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Blog
How to Use a Trust as a Financial Planning Tool
Clients frequently ask whether they should leave their assets in a trust. It depends. Of course, if your net worth exceeds $11 million, putting your assets in specific types of trusts can be helpful for federal estate tax issues. However, for most Americans, federal estate taxes will not be a major concern.
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Abaris Financial Group’s Charitable Board: Who We Support and Why?
By Abbey L. Henderson, CFP®, RLP®, CPCC® Here at Abaris Financial Group, supporting our local community is one of our core values. We find that it draws our team closer together as it gets us talking about things that are important to us. We discover each other’s core values and what we want to do to make a difference, whether it’s volunteering our time or our money. That’s why our staff, friends and clients come together a couple of times a year to be part of the AFG Charitable Fund. We donate a total of $10,000 each year to local...read the full article
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How Your Employee Benefits Fit into Your Financial Plan
Your Health Savings Account (HSA) is a cornerstone of your benefits planning. The money is triple tax-advantaged – contributions, growth and withdrawals for qualified expenses are not taxed. This account is like nothing else, and you need to take full advantage of it.
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How to Talk Risk With Your Financial Advisor
By John Corron Risk. When you read that word do you get nervous? Maybe some of you get excited – ready to face it head-on. Or, some of you might be crying just thinking about it. Well, regardless of your feelings toward it – risk is everywhere. Risk manifests itself in the puddle your child mistakenly left on that bathroom floor, the smartphone screen of the person driving in your direction, the passion for thrill-seeking adventures and the uncertain ebbs and flows of business and the economy. Whether you’re dealing with physical, mental, spiritual or financial health, risk has a...read the full article
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How to Create Your Own Family Philanthropy Board and Have Fun Giving Together
By Abbey L. Henderson, CFP®, RLP®, CPCC® As we approach the end of the year, you may be considering where to allocate charitable giving donations. Have you ever considered getting your family involved in this decision? Working together on charitable giving is a way to cement your relationships and further your family’s story – your values and your vision. What I call a “family philanthropy board” can be a way to structure this, from the more formal (meetings, minutes, charter), to the informal yearly group conversation you have around the holidays. And just about anywhere in between! Let’s look at...read the full article
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How to Talk with Your Kids (and Yourself) about the College-Versus-Retirement Savings Dilemma
By Abbey L. Henderson, CFP®, RLP®, CPCC® If you have a teenager at home, you know the importance of good communication. There are so many issues that they have to contend with and they need your guidance and support. But too many parents shy away from talking about college financial planning. Parents often secretly worry about saving for college but often don’t voice these concerns with their children. Then when their child suddenly announces their plans to attend an expensive private university, the parents come to me in a panic. They want to help their child’s dreams come true. They’ve...read the full article
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5 Tips to Help Your Child Succeed in the College Athletic Recruiting Process
By Dave Galehouse Thousands of high school athletes aspire to play at the college level. Some have dreams of going pro one day, others are simply looking to play at smaller colleges in their state or region, or just trying to pay for school with an athletic scholarship. Whatever the dream or motivation behind it is, the college athletic recruiting process overwhelms a lot of families as they try to navigate the nearly two-thousand different schools at the NCAA, NAIA and NJCAA levels. Here are five tips to help prepare you and your student athlete in the process. 1. Balance...read the full article
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In the SECURE Act Era, You’ll Need a New Retirement Strategy. Roth Conversions Could Be It.
But when the SECURE Act goes into effect – expected on Jan. 1, 2020 – beneficiaries will have to fully distribute taxable accounts within 10 years of the account holder’s death. That could push your loved ones into a higher tax bracket.
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Yes, Social Security Income Is Taxable – But Yours Doesn’t Have To Be
As you move toward retirement, you can’t be content just to accumulate assets. You need to develop a retirement income plan that can help guide you when it comes time to turn savings into sustainable retirement income.
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A Simple 3-Step Process to Optimizing Your Budget
A Simple 3-Step Process to Optimizing Your Budget By Abbey L. Henderson, CFP®, RLP®, CPCC® Creating and optimizing your financial budget requires making some difficult decisions. In the years that I’ve spent as a financial life coach, time and again I’ve seen clients struggle with budget optimization. They often find it difficult to prioritize and cut out non-essential items. If this is your experience, I encourage you – do not give up! A budget is one of the most important things you can do for your financial plan as it gives you the financial direction you need to make everyday...read the full article
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