Giving Back During the Holidays
The holiday season is a popular time to reflect on the past year and donate to causes you care about. Donations not only aid people and organizations in need; they also confer a potential tax benefit to the giver. Recent changes to the tax code resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic have also incentivized charitable giving, […]
Should You Make Early Withdrawals from Your 401(k)?
Your 401(k) is a tax-advantaged retirement account built to help you save more for retirement. Contributions can lower your taxable income, and money inside your 401(k) grows tax-deferred. Withdrawals are subject to income tax. To encourage people to keep money in their 401(k)s until retirement, the IRS may charge a 10% early withdrawal penalty on […]
How Diversifying Your Portfolio Can Mitigate Risk
Risk is an inherent part of investing. After all, no one can control the losses or gains of a particular asset, sector, or the market as a whole. But you can take steps to manage your risk by diversifying your portfolio. Here’s a look at what diversification is, why it matters, and how to do […]
Evaluating Your Executive Stock Options
As part of your compensation package, your company might offer you stock options to supplement your salary. While they can be a valuable form of compensation, they also leave you with plenty of decisions to make about how and when to use them. It’s important to understand the ins and outs of stock options to […]
Top 5 Biases that Impact Military Investors
As Relationship Managers for AAFMAA Wealth Management & Trust, we use facts and logic to guide our clients through investment decisions, rather than emotion. Even the most perceptive military investors, armed with years of market experience, can fall prey to mental biases that lead to poor investment decisions. While it’s impossible to completely eliminate mental […]
Am I Ready to Retire?
Knowing whether or not you’re ready to retire requires evaluating a number of different aspects of your life. With so many variables to consider, ensuring retirement readiness can easily begin to feel overwhelming. If you’re trying to decide whether or not you’re ready to retire, start with these six tasks. Each of these tasks takes […]
4 Reasons Your Retirement Plan Might Fall Short
Ever find yourself daydreaming about retirement? Whether your dream retirement entails traveling the world, dedicating time to beloved hobbies, or helping your children and grandchildren, saving enough for retirement is critical to enjoying all of these endeavors. Everyone deserves the best retirement possible, but numerous planning mistakes can cause retirement plans to fall short. According […]
The 2021 Child Tax Credit: An Overview
The tax give-back for parents of young children is different in 2021 Every year, the Child Tax Credit reduces the tax liability of American parents. If it lowers their tax burden below zero, it can even put money in their pockets. The credit’s size increased following the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. And […]
4 Risks That Can Impact Your Retirement
Even with careful planning and diligent saving, some parts of retirement planning are out of your control. Factors like longevity, rising medical costs and the ups and downs of the market can have an impact on your savings. But while you can’t plan for the unexpected per se, there are ways you can manage these […]
