2025 Year-End Tax Checklist
Only 31 days until 2026! By taking certain steps before the end of the year, you might be able to significantly reduce your 2025 tax bill. This month, we’ll go over some things to review before the end of the year. Review Major Life-Event Taxes If any of these happened in 2025, adjust your tax […]
What is Spaving?
Most of us recognize that many marketing campaigns are designed to get as much of our money as they can and to get it right now. This has actually led to a term called spaving which is a blend of spending and saving. It refers to the illusion of saving money by spending money. In […]
National Estate Planning Awareness Month
October is National Estate Planning Awareness Month. Its goal is to raise awareness about how critical it is to have a plan in place for managing and transferring assets, protecting loved ones, reducing tax burdens and avoiding complications such as probate disputes. While many professionals recommend reviewing your estate every 3-5 years, a less in-depth […]
2025 Tax Reform: Final Tax Provisions
You may have been reading about the significant federal tax law changes that have recently been passed. They take effect over the next couple of years, but some of them (like Clean Energy Credits) start soon. This month’s article is meant to bring you up to speed on the changes. Permanent Extensions from the 2017 […]
Non-Financial Reasons to Retire
When many of us think about retiring, we often start with whether we’re financially ready and how old we are. We may also evaluate when Medicare will kick in. While these factors are important to a comfortable retirement, there are a number of other reasons to consider starting the next phase of your life. This […]
Annual Insurance Review
Many of you know that there are two overarching principles in building your wealth. The first is investment and growth and the second is protection of your assets. Insurance comes into play to achieve protection. Because of its importance, an annual insurance review is highly advisable. Things change in life like marriage, divorce, a new […]
After-Tax 401(k) vs Roth 401(k) Contributions
You probably already know this, but as a reminder a 401(k) is a retirement savings plan offered by many employers that allows you to save and invest a portion of your paycheck before or after taxes, depending on the type of account you choose. (To avoid any confusion, there are also traditional and Roth IRAs […]
Family Loans or Gifts
Whether you decide to help a family member (or a friend) with a loan or a gift, it can be tricky. This month we’ll provide some information to help you decide whether to make a family loan, gift or to do nothing at all. Sometimes, it’s just best to do nothing at all. For example, […]
Financial Literacy Month
April is Financial Literacy Month. Financial literacy is the ability to understand and manage personal finances effectively. It involves skills such as budgeting, saving, investing and making informed financial decisions. Strong financial literacy helps individuals achieve financial stability and long-term security. While there are many aspects to financial literacy, many people think that the following […]
Tax Filing 2024
The deadline for filing your 2024 taxes is just 6 weeks away – April 15, 2025. Most of us don’t look forward to this, but this month I’ll offer a few tips to help you get organized and hopefully reduce the pain. First of all, you can easily extend this deadline to October 15, 2025 […]