News & Updates
Good to Know: Is The Stretch IRA Dead?
It’s been reported that the Stretch IRA is dead for eternity (or at least until Congress changes the rules again). A Stretch IRA, of course, is the strategy of delaying required minimum distributions from an inherited IRA for decades if not generations. Before the SECURE Act of 2019, the Stretch IRA strategy was highly effective…
Read MoreCFP® Certificants in the News: Where Will Tomorrow’s CFP® Certificants Come From?
CFP Board Center for Financial Planning – Workforce Development Initiative CFP Board reports1 a “growing number of financial planners [will] retire” and sounds the alarm to avoid a “shortage of CFP® professionals to serve the increasing demand of the public.” One of the ways CFP Board is “building the talent pipeline” is through the Financial…
Read MoreGood to Know: Act Now to Take Advantage of Disaster Relief Provisions
The property and emotional damage left in the wake of a natural disaster may be compounded by financial stresses. For qualified disaster losses, recent legislation by our federal government could soften the financial impact. First, we’ll define what losses may qualify and then we will summarize key provisions of the legislation. A qualified disaster loss…
Read MoreCFP® Certificants – Strong Growth in 2019
The results are in. According to CFP Board’s January 15, 2020, report entitled CFP BOARD REPORTS STRONG GROWTH IN 2019, the Board summarized the results of key diversity programs as follows: “The Certified Financial Planner Board of Standards finished the year [2019] with very strong numbers, reflecting the results of CFP Board initiatives as well…
Read MoreReprieve from the Student Loan Debt Warden: Student Loans in Default Can Look to 529 Plans
Good to Know 5.2 Million The number of student loans in default in early 2019 according to the Ascent’s Student Loan Debt Statistics for 2019 That’s the bad news. The good news is that there may be a way out for students with balances remaining in their 529 Qualified Tuition Program. Before the SECURE Act, distributions…
Read MoreSECURE Act: Good News and Bad News for Retirement Planning
The long-awaited bipartisan SECURE Act (the Act) was finally approved by the House on December 17, 2019, after a seemingly interminable process that began in March 2019. The Senate approved the measure at the speed of light (at least by legislative standards) on December 19. President Trump signed the measure into law the next day,…
Read MoreAnnual Background Checks of CFP® Certificants
CFP Board’s December 17, 2019, Independent Task Force Report Apparently, there’s a new Sheriff in town. As a result of a recent task force analysis, CFP Board will now conduct annual background checks on CFP® Certificants. An overview of the Board’s report follows: Overview On July 30, 2019, the Board of Directors of CFP Board (“The Board”)…
Read MoreGood to Know: Dangerous Mistakes In Retirement – Wrong Spend Down Strategies Slows Portfolio Growth
Good to Know Savvy financial advisors know that prudence in taking retirement distributions is balancing income tax efficiency in the current year against long-term retirement portfolio growth. While each client may present unique needs, a discussion starter to the question “where should I take my distributions from?” follows: First – Take the full amount of…
Read MoreCFP® Certificants in the News: Women’s Initiative (WIN)
CFP® Certificant in the News According to the CFP Board, “the percentage of women CFP® professionals has remained flat at 23 percent for at least a decade.” Based upon CFP Board commission researched aimed at increasing that percentage, the “WIN Council” and “WIN Advocates” were created by the Board. Key information follows: “WIN Council Following…
Read MoreGood to Know: Dangerous Mistakes In Retirement – Excessive Annual Withdrawal Rates
Good to Know Six of every ten Americans fear running out of money in retirement more than death. This is the first of three blogs addressing financially dangerous and avoidable retirement mistakes. Today’s focus is upon avoiding excess withdrawal rates from one’s retirement portfolio. Before we begin, let’s address the common phrase “safe withdrawal rate.”…
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