Change is inevitable. When those changes involve tax law, it is extremely important for clients to meet with their financial professional, tax advisor, and legal advisor to discuss any adjustments that may need to be made to their financial, retirement, or estate plan.
One change that is looming is the expiration of provisions that were passed under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA). Many of the provisions for individuals, including the higher estate tax exemption and the lower individual income tax brackets, were temporary and will expire (“sunset”) December 31, 2025 without further congressional action.
My guests today are two members of the MassMutual team. Lina Storm is the advanced sales & sales enablement marketing director dedicated to MassMutual’s Strategic Distribution team. Kathryn Wakefield is director of advanced sales at MassMutual.
Despite the Fed’s aggressive monetary tightening and the regional banking crisis earlier this year, the U.S. economy has been surprisingly resilient. Bond yields continue to rise, with long-term Treasuries at their highest level since October 2007.
With the Fed pausing rate hikes this month as announced this week, investors now look nervously toward October. While earlier this year markets were even considering the possibility of rate “cuts” this year, now further hikes may be in the cards.
Too many industry “experts” make value out to be much more elusive and complicated than it is.
Looking through the lens of ROL – return on life – are you focused on each client's quality of life or just the quantity of assets?
Industrial securities are unloved by financial advisors. However, it is the backbone of a relatively popular sector ETF and two relatively new thematic ETFs positioned to benefit from transformational changes. Perhaps they want to dive deeper into the fundamentals with us during the VettaFi Equity Symposium on September 21.
With actively managed ETFs, advisors and clients are willing to pay a premium relative to investing in an index-based approach. However, they want to be rewarded. In 2023, VettaFi is seeing this occur and is eager to share more about some of these active equity ETF strategies.
ESG has dominated advisors’ minds when it comes to looking at the current generation of young prospective clients. It remains a popular investment approach for millennial and Gen Z clients per surveys.
Factory order numbers had previously been a source of positivity for the U.S. economy. The tough turn for the economy should remind investors of active ETFs’ ability to respond to a market downturn.
I lost my dad, Alfred Munro Flaxington, this past weekend.
In this article, I shed light on 10 common pitfalls and provide strategies to avoid them, ultimately helping you add more value to your client relationships.
There’s no clearer way to say it. Leave these garbage phrases out of your marketing.
In an environment of pronounced volatility and less-than-certain equity and bond performance in the last few years, investors are leaning toward more complex strategies such as alternatives.
One of the hardest parts of planning for our loved ones with disabilities is getting started. It’s overwhelming. Thinking of who will care for your child when you or your partner cannot is not easy. While we realize no one will care for your child like you do, you need to plan for the day when you no longer can.
In this session, we talk about one tool that may help with some of the financial responsibilities for supporting your loved one while helping them stay qualified for means-tested benefits supplemental security income (SSI) and Medicaid. My guest will introduce the importance of planning ahead and maintaining eligibility for public benefits whether the family is wealthy or has limited means.
Active ETFs have had a really strong year so far in 2023, picking up advisor and investor interest. Even institutional investors have increasingly turned towards specialist, responsive management.
Dropping a 100-page financial plan in favor of a simplified one-page plan delivers massive value to clients and wins over prospects.
AI is a tool to elevate and redefine job duties. Here are strategies for how AI can augment the work of fiduciary advisors while helping them stay relevant and competitive.
Recently, I came across an example of something worse than having no will…
So-called “finfluencers” are preying on naïve investors, promising unrealistic returns while generating excessive commissions for themselves. Their bait is an indexed-universal life (IUL) policy. Read this to avoid making a costly mistake.
Let’s look at the keys to creating a successful podcast.
Todd Rosenbluth appeared on TD Ameritrade to discuss artificial intelligence in advance of VettaFi’s upcoming August 30th AI Symposium.
How do you cultivate a successful referral program?
VettaFi head of research Todd Rosenbluth appeared on Yahoo! Finance to discuss ETFs with unexpected demand — including AI-focused ETFs.
