Roth IRAs financial planning for attorneys financial planning for entrepreneurs financial planning for retirement financial planning for young professionals Mar 17, 2020

By Jonathan G. Cameron, CFP® 

What is a Roth IRA?

One of the most popular ways to save for retirement is in a Roth Individual Retirement Account, or a Roth IRA. Roth IRAs first came out in 1997 after being championed by former Senator William V. Roth of Delaware. Tax-wise, a Roth IRA is...

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Investing for Millennials financial planning for entrepreneurs financial planning for young professionals Mar 12, 2020

by Jonathan G. Cameron, CFP®

Investing for Millennials is an important topic for a generation set to inherit a massive amount of wealth over the next few decades. Millennials will likely inherit $30 trillion from boomers over the next 30 years[1].  The questions for Millennials are,...

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Roth Conversions financial planning for attorneys financial planning for entrepreneurs financial planning for retirement Mar 09, 2020

by Jonathan G. Cameron, CFP® 

A Roth conversion means taking your Traditional IRA, or some portion of it, and turning it into a Roth IRA.  Whatever dollars are converted become taxable to you right then and there.  

Who should consider a Roth conversion?

In a previous post...

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Ordinary Income Taxation vs. Capital Gains Taxation financial planning for attorneys financial planning for entrepreneurs financial planning for retirement Mar 05, 2020

by Glenn J. Downing, MBA, CFP®

In this post I’m tackling a tax topic: The difference between ordinary income taxation and capital gains taxation. What’s the difference and why is it important to know? One word: taxes.

The IRS taxes your income, as you know, but it also taxes...

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Step Up in Basis financial planning for retirement Mar 03, 2020

by Glenn Downing, MBA, CFP® 

 In a previous entry I discussed the difference in taxation of capital gains property vs. ordinary income property. That piece discussed what happens on your form 1040.  This piece looks ahead to your eventual mortality.  What happens when you...

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How Do I Improve My Credit Score? financial planning for attorneys financial planning for entrepreneurs financial planning for young professionals Mar 03, 2020

by Jonathan G. Cameron, CFP®

An important financial concern that we often hear from clients is, “How can I improve my credit score?” First of all, I have to give a quick disclaimer that our company, CameronDowning, is not a credit repair or debt consolidation service. Our goal is...

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Young Professionals & Good Financial Decision-Making financial planning for entrepreneurs financial planning for young professionals Mar 02, 2020

by Jonathan G. Cameron, CFP®

Isn’t it funny that we are expected to make the biggest decisions of our lives when we are young? 

We get married, we pursue a career path, maybe have children. We have to make quite a few decisions that will affect us the rest of our lives and...

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What Do Your Mattress and a Roulette Table Have in Common? (HINT: more than you think.) financial planning for attorneys financial planning for entrepreneurs financial planning for retirement Feb 28, 2020

By Glenn J. Downing, MBA, CFP®

With this blog post I’d like to share some thoughts about investment risk tolerance.

Generally, we think about risk as a bad thing – something we want to avoid. “I won’t drive faster and risk a speeding ticket”, and, “No,...

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Is it DĀTA or DĂTA? financial planning for attorneys financial planning for entrepreneurs financial planning for young professionals Feb 26, 2020

By Glenn J. Downing, MBA, CFP®

I’m here to tell you once and for all.

Yes, I know . . . this is a little off the beaten path for me. 

The World is Not in Good Order

I usually write about financial topics, given that I’m a professional financial planner.  But occasionally...

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Top Five Mistakes People Make With Their Money financial planning for attorneys financial planning for entrepreneurs financial planning for retirement financial planning for young professionals Feb 25, 2020

By Glenn J. Downing, MBA, CFP®

Channeling David Letterman and all those Top Ten lists. I thought it might be fun to compile one of my own. To wit:

The Top Five Mistakes People Make With Their Money

This is a list compiled after about 25 years of experience. 

Mistake #5

You eat out way...

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You Want to Retire. But Retire to What? financial planning for attorneys financial planning for retirement Feb 23, 2020

By Glenn J. Downing, MBA, CFP®

Picture the scene: My wife has a group of friends visiting. I come home from work, greet everyone, and have a glass of wine to be sociable. At some point I announce that I’ll retire to my study for the evening. What does that verb mean – to retire?...

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The Time Value of Money financial planning for attorneys financial planning for entrepreneurs financial planning for retirement financial planning for young professionals Feb 22, 2020

By Glenn J. Downing, MBA, CFP®

We usually understand the time value of money in two contexts: the growth rate of an investment, and the inflation rate.   Nonetheless, the TVM is a topic that should be understood by everyone serious about financial planning.

Sketch Out a Timeline

To...

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