How to Set Beneficiaries on Your HSA with Fidelity
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Once you’ve open an HSA and have started making contributions, it is important that you set beneficiary designations on the account.

What Interferes With a Backdoor Roth?
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Here are three common Roth transactions and how they interact with MAGI for Roth IRA purposes.

#TBT Don’t Delay Roth Conversions
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Waiting just one year means that you lose a portion of the growth in your traditional IRA to income taxes later.

How to Prepare Your Investments for World War 3
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These strategies are strong in both good times and bad.

Adding an Ex-China Fund to Our Emerging Market Strategy (July 2023)
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If China booms, it may be a mistake that we reduced the allocation. If China undergoes investment controls, it may be a mistake that we kept China at all.

How to Use Medicare IRMAA Life-Changing Event Form SSA-44 To Save Money
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If the form is accepted, the Social Security Administration will generally not only change your current IRMAA, but they will also use your Projected MAGI for the next several years. Here’s why.

Q&A: Which Self-Employed Retirement Plan Should I Open?
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Here are some of the pros and cons of specific SEP IRA and individual 401(k) retirement account options available.

#TBT Should I Buy Commercial Real Estate?
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This article gives you the formula to decide how much to offer or if the property is a good deal.

Inherited RMD Update: IRS Waives 2023 Penalties and Delays to 2024
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This notice did not offer the final guidance we were hoping for, but rather continued to push the decision further down the road.

Freedom Investing in Review (June 2023)
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This quarter, we saw that in 1-year returns ending June 30, 2023, Developed Freedom Investing had a -3.68% disadvantage, Emerging Market Freedom Investing had a +4.15% advantage, and Overall Freedom Investing had a -0.61% disadvantage.

No Tax Benefit to Gifting Capital Losses
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Gifting depreciated stock is more complex and never to anyone’s advantage.

Virginia Real Estate Tax Relief For the Elderly and Disabled By City and County
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Each governing body in Virginia has their own rules and eligibility requirements.

What Is An Asset, A Liability, And An Investment?
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Knowing the difference between these categories helps you to use them appropriately.

New Proposals Offer Insight into Republican’s Tax Agenda
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We’ll have to wait and see what they really mean by these lofty goals.

I’m Young. Should I Withdraw from My Roth IRA?
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Contributing to a Roth IRA, even though you know you will withdraw it before retirement, is a sound financial strategy.

#TBT How to Spend: Add It To Your Wishlist
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A wishlist is a force of thrift both for you to defer your consumption and for your family and friends to ensure that all the value of their gift makes it to your heart.

Your Advisor’s Personal Trading Practices Always Matter
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Websites such as investor.com are useful, but not as useful as you might hope.

#TBT Remembering June 5, 2013
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There is an illusion that the executive branch will handle the collection of all our data with respect and care. I hope that current times can shatter that illusion for you.

Access $1,500 Per Child for K-12 Students in Virginia
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These grants are called “K-12 Learning Acceleration Grants” and must be used to pay for “qualifying education services.”

Federal Debt Burden May Settle 2026 Tax Uncertainty
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I have difficultly imagining a likely outcome where I would regret a Roth conversion.

#TBT Keep Track of Your Roth Contributions
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If you made a Roth contribution this year, here is a reminder to update your contribution basis records.

A Thoughtful Reply to the Debt Ceiling Crisis
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While there can be a lot of uncertainty, the conclusion is normally anticlimactic.

#TBT Do I Want To Give My Financial Advisor Discretion on My Account?
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This is only a good idea if your financial advisor is covered under the fiduciary duty and is fee-only.

The Best Way to Plan for Inflation is to Discount It
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By discounting portfolio returns to only real returns, we have already considered inflation in the planning targets.

Freedom Investing in Review (April 2023)
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This quarter, we saw that in 1-year returns ending April 30, 2023, Developed Freedom Investing had a -2.99% disadvantage, Emerging Market Freedom Investing had a +1.85% advantage, and Overall Freedom Investing had a -0.4% disadvantage.

2023 Index of Economic Freedom Update
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Last year, thirteen countries made our cut-off. This year, eleven do.

