Blog
Do you have a lot of questions when it comes investing or financial planning? You can read about all of these topics on our blog. Whether it’s ideas from the industry or emerging trends or important news, you can read about it here. So keep checking in. We’re glad to have you reading along.
When Life Insurance Becomes Taxable
In 1900, the average life expectancy of a newborn was only 32 years old. By 2025, that number more than doubled to 73 years, and the trend is expected to continue.1,2Living this long may have unexpected tax consequences. Here’s why...
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How Often Should You Update Your Estate Strategy?
Once an estate strategy is in place, it should only require periodic reviews to check that it still reflects your wishes. However, life events such as marriage, divorce, births, deaths, relocations, health changes, business sales, and...
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Four Steps to Valuing an Estate
Determining the value of an estate is a fundamental first step in estate management and a critical requirement for settling a decedent’s estate.1How to Assess the Value of an EstateSelect the date of calculation. Because values move up...
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Deciding When to Take Social Security
One of the most common questions people ask about Social Security is when they should start taking benefits. Making the right decision for you can have a meaningful impact on your financial income in retirement.Before considering how...
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Conquering Retirement Challenges for Women
When it comes to retirement, women may face unique obstacles that can make saving for retirement more challenging. Given that women typically live longer than men, retirement money for women may need to stretch even further.1Despite...
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Thank You from Boys & Girls Club of Burbank and Greater East Valley
Boys & Girls Club of Burbank and Greater East Valley
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Year-End Planning & Wealth-Building Strategies
Your peak earning years bring with them a powerful opportunity: the chance to build real financial momentum. But that momentum doesn’t come from income alone. It also comes from planning, strategic guidance, and informed decision...
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Year-End Charitable Gifting and You
Are you making charitable donations at year's end? If so, you should know about some of the financial "fine print" involved, as the right moves could potentially bring more of a benefit to both you and your chosen charity. Keep in mind...
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What Can You Buy With 529 Distributions?
Some of the biggest challenges many face when it comes to education are financial. Luckily, a 529 college saving plan can help. And they're not just for college anymore - added to the tuition eligibility are K-12, private and religious...
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Strategic Year-End Planning for a Strong Retirement
As the year comes to a close, it’s an ideal time to assess your financial situation and make adjustments for a strong transition into the next phase, especially as you approach retirement. This article will guide you through key...
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Maximize Retirement with Year-End Financial Moves
As the year comes to a close, it’s an ideal time to assess your financial situation and make adjustments for a strong transition into the next phase, especially as you approach retirement. This article will guide you through key...
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Preserve, Grow, and Give: Year-End Wealth Planning
Year-end planning can help you to make deliberate, strategic moves that preserve your wealth, optimize your tax exposure, and create a lasting legacy. Whether you are preserving wealth for the future, growing your investments, or...
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A Decision Not Made Is Still a Decision
Whether through inertia or trepidation, investors who put off important investment decisions might consider the admonition offered by motivational speaker Brian Tracy, "Almost any decision is better than no decision at all." This...
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Immediate vs. Deferred Annuities
Despite not being as well known as some other retirement tools, annuities account for 6.5% of all assets earmarked for retirement. With about $2.2 trillion in assets, annuities hold more funds than Roth IRAs.1 An annuity is a contract...
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Making Sense of HSAs and FSAs
With family health insurance premiums rising 297 percent since 2000, averaging over $25,000 annually, some employees feel the squeeze. Deductibles, too, have jumped nearly 50 percent over the last decade, further increasing...
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How Will Working Affect Social Security Benefits?
In a recent survey, 75% of current workers stated they plan to work for pay after retiring.1 And that possibility raises an interesting question: how will working affect Social Security benefits? The answer to that question requires an...
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It Was the Best of Times, It Was the Worst of Times
Key Takeaways Diversification can help manage investment risk, but it doesn't eliminate it. The "don't put all your eggs in one basket" approach may help reduce pressure when certain asset classes experience volatility. Asset...
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Asset Allocation
If you live in or have visited a big city, you’ve probably run into street vendors – people who sell everything from hot dogs to umbrellas – on the streets and sidewalks. Many of these entrepreneurs sell completely unrelated products,...
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All Muni Bonds Are Not Created Equal
The city of Detroit emerged from bankruptcy in 2014. Still, its previous inability to pay investors left some questioning their long-held assumption about the relative safety of municipal bonds. Without question, in the wake of...
