The Long Term Power of the Health Savings Account
Health Savings Accounts (“HSAs”) are an underappreciated benefit offered to employees with high deductible insurance plans. The annual pre-tax contributions, which in 2017 are $3400 for individuals and $6750 for families, can be withdrawn tax-free at any time for medical expenses. Most people, however, fail to take advantage of the full benefit that these plans […]
RISING INTEREST RATES – IMPACT ON BOND PRICES
Alan Greenspan just warned about the ramifications of rising interest rates and stagflation. Bonds are the area of the market where rising interest rates will have the biggest adverse impact. When Jim first entered the industry in 1986, one of the first pension plans he reviewed was a local union plan. This plan invested 100% […]
President Trump’s Proposed Tax Plan
After much talk about tax reform during his Presidential campaign, the President’s proposed tax plan is out. Although the White House has not released many details – the proposed tax plan is less than 250 words – the law would change the way individuals and businesses pay taxes. The stated goals of the tax plan […]
What is a 26(f) Program?
We have had multiple questions recently about the 26(f) program. As we have never heard of this program before, we thought it would be a good time to look into them. Here is a link that describes a 26(f) investment: https://moneymorning.com/2017/01/09/how-do-i-enroll-in-26f-investments/ We discovered that “26” refers to Title 26 of the Internal Revenue Code and […]
65 and working: Should I Enroll in Medicare?
In today’s world, many people continue to work beyond age 65, once the normal age for retirement. Nonetheless, 65 is still the age when people first become eligible for Medicare health insurance coverage. A frequently asked question by those working at 65 is whether they should enroll in Medicare. See the chart below for a […]
What is Stolen Identity Refund Fraud?
Stolen Identity Refund Fraud (“SIRF”) is the stealing of an individual’s identity with the express purpose of filing a fraudulent tax return in the individual’s name to receive a refund. In 2013, the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) estimated that over 5 million tax returns were filed using stolen identities, claiming approximately $30 billion in refunds. […]
Barriers to a Comfortable Retirement
The fact that so many Americans are not adequately prepared for retirement has been widely documented. According to a recent government report, about half of households age 55 and over have no retirement savings and many older households without retirement savings have few other resources to draw on in retirement. A comfortable retirement is a […]
How to Pay Taxes in a Sharing Economy? (Uber, AirBnB, Ebay, etc.)
If you’ve ever thought of renting part of your home to strangers, driving your car for hire, or selling your arts and crafts on-line, paying taxes is probably the last thing on your mind. Whether you call it the sharing economy, the gig economy, or peer-to-peer services, all of these on-demand platforms are a growing […]
Peer to Peer Lending and Its Role in FinTech
What Is Peer to Peer Lending? “Peer to Peer Lending” (also known as “P2P Lending”), “Marketplace Lending”, “Crowdsourcing” or the “Grey Market” (what they call it in China)) is a fast-growing and evolving industry. Morgan Stanley research estimates that P2P lending companies could originate up to $480 billion in loans by 2020. Peer to Peer […]
Should I Buy or Lease My Car?
These days, unless you live in a large city, having a car to get around is a necessity. Knowing this, one of your key decisions could be whether to buy your next car or lease it. Although choosing the best option will be influenced by personal preferences on many levels, it is important to understand […]