Francis J. Lojewski wrote an article for The Wealth Channel® Magazine’s Spring 2014 edition titled, “Planning Retirement in a Rising Tax Environment“. In his article, Frank discusses challenges that retirees face and steps that may prove helpful for your clients and practice. The actual article seen from The Wealth Channel® can be found here.
Francis is a partner of Atlas Advisory Group, LLC, an M Member Firm.
Wayne Tonning from M Financial Group wrote an article for The Wealth Channel Magazine titled, “Life Insurance Product Trends for the Ultra-Affluent Market: What’s Selling and Why.” In this article, he provides insight on what is trending for life insurance products by discussing specific products, historical market trends, and why certain product may or may not be attractive to ultra-affluent buyers.
Wayne Tonning is the Director of Product Management, Sales Support, and Advanced Market Insights at M Financial Group.
A bill gradually increasing the Maryland estate tax exemption to $5.25 million passed the Maryland State Senate and is headed to the governor’s desk. The bill previously passed the Maryland State House of Representatives. It is unclear if the soon-to-be law will further couple the Maryland Estate Tax Exemption to the Federal Exemption by increasing the estate tax exemption with inflation each year. Please see this Washington Post article for more information.
When signed into law, it will cause many Maryland households to revisit the need for trust-owned life insurance to help finance estate taxes. Governor Martin O’Malley has been previously skeptical of increasing the Maryland Estate Tax Exemption; however, with the bill easily passing both the Maryland Senate and House, there will be pressure for him to sign.
Contact David Wexler for more information about estate planning.
Long-term care is a serious issue that will affect most people. However, it is a very difficult conversation to have and here are some of the reasons:
Those who have considered and purchased long-term care insurance have done so for the following reasons:
At GWE we help clients consider the risks, costs and possible solutions to this problem. Contact Keith Eig to discuss long-term care and if it’s right for you.
The other day, a friend of mine said, “Don’t you know that 60 is the new 40?” Well, if that’s true – and I hope it is – then there is good news and bad news. The good news, of course, is that we can look forward to enjoying active lifestyles for a longer period of time. The bad news is, if we’re going to live longer, how will we pay for “stuff” if we outlive our retirement savings???
Now – and I mean right now – is the time to focus on increasing wealth through tax-saving strategies and maximizing qualified retirement plan savings. And guess what? They go together.
If you are a business owner, partner in a firm or tax advisor, listen up! There are three things you can adopt today that can really have a significant impact on the success of your qualified retirement account above and beyond a traditional 401k plan. And thus, increase the odds of having a successful outcome to secure your lifestyle through retirement.
First – make sure your current 401k plan is running at maximum efficiency. Are you able to put away every dime you can up to the limit? Or are you restricted by low employee participation?
Second – think about using flexible profit sharing plans that allow you to put money into your retirement account even if other partners or colleagues don’t share your retirement goals. Your retirement contribution wagon does not need to be hitched to theirs!
Third – use a defined benefit or cash balance plan to supercharge your retirement account. This will allow you to stockpile significant, tax-deductible, contributions today for use in retirement.
Contact Greenberg, Wexler & Eig today to see how we can help you develop a successful retirement outcome. The success of your future is our business today.
This material is intended for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal or tax advice and is not intednded to replace the advice of a qualified attorney, tax advisor or plan provider.
In today’s post, I would like to focus on a contractual provision of term life insurance contracts. In today’s marketplace most of the major carrier’s term insurance contracts have a contractual provision called the “conversion option”. In its simplest form, this provision allows the policy owner to exchange his/ her term life policy for some form of permanent life insurance coverage without medical evidence of insurability.
The consideration is that not all conversion options are created equally and their language can differ substantially. The following are things that we consider when comparing contracts:
1. How many years / what age you may convert the contract to permanent coverage
2. What types of permanent coverage you are allowed to convert to in the carrier’s portfolio of products
For example, certain carriers only permit you to convert for the first ten years of the policy, some carriers for the full length of the term, while others may restrict the conversion to a specific age (such as 65 or age 70).
While these differences seem subtle at the onset of policy during the purchasing phase of the process, for longer term planning and flexibility, they can prove to be quite substantial.
We at Greenberg, Wexler, & Eig take pride in paying attention to the details for our clients. Contact us today to find out more information about converting your existing term life policy.