Planning for retirement can feel overwhelming, especially if you happen to be getting a late start. However, it is essential to prepare your finances for retirement, especially as you enter your fifties and sixties, and have more clarity on what you want out of this next phase of your life. Use the three steps below as a roadmap to get started, or to help ensure your current retirement plan covers these essential areas.
If you’re a small business owner, you should be using every tool in your arsenal to grow and protect your business. This includes taking advantage of the many federal tax credits available. Since this can be a confusing topic, I’m going to share a primer on how tax credits work, which ones you should be aware of, and the forms you need to file in order to capitalize on them.
When Used Correctly, HSAs Can Be a Great Financial Planning Tool
It’s no secret that healthcare costs are on the rise and there are no signs of prices falling anytime soon. In the face of skyrocketing costs, many people are turning to their Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) to help pay for current and future healthcare costs. Often, these accounts are offered through an employer, but they can also be opened individually. To qualify, you must be covered under a high-deductible insurance plan, and if you are, you can take advantage of an impressive array of benefits.
If you have an HSA but you aren’t sure you’re optimizing it, read on for eight important benefits.
Putting Your Retirement Savings First Isn’t Selfish – It’s Smart
Saving for the future can seem like a herculean task, especially for young families who are still settling into careers and are burdened with an abundance of competing financial demands. It can be difficult to see the big picture, let alone plan for it, when you’re raising children, paying off a mortgage, staying on top of household bills, and the countless other expenses that come with living life. So, if you’re having an internal debate about retirement savings versus college savings, you’re not alone.
Small Business Owners Can Benefit from These Plans in More Ways Than One
Within many companies, employees enjoy a plethora of benefits that come along with their salary. Typically, there’s paid time off, health insurance, and for some, access to retirement savings accounts through the employer. One way a company may offer to help their employees save for retirement is through a cash balance plan, which works almost like a traditional pension plan but with some differences that make it attractive to small business owners. In essence, a cash balance plan provides self-employed individuals the opportunity to make sizable contributions to a retirement savings account while also enjoying tax benefits for their businesses.
This is an important option to consider because, oftentimes, self-employed individuals end up robbing themselves of the benefits that others get because they’re focused on putting all their money and resources into their business. However, cash balance plans come with tax benefits that significantly help any self-employed individual in the present, while offering a valuable way to save for retirement, too.
Familial Considerations for the Next Generation of Your Business
When you view your business succession plan from a strictly financial standpoint, you’ll cover a lot of ground. You’re likely to think through things like market valuations, trust strategies, taxes, and more. What you might fail to put enough thought into, however, is the more personal aspect of business succession. Specifically, you’ll need to decide whether to include your children in your plans for maintaining the infrastructure of your business after your eventual retirement or death.
If you have adult children with an interest in taking over your company, you’ll need to plan for efficiently transferring both equity and control – as well as how to do so fairly. Below, we’ll talk through four considerations to keep in mind as you explore the more personal and familial aspects of your business succession planning.
Reflecting on the ups and downs of the current year and setting financial resolutions for future goals is a longstanding tradition to usher in the new year. What better area for focused, deliberate improvement than your finances? If you want to turn your finances around or simply experience more prosperity in 2022, you need to keep three key factors in mind: earnings, expenses, and savings.
If you’d like to improve your finances in the new year, consider the four financial resolutions below.
Review the Options to Determine the Best Employer-Sponsored Plan for Your Company
As a small business owner, you understand all the complexities that come with being responsible for not only yourself, your company, and your family – but for your employees, as well. While it’s easy to get bogged down in the day-to-day details of running your business, periodically taking stock of your company’s overall financial health is a great way to ensure that your business is in a position to thrive now – and for years to come. Consider the options, pros, and cons when trying to choose the best retirement plan for your employees.
Each day, you make decisions that affect your business. How can you be sure that you’re keeping the big picture in mind and that each decision you make is a sound choice for your bottom line and long-term business goals? Below we’ll share a simple but effective financial health checklist for your small business.
How to ensure your business remains strong now and into the future
As a small business owner, you understand all the complexities that come with being responsible for not only yourself, your company, and your family – but for your employees, as well. While it’s easy to get bogged down in the day-to-day details of running your business, periodically taking stock of your company’s overall financial health is a great way to ensure that your business is in a position to thrive now – and for years to come.
Each day, you make decisions that affect your business. How can you be sure that you’re keeping the big picture in mind and that each decision you make is a sound choice for your bottom line and long-term business goals? Below we’ll share a simple but effective financial health checklist for your small business.
Having a Firm Hold on Your Finances is Crucial to Your Company’s Success
Small businesses are vital to the U.S. economy, employing half of the private-sector workers in our country. They also create 1.6 million net new jobs annually, according to federal data. As of 2020, there are 31.7 million small businesses in America, which accounts for 99.9% of U.S. businesses.
Despite an integral part they play in the economy, small businesses often struggle to find success. In fact, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics has reported that 20% of small businesses fail within the first year of opening and only one-third of businesses are able to survive the 10-year mark. The leading cause small businesses cite as the reason they were forced to shut their doors is – you guessed it – cash flow problems.
When it comes to the success of your small business, having a strong wealth management strategy in place and practicing smart money habits can play a significant role in your long-term success. Follow these five tips to help keep your business on track.
