The U.S. Congress signed a $1.4 trillion year-end spending bill on December 20, 2019. Neatly tucked away inside this new spending law is the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act, which became effective January 1, 2020. The SECURE Act may require a re-evaluation of your current retirement and estate plans. Therefore, it…
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For our first client communication in 2020, we want to share important information on how to protect one of your most valuable assets, your personal information. Your personal, private information (“PI”) is any personal information other than your name, street address and phone number. PI includes your birthday, social security number, credit card numbers, and…
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As we approach the Holiday Season, we want to share some year-end charitable and family gifting reminders. The following list contains general information for your review and consideration. The first and best rule in year-end planning is to make your donations and gifts well ahead of the December 31 deadline. CHARITABLE GIFTING The Basics.…
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Real Assets Adviser, a publication of Institutional Real Estate, Inc., is edited exclusively to meet the real asset-related information needs of members of the U.S. private wealth advisory community. The monthly magazine invited Stephen Blum to write an article on constructing a real assets portfolio. The following is Steve’s article which was published in the…
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If you turn 50 by the end of this calendar year or are already over 50, you may have the option to make additional “Catch-up” contributions to your retirement account. Catch-up contributions allow you to increase the value of your retirement account and may be made as long as certain conditions are met. We encourage our…
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There are opinions on both sides as to whether buying life insurance for children or grandchildren is a good idea or an appropriate financial investment. Here are four reasons to consider in making your decision. 1. Building cash value. By purchasing a whole life insurance policy, the policy accumulates cash value over time. …
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Required Minimum Distributions If you are 70 ½ in 2018 and have an IRA, you must take your “required minimum distribution” (RMD) by year-end. Your RMD is calculated by dividing your IRA balance as of December 31 of the previous year by the applicable distribution period or life expectancy. This rule does NOT apply to…
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A 2006 study at Indiana State University (McCormick and Godsted: “Learning your Monetary ABCs”) concludes that teaching financial skills to young children is just as important as the teaching of reading and math. Why begin financial education at such a young age? It’s logical. Exposure to financial subjects at an early age instills fluency as…
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On January 1, 2018, the exclusion from Federal transfer at death taxes a/k/a “Death Taxes” increased from $5.3 million to $11.18 million per person. Due to this increase, only approximate 1800 deceased persons will be required to pay estate taxes in 2018. As a result, we are often asked the question “if we no longer…
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Some topics are difficult to discuss. The cost of long term care (LTC) is certainly one of them. We encourage you to take a moment and contemplate the information in this important post. Elder care myth #1: Medicare will pay for the cost of my long-term care. Reality: Medicare does NOT pay for long-term care. The…
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POWERS OF ATTORNEY – A REVIEW At Strategic Wealth Planning, we deal with powers of attorney on a daily basis. In looking for topics that are relevant to our clients, we thought it would be a good idea to review some basic information on powers of attorney and at the same time, encourage you to…
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A large part of your nest egg is probably vested in an IRA or 401k. At your death, the proceeds from your retirement plan will pass to your named beneficiary(ies) outside your will. In light of a 2014 United States Supreme Court decision, we invite you to take some time and re-visit the topic of Inherited IRAs, addressing…
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