I’m having a hard time helping the senior advisor see that I have insights and ideas.
Advisors are increasingly turning to OCIOs to differentiate their firms, increase profitability and scale their businesses through gained efficiencies.
Many advisors are using longevity assumptions that are less conservative than they think.
Home Bias, Yield Hunters & Thematics - The Canadian Perspective. A conversation with Dave Nadig, Financial Futurist at VettaFi and Daniel Straus, MD, ETF Research & Strategy at National Bank Financial.
A professional advisor can craft a tailored, holistic financial plan that supports your needs, goals and intentions for the future.
Karthik Narayanan, Head of Securitized Credit for Guggenheim Investments, and Tom Nash, a director on our Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities (CMBS) sector team, join Macro Markets to discuss drivers of performance, current conditions in real estate, and where they are finding value in CMBS and in other types of structured credit.
Should you be concerned? How can you compete with “free”?
Tech giant Microsoft is on a mission to use technology to solve some of the world’s most pressing problems.
One of the hardest parts of economic forecasting is separating what we expect from what we want.
Tragically, the 75th anniversary of the UK’s National Health Service this week is less a cause for celebration and pride and more a grim reminder of the everyday reality of premature death.
“We do what we say and do the right thing, we have a service mindset.”
Done right, stories are a powerful marketing tool. Here’s how to tell a great one.
One crystal-clear pattern has emerged. Everyone wants real-world, specific examples of how AI can and can’t enter into an advisor’s, investor’s, or creator’s workflow.
Recruiting talent is a basic ingredient for business success. Companies that are more inclusive in their recruiting will discover better-qualified employees, which can bolster competitive advantages and help deliver better outcomes for investors.
State and local tax revenues sank in April, yet we believe most governments have strong fiscal positions, with ample reserves and budget flexibility to manage the decline.
Saving for college and other educational needs is one of the most pressing financial planning concerns. Investors are looking to their financial advisors for guidance. In this episode, we’re going to look at the role 529 plans play and why they’re so important in improving client outcomes and in supporting practice management.
My guest, Leslie Geller, will be talking about the expanded set of educational expenses 529 assets can fund, details of Capital Group’s CollegeAmerica savings plan – one of the largest in the country with approximately $80 billion in assets under management, as well as how Secure 2.0 has lowered barriers to opening and funding a 529.
Too many advisors jump into surge poorly prepared to deliver massive value to their clients. Here are five common mistakes and how to avoid them.
Tired of the AI hype yet? It’s OK, I understand. I’m tired of it too. The pace of human progress — and our insatiable need to be entertained by the shock of the new — seems to be forevermore in the “hockey stick” part of the growth curve.
While tuition is the main qualified expense you think of when you get a 529, there are other tangential education expenses that will also qualify.
529 plan benefits abound no matter which type of plan you choose. Read on to get a full understanding of what 529 plans can do for you.
Provisions of the SECURE Act may require advisors to revisit estate plans for clients who aren't utilizing their RMDs or who have qualified assets intended for the next generation. Some clients may benefit from strategies for using life insurance to maximize the value of qualified assets while minimizing their tax burden.
Stay informed and proactive to help clients meet their estate planning goals. Learn how to offset the taxes on qualified assets, structure investments for optimal distribution and navigate changes to inherited IRAs and new RMD requirements under the SECURE Act 2.0."
Without understanding people – how they think and act, and what they believe – you can’t effectively help them, no matter how good you are at planning or asset allocation.
A digital-marketing audit typically includes an analysis of the following elements.
Republican and White House negotiators are moving closer to an agreement to raise the debt limit and cap federal spending for two years, according to people familiar with the matter, as time grows short to avert a catastrophic US default.
AI’s arrival will have an increasingly large impact on our lives. That includes investing and, especially, other aspects of financial planning.
For this edition of Bull vs. Bear, James Comtois, and Elle Caruso discussed the pros and cons of using single-stock ETFs to express opinions on stock earnings.
