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INVESTMENT PLANNING
INVESTMENT PLANNING CHECKLIST
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Investment Planning Checklist Review your projected risk and return. Do you hold an optimal portfolio? Will your projected returns help you meet your financial goals? Are you comfortable with the level of risk in your portfolio? Consider if alternative investment options (such as private equity, hedge funds, or structured notes) could help optimize your portfolio and if they are appropriate for you. Create an emergency fund to cover unexpec
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Production 10com
Apr 231 min read
YOUR RISK TOLERANCE & TIME HORIZON
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Risk Tolerance and Time Horizon When structuring your investment portfolio, be mindful of your risk tolerance and time horizon. We define risk tolerance as your willingness and ability to accept risk. Some investors may have substantial wealth yet are willing to take on only minimal risk due to personal comfort levels. Other investors have a low ability to take on risk because they rely on their portfolio for immediate income needs. Range of
Production 10com
Apr 231 min read
UNDERSTANDING YOUR INVESTMENT OPTIONS
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Investment Planning Investment planning is one of the most important tools you can use to pursue your retirement goals. Investment planning begins with your asset allocation, which plays a big role in both the risk you take and the returns you may receive. Asset allocation is defined as the mix of assets you own, such as stocks (equities), bonds (fixed income), alternative investments, and cash. Understanding Your Investment Options Stocks an
Production 10com
Apr 235 min read
WHY YOU SHOULD AVOID EMOTIONAL INVESTING
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Emotional Investing Selling in market declines for emotional reasons can often times be a mistake. Market returns can be unpredictable. As highlighted in the chart below, the S&P 500 returned 7.67% on average from 6/30/99 to 6/30/24. However, an investor in the S&P 500 who missed only the best 10 days in those 25 years had a return of 4.36% on average per year. Missing fifty of those best days produced a negative return of -2.30% on average p
Production 10com
Apr 231 min read
BUILDING A DIVERSIFIED PORTFOLIO
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Building a Diversified Portfolio Consider building a diversified portfolio to reduce risk and help balance returns. Be aware of how much of your portfolio is invested in a single asset class, strategy, or company. Consider how each asset class you own contributes to your portfolio. While over-allocating to an asset that has recently outperformed could provide short-term gains, you should consider what may happen if that asset suddenly starts
Production 10com
Apr 232 min read
ALTERNATIVE INVESTMENTS AND STRUCTURED NOTES
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Alternative Investments & Structured Notes There are other strategies available for you to consider, provided you meet the minimum suitability criteria. Many of these strategies are highly illiquid and/or hold more risk, so they tend to require a minimum net worth, among other factors, to be deemed suitable for you.1 These strategies include structured notes, hedge funds, private equity, private credit, real estate, and commodities. Structure
Production 10com
Apr 233 min read
FINANCIAL PLANNING
FINANCIAL MOVES TO CONSIDER FOR YOUR FUTURE - RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS, EMERGENCY FUNDS & INSURANCE
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Financial Moves To Consider For Your Future Retirement Accounts Funding a self-managed retirement plan or contributing to an employer-sponsored plan is one possible way to build long-term wealth. There are many options that are available for you. If you are eligible1, you can fund a Traditional IRA or Roth IRA. Consider a 401(k) or 403(b) plan if either is available from your employer. If you are a business owner, consider a Solo 401(k) or SE
Production 10com
Apr 252 min read
FINANCIAL PLANNING CHECKLIST
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Financial Planning Checklist Create a goals-based written financial plan to determine the probability of meeting your objectives. Develop and review your balance sheet, outlining your assets and liabilities. Prepare a cash flow statement to analyze your current and future spending. Review all your debt. What interest rate are you paying? Can you refinance at a lower rate? Reduce your debt and interest payments by paying off high-interest rate
Production 10com
Apr 251 min read
CREATING A SAVING PLANS & FUTURE SOURCES OF CASH FLOW
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Create a Savings Plan Whether you are just starting your retirement journey or newly retired, create a savings plan to pay yourself first. If you are just starting your retirement journey, use part of those savings to create an investment portfolio. Even the smallest portfolio can grow significantly over time with consistent contributions. Getting started now will allow you to reap the benefits of compounded interest over time. Future Sources
