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?
Our brain constantly monitors for signs of threats and triggers emotional responses to avoid them. The most primitive part of our brain controls the instinct to prevent hazards. This basic survival instinct attaches a high probability to any piece of data forecasting anything. Like the weather forecast, human beings expect predictability regarding the economy and the stock market. However, forecasting should not be considered a prediction.
On September 8th, HIGHLAND dedicated a Day of Service to Habitat for Humanity, contributing to constructing five new homes in the heart of Paterson, NJ. The whole team showed up at 7:45 AM, ready to make a difference in a small spot on the planet. Habitat for Humanity helps people to become homeowners by providing affordable, adequate housing. The concept of "partnership housing" was started in central Georgia in the early 1970s by farmer Clarence Jordan and Milliard and Linda Fuller and gained global recognition when President Jimmy Carter got involved in 1984. Today Habitat for Humanity operates in all 50 states and 70 countries.
As the well-known saying goes, nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes. The idea of taxation can be traced back to 3000-2800 BC when the first known taxation system took place in Ancient Egypt. Since then, there have been many changes and additions to the tax laws, with one point remaining certain; no one wants to receive a large tax bill that they weren't expecting.
The first half of 2022 has been a disappointing year for every investor. At the close of Q2 2022, a 60/40 hypothetical portfolio comprised of the S&P 500 Index and Barclays US Aggregate Bond Index was down over 12%. What's been the driving force behind these investment returns, and what can we expect moving forward?
Walter Mischel, psychologist and professor at Stanford University conducted an experiment in the 1960s about delayed gratification and published his findings in 1972. In the study, a researcher explained to a child they could either have one marshmallow immediately or two marshmallows if they waited 15 minutes.
As of Friday, the 29th of July, except for the NASDAQ market, the US equity markets recovered somewhat from the bear market correction. A bear market is a loss of 20% from the previous high. In the first six months of 2022, the equity market had lost over 80% of what it gained in 2021 and entered a bear market correction.
Two weeks ago, the latest Consumer Price Index data (the index that measures inflation) had risen 1.3% in June, bringing headline inflation up to 9.1% and core inflation (excludes energy and food) up to 5.9% over the last 12 months. With increases this large, it’s not surprising to know this has been the most significant 12-month increase since November of 1981. With inflation on the rise, the war in Ukraine, and the stock market in bear territory (when stocks fall at least 20% off their highs), are we doomed for a recession?