As financial advisors and wealth managers, we want our ultra-high net worth clients to emulate the Rockefellers, not the Vanderbilts.
No one is bragging about the index fund they own to their friends.
Here’s what you can do to make your website compliant with the ADA and accessible to all.
Here’s why I started the Externship and why it matters.
Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s plan to link spending cuts to an increase in the US debt limit would result in fewer teachers and more expensive college educations, the Biden administration warned...
Many advisors today are helping clients with a broad range of their financial planning needs.
Charitable planning is an important topic to discuss with your clients, especially if they’re facing extraordinary taxable events this year. You can add value to your clients by sharing these tax-smart giving strategies for 2023.
The goal of marketing is to garner loyalty among existing clients while also attracting new ones to drive growth and profitability for your firm. To implement engaging messaging, follow these tips…
The 2023 T3/Inside Information Software Survey is now available. It’s the best guide to the 300+ fintech solutions in the marketplace, and a good buyer’s guide for advisory firms that are looking for additions or enhancements to their tech stack.
If a picture is worth a thousand words, this will be the “longest” letter I’ve sent you in a while, as there are quite a few pictures. It may also be the most wide-ranging.
If your clients still have jobs, this article will discuss what you can do to help them prepare for a possible layoff.
What can we, as advisors, do to promote healthy finances?
Let’s explore whether the CFP Board, the most powerful and prominent organization supporting the advisory profession, can do more to support the adoption of a full fiduciary standard. We’ll also ask whether the CFP Board actually owns the trademark for “certified financial planner,” as it claims.
There are several ways to include philanthropic giving in your estate plan. Here are five common options.
Like all trusts, a charitable trust is a legal entity that you create for the purpose of holding and managing assets. The trust is wholly separate from you. It owns any assets it holds, pays taxes and requires management just like any other legally recognized entity.
Changes for investors include RMD age increases, higher catch-up contribution limits and a new 529 transferal option.
Special needs trusts and ABLE accounts are the pillars of special needs funding. I have a professional here to discuss the differences between them and how each can be used to maximize financial resources. This includes protecting government benefits, understanding eligibility requirements, guidelines for use, and funding options. The discussion will explain how you can best support families to provide quality of life and a lifetime of care.
Behind the five-decade low US unemployment rate of 3.5% lies a 2.6 million-person mystery.
Advisors must redesign their entire approach, starting from the client's point of view.
Build your ladder with multiple target-maturity ETFs representing different segments of the bond market, with different target years.
Even after a year in which the vast majority of the wealthiest Americans lost a chunk of their fortunes — and in some cases, lost big — in at least one way, they’re still coming out ahead.
Here are nine tips that will help your family members stay healthy and financially secure as they age.
The economics teams looks back at the most significant stories we covered during 2022.
Here’s a breakdown of the pros and cons of trading in your traditional bank for a virtual banking experience.
One thing to consider when opening a 529 plan is whether it should be a custodial or individual account. While both allow you to save for college costs and enjoy some tax breaks, they differ in terms of who has control of the account and the assets in it.
Disabled workers are helping close the labor gap thanks to remote work.
Let’s look at the powerful feature set an advisory firm could put together from a collection of the higher-rated, low-market-share programs and solutions that I’ve collected from past surveys, many of which you may not even be aware of.
Here are three ways you can add value in the context of insurance issues.
If you aren’t willing to niche, at least decide whether you are trying to help your clients thrive or survive. Then build a message around one of those themes. Are you selling them life rafts (survive) or sailboats (thrive)?
Two aspects of the financial markets operate simultaneously. Emphatically, they do not operate alternately, but simultaneously. One aspect is driven entirely by arithmetic. Every security is a claim to some long-term stream of cash flows that will be delivered to the holder, or series of holders, over time.
Our annual ESG manager survey of active managers assesses the integration of ESG considerations in investment processes among equity, fixed income and private markets managers, and spotlights firmwide policies, use of data, engagement and integration.
