Should I convert to a Roth IRA?

Making News…

We  produce regular Q&A columns for Florida Today and MarketWatch, a personal finance website of the Wall Street Journal, as well as pieces for Financial Advisor magazine, the Journal of Financial Planning, and Nerd Wallet among others. Here is a sampling from the last three months.

Roth Conversions You Are Better Off Avoiding

Don’t Forfeit 50% of an Inherited Roth IRA to the IRS

Social Security Benefits From Former-Spouses

Be Wary of Step-Rate CDs

Why Most Indexed Annuities Stink

Ideas for saving for retirement

What Older Workers Can and Can’t Do With Their 401(k) Plans

 

In the News…

We also act as a source to many prominent media outlets, speak at and/or attend various conferences, and advocate for the development of financial planning as a profession.

Derrick Chandler, Mike Salmon, andCharlie Fitzgerald participated in the annual Orlando Sentinel “Ask An Expert” hotline.  Members of the Central Florida chapter of the Financial Planning Association manned the phones.

Ron Tamayo was named a NAPFA Registered Financial Advisor by the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors after passing a peer review of our planning processes.  NAPFA is the only professional association strictly for fee-only financial planners.  Ron will be our primary representative for our firm in the Orlando area.

“The longer you wait, the more you get from Social Security, but the more of your own money you have to spend in the meantime,” explained Dan Moisand  in a CNBC piece about the importance of creating a strategy for retirement as one approaches age 60.

 

News You Can Use

Last month we published a briefing about capital gain distributions from mutual funds. For the unwary, these distributions could reach a whopping 16-17% of a funds value according to Morningstar analyst Russ Kinnel in this Reuters piece on capital gain distributions.

At the end of each year a slew of inflation adjustments are announced by the government. Among them:

  • For 2015 Social Security benefits will see a 1.7% increase.
  • For retirement savings, the elective deferral (contribution) limit for employees who participate in 401(k), 403(b), most 457 plans, and the federal government’s Thrift Savings Plan is increased from $17,500 to $18,000. The catch-up contribution limit for employees aged 50 and over who participate in 401(k), 403(b), most 457 plans, and the federal government’s Thrift Savings Plan is increased from $5,500 to $6,000.
  • The limit on annual contributions to an Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA) remains unchanged at $5,500 as does the $1,000 additional catch-up contribution limit for individuals at least 50 years old.

 

 

Contact Us

If you have any questions or would like to discuss anything further, please give us a call or send us a note.

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