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^{By: Susan Powers}

I recently hosted an evening with friends, food and wine where we discussed the current state of markets, the unique needs of women investors and the importance of aligning your investments with your goals.

The audience was diverse: single, married, small business owners, contractors working from home and retirees.  Their perspectives and questions were equally diverse.

^{By: Patrick Cote}

That time of year again!  While we are in the midst of holiday season, the last thing many of us want to do is sit down and think about taxes.  However, taking a few minutes to focus on some specific areas can make a big difference.

With that in mind, we prepared a list of 10 key items to focus on before 12/31:

1.  Donate appreciated assets

^{By: Kate Hennessy}

During this time of year, I think about how grateful I am to have a healthy family.  Although our household is hectic, with two young children and a playful puppy, I don’t take our health for granted.  While our family makes donations to charitable organizations throughout the year, we tend to donate more of our time and money towards the end of the year.  This year our focus will be on charities that provide healthcare and education for children.

It’s a great question.   Cash balance plans continue to be the faste

^{By: Patrick Cote}

If you are a small business owner making $400K - $600K, there is a large potential tax savings that you have likely not heard about.  It involves combining the new 20% QBI deduction with a cash balance/defined benefit plan.

Last week I hosted a gathering of clients and friends to talk about the process of a year end check up. I know, you’re probably thinking more about football, weekend gatherings and getting ready for the holidays, and so were they. But a little time invested now, can payoff in multiple ways. 

3 Key Takeaways:

^{By: Kate Hennessy}

College is one of life’s most important – and expensive investment goals. As a parent of two grade school kids, I know that their heading to college will be here faster than I think it will be. With most pre-college children heading back to school this month, we thought it would be appropriate to talk about pre-paying for one of life’s biggest expenses… college. In this article we talk about the importance of understanding the costs of college, what to expect from financial aid, and how to make the most of your tax-advantaged 529 plans.

9/24/2019 - originally aired on Sirius XM Channel 132, Business Radio Powered by the Wharton School

Mortgage rates are the lowest they have been since 2016 and applications to refinance are up.  The national average for a 30 year fixed mortgage has fallen to 3.6% as of August 14, 2019, down almost 1% from the average rate of 4.54% in 2018.  A good rule of thumb – refinancing makes sense if rates are at least ½% to 1% lower than your current rate.  If your current rate is more than 4.375%, and it likely is if you purchased your house in the last 3 years, you may be a prime candidate to benefit from refinancing.

The topic of being a fiduciary came up again with a recent SEC ruling.  Fiduciaries are legally required to act in their clients’ best interests.  One would think that anyone calling themselves a financial advisor would be a fiduciary, however, that is not the case.

As I get older, I’ve become more curious about Social Security.  I’m in my mid 40s and I have been paying into the system since high school. Hopefully, I’m 20+ years out from claiming benefits but  given how fast life goes by, it’s never too early to start thinking about and planning for Social Security. It’s a topic that many people shy away from, but in planning for your financial future, it’s an income stream that needs to be accounted for in a financial plan.

To kick off our series of articles on this topic, I am starting with 5 myths about Social Security: