- Divorce Process: Step-by-Step Guide
Getting divorced can be much more complicated than getting married. The process required to end a marriage also involves lots more interaction with the legal system and, in some cases, can require the help of attorneys, many thousands of dollars… read more…
- How to Use an AB Trust in Your Estate Plan
An AB trust is a legal arrangement for married couples that can minimize estate taxes by splitting assets between two separate trusts when one spouse dies. While a federal provision that went into effect in 2011 rendered AB trusts unnecessary… read more…
- What to Do With an Inheritance
2 Receiving an inheritance from a family member can create a large windfall of cash, and with it, new financial opportunities. What you do with the money will depend on the size of the inheritance, your financial situation and level… read more…
- Ask an Advisor: Do I Need Life Insurance Once My Children Are Grown?
Do I need to carry life insurance after my children have reached adult age? If so, what type makes the most sense? – Greg Becoming an empty nester is a prime time to re-evaluate your life insurance needs. Life insurance… read more…
- Everything You Need to Know About Hiring a Financial Advisor
Finding a financial advisor isn’t like buying a carton of milk — you don’t want to just show up and pick the first one off the shelf. That said, it also isn’t like buying a car, where you can test… read more…
- Divorce After 50: Financial Guide
Grey divorce rates are rising fast — the over-50 crowd makes up a quarter of all divorces, according to the American Bar Association. A seismic financial shift like divorce so close to retirement has the potential to be ruinous, but it doesn’t… read more…
- Here’s the One-Word Secret to Lowering the Tax Hit on your IRA RMDs
Everybody hates being told what to do, and retirement investors hate it even more when being told what to do comes with a hefty tax bill – which brings us to the IRS rule known as required minimum withdrawals, or… read more…
- Ask an Advisor: ‘I’m Too Trusting and Gullible.’ How Do I Find a Financial Advisor Who Truly Acts as a Fiduciary?
How can I reliably verify that a specific financial advisor is a true and full fiduciary – and that they’re not just conning and misleading me? Is there a respectable and independent professional group that independently investigates and reliably certifies… read more…
- How to Go to College Debt-Free
Education is an important milestone to kick off your career, but college tuition is no longer affordable for many families. As tuition costs have increased, people have become more reliant on student loans to offset their higher education costs. Fortunately,… read more…
- How to Find Compensation Expense for Stock Options
Public companies often compensate employees in part by giving them stock options. This form of employee compensation conserves cash, improves retention and aligns employees’ interests with the interests of their employers. However, stock option compensation also dilutes ownership of existing… read more…
- Can Parents Agree to No Child Support?
The issue of child support is one of the most contentious issues that couples face during a divorce. Child support is usually paid by the non-custodial parent to the custodial parent to cover expenses associated with the child or children… read more…
- Recession vs. Inflation: Investment Guide
A recession is defined as two consecutive months when the GDP is negative. During a recessionary economy, policymakers are striving to keep inflation and interest rates low and unemployment stable. Inflation is simply a decrease in the value of a… read more…
- End-of-Year Financial Planning Checklist
The end of the year means different things for different people as they come up with resolutions and set their intentions to improve various aspects of their lives. But there’s one thing that everyone should do as the calendar starts… read more…
- UBS Analyst Says This Is When Investors Should Buy the Dip
Even though mid-term election results and encouraging inflation news have pushed U.S. stocks to their highest levels since August, a prominent UBS analyst says a recession is due and the global economy will continue to decline and that markets will… read more…
- Revocable vs. Irrevocable Trusts: What’s the Difference?
A trust is an estate planning tool that you may consider using if you want to go beyond drafting a last will and testament. One key thing to decide is whether to establish a revocable or irrevocable trust. Both have… read more…
- Defining an Ultra-High-Net-Worth Individual
In order for someone to be considered an “ultra-high-net-worth individual,” they typically need to have at least $30 million worth of net investable assets to their name. However, this isn’t really a legal definition. As the name suggests, ultra-high-net-worth individuals… read more…
- Understanding Tax Planning Services From Financial Advisors
Financial advisors who specialize in tax planning help clients optimize a tax strategy, which includes reducing tax liability and making the most of available tax deductions. As a subset of the broader category of financial advisors, tax planning financial advisors… read more…
- When Do People Retire on Average
Determining when to retire can be tough. There are various factors to consider, including your financial situation, your health, and the lifestyle you wish to enjoy once you retire. While the decision of when to retire is personal to you,… read more…
- Want to Invest Like a VC? These New Indexes Can Help You Do It
A new series of indexes aims to measure the performance of the billion-dollar venture-capital backed companies that Wall Street calls “unicorns.” Shares of “unicorns” – companies such as Instacart, Stripe and ByteDance – and other VC-backed companies valued at $1… read more…
- Ask an Advisor: I’m Looking for ‘a Tiebreaker’ After 2 Advisors Suggested Different Social Security Strategies. Which Advisor Should I Choose?
I’m speaking with two advisors and am looking for a tiebreaker. One advisor says to wait to take Social Security until I’m 70. The other says to take it now, taking the mindset that “a bird in the hand is better… read more…
- What Is the Adoption Tax Credit?
Every year, thousands of families in the U.S. have the pleasure of adopting a child and welcoming them into their homes. And as with any growing family, there are expenses associated. To stave off some of the costs that could… read more…
- How to Avoid Taxes on Life Insurance Proceeds
The average funeral cost in 2021 was $7,848 for a wake and burial or $6,971 for cremation. The average cost of settling an estate varies, but a complicated estate could push $5,000 with ease. And none of this is accounting for… read more…
- What Is Shrinkflation?: Financial Planning
Shrinkflation happens when manufacturers reduce the quantity or size of a product without reducing the price. Shrinkflation often crops up when inflation increases manufacturer costs or intensifying competition reduces demand. The effect is equivalent to raising prices, but it may… read more…
- Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Inflation But Were Afraid to Ask
You know that old expression about money burning a hole in your pocket? At the current rate of inflation in 2022, it’s the money itself that’s on fire: your dollar today is worth some 8% less than it was a… read more…
- Ask an Advisor: My Child Works a Low-Paying Job. Is ‘This a Great Time’ for Them to Max Out a Roth IRA?
My child is in a low-paying job that puts them into a 0% or maybe a 10% marginal tax bracket. Isn’t this a great time for them to max out a $6,000 Roth IRA contribution? We are considering a gift… read more…