Production 10com
Apr 252 min read
MANAGING DEBT
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Managing Debt Carrying debt into retirement can become a significant problem for you. If you have a large debt balance with a high interest rate on that debt, making only minimum payments can negatively affect your credit score and make it harder to get out of debt.1 The payments needed to manage that debt in the future will use up vital resources. Below are two hypothetical examples which illustrate the principal balance and interest paymen
Production 10com
Apr 251 min read
SEQUENCE RISKS, WITHDRAWAL RATES & GOALS BASED PORTFOLIOS
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Sequence Risk Having a plan to pay for your expenses in retirement is important because the amount you pull from your portfolio and the timing of those withdrawals are vulnerable to sequence risk, which is the risk of negative market returns right before or soon after you retire. Sequence risk is especially dangerous during the earlier years of your retirement if you are using a diminished portfolio to fund your living expenses. You should ex
Production 10com
Apr 252 min read
SETTING RETIREMENT GOALS & CREATING A BUDGET
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Setting Retirement Goals Financial planning is the foundation of a successful retirement. Creating and sticking to a financial plan is one of the best ways to start planning for your future. However, how do you know where to start? Start by setting your retirement goals. How much income will you need in retirement? What do you want to accomplish in retirement? Where do you want to live? What activities do you want to participate in? Are you l
Production 10com
Apr 252 min read
UNIQUE CHALLENGES FACED BY BUSINESS OWNERS & RESTRICTED STOCK RECIPIENTS
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Challenges Unique to Professionals Consider challenges that are unique to your profession. For example, if you are a medical professional, your student loans may have prevented you from funding an investment account. If debt is still a concern, create a plan to reduce your debt while also funding an investment portfolio. If you have a busy schedule, consider collaborating with an advisor who understands the unique challenges of your career an
Production 10com
Apr 253 min read
TAX PLANNING
TAX PLANNING CHECKLIST
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Tax Planning Checklist Review your last tax return. What is your marginal tax rate? Do you have carry-forward losses? What was the ratio of short-term to long-term capital gains realized? Analyze your tax return to identify strategies that might minimize your tax bill. Look for tax loss harvesting opportunities in your portfolio. Evaluate asset location to determine if all your holdings are in the appropriate accounts. Make sure to take the r
Production 10com
Apr 121 min read
UNDERSTANDING TAX PLANNING IN RETIREMENT
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® UNDERSTANDING TAX PLANNING IN RETIREMENT You may want to have a tax plan that starts with leveraging the difference between tax deferred, taxable, and tax-exempt accounts. You should be aware of the various strategies you can use to reduce your taxes. Finally, you should understand the power of tax advantaged accounts and how to manage the distributions from those accounts. Here, we will discuss each of these topics. Marginal Tax Rates Unders
Production 10com
Apr 123 min read
TAX STRATEGIES FOR RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS
TAX STRATEGIES FOR RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS Leveraging Tax-Advantaged Accounts The best ways to leverage tax-advantaged accounts are to start your contributions as early as possible, contribute as much as possible, and maintain an allocation that aligns with your goals while providing a comfortable level of risk for you. Qualified Charitable Distributions If you are charitably inclined and planning to take distributions from your IRA, consider a qualified charitable distribution (
Production 10com
Apr 123 min read
ESTATE PLANNING
ESTATE PLANNING CHECKLIST
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Estate Planning Checklist · Create a will or revocable trust. · Remember a revocable trust may allow you to avoid probate. · Review the beneficiaries of all your accounts to ensure they are up to date. · Take an inventory of all your assets and note how they are titled. · Determine whether you may be subject to federal and/or state estate taxes in the future. · Create and/or review your power of attorney (both financial and medical), living
Production 10com
Apr 241 min read
USING IRREVOCABLE TRUSTS TO LEVERAGE THE LIFETIME GIFT AND ESTATE TAX EXEMPTION
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Using Irrevocable Trusts to leverage the Lifetime Gift and Estate Tax Exemption Irrevocable trusts can potentially reduce estate taxes. Below is a list of trusts for your review.1,2,3,4 Consult an estate attorney to determine whether one of these is suitable for you. Grantor Retained Annuity Trust (GRAT): To potentially reduce taxes on distributions to family members. Irrevocable Life Insurance Trust (ILIT): Used for estate liquidity and remo
