President Obama unveiled the Fiscal Year 2017 Budget last Tuesday (February 9th) which included several unexpected first-time proposals in addition to many crackdowns and “loophole closures” that have become annually recurring proposals. Experts contend there is little likelihood of any substantial tax change in the final year of the President’s term. However, we could see [...]
There should be natural skepticism when a financial advisor creates a list of the best and worst questions to ask a financial advisor. It sounds a little like game show fixing of the 1950s where some contestants knew the questions before they were asked. However, experience provides a unique advantage. We have heard insightful questions and we have [...]
An important issue that often arises for working professionals seeking to save for retirement is whether to utilize a Traditional 401(k) or Roth 401(k) for retirement savings. Although this dilemma may seem utterly confusing and resultantly receive less thought than the decision of whether to accept an old co-worker’s Facebook friend request, it can have a [...]
Politicians. Used car salesman. Mechanics. There are but a few professions less trusted than financial advisors. The lack of consumer trust is arguably well-deserved as there is nothing trustworthy about opaque conflicts of interest, hidden fees, or bad advice that lines the advice giver’s pockets. There is nothing trustworthy about consumers being sold expensive annuities that [...]
The following is an excerpt from the quarterly letter we recently sent to clients on the lure of investment prediction. Rock-paper-scissors ranks somewhere near the top of a list of universally known childhood games. The game separates itself from games of pure chance like coin flipping or the card game war in that participants can gain an [...]
One of the most common questions facing families and individuals is whether to accelerate mortgage payments and forego the potential mortgage interest deduction or borrow as much as possible, make minimum debt payments, and save for retirement. Simply, is it better to save or pay off debt? The question comes in a variety of flavors: [...]
January 2010: A period that financial journalists dream about. We were ushering in the new year of 2010 and significant impending tax law changes provided a bevy of important topics that consumers needed help navigating. There was the elimination of federal estate and gift tax, the return of IRA required minimum distributions after a one-year [...]
Players in a college or high school basketball game are limited to 4 fouls and disqualified from competition upon receiving 5 fouls. This limitation is intended to discourage players from consistently fouling to maintain the pace of play. In basketball, there are good fouls and bad fouls. A good foul could be the result of commendable [...]
In financial planning, the right answer to most seemingly simple questions is nearly always “it depends”. How much life insurance do I need? Should I contribute to a traditional 401k or a Roth 401k? Should I use a will or revocable trust for my estate? How much can I plan to safely distribute from my [...]
