In talking with clients about the benefits their employer provides during the open enrollment season, one often overlooked benefit if clients have dependents is the Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account (FSA).
Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) are not only a savvy investment option but also offer numerous benefits, especially for high-net-worth families. An HSA is a tax-advantaged savings account designed for individuals with high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) to help cover out-of-pocket medical expenses. While the utility of HSAs is universal, they hold advantages for high-net-worth families and have steadily grown in popularity since their inception.
Earlier this year, I explained two principles you can follow to obtain the most happiness from your spending https://www.highlandplanning.com/learning-center-1/how-money-can-buy-happiness-part-1. In today’s article, I will cover three more concepts that can help bring more joy in your life with your spending. Below are the five principles outlined in the book Happy Money.
In a previous article titled “The Estate Planning Essentials”, I identified the documents needed for a comprehensive estate plan. Although this can be a morbid topic most want to avoid thinking about, reviewing the documents not only ensures your financial legacy is passed in accordance with your wishes as smoothly as possible but guides your agent to ensure your medical and financial wishes are addressed. So, how often should you review your estate planning documents?
U.S. college tuition costs have skyrocketed over the last few decades, leading to an unprecedented number of students needing to finance the burden through student loans. As of August 2022, student loan borrowers owed a collective nearly $1,750,000,000,000 in federal and private student loan debt, with the average borrower owing $28,950.
There are myriad ways to save for higher education expenses and choosing the best college savings account depends on your personal needs and preferences. Ever since Congress passed the Small Business Job Protection Act in 1996, which established 529 college savings plans as a tax-advantaged investment vehicle, 529 plans have become the most popular college savings account for Americans. 529 plans have gained favor because some states offer tax deductibility for contributions, earnings grow state and federally tax-deferred, and withdrawals are tax-free as long as the money is used to pay for qualified education expenses.
The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) collects demographic, income, and asset information from student applicants and their families. This information is used to calculate a student’s eligibility to receive any financial aid for college expenses based on the Expected Family Contribution (EFC). The EFC is calculated according to a formula that is established by the federal government and is a measure of a family’s financial strength. Schools consider the EFC as one of several factors to determine the amount, if any, a student may be awarded for that school year. Simply put, students are eligible to receive need-based student aid if the sum of their EFC and other estimated financial assistance is less than the total cost of attendance.