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A Taxing Story: Capital Gains and Losses
Chris Rock once remarked, “You don’t pay taxes – they take taxes.” That applies not only to income but also to capital gains. Capital gains result when an individual sells an investment for an amount greater than their purchase price....
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A Home Insurance Claim: To File Or Not To File
Insurance is meant to protect you against financial loss. But is it really meant to protect you from any and all financial loss? When it comes to filing a loss claim on your home insurance, there may be times when not filing may be the...
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Deciding When to Take Social Security
One of the most common questions people ask about Social Security is when they should start taking benefits. Making the right decision for you can have a meaningful impact on your financial income in retirement. Before considering how...
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A Living Trust Primer
A living trust is a popular consideration in many estate strategy conversations, but its appropriateness will depend upon your individual needs and objectives. What is a Living Trust?A living trust is created while you are alive and...
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A Bucket Plan to Go with Your Bucket List
John and Mary are nearing retirement and they have a lot of items on their bucket list. Longer life expectancies mean John and Mary may need to prepare for two or even three decades of retirement. How should they position their money?1...
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Saving to Spending: Build a Tax-Smart Withdrawal Strategy
As you near retirement, it’s time to start thinking about the next chapter of your financial journey. After years of saving and investing, shifting from accumulation to spending can feel uncomfortable. A well-planned, tax-efficient...
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Keep More, Grow More: 5 Tax-Efficient Investment Strategies
As you build and manage your wealth, you may find yourself seeking ways to optimize your investment returns while minimizing your tax burden. By understanding how to build a tax-efficient investment strategy, you can make an effort to...
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How the SECURE Act 2.0 Changed RMDs
In the final days of 2022, Congress passed the SECURE Act 2.0, a new set of rules designed to help investors who wanted to contribute to retirement plans. Many of these changes were intended to give investors more flexibility and new...
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Can I Create a Roth if I’m Over the Income Limit?
Yes, you might be able to create a Roth individual retirement account (IRA) if you’re over the income limit. This strategy involves converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. The idea, often referred to as a “backdoor Roth conversion...
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New Retirement Contribution Limits for 2025
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has released new limits for certain retirement accounts for the coming year. Keep in mind that this update is for informational purposes only, so please consult with an accounting or tax professional...
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CFS is Proud to Support The Boys and Girls Club
The Boys & Girls Club of Burbank and Greater East Valley would like to express our deepest gratitude to Anna Luke CFP® and Comprehensive Financial Services (CFS) for once again hosting their incredible annual toy drive. This wonderful...
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What Can You Buy With 529 Distributions?
Some of the biggest challenges many face when it comes to education are financial. Luckily, a 529 college saving plan can help. And they're not just for college anymore - added to the tuition eligibility are K-12, private and religious...
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What If You Get Audited?
“Audit” is a word that can strike fear into the hearts of taxpayers. However, the chances of an Internal Revenue Service audit aren’t that high. Between 2010 and 2020, the IRS only audited 0.49% of all individual tax returns.1 And...
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Understanding Marginal Income Tax Brackets
By any measure, the tax code is huge. It is over 2,000 pages long, and even longer with footnotes.1 And almost weekly, the Internal Revenue Service publishes a 10- to 50-page bulletin about various aspects of the tax code.2 Fortunately...
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IRA Withdrawals That Escape The 10% Tax Penalty
The reason withdrawals from a Traditional Individual Retirement Account (IRA) prior to age 59½ are generally subject to a 10% tax penalty is that policymakers wanted to create a disincentive to use these savings for anything other than...
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How Retirement Spending Changes With Time
New retirees sometimes worry that they are spending too much, too soon. Should they scale back? Are they at risk of outliving their money? This concern may be legitimate. Some households "live it up" and spend more than they anticipate...
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Understanding Money Market Funds
A money market fund, not to be confused with a money market account, is a type of mutual fund that invests in instruments like cash equivalents and short-term debt-based securities, which can also include U.S. Treasury Bonds.1 Safety...
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Catch-Up Contributions
A recent survey found that 18% of workers are very confident about having enough money to live comfortably through their retirement years. At the same time, 36% are not confident.1 In 2001 congress passed a law that can help older...
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Choices For Your 401(K) At A Former Employer
One of the common threads of a mobile workforce is that many individuals who leave their job are faced with a decision about what to do with their 401(k) account.¹ Individuals have four choices with the 401(k) account they accrued at...
