Getting accurate and timely information is critical to your success every tax season. Unfortunately, not all of the details about your financial life show up in your tax documents. Your accountant will need your input to understand the context of your tax documents.

You don't want to miss out on any potential tax savings or make a mistake on your taxes. This is why communicating and collaborating with your financial planner and accountant is so important. Timely and accurate information can prevent problems and possibly keep more money in your pocket.

When I got into this industry over 16 years ago, I’ll be honest and admit I really didn’t have a clue what I was doing. I started the Monday after I graduated from college and was thrown into the “bullpen” and told to start studying for my exams that I was to take over the next 4 months—I won’t bore you with the details.

Once I passed those, I then went through some really terrible sales training. When I returned back to the office, I was basically told to start bringing in new clients and good luck. Seriously, that was it.

Annuities can be as confusing as any product on the market. However, they can be a handy tool for the right individuals. Don’t let all the ambiguous and confusing terms discourage you from learning about annuities.

A general understanding of how annuities work, the types of annuities available, and the tax implications is helpful. We’ll also analyze the costs and fees, how annuities can insure against longevity risk, and whether an annuity product might be right for you.

This post was last updated on January 20, 2021, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.

This article WILL NOT teach you how to win the lottery. However, it will teach you how to invest any large lump-sum of money that you come into unexpectedly. if you're looking for lottery get-rich-quick schemes, this is not the right article for you.

Annuities are often sold as "tax-advantaged," but what do taxes actually look like when you’re in retirement? It’s important to understand the "wait now, pay later" nature of tax-deferred growth and annuity taxation. Retirement isn’t the time to get caught off guard by tax surprises.

The name of the game is keeping more of your retirement check and not overpaying Uncle Sam. The first step in maximizing your tax strategy is understanding what you have and how your investments are taxed. This is an essential part of a comprehensive financial plan to make the most of your retirement savings.

If we're not careful, we can easily fall victim to pushy sales tactics to buy expensive annuities. Annuities and other life insurance products are often sold using your fears against you. There is a tendency for annuities to be oversold because of the handsome commissions paid to sell them.

To be clear, there are times when an annuity might make sense, but many retirees have other guaranteed income sources like Social Security. There are various annuities (fixed, single premium, deferred, etc.), so it can get confusing.

As our economy seems to be coming out of a dark economic era, it’s important to know what lies ahead. As a consumer, you want to know if you can trust the perception and what appears to be true. Is the economy back on the rise? 

And how can we know for sure? One thing we can do is be more mindful of consumer sentiment. But ,what is consumer sentiment, and how is it measured?

Not everyone wants to spend the next 30 years paying a mortgage. Most of us want the wprivilege that comes with homeownership but feel it’s a lot to have to carry for so long. 

Wouldn’t it be great to be a homeowner and not have to carry the burden of a 30-year mortgage for, well, 30 years? What if you’re pretty close to retirement but still foresee a lengthy mortgage payment in your future? 

Annuities can be incredibly confusing, but they don’t have to be. Once you understand the most common annuity acronyms, it’s a lot less scary. Each annuity contract will be unique to your needs, the insurance company, and the optional riders available.

When buying an annuity, it’s best to zoom out and look at your entire financial picture first, and then decide if an annuity is right for you. We don’t want you to get excited about one particular type of annuity first, and then figure out how to make it fit your goals. Your life and retirement goals should drive all your retirement decisions.

Looking for financial advice can be confusing and overwhelming. But it doesn’t have to be. The financial industry uses ambiguous and overlapping terms, but what do they really mean?

If you’re like most people, you just need an honest answer to tough financial questions. Yet, when you start looking for help, you’re met with a variety of terms like adviser, advicer, manager, and planner – all with the words financial, wealth, fiduciary, and investment added to spice things up.

The “Rule of 55” is a useful tool for early retirement. However, retiring early is a relatively new concept, so the mechanics of withdrawing funds from retirement accounts can be a little complex. If you know the rules and exceptions, you can easily patch together a penalty-free withdrawal strategy to fund your retirement.

We want to preface by saying the starting point isn’t access to your retirement accounts; it’s what you want retirement to look like. This is why going through a comprehensive review like our COLLAB™ Financial Planning Process is a must. You want to uncover your deeper “why” and design your ideal retirement lifestyle before ironing out the nuanced details.

Many employer 401 (k) plans offer an option to purchase an annuity. But should you? This isn’t a decision to be made lightly.

Annuities can be overly complex and expensive products. An annuity can be a useful tool in certain situations, but there’s more to the situation than many people realize. You really need to think through your long-term retirement income and tax situation.

This post was last updated on March 31, 2026, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.

Before 2026 ends, retirees need to make sure they’ve covered all their bases for taxes, charitable giving, RMDs, and more. With recent changes from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, there’s even more to consider for your retirement checklist. Whether you’re thinking about retirement, currently transitioning into retirement, or are already fully retired, there are many items on the to-do list.

This post was last updated on March 29, 2026, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.

Are you looking for a way to supercharge your retirement savings? You might want to look into after-tax contributions to your 401k. Many larger employers offer this option, but some smaller employers do as well.

This post was last updated on February 25, 2026, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.

It seems like Roth conversions are all the rage, but are they really the right thing for you? There are many potential benefits, but there are some trade-offs to consider as well. The decision to use a Roth conversion incorporates a much longer timeline than many other tax-saving strategies.

 This post was last updated on February 25, 2026, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.

Although defined benefit plans (pensions) are less common today, many people still rely on them for retirement income. There are specific rules governing the calculation of pension plan payouts, whether in the form of monthly payments or as a lump sum.

If you’re going to be eligible for a pension, then you need to be familiar with the role the Federal General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) rate plays in your benefits. This is particularly important when deciding whether to take a lump sum payout.

This post was last updated on February 24, 2026, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.

Getting taxed at the capital gains rate is usually considered better, but what if those gains affect your ordinary income taxes? Understanding when capital gains can push you into a higher tax bracket is very important. The final step of investing success is keeping your hard-earned cash where it belongs – in your bank account!

This post was last updated on February 19, 2026, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.

A 403(b) plan or tax-sheltered annuity (TSA) is a retirement account for public schools, colleges and universities, churches, and non-profit organizations. While the account works similarly to other retirement plans, like a 401 (k), there are some differences.

This post was last updated on February 17, 2026, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.

Saving money for retirement is critical, but when it comes to the types of accounts you have, it can start to get a little confusing.

This post was last updated on 16 February, 2026, to reflect all updated information and best serve your needs.

Planning for your retirement is the key to fully enjoying the fruits of your labor. Whether you have an IRA (individual retirement account), a 401(k), or other retirement account, you'll want to get the most out of it by maximizing your contributions. Understanding the IRS contribution limits will help you maximize your savings.