The Season of Open Enrollment
While most of us are thinking of pumpkin spice, apple cider, leaf peeping, sweaters, Ugg® boots, and Halloween, we should not forget that many of us have an open enrollment period upon us. During this period, employees can enroll in any number of benefits offered through their employers. Did you know that according to the […]
Vishing: What is it & How to Protect Yourself
What is vishing? Also known as ‘voice phishing’, vishing is the fraudulent practice of making phone calls or leaving voice messages purporting to be from reputable institutions in order to convince individuals to reveal personal information. Vishing attacks are on the rise Scammers continue to find new ways to trick individuals into sharing personal […]
April Showers Bring May flowers: Save Now to Enjoy Later
By Andrew Baron, CFP®, EA The classic saying speaks of the beautiful flowers and warmer weather that follow the dreadful rainy season of April. Cultivating these flowers take time, but are worth the wait as a symbol of sunny warmer weather soon to come. Many of us have a similar outlook on saving, we […]
Saving Now to Plan for Later
By Amanda L. Herrick Smith, CFP® Have the holidays ever snuck up on you and you realized your bank account just cannot sustain the impact of gift giving? Up goes the credit card balances and in comes the final squeeze of the cash flow! Year after year I continued to see this ongoing pattern […]
Roth Conversion
By Todd Brost, CFP® History of the Roth IRA? It is named after the late U.S. Senator William V. Roth Jr., who was a WWII veteran, a lawyer, and the legislation’s sponsor. It was created by the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997. Contributions to Roth IRAs grew from $8.6 billion in 1998, to $605 […]
What Activities may Affect your Medicare Premiums Down the Road?
By: Lynda Tull, Associate Advisor Have you heard of the IRMAA in regards to your Medicare Part B and Part D premiums? Chances are, if you have then you likely are paying these extra surcharges. These “surcharges” or additional insurance premiums increase your regular Medicare premiums when your Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) on your […]
Protecting Your Retirement in Times of Crisis
By Peter Plevritis, Associate Advisor Is your retirement plan immune from the coronavirus? As coronavirus made waves in the news in late-February and early March that it was here in the United States, the stock market reacted. Since then, with glimmers of hope, we have seen a few bounces in the markets. This volatility […]
What do Medicare premiums and charitable giving have in common? One may be able to save you money on the other…
Updated August 3, 2022 By: Brandi Graham, CTFA, CFP®, Senior Advisor If you make gifts to charity and are required to take a required minimum distribution (RMD) from your individual retirement account (IRA), you may be able to reduce your Medicare premium. If you’re wondering what Medicare premiums and charitable giving have to do […]
Prior Income Determines your Medicare Premium
By: Lynda Tull, Associate Advsior Did you know that you may have to pay a higher premium for Medicare Part B and Medicare Part D based on a tax return from 2 years ago? Medicare Part B and Part D use a two-year clawback to determine premiums. The result is a surcharge, known as […]
The Real Cost of Not Enrolling in Medicare When Eligible
By: Lynda Tull, Associate Advisor Medicare is confusing. The main Medicare coverages are Medicare Part A, Medicare Part B, and Medicare Part D. On top of that, there are also optional Medicare supplement and advantage plans. To make things more confusing, you could get stuck with a late enrollment penalty for all your main […]