Should You Pay Off Your Mortgage or Invest?
By Dustin Sobolik, CFP® – Investment Officer One question I’m often asked by clients is what to do with excess savings. Should they invest it or pay extra on their mortgage? I’m going to frame this article with a simple question and a simple answer, followed by a much more complicated answer. Let’s boil this […]
Choosing a Beneficiary for Your IRA or 401(k)
Adapted from Broadridge Investor Communication Services Choosing a Beneficiary for Your IRA or 401(k) Selecting beneficiaries for retirement benefits is different from choosing beneficiaries for other assets such as life insurance. With retirement benefits, you need to know the impact of income tax and estate tax laws in order to select the right beneficiaries. Although […]
Comparing Compensation
If you’re considering a job change, salary is one important factor. But it’s also vital to look past the salary and study the total benefits package. Benefits offered by employers can vary greatly so take a look at the full picture. Here is a shortlist of the most common types of compensation. Wages Wages are […]
Understanding Gift and Estate Taxes
Adapted from Broadridge Investor Communication Services If you give away money or property during your life, those transfers may be subject to federal gift and estate tax and perhaps state gift tax. The money and property you own when you die (i.e., your estate) may also be subject to federal gift and estate tax and […]
Planning for Physicians: Managing Contributions Between a 401(k), 457(b)
As many of our readers likely know, the Federal government provides strong incentives for saving for retirement and other financial goals. You can break these down into three broad categories: tax deductibility (on contributions), tax-free distributions (i.e. withdrawals), and tax deferral (on growth). Many physicians can increase their tax deductions and benefit from tax deferral […]
Wills: The Cornerstone of Your Estate Plan
Adapted from Broadridge Investor Communication Services If you care about what happens to your money, home, and other property after you die, you need to do some estate planning. There are many tools you can use to achieve your estate planning goals, but a will is probably the most vital. Even if you are young […]
IRS Updated Life Expectancy Tables
With many other things going on in November, it was easy to miss when the IRS issued new life expectancy tables. This is important because these tables are used to calculate Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) from IRAs and qualified retirement plans. The old tables will still be used when determining 2021 RMDs, but as of […]
Retirement Plan Limits for 2021
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has set inflation-adjusted limits for IRAs and company-sponsored retirement plans for 2021. While some of the contribution limits have remained the same, other limits important to determining the amount you can save have changed. The basic salary contribution limit for a 401(k) and similar company-sponsored retirement plans remains the same […]
What’s the Deal With Interest Rates?
As I write this, I just got a mortgage for 2.75%, my student loans are about to get refinanced at 1.5%, and my auto loan is 0%. And as a consumer, you might think ultra-low interest rates are the greatest thing since sliced bread. That might be true for consumers, but for investors looking for […]
Understanding Social Security Benefits
Adapted from Broadridge Communication Services Approximately 68 million people today receive some form of Social Security benefits, including retirement, disability, survivor, and family benefits. (Source: Fast Facts & Figures About Social Security, 2019). Although most people receiving Social Security are retired, you and your family members may be eligible for benefits at any age, depending […]
