Welcome

Does Your Paycheck Need A Health Check?

In any given year, it’s good practice to take a look at your payroll deductions. But it’s even more urgent now, considering the seismic shift in tax policy from 2017 to 2018. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 might reduce your tax burden and is intended to simplify your filing. But if you’re

Plans to Pay for College

WOW – August already!  Where has the summer gone?  I can't believe that it is time for school and college to get cranked up again in a matter of weeks.   I personally have two going back to college this year.  They are both attending Baylor, as I did, and it is great to be able

Long-term Care Planning

In the year 2000, almost 10 million people needed some form of long-term care in the United States. Of that number, 3.6 million (37%) were under age 65 and 6 million (63%) were over age 65*. What does that really mean? This trend means that almost 70% of people turning age 65 will need long-term

Beneficiaries

I’m sure most of you are glad the tax filing deadline has come and gone, although I suspect there are plenty of you that have postponed the inevitable with an extension.  Either way, just getting through the April deadline seems to remove much of the anxiety surrounding taxes in general and can allow us to

Student Debt Crisis —Part 2

This is Part Two of a two-part series on the Student Debt Crisis now facing America. In Part One, we looked at how bad the problem really is and how we got here. In this second installment, we’ll look at proposed fixes and how with some good planning you can avoid becoming a student loan

Student Debt Crisis —Part 1

This is Part One of a two-part series on the Student Debt Crisis now facing America. In this piece, we’ll look at how bad the problem really is and how we got here. In Part Two, we’ll look at proposed fixes and how with some good planning you can avoid or at least take steps

Buy or Lease that next car?

The old clunker sitting in the driveway is on its last leg, and you are trying to decide what’s next.  You always see those commercials with the nice shiny brand new cars and the payments advertised seem reasonable until you realize most of them are for a lease.  So, you are wondering if it makes

Planning for the Inevitable

This month we’d like to hit on a topic that most of us avoid because it can be hard to talk about. That topic is death, and more specifically, planning our own funeral, memorial service, and burial or cremation. On a personal note, I’ve been through this process in just the last two months with

Annuities 101

Most of you have already made it over this education hurdle and have turned to planning for funding sources for retirement instead.  That’s one of the reason we’re constantly working with clients to determine reasonable distribution rates during retirement.  And ways to provide monthly income utilizing investment portfolios or pensions, along with the timing of

Dividing Retirement Plans in a Divorce - What Happens

Dave always says, "If you think a bear market is brutal and costly, wait 'til you see what happens in a divorce!" In the event of a divorce, the court has the authority to divide or allocate all the property and assets belonging to both parties.  This includes pension plans, IRAs, and other retirement assets.