Kara Marquez

Welcome to the midway point of the year. As we are heading into the final months of the year, checking in on tax-saving strategies is always a good idea. Below is a list of some of our most frequently asked limits for Contribution Accounts.

Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) were introduced in 2003 with the passing of the Medicare Prescription Drug, Improvement, and Modernization Act. HSAs are intended to give Americans more control over their health care and provide access to coverage that is more affordable, flexible, and portable. HSAs must be used in conjunction with High Deductible Health Plans offered by many insurance companies. HSAs have a triple tax advantage in that:

Wow! What a year so far. With all of the relief packages passed due to COVID, there is a lot to stay on top of. Everything from skipping Required Minimum Distributions to Withdrawal Rules around Retirement accounts, and everything in between. As part of our practice, Year End Planning is front and center the last quarter of the year (every year!) Here are some things to consider as we close out the 2020 chapter:

On March 27, 2020, The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Trump. One of the provisions of this legislation is centered around distributions from Retirement Accounts (IRAs & Employer Sponsored Retirement Plans). If you or your spouse have been financially impacted by COVID-19, the IRS has suspended early withdrawal penalties from these vehicles up to $100,000. The distribution is still subject to income tax, but the IRS is allowing taxpayers to spread out the taxes equally over the next three years (2020-2022). The 10% early withdrawal penalty typically applied to these withdrawals will be waived.

On March 27, 2020, The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Trump. One of the provisions of this legislation that will directly impact many of our clients financial plan involves 2020 Required Minimum Distributions from retirement plans. We have been getting inquiries so wanted to address a common question we see are receiving.

On December 20, 2019, President Trump signed a new law that includes a number of retirement savings and employee benefit changes. This new law changes many aspects of retirement and college savings including contributions, distributions, and inheriting retirement accounts. Today we highlight changes Required Minimum Distributions- RMD’s- which are an important aspect of financial planning for many of our clients. Our goal today is to highlight some significant changes to the rules that govern RMDs.

In our advisory practice, questions around planning for college are commonplace this time of year. The most common revolve around two primary areas: 1) how much needs to be saved, and 2) what are the right vehicles to use? Our firm considers family educational planning as part of a comprehensive financial plan, so computing the projections is an important facet of the planning process. There are many different vehicles, each with their own set of pros and cons. We understand that every household is unique, with a different set of competing priorities. It is our job to help families navigate what can seem like a complex financial challenge. Having a strategy is important because of the uncertainties that may lay ahead.

We get a lot of questions around timing of your Required Minimum Distribution (RMD) from your retirement accounts. Retirement account distributions are an important part of year end planning in our practice so we thought it would be timely to discuss before the holiday season is upon us or as 2019 draws to a close.