My guest today will discuss how he works with UHNW/HNW individuals and families when it comes to charitable giving and meeting philanthropic needs. We will talk about the issues individuals should consider when making a gift of a business interest to a public charity. We will discuss the benefits for donors in making the decision to give a gift of a business interest to a public charity, the types of business interests that a donor may give to charity and the trends he’s seeing across his client base when it comes to charitable giving strategies such as this one.
The succession plans that come off with the fewest disruptions are those that are implemented over an extended period, especially when the successors are not family members.
Here are some suggestions to consider when remarrying.
I’d like to share an example of what happened when one of my clients chose the wrong provider.
There is an adage about three generations of wealth – the first generation makes it; the second generation maintains it and the third generation spends it.
There are no easy answers when it comes to caring for, educating, and supporting individuals with special needs. For long range-planning, families’ primary concerns include many issues:
Here to discuss those issues are two experts in the field of special-needs planning. They are part of a practice called the Special Needs Funding Coach, which is based in Red Bank, NJ.
Here are five steps female financial advisors should take when putting a continuity plan in place for their firm.
Let's break down four guaranteed approaches you can implement to improve your client experience and increase your prospect conversions by creating exclusivity, setting client expectations from the beginning, sticking to your process of success, and practicing your interactions.
Today I want to talk about why the labor market is so out of balance. Some of this is new and some has been brewing for many years. We will end with some commentary on yesterday’s unemployment report.
Special Needs Financial Planning
Preparing for the Sunset of the TCJA Tax Relief
Change is inevitable. When those changes involve tax law, it is extremely important for clients to meet with their financial professional, tax advisor, and legal advisor to discuss any adjustments that may need to be made to their financial, retirement, or estate plan.
Preparing for the Sunset of the TCJA Tax Relief
Change is inevitable. When those changes involve tax law, it is extremely important for clients to meet with their financial professional, tax advisor, and legal advisor to discuss any adjustments that may need to be made to their financial, retirement, or estate plan.
One change that is looming is the expiration of provisions that were passed under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA). Many of the provisions for individuals, including the higher estate tax exemption and the lower individual income tax brackets, were temporary and will expire (“sunset”) December 31, 2025 without further congressional action.
My guests today are two members of the MassMutual team. Lina Storm is the advanced sales & sales enablement marketing director dedicated to MassMutual’s Strategic Distribution team. Kathryn Wakefield is director of advanced sales at MassMutual.
Bond Yields Keep Rising as Economy Remains Resilient
Despite the Fed’s aggressive monetary tightening and the regional banking crisis earlier this year, the U.S. economy has been surprisingly resilient. Bond yields continue to rise, with long-term Treasuries at their highest level since October 2007.
How Active ETFs Can Respond to Rising Rates
With the Fed pausing rate hikes this month as announced this week, investors now look nervously toward October. While earlier this year markets were even considering the possibility of rate “cuts” this year, now further hikes may be in the cards.
How to Uncover Your Clients’ Definition of Value
Too many industry “experts” make value out to be much more elusive and complicated than it is.
How to Increase your Clients’ Return on Life
Looking through the lens of ROL – return on life – are you focused on each client's quality of life or just the quantity of assets?
How Thematic ETFs Differ From Sector Funds
Industrial securities are unloved by financial advisors. However, it is the backbone of a relatively popular sector ETF and two relatively new thematic ETFs positioned to benefit from transformational changes. Perhaps they want to dive deeper into the fundamentals with us during the VettaFi Equity Symposium on September 21.
Successful Active Equity ETF Managers to Answer Questions
With actively managed ETFs, advisors and clients are willing to pay a premium relative to investing in an index-based approach. However, they want to be rewarded. In 2023, VettaFi is seeing this occur and is eager to share more about some of these active equity ETF strategies.
Gen Z Clients: The Active ETF Investing Generation?
ESG has dominated advisors’ minds when it comes to looking at the current generation of young prospective clients. It remains a popular investment approach for millennial and Gen Z clients per surveys.
