How to Avoid or Reduce Student Loan Debt

Good to Know The juggernaut of student loan debt is a sad fact of life today for many families. But what if you could avoid or reduce student loan debt for you, your family and your clients? If that sounds unlikely, join us as we dispel three common myths that just might lighten the debt…

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CFP® Certificants in the News: Free CFP Board Practice Exam

CFP Board Exam Registrants – Be sure to take CFP Board’s Practice Exam What could be better for exam preparation than taking a full six-hour, timed practice exam offered by the CFP Board? Receiving this resource free is better! The cost of CFP Board’s full, 170-question practice exam is normally $249. If you registered to…

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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…

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Good 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…

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CFP® 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…

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SECURE 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,…

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Annual 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”)…

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