Monthly Newsletters

October Newsletter: 3 Tips for National Financial Planning Month

The leaves are changing, and we find ourselves changing as well. Depending on where you are in the country, you may be draining the pool or storing the patio furniture, or even harvesting the year’s crops. Whatever form it takes in your life, the cool weather causes us to slow down, take stock, and see where the summer left everything.

It’s no surprise then, that October is National Financial Planning month. This can be a great time for a meeting with your financial planner, especially if you only meet a few times a year. Let’s look at a few financial fitness items to discuss with your financial planner and to keep in mind as the leaves fall outside. Read more

September Monthly Newsletter: All Your Pencils Sharpened – A Financial Fine-Tuning for Autumn

We all remember it. You have your pencils all sharpened, your new outfit on, and a fresh new school year ahead of you. Long after our academic days are over, we can’t help feeling that autumn is the time – after the exuberance of summer – to re-check and re-tighten everything to prepare for the colder seasons ahead. Read more

August Monthly Newsletter: 4 Financial Lessons Your New College Student Needs to Hear from You (and 2 Important Items for Parents)

As summer comes to a close, many parents and teenagers are packing up the station wagon (or hybrid crossover) for a trip that, for at least one passenger, is one way. You’re ready for this. You’ve done the shopping trips, you’ve packed the boxes, you’ve even shed a few tears. Now it’s time to send your child(ren) off to college. Read more

July Monthly Newsletter: Five Financial Factors to Consider Before Buying a Home

Every spring it’s the same: the snow melts, the birds begin building their nests, the neighborhood children resume their outdoor play and the housing market blooms. Yes, among the budding trees and perennial sprouts you’ll notice “For Sale” signs popping up all over town. Read more

June Monthly Newsletter: Top 5 Reasons Your Estate Plan Needs a Corporate Trustee

As you plan for your own and your family’s financial future, you may be considering the creation of a trust. Many estate plans utilize what is called a revocable living trust. During your life, you generally serve as Trustee of your revocable living trust and can either retitle your assets in the name of the trust during your life or you can use a “pour-over will” to direct your Personal Representative or Executor to transfer any individually owned assets at your passing to your trust. Read more

May Monthly Newsletter: Retirement and Social Security Benefits What Baby Boomers Need to Know

Income from Social Security­ benefits plays an incredibly important role for many Americans in retirement. In 2015, 85% of married couples and 84% of non-married persons aged 65 or older received Social Security benefits.

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April Monthly Newsletter: Tax Planning with Qualified Charitable Distributions

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act passed on December 22, 2017 was the biggest rewrite of the tax code since 1986 and made sweeping changes to the individual and corporate tax system. While most taxpayers will benefit from the reduced tax rates and increased standard deductions, others may find they can no longer take advantage of certain itemized deductions on their 2018 tax return.

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March Monthly Newsletter: 2018 Tax Scams and How to Avoid Them

Tax season is officially upon us and with it comes the inevitable new wave of tax season identity fraud. Every year, thousands of people lose millions of dollars and their personal information to tax scams during tax season. As taxpayers become more sophisticated at spotting scams, so do the scammers. They use regular mail, telephone and email to scam taxpayers, tax professionals, and even HR and payroll departments through phishing attacks and malware.

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February Monthly Newsletter: Choosing the Right Trustee

One of the most important decisions to be made when designing your estate plan is who to name in the various fiduciary roles – trustee, personal representative, executor and agent. While a critical decision, it is often given significantly less thought than the design and distribution of your assets. Even a meticulously designed estate plan drafted by an accomplished estate planning attorney will fail to achieve its purpose if the Trustee selected fails to administer the trust properly. Read more

January Monthly Newsletter: Holiday Spending

If you’re like many Americans, the recently passed tax reform and the continuation of the current bull market may have given you the confidence to dig a little deeper into your pockets for holiday spending. Newly released sales data showed retailers’ holiday sales increased 4.9% when compared to last year. This was the best holiday sales season since 2011.[1] While that may be good news for the retail sector that has seen several recent store closures, it’s probably not great news for the average consumer. Read more