Personal Finance

“A goal without a plan is just a wish.” - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Getting The Estate in Order

Covid-19 has changed life forever in more ways than we can count. It has also changed end-of-life estate planning and estate modification. It can be very difficult having that conversation with a spouse who’s dying. Estate planning conversations are often put off because they are a reminder of the inevitable for every mortal on the planet. But when one spouse [...]

By |2021-04-19T11:23:46-04:00April 19th, 2021|Estate Planning, Financial Planning|

10 Social Security Mistakes That Can Devastate Retirement Income

Social Security, even with all its problems, is unquestionably an important component of retirement income for millions of American retirees. For about half of seniors, Social Security is 50% of their income, and 1 in 4 seniors say it makes up at least 90% of their income. There are more parts to Social Security than most people realize. Only in [...]

By |2021-03-23T11:47:15-04:00March 23rd, 2021|Financial Planning, Retirement Planning|

6 Tax Breaks Retirees Often Don’t Think About

Let’s update some two-thousand-year-old tax advice—Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, but don’t give him more than that. Today, tax deductions and credits help determine how much Caesar gets. As an old guy told me a long time ago, “If it’s in the IRS code, it’s there to be used.” Unfortunately, there are tax breaks available to retirees that [...]

By |2021-03-15T12:27:04-04:00March 15th, 2021|Financial Planning, Retirement Planning|

4 Social Security Planning Steps BEFORE You’re Ready to Retire

Social Security is an important part of almost every retirement plan, whether you’ve saved enough or not. That’s why it’s important to know as much about your Social Security situation as possible. And you don’t want to wait until you’re about to retire to gather the facts and take appropriate steps. Social Security planning needs to start 5 years before [...]

By |2021-03-09T15:14:02-05:00March 9th, 2021|Financial Planning, Retirement Planning|

Don’t Forget the Health Care Power of Attorney

The mention of estate planning usually evokes thoughts of a will or trust. But there are other documents that should always be part of any estate planning package, such as a living will, a durable power of attorney, and a health care power of attorney. Planning for the distribution of your assets after you’re gone is certainly important. But what [...]

By |2021-03-09T08:33:32-05:00March 9th, 2021|Estate Planning, Financial Planning|

States with the Biggest and Smallest Retirement Tax Bite

Remember that sage financial warning, “It’s not how much you make. It’s how much you keep.” Truer words were never spoken when it comes to retirement income. And taxes, federal and state, are one of the biggest determinants in just how much retirees have to live on. Here are some taxes you’re likely to see in retirement, who’s doing the [...]

By |2021-03-01T09:46:41-05:00March 1st, 2021|Financial Planning, Retirement Planning|
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