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Tax Cuts and Jobs Act Changed Things More Than You Realize

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act made a lot of changes. It was the single largest tax reform bill in nearly 30 years. However, the impact of the TCJA might be a lot broader than most realize. Almost every small business owner in the country is impacted by a new tax deduction called 199A. Read more

Digital Assets – What They Are and Why You Already Own Some

By Jamie Hopkins

Recently I gave a presentation to a large group, over 300 in attendance. I asked the group, “How many of you own a digital currency?” Only about three or four hands went up. I was shocked. Read more

7 Year-End Planning Tips from a Wealth Planner

Published by Mark Petersen, Vice President Affluent Wealth Planning

The holidays are upon us, so that must mean it’s time for year-end income tax planning, right? In the past, I would have said yes, but that changed 12 months ago when the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017 was passed. Read more

Four Ways a Financial Advisor Should be Like a Great Waiter, Waitress, or Sommelier

Published by Scott Danek

If you are like me, you want a nice glass of wine with your meal, and some combinations are obvious and we don’t need any help, right? Such as pairing a nice cut of beef with a big California Cab. Bingo! Other combinations though may not be as obvious, such as what goes well with a spicy soup? You may prefer reds like I do but until an off-dry German Reisling was suggested to me I would not have known it is delicious with that spicy soup, even if by itself it may be too sweet for my taste!

While this may not be a comparison you would think to make, your financial advisor should serve you in much the same way the waiter, waitress, or sommelier does in helping you with your meal and wine selection.
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The 4 Pitfalls of No Plan

There are some things in life you just can’t plan for: an unexpected illness, job loss, death of spouse, disability…While these major events can impact your life, having an effective game plan can help ensure that it doesn’t ruin your financial well-being. Read more

It is All About Your Beneficiaries as We Approach the Holidays

Published by Scott Danek

 One of the most commonly overlooked aspects of one’s financial life is the beneficiary designations on their various accounts, be it IRAs, life insurance, or even your non-retirement investment accounts (more on this later. . .). Talking beneficiaries is not anyone’s favorite pastime, so the good news is it only takes a few minutes to possibly save your loved ones a lot of time, money, and possibly their very relationships.  Read more

Improving The Traditionally Allocated Portfolio

Published by Tyler Schlumpf

We’re going to introduce a few mathematical concepts in this article that are crucial to building a portfolio. For those that are already moving their cursor up to the X in the right hand corner, just stick with it! These concepts, whether we choose to learn them or not, have a significant impact on the way we combine investments and are important to understand as we discuss portfolio construction. Read more

One of the Best Hours of Information You Will Ever Receive

Published by Scott Danek

Ask yourself the following questions:

• Do you like a good night’s sleep?
• Do you want to live a long, healthy life?
• Do you want to attain and maintain your ideal level of fitness?
• Do you want to ‘do good’ by your brain and help it be as healthy as possible for as long as possible?
• Would you like to know about foods that not only are very good for you but very tasty too?
• Would you like to have the health and wellness to pursue your favorite hobby as long as you choose?

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4 Simple Steps to Creating an Estate Plan

Published by Beth Schanou, JD

Most of the time, it feels like life is moving at the speed of light. I often feel my entire day, both at home and at the office, is spent in fast forward mode. As if it’s a race to get done as much as possible, I’m running from one thing to the next, all day long, and making sure every household member is fed, cared for, and attends school and their activities. Of course this includes the four-legged members of the family too. Read more

Why the Cell Membranes in Your Body Should Be More Like PlayDoh Than its Container

Published by Scott Danek

Admit it, when you were a kid you couldn’t wait to crack open that plastic jar and get to the soft, pliable wonderment that was inside, right?!  Who knew that even at that young age you knew just a little about cell health, even if it was on an innate, subconscious level?! Read more