As U.S. Stocks Drop on Bad Data, Eye Active ETFs
Factory order numbers had previously been a source of positivity for the U.S. economy. The tough turn for the economy should remind investors of active ETFs’ ability to respond to a market downturn.
In Memory of My Dad, Alfred Munro Flaxington
I lost my dad, Alfred Munro Flaxington, this past weekend.
10 Medicare Mistakes Financial Advisors
In this article, I shed light on 10 common pitfalls and provide strategies to avoid them, ultimately helping you add more value to your client relationships.
Six Things Advisors Should Never Say
There’s no clearer way to say it. Leave these garbage phrases out of your marketing.
An Advisor’s Guide to Demystifying Managed Futures
In an environment of pronounced volatility and less-than-certain equity and bond performance in the last few years, investors are leaning toward more complex strategies such as alternatives.
ABLE Accounts for the Disability Community
One of the hardest parts of planning for our loved ones with disabilities is getting started. It’s overwhelming. Thinking of who will care for your child when you or your partner cannot is not easy. While we realize no one will care for your child like you do, you need to plan for the day when you no longer can.
In this session, we talk about one tool that may help with some of the financial responsibilities for supporting your loved one while helping them stay qualified for means-tested benefits supplemental security income (SSI) and Medicaid. My guest will introduce the importance of planning ahead and maintaining eligibility for public benefits whether the family is wealthy or has limited means.
Survey: Active ETFs Eating Into Mutual Funds
Active ETFs have had a really strong year so far in 2023, picking up advisor and investor interest. Even institutional investors have increasingly turned towards specialist, responsive management.
To Deliver More Value, Simplify Your Financial Plans
Dropping a 100-page financial plan in favor of a simplified one-page plan delivers massive value to clients and wins over prospects.
The Evolving Dance of AI and Financial Advisors
AI is a tool to elevate and redefine job duties. Here are strategies for how AI can augment the work of fiduciary advisors while helping them stay relevant and competitive.
What's Worse Than Having No Will? Ask Aretha Franklin’s Family
Recently, I came across an example of something worse than having no will…
Don’t Buy an Indexed-Universal Life Policy Until You Read This
So-called “finfluencers” are preying on naïve investors, promising unrealistic returns while generating excessive commissions for themselves. Their bait is an indexed-universal life (IUL) policy. Read this to avoid making a costly mistake.
A Sound Idea: Use a Podcast to Build Your Business
Let’s look at the keys to creating a successful podcast.
Rosenbluth Digs Into the Types of AI Funds of TD Ameritrade
Todd Rosenbluth appeared on TD Ameritrade to discuss artificial intelligence in advance of VettaFi’s upcoming August 30th AI Symposium.
How to Grow Your Firm Through Referrals
How do you cultivate a successful referral program?
Rosenbluth Discusses AI and More on Yahoo! Finance
VettaFi head of research Todd Rosenbluth appeared on Yahoo! Finance to discuss ETFs with unexpected demand — including AI-focused ETFs.
How Can I Make a Suggestion Without Getting Shut Down?
I’m having a hard time helping the senior advisor see that I have insights and ideas.
Partnering With an Insourced CIO Can Serve as a Launchpad for Growth
Advisors are increasingly turning to OCIOs to differentiate their firms, increase profitability and scale their businesses through gained efficiencies.
You Are Underestimating Longevity… and How Uncertain It Is
Many advisors are using longevity assumptions that are less conservative than they think.
VettaFi Viewpoints: Nadig & Straus Talk Canadian vs. U.S. ETFs
Home Bias, Yield Hunters & Thematics - The Canadian Perspective. A conversation with Dave Nadig, Financial Futurist at VettaFi and Daniel Straus, MD, ETF Research & Strategy at National Bank Financial.
Why Work With a Financial Advisor?
A professional advisor can craft a tailored, holistic financial plan that supports your needs, goals and intentions for the future.
