Actually, there are three five-year rules you need to know about. The first five-year rule determines when you can begin receiving tax-free qualified distributions from your Roth IRA. Withdrawals from your Roth IRA — including both your contributions and any investment earnings — are completely tax- and penalty-free if you satisfy a five-year holding period and one of the following...
The Fed Funds futures market is pricing in roughly 10 quarter-point rate hikes this year. The benchmark 10-year yield was up +56 basis points for April. 2022 so far has seen the worst total return start for the 10-year Treasury (or proxies) since 1788, just before George Washington’s presidency. It appears that much of this tightening cycle has already been priced into the bond market – even...
BFSG’s CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals, Michael Allbee, CFP® and Paul Horn, CFP®, CPWA®, were invited to be guest speakers for the “It’s Your Money!” workshop series. For the “Investment World” session, Mike and Paul focused on how the investment world gets compensated. Learn the differences between brokers versus advisors, what does the word “fiduciary” mean, how to find an advisor,...
Is 62 your lucky number? If you're eligible, that's the earliest age you can start receiving Social Security retirement benefits. Although collecting early retirement benefits makes sense for some people, there's a major drawback to consider: If you start collecting benefits early, your monthly retirement benefit will be permanently reduced. So, before you put down the tools of your trade, there...
On April 6, the U.S. Department of Education announced a record sixth extension for federal student loan repayment, interest, and collections, through August 31, 2022. The fifth payment pause was set to end on April 30, 2022. The six extensions have postponed federal student loan payments for almost two and a half years — since March 2020 at the start of the pandemic. During this time, the loans...
California is among the first states in the nation to design a “state-run” retirement program enacted by the CalSavers Retirement Savings Trust Act. Any business with more than 5 employees that does not have a current employer-sponsored retirement plan MUST enroll in the program by the following dates: September 30, 2020, for businesses with 101+ or more employees*June 30, 2021, for businesses...
Benefit Financial Services Group (BFSG), a multi-faceted registered investment advisory firm serving both institutional and individual clients, is pleased to announce it has been ranked in Barron’s “Top 100 Institutional Consulting Teams” for 2022. The Barron’s listing can be seen here. “BFSG serves as a fiduciary with every client and provides written acknowledgement of our fiduciary status....
By: Crystal Kessler, CFP®, Wealth Advisor/Financial Planner Proposition 19 limits property tax increases for seniors, disabled persons, and disaster victims needing to replace their home, and limits property tax increases on transferring family homes used as primary residences. Proposition 19 or The Home Protection for Seniors, Severely Disabled, Families, and Victims of Wildfire or Natural...
Stocks rebounded in March even as the Russia/Ukraine conflict continued to escalate. The key message from the Federal Reserve is that it is focused on fighting inflation and is prepared to hike short-term interest rates steadily and reduce its balance sheet until it reaches its goals. Q1 earnings season will kick off the week of April 11th and although Wall Street analysts have recently...
The “It’s Your Money!” financial literacy workshop series is back. Sign up for free to attend the virtual Zoom sessions covering the business of the financial service industry. BFSG is a proud supporter of the It's Your Money and Estate series. Peter Kote and the team put together another great line-up of speakers. Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_pa2s2pBhRjKJlqIfLG-BDA...
What are the key estate planning documents? Who should have an estate plan? What are the differences between a will and a trust? Why do you want to avoid probate? This quick 3-minute video with BFSG's Senior Financial Planner, Paul Horn, CFP®, CPWA®, breaks down the basics of estate planning. Watch here for more. Disclosure: BFSG does not make any representations or warranties as to the...
By: Thomas Steffanci, PhD, Senior Portfolio Manager The first link in the supply chain, the number of ships backed up in Los Angeles and Long Beach harbors, is in sharp decline as the accompanying chart from BCA shows. Source: BCA Research The harder part is relieving the structural scarcity of trucks, drivers, and logistics (i.e., port workers, warehouse capacity) to decompress...
By: Crystal Kessler, CFP®, Wealth Advisor/Financial Planner There is a lot of confusion when it comes to In-Plan Roth’s (i.e., Roth 401k or Roth 403b) and a Roth IRA. Throughout this article we will refer to just Roth 401ks but know the rules we refer to for Roth 401ks apply to other In-Plan Roth’s like 403bs. It is important to realize that these are two completely different investment...
What is the rule of 55? How does it work? Are there any catches? The rule of 55 allows those looking to retire earlier than normal or those who need the cash flow, a way to take distributions from their retirement plans sooner than is typically allowed. This quick 3-minute video gives the details with BFSG's own, Tina Schackman, CFA®, CFP®. Watch here for more. Disclosure: BFSG does not make any...
By: Robert Verdugo, CMFC®, APMA®, Financial Analyst As the Federal Reserve (the Fed) is poised to start raising rates today, and with the S&P 500 (1) down over 10% off its highs, is it time to declare the bull market dead? History would say no – in fact, a resounding no. Jess Menton’s article in Bloomberg, titled “What Happens to Stocks When the Fed Hikes: A Historical Guide”, does a...
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*Please Note: Limitations. The scope of services to be provided depends upon the terms of the engagement, and the specific requests and needs of the client. BFSG does not serve as an attorney, accountant, or insurance agent. BFSG does not prepare legal documents or tax returns, nor does it sell insurance products. Please Also Note: Different types of investments involve varying degrees of risk. Therefore, it should not be assumed that future performance of any specific investment or investment strategy (including the investments and/or investment strategies recommended and/or undertaken by BFSG) or any financial planning or consulting services, will be profitable, equal any historical performance level(s), or prove successful.
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