Production 10com
Apr 241 min read
THE IMPORTANCE OF ESTATE PLANNING
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® The Importance of Estate Planning Estate planning should be part of your retirement plan. A proper estate plan will help to make sure your assets are distributed based upon your wishes after your death. If you have a large estate, estate planning might also help you minimize estate taxes. Finally, estate planning can help you avoid probate, which is the process of reviewing and distributing your assets. Estate Planning Fundamentals Wills A
Production 10com
Apr 243 min read
PLANNING FOR WEALTH TRANSFER
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Planning for Wealth Transfers Family Meetings Annual family meetings are a great way to pass on your knowledge and values regarding wealth creation and protection. Consider using family meetings to teach younger family members about topics such as investments, taxes, financial planning, and which questions to ask advisors. Estate Liquidity You should be mindful of liquidity in your estate, especially if your estate has assets that are difficu
Production 10com
Apr 242 min read
STRATEGIES TO POTENTIONALLY REDUCE THE VALUE OF YOUR ESTATE
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Strategies To Potentially Reduce The Value Of Your Estate Gifting Gifting is another effective strategy to reduce the value of your estate and potential estate taxes. For example, you are allowed to give up to $18,000 a year (in 2024) to another person under the annual gift tax exclusion without reporting the gift to the IRS. If you are married, you are allowed to split your gift with your spouse, effectively doubling the amount you can give.
Production 10com
Apr 242 min read
RETIREMENT PLANNING
WHY RETIREMENT PLANNING MATTERS
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Why Retirement Planning Matters Retirement planning often feels like standing at the edge of an uncharted ocean. The idea of navigating financial security, investment choices, and lifestyle changes can be daunting. Whether you are already retired or approaching retirement, it is easy to feel overwhelmed by the sheer magnitude of what is needed for retirement. You probably have one or more of the following questions: How much will I need to re
Production 10com
Apr 252 min read
BUILDING A DIVERSIFIED PORTFOLIO
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Building a Diversified Portfolio Consider building a diversified portfolio to reduce risk and help balance returns. Be aware of how much of your portfolio is invested in a single asset class, strategy, or company. Consider how each asset class you own contributes to your portfolio. While over-allocating to an asset that has recently outperformed could provide short-term gains, you should consider what may happen if that asset suddenly starts
Production 10com
Apr 232 min read
ALTERNATIVE INVESTMENTS AND STRUCTURED NOTES
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Alternative Investments & Structured Notes There are other strategies available for you to consider, provided you meet the minimum suitability criteria. Many of these strategies are highly illiquid and/or hold more risk, so they tend to require a minimum net worth, among other factors, to be deemed suitable for you.1 These strategies include structured notes, hedge funds, private equity, private credit, real estate, and commodities. Structure
Production 10com
Apr 233 min read
TAX PLANNING CHECKLIST
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® Tax Planning Checklist Review your last tax return. What is your marginal tax rate? Do you have carry-forward losses? What was the ratio of short-term to long-term capital gains realized? Analyze your tax return to identify strategies that might minimize your tax bill. Look for tax loss harvesting opportunities in your portfolio. Evaluate asset location to determine if all your holdings are in the appropriate accounts. Make sure to take the r
Production 10com
Apr 121 min read
UNDERSTANDING TAX PLANNING IN RETIREMENT
By Louis Green, CFA®, CFP®, CRPS® UNDERSTANDING TAX PLANNING IN RETIREMENT You may want to have a tax plan that starts with leveraging the difference between tax deferred, taxable, and tax-exempt accounts. You should be aware of the various strategies you can use to reduce your taxes. Finally, you should understand the power of tax advantaged accounts and how to manage the distributions from those accounts. Here, we will discuss each of these topics. Marginal Tax Rates Unders
Production 10com
Apr 123 min read
TAX STRATEGIES FOR RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS
TAX STRATEGIES FOR RETIREMENT ACCOUNTS Leveraging Tax-Advantaged Accounts The best ways to leverage tax-advantaged accounts are to start your contributions as early as possible, contribute as much as possible, and maintain an allocation that aligns with your goals while providing a comfortable level of risk for you. Qualified Charitable Distributions If you are charitably inclined and planning to take distributions from your IRA, consider a qualified charitable distribution (
Production 10com
Apr 123 min read
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