Macro Markets Podcast Episode 38: Value and Nuance in CMBS
Karthik Narayanan, Head of Securitized Credit for Guggenheim Investments, and Tom Nash, a director on our Commercial Mortgage-Backed Securities (CMBS) sector team, join Macro Markets to discuss drivers of performance, current conditions in real estate, and where they are finding value in CMBS and in other types of structured credit.
The Threat from Schwab’s “Free” Advisory Service
Should you be concerned? How can you compete with “free”?
Spotlight Microsoft: A Symphony of Innovation
Tech giant Microsoft is on a mission to use technology to solve some of the world’s most pressing problems.
Muddled Optimism
One of the hardest parts of economic forecasting is separating what we expect from what we want.
A Death Letter to Loved Ones Makes Financial Sense
Tragically, the 75th anniversary of the UK’s National Health Service this week is less a cause for celebration and pride and more a grim reminder of the everyday reality of premature death.
A Service Mindset
“We do what we say and do the right thing, we have a service mindset.”
How to Tell a Great Story
Done right, stories are a powerful marketing tool. Here’s how to tell a great one.
ChatGPT for Finance: Promise and Peril
One crystal-clear pattern has emerged. Everyone wants real-world, specific examples of how AI can and can’t enter into an advisor’s, investor’s, or creator’s workflow.
Help Wanted: Why Smart Companies Recruit for Diversity
Recruiting talent is a basic ingredient for business success. Companies that are more inclusive in their recruiting will discover better-qualified employees, which can bolster competitive advantages and help deliver better outcomes for investors.
Municipal Credit Conditions Have Peaked, but Fundamentals Remain Strong
State and local tax revenues sank in April, yet we believe most governments have strong fiscal positions, with ample reserves and budget flexibility to manage the decline.
The Hidden Benefits of 529 Plans
Saving for college and other educational needs is one of the most pressing financial planning concerns. Investors are looking to their financial advisors for guidance. In this episode, we’re going to look at the role 529 plans play and why they’re so important in improving client outcomes and in supporting practice management.
My guest, Leslie Geller, will be talking about the expanded set of educational expenses 529 assets can fund, details of Capital Group’s CollegeAmerica savings plan – one of the largest in the country with approximately $80 billion in assets under management, as well as how Secure 2.0 has lowered barriers to opening and funding a 529.
The Top Five Mistakes Advisors Make in Surge Meetings
Too many advisors jump into surge poorly prepared to deliver massive value to their clients. Here are five common mistakes and how to avoid them.
Future of Finance: 5 Hard Truths About How AI Impacts the Real World
Tired of the AI hype yet? It’s OK, I understand. I’m tired of it too. The pace of human progress — and our insatiable need to be entertained by the shock of the new — seems to be forevermore in the “hockey stick” part of the growth curve.
What are 529 Plan Qualified Expenses?
While tuition is the main qualified expense you think of when you get a 529, there are other tangential education expenses that will also qualify.
A Primer on 529 Plan Benefits
529 plan benefits abound no matter which type of plan you choose. Read on to get a full understanding of what 529 plans can do for you.
Ensure your Clients' Estate Plans are SECURE
Provisions of the SECURE Act may require advisors to revisit estate plans for clients who aren't utilizing their RMDs or who have qualified assets intended for the next generation. Some clients may benefit from strategies for using life insurance to maximize the value of qualified assets while minimizing their tax burden.
Stay informed and proactive to help clients meet their estate planning goals. Learn how to offset the taxes on qualified assets, structure investments for optimal distribution and navigate changes to inherited IRAs and new RMD requirements under the SECURE Act 2.0."
How to Incorporate Behavioral Factors into Planning Discussions
Without understanding people – how they think and act, and what they believe – you can’t effectively help them, no matter how good you are at planning or asset allocation.
How a Marketing Audit Works
A digital-marketing audit typically includes an analysis of the following elements.
