The FAFSA and Your Income.
Your income from two years prior is what counts on the FAFSA. For example, the 2021-2022 FAFSA will rely on income information in your 2019 tax return. FAFSA for 2021-2022 Academic Year Opens on October 1. The FAFSA (Free…
Student Loan Relief Extended Through End of Year
In March 2020, Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which provided a six-month automatic payment suspension on federal student loans through September 30, 2020. In August, the president signed a memorandum to extend federal student…
Temporary Payroll Tax Deferral: What You Need to Know
On August 8, 2020, the president issued an executive order to allow the deferral of certain payroll taxes during the last four months of 2020, and the IRS recently provided related guidance. This has implications for both employers and employees.…
IRS Clarifies COVID-19 Relief Measures for Retirement Savers
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act passed in March 2020 ushered in several measures designed to help IRA and retirement plan account holders cope with the financial fallout from the virus. The rules were a welcome relief…
Working with a Financial Professional: Your Interests Come First
In these uncertain times, the value of objective financial guidance cannot be overestimated, and the importance of the financial profession has never been more apparent. Regulatory changes initiated well before any of us had even heard the phrase "social distancing"…
Form CRS: Helping You Understand the Financial Professional Relationship
Have you received what's known as "Form CRS" from your broker-dealer and/or registered investment advisor? If not, then sometime in July 2020, you likely will. A new requirement by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the form is designed to…
Q2 2020 – Second Quarter Stock Market Commentary
There is an old saying on Wall Street, “The stock market is not the economy and the economy is not the stock market.” We all got a little taste of that this past quarter when we saw a negative -4.8% GDP in the first…
U.S. Government Sends Millions of Economic Impact Payments by Prepaid Debit Card
In May 2020, the IRS sent Economic Impact Payment (EIP) prepaid VISA debit cards to individuals who qualified for a stimulus payment under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and didn't receive a payment via direct deposit.…
2019 IRA Contribution Deadline Has Been Extended
Due to the coronavirus tax filing extension, there's still time to make a regular IRA contribution for 2019. You have until your tax return due date (not including extensions) to contribute up to $6,000 for 2019 ($7,000 if you were…
Watch Out for Coronavirus Scams
Fraudsters and scam artists are always looking for new ways to prey on consumers. Now they are using the same tactics to take advantage of consumers' heightened financial and health concerns over the coronavirus pandemic. Federal, state, and local law…