Bruce Starks, CPA, CFP® – Page 46

What Does Peanut Butter, Jelly, and a 32% Lifetime Social Security Bonus Have in Common?

Good to Know Age 66 Monthly Retirement Check1 $24,000 annual benefit Age 70 Monthly Retirement Check1 $31,680 Annual Benefit Which benefit would you choose? Getting more sounds great but there are two challenges that must be conquered: Challenges #1: Bridging the income gap We called this “making the peanut butter and the jelly come out…

Unmarried Child Retirement Benefits

Course: Income Tax PlanningLesson 10: Social Security Student Question: Does the retired worker have to also be drawing on their Social Security benefits for the unmarried child of the retired worker to receive benefits? For instance, a 63-year-old man has a 13-year-old daughter and he is retired but not drawing his SS benefits yet? Melinda…

CFP® Certificants in the News: What Do the New Standards of Conduct Mean When Disclosing Conflicts of Interest?

CFP® Certificants in the News True or False? A CFP® certificant is allowed to have a material conflict of interest with a client when providing financial advice. Answer. The statement is conditionally true. A certificant can have a conflict of interest with a client as long as the conflict is fully disclosed, the client agrees…

Time-Weighted vs Dollar-Weighted Return

Course: Investment Planning Lesson 14: Evaluating Portfolio Performance Student Question: For both the Treynor and Sharpe, part of the calculation involves using the average portfolio return (rp). In most examples, the average portfolio return is being given. However, if I need to calculate this in real life, do I use the dollar-weighted return (internal rate…

IRS GIVES WIN TO INVESTMENT ADVISORY FEES IN A NONQUALIFIED ANNUITY

Good to Know We will take a very short break from our Social Security blog series with late-breaking news – potentially good news for advisors who charge only investment advisory fees. First, we’ll frame the issue then present the potentially good news. But before we frame the issue, let’s unpack the word “nonqualified” as it…

The Fiduciary Duty of Loyalty in CFP Board’s New Code of Ethics and Standards of Conduct

CFP® Certificant in the News Here’s the big news for CFP® certificants: Effective October 1, 2019, a fiduciary duty is owed to clients in more circumstances than under the previous CFP Board requirements. Fiduciary duty is the very foundation upon which a great deal of the new Code and Standards rests. A CFP® certificant is…

When Should You Claim Social Security Retirement Benefits?

Good to Know When will our universe stop expanding? What age should you claim Social Security Retirement benefits? For too many of us, these two questions are equally confounding. The author cannot help you with astronomical riddles but can illuminate some of the key factors that should inform your claiming age decision. This is the…

CFP® Certificants in the News: Dangerous Misconceptions About A CFP® Certificant’s Duty to Disclose Material Conflicts of Interest

CFP® Certificant in the News In our last blog, we illuminated CFP Board’s expectation that a certificant either avoid OR disclose and manage material conflicts of interest. That’s a simple instruction, right? Maybe or maybe not. It’s easy to confuse “material conflict of interest” as only sales-related compensation such as upfront commissions, deferred sales charges,…

ADRs and Exchange Rate

Course: Investment Planning Lesson 4: International Equity Securities Student Question: Is it not true that ADRs eliminate currency risk because transactions are done in USD? Lafe Instructor Response: Great question Lafe. ADRs do not guarantee exchange rates; they merely exchange foreign currency to US$ as a convenience to ADR investors. Changes in the exchange rate…

Inflation in the Service Sector

Course: Fundamentals of Financial Planning Lesson 2: Economic Concepts and Consumer Protection Laws Student Question: I was really hoping I could get some sort of expanded reasoning on the below statement if possible, please. I am having a hard time wrapping my head around this for some reason. I tried to Google this and look…