Emerging US Debt Deal Would Raise Limit, Cap Spending for Two Years
Republican and White House negotiators are moving closer to an agreement to raise the debt limit and cap federal spending for two years, according to people familiar with the matter, as time grows short to avert a catastrophic US default.
Imagine Financial Planning 2030
AI’s arrival will have an increasingly large impact on our lives. That includes investing and, especially, other aspects of financial planning.
Bull vs. Bear: Playing Earnings Season With Single-Stock ETFs
For this edition of Bull vs. Bear, James Comtois, and Elle Caruso discussed the pros and cons of using single-stock ETFs to express opinions on stock earnings.
Be a Rockefeller, Not a Vanderbilt
As financial advisors and wealth managers, we want our ultra-high net worth clients to emulate the Rockefellers, not the Vanderbilts.
Why Clients are Attracted to Complex Investments
No one is bragging about the index fund they own to their friends.
Tips to Make Your Site ADA Compliant
Here’s what you can do to make your website compliant with the ADA and accessible to all.
The Future of the Externship Program
Here’s why I started the Externship and why it matters.
McCarthy’s Debt-Limit Plan Would Slash Education, Biden Administration Says
Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s plan to link spending cuts to an increase in the US debt limit would result in fewer teachers and more expensive college educations, the Biden administration warned...
Tax Planning for High-Net-Worth Individuals: Avoiding Collateral Damage
Many advisors today are helping clients with a broad range of their financial planning needs.
12 Tax-Smart Charitable Giving Tips for 2023
Charitable planning is an important topic to discuss with your clients, especially if they’re facing extraordinary taxable events this year. You can add value to your clients by sharing these tax-smart giving strategies for 2023.
How to Reach Ideal Clients Through Engaging Messaging
The goal of marketing is to garner loyalty among existing clients while also attracting new ones to drive growth and profitability for your firm. To implement engaging messaging, follow these tips…
Some Observations from This Year’s Survey of the Fintech Landscape
The 2023 T3/Inside Information Software Survey is now available. It’s the best guide to the 300+ fintech solutions in the marketplace, and a good buyer’s guide for advisory firms that are looking for additions or enhancements to their tech stack.
Thousand-Word Equivalents
If a picture is worth a thousand words, this will be the “longest” letter I’ve sent you in a while, as there are quite a few pictures. It may also be the most wide-ranging.
How to Help Those on Work Visas Prepare for a Layoff
If your clients still have jobs, this article will discuss what you can do to help them prepare for a possible layoff.
Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Financial Wellness
What can we, as advisors, do to promote healthy finances?
The CFP Board and its Support for the Fiduciary Standard
Let’s explore whether the CFP Board, the most powerful and prominent organization supporting the advisory profession, can do more to support the adoption of a full fiduciary standard. We’ll also ask whether the CFP Board actually owns the trademark for “certified financial planner,” as it claims.
Using Philanthropic Giving in Your Estate Plan
There are several ways to include philanthropic giving in your estate plan. Here are five common options.
How a Charitable Trust Works
Like all trusts, a charitable trust is a legal entity that you create for the purpose of holding and managing assets. The trust is wholly separate from you. It owns any assets it holds, pays taxes and requires management just like any other legally recognized entity.
Review Key Takeaways of the Secure Act 2.0
Changes for investors include RMD age increases, higher catch-up contribution limits and a new 529 transferal option.
Funding Special Needs Clients with ABLE Accounts
Special needs trusts and ABLE accounts are the pillars of special needs funding. I have a professional here to discuss the differences between them and how each can be used to maximize financial resources. This includes protecting government benefits, understanding eligibility requirements, guidelines for use, and funding options. The discussion will explain how you can best support families to provide quality of life and a lifetime of care.
Job Market's 2.6 Million Missing People Unnerves Star Harvard Economist
Behind the five-decade low US unemployment rate of 3.5% lies a 2.6 million-person mystery.
To Deliver a Transformative Experience Think Like a Client
Advisors must redesign their entire approach, starting from the client's point of view.
