Source: J.P. Morgan Asset Management, Guide to the Market By: Thomas Steffanci, PhD, Senior Portfolio Manager The July minutes of the Federal Reserve’s (the “Fed”) latest policy meeting were released on August 18th to the hue and cry of Wall Street pundits about the Fed making plans to pull back the pace of their monthly bond purchases before the end of the year. The ongoing assumption has been...
As your high school and college-age kids head back to school, equip them with the tools they need to take charge of their financial lives! This starts with getting your kids to understand how to manage their finances such as the basics of budgeting, making saving a priority, understanding debt and their credit score, learning about investments and taxes. Watch with the links below: Connecting...
The tax code provides several benefits for people who own their homes. In tax lingo, your principal residence is the place where you legally reside. It's typically the place where you spend most of your time, but several other factors are also relevant in determining your principal residence. Many of the tax benefits associated with home ownership apply mainly to your principal residence —...
By: Steven L. Yamshon, Ph.D., Managing Principal The United Nations (UN) Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) just released their 6th climate change assessment and now the UN is calling for a “red alert”. Although I believe that climate change is mainly caused by human activity and there is ample evidence to demonstrate this, climate models are far from perfect. It would be...
By: Paul Horn, CFP®, CPWA®, Senior Financial Planner We have seen recent legislation pass in California called Assembly Bill 150 (AB 150) that will provide a way for some business owners to be able to get around the $10,000 cap on the itemized deduction of state and local taxes (SALT) on federal tax returns. Until the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) passed in 2018, individuals were able to deduct...
Inflation has now well surpassed the Federal Reserve’s (FOMC) target, as the core PCE accelerated to +3.5% year-over-year. The FOMC recognizes the need to reduce accommodation in the quarters ahead and we believe it will start tapering the pace of its purchases in December. As always, if you have any questions or want to discuss the economy or markets more in-depth do not hesitate to give...
Our BFSG Summer Webinar Series is now available to watch on our YouTube channel “BFSG University”. This Summer Webinar Series focused on #retirementplanning around the following topics: Retirement Q&A: Ask the Experts – Hear the Certified Financial Planner™ professionals at BFSG answer #retirement related questions.Retirement Accounts: Traditional vs. Roth – Learn the typical ways to save in...
As life emerges from the pandemic to a "new normal," a mid-year financial checkup may be more important than ever this year. Here are some ways to make sure that your financial situation is continuing on the right path. Reassess your financial goals At the beginning of the year, you may have set financial goals geared toward improving your financial situation. Perhaps you wanted to save more,...
Most retirement savers assume they will be able to access Social Security and Medicare in retirement, but what if those options become unavailable? Join our webinar on July 29th at 10 am PST for an important discussion on the future of retirement in America and how you can prepare for potential changes to the retirement landscape. BFSG Wealth Manager Andrew Donahue, CFP®, MHA will be hosting the...
By: Tina Schackman, CFA®, Senior Retirement Plan Consultant According to a 2021 Retirement Confidence Survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI), U.S. workers preparing for retirement vary by age but there are signs that savings habits are starting to take place earlier than previously reported. In fact, 48% of respondents between the ages of 25 and 34 reported having savings...
After two years of decreases, interest rates on federal student loans are set to increase almost a full percentage point for the 2021-2022 school year.1 The interest rates on federal student loans are reset each year after the May auction of the 10-year Treasury note. The rates apply to new federal student loans issued on or after July 1, 2021, through June 30, 2022. The interest rate is fixed...
By: Michael Allbee, CFP® Principal| Senior Portfolio Manager The past few months saw some eye-popping inflation readings after subdued inflation prints last year due to COVID. The Core Consumer Price Index (“CPI”), which excludes the volatile energy and food categories, rose 0.9% in June after increasing 0.7% in May and 0.9% in April, bringing the year-over-year reading to 4.5%. Headline...
By: Paul Horn, CFP®, CPWA®, Senior Financial Planner | Wealth Manager Understanding the Basics A Non-Qualified Deferred Compensation (NQDC) plan allows individuals to defer a portion of their income now and then withdrawal the money typically in retirement when their income is lower. Most of the time the amount of money deferred can be invested in stocks or bonds so the money can grow over...
Last month was an interesting month for the markets and below is the economic summary for June. As always, if you have any questions or want to discuss more in-depth do not hesitate to give us a call! Sources: Sources: J.P. Morgan Asset Management – Economic Update; Bureau of Economic Analysis (www.bea.gov); Bureau of Labor Statistics (www.bls.gov); Federal Open Market Committee...
As we previously explained in a prior blog post, The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 makes substantial, temporary improvements to the child tax credit for 2021, which may increase the amount you might receive .The IRS will now be paying taxpayers the Child Tax Credit on a monthly basis rather than including it all on the annual tax return. They are scheduled to start being issued on July 15,...
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