professional before making any investment decisions. But most of all, go live. Be one of a kind.

Be one of a kind with Mike's plan. In a face shot growth, take a stand. Visibility, strategy, take the lead. Transformation's yours, fulfill the need. Mike's got the way to help you rise and stay. Leadership impact you'll find in your one-of-a-kind Mike.