Albemarle Insurance Agency’s hiring solicitation shows the difference between insurance salesmen and fee-only fiduciary advisors.
My best case for SRI is a personal story of lace, oil paintings, tobacco, and Ray Stedman.
Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol is one of the best stories for talking about economics.
In 2015, Congress passed the PATCH Act that included a provision which allowed computer purchases to be a qualified education expense for 529 plans. But what of computer repairs?
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act came out of conference, which means that the House and Senate bills have been reconciled into one piece of legislation.
Under weighting Canada could have the effect of diminishing your returns. If your fund under weights Canada, consider switching to a lower cost fund which properly represents it.
As the proud mother of a one-year old daughter, I thought I’d record some of my and my firstborn’s favorite things from this past year as helpful ideas for gifts from grandparents.
“When Congress acts, whatever it is called it will do the exact opposite. So the Affordable Care Act will make plans not affordable.”
“Once the incision is made, there is no turning back. And without a clear understanding of economics, our experimental treatment may kill Uncle Sam.” It’s too bad Congress didn’t take this 2009 article’s advice yet.
While this may seem complex, don’t let it deter you from using a 529 account to the fullest extent possible.
It looks like something from this proposal will become law. Right now, the bill is in committee where the differences are being resolved.
Putting money in your Roth without delay is valuable.
One unsettled issue is the fate of Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT).
We’ve been waiting to see what our congressmen and women are going to decide for our 2018 tax law. As we’ve already entered the holiday season and can see the new year in sight, they are certainly cutting it close. … Read More
We will have to wait and see what tax law we have after Congress reconciles the bills and the final version is signed into law by the President.
We’ve been waiting to see what our congressmen and women are going to decide for our 2018 tax law. As we’ve already entered the holiday season and can see the new year in sight, they are certainly cutting it close. … Read More
With this proposed expansion, 529 accounts may become the most cost-efficient way to fund all education expenses.
It is an inconvenience during the holiday season to say the least, but Roth conversions are worth the effort.
Don’t let someone else live the life you’re saving for, but also don’t rely on Investor.Gov to protect your money.
Every business owner or director of a non-profit should realize that if they don’t take their fiduciary responsibility seriously they are legally liable for their neglect and inaction.
At our firm, tax planning is our priority. We hope to maximize after-tax net worth over your lifetime, even if it is at the expense of this one year.
This 2011 post marks the birth of the SEC-required “plain English” descriptive brochure of disclosures. As David Marotta predicted, this new requirement was just another feel-good legislation aimed at making people feel safer without actually making them safer.
Coverage is considered unaffordable if the lowest cost Bronze-level plan available to you through the Marketplace in 2017 is more than 8.16% of your household income.
I recently watched a video by VOX called, “How tax breaks help the rich.” In the video, they discuss wealth inequality and claim that one of the biggest drivers of inequality is the tax code.
How do you determine the value of your gift of stock? The IRS doesn’t like you to use rough estimates on your tax forms; they prefer a black and white number.
However, in 2018, the health insurance rates are extraordinarily high, especially in Charlottesville. Taking one year off from your valuable tax planning strategies to get free or low-cost health insurance might be worth it.
It’s hard to know… but I bet I’m not the only one looking at my compensation differently.
Some think the alternative to the traditional insurance providers is the health care sharing ministries, but they aren’t insurance.
Each spouse has different spending habits and values different things in life. This can easily lead to bitterness, or at the least, long discussions when the budget is reconciled.
David John Marotta was interviewed on Radio 1070 WINA’s Schilling Show discussing the Equifax breach and Financial Peace University.
When the client asked my mother, “What is the quickest way to double my money?” she did not hesitate before she answered.
In retrospect, Financial-Planning’s slide show was another bit of distraction from the real work of building brilliant portfolios for long term investing.
Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) have at least a dozen significant benefits over mutual funds and only a few disadvantages.
93 years ago there was only one mutual fund. Today, there are thousands. This 2003 article tells the story of how this staple of the financial services world got its start.
In “The state and local tax deduction, explained” by Dylan Matthews at VOX, he does not mention the reason the state and local tax deduction was created when listing the pros and cons.
If you budget well according to your values, a one-pocket theory of money enriches your life, prioritizing your financial dreams above your impulses.
At best, the Sharpe Ratio is a single hard coded straight-line preference curve, and the portfolio with the highest Sharpe Ratio is not necessarily the one which will give you the best chance of meeting your goals.
There is no such thing as a risk-free, guaranteed investment. Everything has risks.
Employers are paying more in benefits, but with the increase in health care costs there is less for retirement contributions.
To avoid the 10% penalty, do I have to satisfy the 5-year holding period for my Roth conversions if I’m over age 59 1/2? The IRS is not very clear when it comes to when you need to pay penalties on Roth IRA withdrawals, but I think I know the answer.
TD Ameritrade has received a large number of complaints. But apparently not enough to change their decision. If you have a TD Ameritrade account perhaps your call will help them change their minds.
This portfolio uses all TD Ameritrade no-transaction fee exchange-traded funds.
InvestmentNews advocates lying to clients, but I think if your advisor doesn’t have integrity, you can stop there and find a new advisor.
David John Marotta was interviewed on Radio 1070’s Schilling Show discussing getting your finances in order.
We don’t write a lot about how to spend money, but an international study published this year claims to have found the route from wealth to well-being through spending money.
Since your employer’s plan usually has the most limited number of choices, pick the best it has to offer that fits with in your over all plan.
Putting all of your retirement eggs in one basket is easy to carry, but risky. Fund your employer’s plan with no more than is necessary to get the match and then fund your Roth IRA and build your taxable savings.
As a dedicated reader of our blog, we would love to get to meet you this Monday, October 9, 2017.
We are excited to debut our new website today!
Although you can have second generation beneficiaries, the first non-spouse designated beneficiary is the last one to receive a new RMD divisor calculation.