Ahhh, sunsets. The word conjures beauty, peace, and signals that it’s time to rest after a busy day. Unless you are a CPA. For those poor suckers, sunsets have them stressing over – eeeek – changing tax laws. Specifically, the pre-ordained ending of many tax code changes in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of…
No, not religions, although after the holidays spent with warring family factions, some people do question their faith. Last week, I explained the basics of Roth conversions. For a little more detail, here are some pros and cons making this transaction. Pros Tax Free Withdrawals in Retirement: The big news when Roth IRAs were invented…
Hello, Cart! You seem to be in front of my horse. In looking at my newsletter archives (because I’ve read all of the Agatha Christie mysteries twice and needed something exciting to fill the void), it looks like I’ve addressed some specifics about Roth conversions in past blogs, but never talked about the basics. First,…
Or is it? I hear a lot of confusion around taxes upon selling a primary residence. People believe a mash up of rules that include those for selling a rental property or long outdated laws about downsizing as a retiree. It’s fairly straightforward (as IRS rules go). If you are single, the first $250,000…
Get your minds out of the marijuana plant. I’m not talking about that type of rolling. Rather, the pros and cons of rolling your old 401k/403b plans into a Rollover IRA. Generally, I say YES, you should move money out of an old employer’s plan into a retirement account in your own name as soon…
To encourage you not to leave all the year-end tasks until, well, the end of the year, I’d like to explain a charitable gifting hack for readers aged 70 ½ and older. The Qualified Charitable Distribution (aka QCD) allows people aged 70 ½ and older to gift money directly from their tax-deferred IRAs to a…
We’ve revisited some financial rules of thumb this month. Here are a few more bits of (maybe obvious) advice to achieve financial security. Simple portfolios work just fine. Investments don’t have to be complex or expensive to be good. A diversified portfolio can be achieved with 5 mutual funds or even one target date…
Do you remember how when you started back to school, teachers would spend the first week or so reviewing things you learned last year? Probably to prime the pump for your brain to bring in the new information. In that spirit, September blogs are going to review some back-to-basic financial concepts. Some things you will…
The government just loves to roll out new investment tools and then spend the next 50 years tinkering with the rules. 529 college savings plans are no different. Lately there is good news and bad news on the legislative front. The good news, and this is HUGE, is that with the SECURE 2.0 Act, parents…
Writing blogs every week is hard work. Therefore, I love a nice series. Even better when it coincides with a season. August being back-to-school month seemed like a good time to share some college planning info from Michael Van Boening at College Invest. First up, FREE MONEY! Did you know you may be able…
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