Articles

Estates & Trusts

• What Key Estate Planning Tools Should I Know About?

  Wills and trusts allow you to spell out how you would like your property distributed, but they also go beyond that.

• How Can a Living Trust Help Me Control My Estate?

  A living trust can help control the distribution of your estate upon death.

• What Gifting Strategies Are Available to Me?

  Compare the advantages and disadvantages of different gifting strategies available for planned giving.

Retirement

• Why Do People Buy Annuities?

  Annuities, an insurance-based financial vehicle, can provide many benefits that retirement investors might want.

• Unforgettable Birthdays

  There are key dates after you turn 59½ that can impact your taxes, Medicare eligibility, and retirement benefits.

• What Are My Retirement Planning Options?

  There are a variety of retirement planning options that could help meet your needs. Here are some of the most popular.

• Will Social Security Retire Before You Do?

  Greater demand is being placed on the Social Security system as the baby boom generation has begun to retire.

• What Is a Self-Employed Retirement Plan?

  Tax-deferred retirement plans for self-employed individuals have higher contribution limits than IRAs.

• What Is a 401(k) Plan?

  401(k) employer-sponsored retirement plans have many benefits, including that the funds accumulate tax-deferred.

Tax Planning

• What Is the Estate Tax?

  Everything you own, whatever the form of ownership, is subject to federal, and possibly state, estate taxes.

• What Is Tax Deferral?

  There can be a substantial benefit to deferring taxes as long as possible.

• How Can I Benefit from Tax-Advantaged Investments?

  Many traditional tax-advantaged investment strategies have gone away, but there are still some alternatives.

• Is There Such a Thing as a Tax-Free Investment?

  It's important to understand tax-exempt vehicles when establishing a comprehensive tax planning strategy.

Investing

• What Is Stock?

  Before investing in stocks, it is important to understand some of the basics and the risks involved in owning stocks.

• What Is Diversification?

  An important element to successful investing is to manage investment risk while maintaining the potential for growth.

• What Is a Bond?

  A bond is simply evidence of a debt from a government entity or a corporation and represents a long-term IOU.

• What Is a Mutual Fund?

  A mutual fund is a collection of stocks, bonds, and other securities with certain benefits and risks.

• 529 Lesson Plan: High Scores for 529 Plans

  529 plans are tax-advantaged savings plans that generally allow people of any income level to contribute.

Risk Management

• What Is Term Life Insurance?

  Term life insurance differs from permanent forms of life insurance in that it offers temporary protection.

• What Is Whole Life Insurance?

  Some of the pros and cons of whole life insurance.

• What Are the Main Types of Auto Insurance?

  Even if your state doesn’t require certain types of auto insurance, it may be wise to purchase multiple types to ensure you are covered for a variety of situations.

• How Can I Maximize My Insurance Benefits?

  Several factors could undermine the financial security provided by the proceeds of your life insurance policy.