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Do You Owe The AMT?
American educational reformer Horace Mann called education “the great equalizer.” In football, it’s been said that turnovers are the great equalizer. In taxes, there’s also an equalizer of sorts; it’s called the alternative minimum tax...
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Roth IRA For Kids
Small business owners may find it challenging to find ways to provide additional benefits to their children who work for the company. One often overlooked choice is including a Roth individual retirement account (IRA) as part of their...
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Estimating The Cost Of College
It doesn’t take a degree in finance to see that the cost of college continues to rise. In its 2023 report, the College Board showed that in-state tuition and fees at private non-profit four-year institutions increased by 5% in...
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9 Facts About Retirement
Retirement can have many meanings. For some, it will be a time to travel and spend time with family members. For others, it will be a time to start a new business or begin a charitable endeavor. Regardless of what approach you intend...
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Grantor Retained Annuity Trusts (GRATs)
Suppose your financial objectives include income and leaving a legacy for your heirs. In that case, it's essential to work with a financial professional familiar with your many options, including older tools. Grantor retained annuity...
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Four Really Good Reasons To Invest
Thirty-nine percent of Americans do not own any stocks or stock-related investments, according to a recent Gallup poll.¹ Individuals may cite different reasons for not investing, but with important long-term financial goals, such...
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How Will The Economy React To AI?
Artificial intelligence (AI) tools are already invading every aspect of our lives. Debates are ongoing about how it will infiltrate individual industries. Governments are working to understand AI and determine how to regulate something...
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Four Really Good Reasons To Invest
Forty-two percent of Americans do not own any stocks or stock-related investments, according to a recent Gallup poll.1 Individuals may cite different reasons for not investing, but with important long-term financial goals, such as...
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Conquering Retirement Challenges For Women
When it comes to retirement, women may face unique obstacles that can make saving for retirement more challenging. Given that women typically live longer than men, retirement money for women may need to stretch even further.1 Despite...
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How Boomers And Millennials Differ
We are in the midst of an unprecedented transfer of wealth, with trillions of dollars being moved from one generation to the next. This transfer challenges many commonly held notions as new values and interests become more prominent....
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What If Your Kids Decide Against College?
As a parent or grandparent, you may have diligently saved money in a 529 account to help fund your child's or grandchild's college education. But what happens if they decide college isn't the right path for them? It's a valid question...
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Earnings For All Seasons
While nature offers four seasons, Wall Street offers only one – four times a year. It’s called “earnings season,” and it can move the markets. So, what is earnings season and why is it important? Earnings season...
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And The Executor Is
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Warren Burger is famous for more than just his time on the bench. When he died in 1995, he left a 176-word will that gave no specific power to his executors. As a result, he reportedly cost his estate tens of...
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A Bucket Plan To Go With Your Bucket List
John and Mary are nearing retirement and they have a lot of items on their bucket list. Longer life expectancies mean John and Mary may need to prepare for two or even three decades of retirement. How should they position their money?1...
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3 Estate Challenges For Blended Families
Preparing your estate can be complicated, and if you're a part of a blended family, estate decisions can be even more complex and nuanced. Blended families take on many forms but typically consist of couples with children from previous...
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Intellectual Property And Your Estate
Among the many considerations to ponder when forming your estate strategy, intellectual property (IP) is among the more important and misunderstood. The phrase itself may be somewhat confusing, as people may not know whether it applies...
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Estate Strategies
How the Queen of Soul, the Lizard King, and Other Celebrities Determined Their Legacies Famous people are all too human. Tabloid newspapers and celebrity magazines and websites make bank chronicling their every moment,...
Read MoreRetirement Questions That Have Nothing To Do With Money
Preparing for retirement is not entirely financial. Your degree of happiness in your "second act" may depend on some factors that don't come with an obvious price tag. Here are some non-monetary factors to consider as you prepare...
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Global Vs. International: What’s The Difference?
With international stock markets comprising about 41.6 percent of the world's capitalization as of 2022, a broad range of investment opportunities exist outside the borders of the U.S.1 For investors who are looking to diversify their...
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Building Your Legacy
Carve your name on hearts, not tombstones. A legacy is etched into the minds of others and the stories they share about you.Shannon L. Alder The desire to leave a legacy may be the height of altruism for it is a gift to the future, the...
