What is a 529 Plan? A 529 plan is a tax-advantaged investment vehicle in the U.S. designed to encourage saving for the future higher education expenses of a designated beneficiary. The name “529” comes from Section 529 of the IRS tax code, which gives these plans special tax breaks to encourage saving for education. Sponsors include states, […]
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Taxes, Stock Market Risk and Longevity Risk. A generation ago your parents had pensions, but that’s changed. Over the past 35 years that has changed and we have moved to 401k’s. You need to create your own pension. Losing money in the market is inevitable it’s only a matter of time. If the market tanks […]
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What Are Crypto Assets? The easiest way to answer the question of what cryptoassets are and why they are important is to think about a simple transaction, like giving someone $1 million. In a world where we all carried cash, this was simple. If I want to give you $1 million, I simply give you […]
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Offering an employer-sponsored retirement plan can be beneficial, but it may require an administrative and financial commitment. A SEP IRA or SIMPLE IRA may be easier, lower-cost alternative to operating other types of retirement plans. Advantages of offering a SEP or SIMPLE IRA include: Employers can help employees set up their IRAs The plans are […]
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The Benefits and Side Effects Benefits of Roth Conversions If future tax rates increase, tax-free Roth IRA income will be more valuable. Roth IRAs remove the uncertainty of what your future tax rates might be. RMD Benefit – Roth IRAs have NO RMDs during lifetime……. Also, there are no RMDs for a spouse who moves inherited […]
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Trade War Truce Dow 30000 May Not Mean Much… …But Small Numbers Can Mean a Lot FSA Spending Deadlines Approaching After more than a year’s worth of trade-war lunges, parries and ripostes, “phase one” of the U.S.-China trade agreement was signed this week. While it was overshadowed in the headlines by the House sending the […]
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The Secure Act, which stands for the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (Security) Act, is seen as the most sweeping retirement legislation for more than a decade and effects retirees, employees and employers. The SECURE Act is set to become effective January 1, 2020. 1.Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) Will Start at Age 72, […]
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According to the report Giving USA, U.S. families and individuals give an average of more than $1 billion to charity every day—a major force for addressing important needs in our communities. The value of giving is also recognized by the U.S. tax code, which provides a variety of tax incentives to support those who wish […]
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Procedures for Monitoring Were Absent! Sponsors of the 401(k) funds don’t disclose their use of underlying in-house investments. The Securities and Exchange Commission, the agency’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations risk alert said some TDFs provided “incomplete and potentially misleading disclosures” around conflicts of interest, such as those that could arise from “the use of affiliated […]
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Health savings accounts offer another way to help investors save for retirement. An HSA is a tax-favored account that works with an HSA-qualified high-deductible health insurance plan. HSAs can be a powerful health care planning tool, but they’re frequently overlooked as an effective way to help save for retirement. How HSAs Function Despite being available […]
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