Good to Know

Good to Know You just received a letter from the IRS that doesn’t make sense. It may not be cause for alarm, but consider this—the letter may be a red flag for the potential theft of your confidential income tax information. Cybercriminals can use this information to wreck your finances, for example by: Taking out…

Good to Know We’re financial professionals, right? So let’s analyze the question posed in this article’s title. The CFP Board exam (the exam) consists of 170 questions. Anecdotally, the average exam has from 8 to 12 calculation questions which rank from moderately difficult to highly difficult. It’s been said (but not by us!) that studying…

Good to Know If you saw twenty-two $100 bills lying on the sidewalk and could not determine who the money belonged to, would you scoop it up? If your answer to that question is yes, we have good news. That much or more in federal income tax savings for 2023 could be possible. Clients may…

Good to Know Social Security Retirement Benefits (SSRBs) can be as high as $55,000 or more annually for high-income clients who choose to delay benefits claiming until age 70. But here’s the big question—how much of that SSRB will the IRS siphon away? We have good news! Many clients will pay income tax on a…

Good to Know Choosing the wrong IRA type is an all-to-common client mistake that can be difficult and expensive to correct. Financial professionals can help clients avoid that mistake by fully informing their clients of the key factors to consider. There tend to be two schools of thought to avoid—in the author’s opinion—when choosing between…

Good to Know Time is running out for smart year-end tax moves. Yet, client concerns over economic and political turmoil can interfere with year-end tax planning. For example, how will the market perform given record inflation, the FED’s interest rate hikes, and the threat of recession? What will happen to tax rates and deductions in…

Good to Know You just asked your client about their long-term disability plan.  They replied “I have that covered. I have Social Security Disability Insurance.” Here’s a hint for the rest of this article—your client probably does NOT have this risk “covered” if that’s the only disability insurance they have. There are at least four…

Good to Know How many of your clients think a great evening is sitting around a roaring fireplace on a cold night, drinking an excellent Merlot, and discussing death with their sweetheart?  The author’s guess (and hope!) is about zero. Yet, even though that romantic setting is not the best time to discuss estate planning,…

Good to Know It’s been said that there are two kinds of CFP Board exams—those that test Social Security moderately and those that test it heavily. From a larger perspective, CFP Board tells us that almost one of every five questions on the average exam will test the examinee’s knowledge of the Retirement Savings and…

Good to Know Anyone with assets, an income stream, or a good credit score can be exposed to identity theft. But before going deeper, let’s dispel a few myths—identify theft happens not only to the wealthy but also to the poor, not only to seniors but also to the young, and not only to financial…