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A Primer on Dividends
When looking for income-generating investments, some investors turn to dividend-yielding stocks. When a company makes a profit, that money can be put to two uses: It can be reinvested in the business. It can be paid out to the...
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Catch-Up Contributions
A recent survey found that 28% of workers are very confident about having enough money to live comfortably through their retirement years. At the same time, 27% are not confident.1In 2001 congress passed a law that can help older...
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Buying Vs. Leasing A Car
Some people approach buying a car like they approach marriage, "'til death do us part." Others prefer to keep their options open, trading in every few years for the latest make and model, the most cutting-edge technology, or the...
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A Brief History Of Estate Taxes
Federal estate taxes have been a source of funding for the federal government almost since the U.S. was founded.In 1797, Congress instituted a system of federal stamps that were required on all wills offered for probate when property...
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Understanding Equity Compensation
Employers do what they can to foster a sense of ownership in their employees. After all, if you stand to benefit from a company’s success, you’re more likely to do a great job for them, or so the logic goes.So, when you are...
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Retiring Earlier Than Expected? What To Know
Many Americans, through circumstances beyond their control, find themselves needing to retire earlier than anticipated. Whatever the circumstances, it’s difficult not to feel wrongfooted and hurried by the situation. However,...
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Net Unrealized Appreciation (NUA) Explained
If you have built up company securities within your employer-sponsored retirement plan, you may find yourself with a range of choices when the time comes to take a distribution. If those securities have experienced appreciation, it's...
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FIRE Retirement
If the idea of retiring in your early 50s, 40s, 30s, or even late 20s appeals to you, you may be interested in joining the FIRE retirement movement. Designed for those who have the discipline and cash flow to save diligently, FIRE can...
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Deciding When To Take Social Security
One of the most common questions people ask about Social Security is when they should start taking benefits. Making the right decision for you can have a meaningful impact on your financial income in retirement.Before considering how...
Read MoreU.S. Personal Savings Rate
The U.S. personal saving rate stood at 3.4 percent at the end of 2022, down from the 7.5 rate at the end of 2021.The personal saving rate is the federal government's estimate of what percent of their incomes U.S. households are saving....
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Pullbacks, Corrections, And Bear Markets
When the market drops, some investors lose perspective that downtrends and uptrends are part of the investing cycle. When stock prices break lower, it's a good time to review common terms that are used to describe the market's downward...
Read MoreTIPS For Inflation
In February 2018, Jerome Powell was appointed as Chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System. He became the 16th chair to take over the helm of the world’s most influential central bank. Among other duties, he...
Read MoreRebalancing Your Portfolio
Everyone loves a winner. If an investment is successful, most people naturally want to stick with it. But is that the best approach?It may sound counterintuitive, but it may be possible to have too much of a good thing. Over time, the...
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How Will Working Affect Social Security Benefits?
In a recent survey, 70% of current workers stated they plan to work for pay after retiring.1And that possibility raises an interesting question: how will working affect Social Security benefits?The answer to that question requires an...
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Understanding FDIC Insurance
MONEYREAD TIME: 6 MINIt's natural to wonder exactly how a bank safeguards your money. Fortunately, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) insurance exists for this very reason: to help protect your funds once deposited. Read...
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Catch-Up Contributions
A recent survey found that 28% of workers are very confident about having enough money to live comfortably through their retirement years. At the same time, 27% are not confident.1In 2001 congress passed a law that can help older...
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Best-Performing Asset Classes
According to Yale University's Crash Confidence Index, only about 24% of investors are confident the stock market will not crash sometime during the next six months.1If fear leads investors to avoid the entire investment class, they...
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SECURE Act 2.0: An Overview
In the final days of 2022, Congress passed a new set of retirement rules designed to facilitate contribution to retirement plans and access to those funds earmarked for retirement.The law is called SECURE 2.0, and it is a follow-up to...
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Counteracting Capital Gains With Tax-Loss Harvesting
Tax-loss harvesting means taking capital losses (selling securities for less than what you initially paid for them) to offset any capital gains you may have.While this doesn't get rid of your losses, it can help you manage your tax...
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Personal Finance Calendar
MONEYWrite down the major financial events you anticipate in the next few years. That will help guide a discussion about whether your portfolio reflects your short- and long-term goals.Update your personal net worth to account for any...
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Happy Holidays!
From our family to yours, we wish you all the love of the Season, and a peaceful and prosperous New Year. Love, The Luke Family
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