News & Updates

As we review our clients’ tax returns from the previous year, we continue to look for opportunities to increase how much they keep of what they earn. This can include looking for opportunities to claim tax credits – particularly some of the ones that often go under the radar. In this article, we will cover a couple of tax credits that you may be able to take advantage of to reduce your tax bill in the coming years.

Wealth is defined in the Merriam-Webster dictionary as, “an abundance of valuable material possessions or resources”. While this is one measure of wealth, many think about wealth as something else. In Morgan Housel’s book, “The Psychology of Money”, Housel sums up wealth in the following way: “The highest form of wealth is the ability to wake up every morning and say, “I can do whatever I want today.”

Inflation has been making many parts of our lives more expensive – cars, food, and home prices are a couple of areas that immediately come to mind. However, there may a be a small silver lining. The IRS sets tax brackets, tax deductions and retirement account contribution limits based on inflation. Depending on all the moving pieces in your financial picture, this could result in a lower tax bill. In this article, we will look at the impact of inflation on taxes this year and some planning opportunities resulting from it.

Around tax time, it can be surprising to see how much you pay in taxes each year. It could be because you focused on the after-tax amount deposited in your bank account or its not until you pull all your information together at the end of the year that you see the...

As you’ve worked to build up your wealth, it is important to consider how you are going to pass down any remaining assets to your family, friends or charities. Often the first thing that comes to mind when you think about your estate plan is a will. However, many...

As you think about the financial side of your life, it is worth asking if your money has been going toward things that are important to you. Some things areas of spending are inevitable, like food, housing, and healthcare. Other areas you may have more control over such as trips or a house project.

If you and your spouse both have access to an employer-sponsored retirement plan such as a 401(k), retirement saving is as easy as specifying the contribution amount to be deducted from your paycheck. However, for some couples, both spouses do not have access to a...

Developing a paycheck in retirement that generates the income you need while also keeping your taxes low is not an easy task. All the planning you did while working – saving diligently, using tax-deferred accounts – can turn into unwelcome tax surprises as you move through retirement. While there is no one-size-fits-all solution, there are some multi-year tax planning strategies that can lower your lifetime tax burden.

Retiring in the face of a volatile stock market can be concerning. Whether you just retired or are planning to make the jump in a few years, seeing your account balances decline could make you question the timing of this decision. While some factors are out of your control, there are steps you can take to ensure a successful retirement.

If you could choose any retirement account to have your assets in, a Roth IRA would likely be at the top of the list. Tax-free growth and a lack of required minimum distributions are a couple of the reasons we have previously highlighted for why to invest in this type...

Retirement is one of the most important financial decisions you can make in your life. Not only are you traditionally leaving behind a consistent income, but you’re deciding to leave a career you built for 15-25+ years. However, times are changing and so is...

As you think about insurance, areas like healthcare, auto, homeowners, and life insurance are often the first areas to come to mind. However, a missing piece for many insurance plans is umbrella insurance. This typically affordable insurance can protect your assets from an unexpected event that may severely damage your finances. In this article we will discuss what umbrella insurance is and whether you should have one.

The spike in inflation we’ve seen this year has impacts beyond having to pay more for goods and services. The IRS uses consumer price inflation (CPI) to determine certain increases to exemptions and deductions for federal tax purposes. These are automatic and...

For thoughtful retirement savers, minimizing your lifetime tax bill is a key consideration. This is why we see so many savers utilize accounts like traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs and 401(k) accounts. However, there is another account that has the most favorable tax...