How to Build a Bond Ladder Using ETFs
Build your ladder with multiple target-maturity ETFs representing different segments of the bond market, with different target years.
Inflation Reset Lets Wealthy Americans Give Heirs Even More Tax-Free
Even after a year in which the vast majority of the wealthiest Americans lost a chunk of their fortunes — and in some cases, lost big — in at least one way, they’re still coming out ahead.
Talking with Aging Parents about Health and Wealth
Here are nine tips that will help your family members stay healthy and financially secure as they age.
Themes From A Busy Year
The economics teams looks back at the most significant stories we covered during 2022.
Online Banks versus Traditional Banks: Which Is Best for Your Clients?
Here’s a breakdown of the pros and cons of trading in your traditional bank for a virtual banking experience.
529 Plans: Custodial versus Individual
One thing to consider when opening a 529 plan is whether it should be a custodial or individual account. While both allow you to save for college costs and enjoy some tax breaks, they differ in terms of who has control of the account and the assets in it.
Flexible Work Helps Disabled Workers
Disabled workers are helping close the labor gap thanks to remote work.
The Alternative Tech Stack
Let’s look at the powerful feature set an advisory firm could put together from a collection of the higher-rated, low-market-share programs and solutions that I’ve collected from past surveys, many of which you may not even be aware of.
Three Insurance Tips That Add Value
Here are three ways you can add value in the context of insurance issues.
Are You Selling Life Rafts or Sailboats?
If you aren’t willing to niche, at least decide whether you are trying to help your clients thrive or survive. Then build a message around one of those themes. Are you selling them life rafts (survive) or sailboats (thrive)?
Weighing Machine, Voting Machine
Two aspects of the financial markets operate simultaneously. Emphatically, they do not operate alternately, but simultaneously. One aspect is driven entirely by arithmetic. Every security is a claim to some long-term stream of cash flows that will be delivered to the holder, or series of holders, over time.
2022 Annual ESG Survey: The ESG Journey Accelerates
Our annual ESG manager survey of active managers assesses the integration of ESG considerations in investment processes among equity, fixed income and private markets managers, and spotlights firmwide policies, use of data, engagement and integration.
Gifting Strategies for HNW and UHNW Clients
My guest today will discuss how he works with UHNW/HNW individuals and families when it comes to charitable giving and meeting philanthropic needs. We will talk about the issues individuals should consider when making a gift of a business interest to a public charity. We will discuss the benefits for donors in making the decision to give a gift of a business interest to a public charity, the types of business interests that a donor may give to charity and the trends he’s seeing across his client base when it comes to charitable giving strategies such as this one.
The Dangerous Gap in Succession Planning
The succession plans that come off with the fewest disruptions are those that are implemented over an extended period, especially when the successors are not family members.
Financial Tips for Couples Getting Remarried in their Retirement
Here are some suggestions to consider when remarrying.
How to Interview IT Providers
I’d like to share an example of what happened when one of my clients chose the wrong provider.
The Challenges of Family Wealth Preservation
There is an adage about three generations of wealth – the first generation makes it; the second generation maintains it and the third generation spends it.
The Keys to Special-Needs Planning
There are no easy answers when it comes to caring for, educating, and supporting individuals with special needs. For long range-planning, families’ primary concerns include many issues:
Here to discuss those issues are two experts in the field of special-needs planning. They are part of a practice called the Special Needs Funding Coach, which is based in Red Bank, NJ.
Continuity Planning for Female Advisors
Here are five steps female financial advisors should take when putting a continuity plan in place for their firm.
Four Guaranteed Ways to Improve Your Client Experience
Let's break down four guaranteed approaches you can implement to improve your client experience and increase your prospect conversions by creating exclusivity, setting client expectations from the beginning, sticking to your process of success, and practicing your interactions.
Where Are the Workers?
Today I want to talk about why the labor market is so out of balance. Some of this is new and some has been brewing for many years. We will end with some commentary on yesterday’s unemployment report.