New Tax Act
As promised in our recent Harvester newsletter that we sent on December 7, 2017, we want to update you on the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the “Act”). The Act made it through the conference committee and was passed by both the House and Senate on December 20 and is expected to be signed by […]
Tax Reform 2018 – The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
Tax planning at the present time is difficult given the uncertainty over the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (“Act”). As of the date of this newsletter, both the House and Senate have passed separate versions of the Act that contain significant differences. These differences must be ironed out before a final tax reform bill can […]
Demystifying Medicare
All Americans who are age 65 and over are eligible for Medicare. Medicare can be overwhelming for those approaching age 65 and faced with having to enroll in this government managed health insurance program. The purpose of this blog is to take some of the mystery out of Medicare and assist you with the appropriate […]
Hiring a Financial Professional: 6 Keys to Success
In today’s world, hiring a financial professional can be overwhelming. There is a exhaustive list of titles for financial professionals such as financial advisor, financial planner, wealth manager, investment advisor, estate planner, tax planner and accountant. And while each title mentioned above may conjure up a different business model in your head, the fact is […]
Preparing Financially to Start a Family
So you would like to start a family, but in the back of your mind you are uncertain and a bit overwhelmed by the financial obligations you may be shouldering for the next 18+ years of your life. These are legitimate concerns. According to the 2015 USDA report Expenditures on Children by Families, a middle-income […]
Spending a 529 College Savings Account- Best Practices
After years of saving, your child is finally off to college and you wonder how 18 years have gone by so fast. Ideally, you’ve taken advantage of long-term, tax-free compounding discussed in our college savings strategies blog(http://www.thorinvestment.com/saving-for-college/) and have built up nice gains in the college accounts. Savings in a state-sponsored Qualified Tuition Program, or […]
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 […]