No Guidance on 10-Year RMD Stretch Despite Headlines
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We recommend waiting for the final guidance but being prepared for some sort of required distribution this year.

Real Return of Stocks and Bonds by Inflation Type
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If you are expecting high inflation, it may be stocks which offer the greatest security against the diminishing dollar.

Did the 2022 Bear Market Continue Into 2023?
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The incongruity between feeling like we are in a bear market for 61.66% of trading days and actually being in a bear market for only 24.81% of those days unfortunately makes bear markets feel longer than they really are.

Employer Matching Student Loan Payments Starting in 2024 (Secure 2.0)
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This amendment applies to 401(k) plans, 403(b) plans, SIMPLE IRAs, and governmental 457(b) plans.

An Overview of Marotta’s 2023 Gone-Fishing Portfolios
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While our 2022 update saw a number of changes, this year we only have one change.

Marotta’s Gone-Fishing Portfolio: Review of 2022 Returns
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This past year, our 2022 Gone-Fishing Portfolio beat its benchmarks.

#TBT How to Claim Your Virginia State Tax 529 Contribution Deduction
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Form ADJ of the 760 lines 8a – 8c are where you report miscellaneous deductions.

2026 Tax Cliff on Horizon
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Why create tax rules which expire so soon after they are made? The answers are as frustrating as the uncertainty the sunsets create.

How Our Current Tax Brackets Compare to Historical Ones
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How do our current tax brackets compare to historical ones? Are our taxes higher than the past? When was the most expensive time period for the U.S. income tax?

Is It Better to Give to a Strong Link or a Weak Link?
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Malcolm Gladwell establishes two opposing types of problems: a strong-link problem and a weak-link problem. Which type of problem can charitable giving solve?

#TBT The Complete Guide to Creating an Investment Plan
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This is a summary of the six steps required to create a well-crafted investment plan.

More People Eligible for ABLE Accounts in 2026 (Secure 2.0)
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This amendment raises the ABLE account age to 46 starting in 2026.

New Catch-Up Limits for Ages 60-63 in 2025 (Secure 2.0)
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Seniors born between 1962 and 1965 will be the first to be able to take advantage of these plus-sized limits.

Retirement Plans Allow Roth Employer Contributions Now (Secure 2.0)
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For those who run a retirement plan, the next step for implementing this change is to email your plan provider.

High Wages Limit Catch-Up Options to Only Roth in 2024 (Secure 2.0)
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Hopefully over all this amendment encourages employer plans to offer Roth options, which will be good for taxpayers, even if this additional wealthy discrimination is unwelcome.

Contribution Basis is Prorated for Roth 401(k) Withdrawals But Not Roth IRA
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In a designated Roth account like a Roth 401(k), each early distribution is treated as coming part from contribution basis and part from earnings.

No More Roth 401(k) RMDs in 2024 (Secure 2.0)
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This update amends the Roth-side of employer retirement plans to behave more like Roth IRAs prior to death.

Freedom Investing By Quarter in 2022
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Here is a review of the performance of Freedom Investing in 2022.

Virtual Class: Success and Significance in Retirement (OLLI 2023)
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The class will be held April 13 through May 4, 2023 each Thursday from noon to 1:00 PM on Zoom.

Freedom Investing in Review (December 2022)
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This quarter, we saw that in 1-year returns ending December 31, 2022, Developed Freedom Investing had a +0.13% advantage, Emerging Market Freedom Investing had a +0.45% advantage, and Overall Freedom Investing had a +0.77% advantage.

Even Down, Biotechnology Still Had a Place in Efficient Portfolios (2022 Analysis)
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Biotechnology’s low correlation, the very thing that makes you dislike it, is specifically what gives it a place in efficient portfolios.

#TBT Where is Your Priority: Tax Preparation or Tax Planning?
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Tax planning is very different than tax return preparation. The goal of tax preparation is to minimize your tax owed this year. The goal of tax planning is to maximize your after-tax net worth by minimizing your taxes owed over your lifetime.

Changes to RMDs for Those Born in 1951 or Later (Secure 2.0)
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Later required beginning dates are generally advantageous to seniors, although the complexity surrounding RMD rules is nothing to celebrate.

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