For years, monitoring your cash and cash equivalent accounts was not worth your time as they yielded close to 0% interest. However, the conversation around cash has changed drastically since 2022, and it now pays to understand the difference between checking, savings/money market accounts (MMA), and money market mutual funds (MMF). A few easy adjustments […]
If you stop to think about the most important things in your life, it’s likely that family, health, and having a sense of purpose rise to the top of your list. Naturally, money is also an important factor that adds to our quality of life—and it’s not to be overlooked. Financial stability can provide the […]
Just one year ago, research from the Federal Reserve indicated that a record 68% of households had the cash to cover an emergency expense of $400. Fast forward to today, and a new study by Suze Orman suggests that statistic has reversed…2/3’s of households could not cover an unexpected $400 expense. What gives? Inflation and […]
It is estimated that millions of taxpayers will miss out on the Earned Income Tax Credit (EICT) in 2022, worth up to $6,935. Over 30 million workers in 2022 are eligible for the tax credit worth over $60 billion. Estimates indicate that up to 20% of eligible taxpayers are not aware of this tax credit. […]
In a previous article, we discussed Alabama’s CollegCounts 529 Fund and how the recently passed Secure Act 2.0 offers greater flexibility to account owners in allocating education funds. Let’s now focus on a recent change that allows a portion of unused 529 account assets to be rolled over to a Roth IRA for account beneficiaries. […]
One of the primary concerns for most, after saving for retirement, is education planning. Well, great news! The recently passed Secure Act 2.0 gives savers greater flexibility regarding how they allocate funds accumulated in 529 plans. We’ll review updates to Alabama’s CollegeCounts 529 Fund this week and follow up next week on increased options related […]
Three years ago, the original Secure Act moved the Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) age from qualified pre-tax retirement accounts such as IRAs, 401(k)’s, 403(b)’s, etc., from age 70.5 to age 72. The Secure Act 2.0 passed Congress at the end of 2022 and has made further changes related to pre-tax retirement accounts, qualified charitable distributions […]
Last year was a challenging year for investors, to say the least. The overall stock was on the cusp of a bear market, declining close to 18%. Unfortunately, the bond market did not do much better and was down almost 13%. Good financial management demands that you periodically review and monitor both your portfolio performance […]
Access to lending on short notice can be a valuable asset. When we need to borrow money, we often think of traditional lending from a bank. However, one quick source of funds at competitive rates is a margin loan against your investment portfolio. With a margin loan, you put up your personal investment account as […]
In 2022, the market suffered a hangover after almost 12 years of fiscal and monetary accommodation on the backend of the financial crisis of 2008-09 and Covid-19 in 2020. What brought the party to its end was the emergence of inflation and the Federal Reserve’s response to it via increased short-term interest rates and quantitative […]