Have you ever wondered if a chef eats his own cooking? Does a doctor take her own medicine? Or, do financial planners invest in the same strategies they recommend to investors? Recently, a vice president at Morningstar, an investment research firm, wrote about his personal investment portfolio. His asset allocation is basically 93 percent stock, 4 percent cash,
With spring in bloom, we are also entering wedding season! Getting married is truly a family affair when it comes to figuring out how to pay for it! WEDDINGS CAN BE EXPENSIVE… The average Tennessee wedding typically costs between $20,000 to $30,000. A Manhattan wedding’s average cost is $82,000! LET’S BREAK IT DOWN,
There’s still time to make a regular IRA contribution for 2016! You have until your tax return due date (not including extensions) to contribute up to $5,500 for 2016 ($6,500 if you were age 50 by December 31, 2016). For most taxpayers, the contribution deadline for 2016 is April 18, 2017. You can contribute to
Beginning in 1993, the Financial Planning Association (FPA) has annually given the P. Kemp Fain, Jr. Award to an individual who has made remarkable contributions to the profession of financial planning in the areas of service to society, academia, government, and professional activities, as well as, upholds the FPA’s Core Values of competence, integrity, relationships,
Almost every single client we meet with over the age of 65 asks “what about the required minimum distributions from my IRA?” and with good reason! Even if the specifics are not understood, what most do know is that this is very important to get right. The first element to understand is when a distribution
WBIR: Oh, snap! Within an hour of Snap, Inc.’s first public trading on the New York Stock Exchange last Thursday, the company’s stock price had already soared 50%. But what exactly is an “IPO” and how will it change the future of popular mobile app, Snapchat? PAUL, LET’S START WITH THE BASICS, WHAT IS
America Saves Week is a national effort to set a savings goal, make a savings plan, and save automatically. It all starts when you make a commitment to yourself to save. Are you saving for the right things? Just like your car needs a tune-up, and just like you need your annual physical, your checkbook needs
Do you have a “pending” file? How long have some of those actions been pending? How many relate to your personal financial plan? Consider the synonyms for “pending”: unresolved, unsettled, up in the air, on ice, unfinished, on the back burner. I don’t know about you, but unresolved financial matters in my life are a leak
If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is! In recent years, thousands of people have lost millions of dollars and their personal information to tax scams and fake IRS communication. LET’S START WITH THE BOTTOM LINE…THE IRS DOES NOT REQUEST PERSONAL INFORMATION BY TELEPHONE OR EMAIL! The Internal Revenue Service does
It is Tax Season! From coast to coast, taxpayers are scurrying to gather tax documents and to file their 2016 tax returns. Good tax planning can avoid 7 common tax filing mistakes. WHAT ARE THE GOALS OF GOOD TAX PLANNING? Be organized (If you have savings and investment accounts, companies are issuing 1099 summaries