Thu, May 26, 2011
The Massachusetts economy continues to strengthen faster than the nation as a whole, according to state economists. Read the full article
Mon, May 23, 2011
According to a recent survey of American workers conducted in February and March 2011, 39% of workers plan to work past age 70 or not to retire at all.
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Thu, April 07, 2011
As Congress wrangles over whether to extend funding or let the Federal government “shutdown” over the coming weekend, the Commissioner of the IRS has indicated that refunds for tax returns filed on paper will probably be delayed if there is a shutdown. Read the full article
Tue, April 05, 2011
Today the Senate passed, by a wide margin, H.R. 4, the Small Business Paperwork Mandate Elimination Act of 2011.
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Fri, March 04, 2011
Among the provisions of last year’s Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was a provision requiring small businesses to issue 1099 forms to every business to which it paid $600 or more in a single calendar year. Today, the House of Representatives passed a bill repealing the provision. Read the full article
Thu, February 24, 2011
Today I'm reviewing a book that's rather outside my normal realm of interest: the second edition of "The Compleat Day Trader."
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Tue, February 22, 2011
Last Fall, G. Jeffrey MacDonald, who writes for the Christian Science Monitor, published a piece following up on news that ownership of life insurance in the U.S. has reached a 50-year low. If people aren't buying life insurance, how are they providing for the financial needs of their survivors? Read the full article
Thu, February 10, 2011
I’ve been slow to mention this, but the FFS Blog recently received a compliment by being included in a list of the 40 Best Blogs for Your Retirement Planning over at bschool.com. Although the site mostly gives advice about MBA programs, they also think it’s important for people to plan early for retirement. The article includes a number of other blogs worth perusing.
5/16/2014 update: Apparently, bschool.com has removed this article, but it was a nice compliment while it lasted.... Read the full article
Sun, January 23, 2011
Investment advisers have long been required to act as fiduciaries, placing the best interests of their clients above their own. In a significant report released today, the staff of the SEC has issued a recommendation that a “uniform fiduciary standard of conduct for broker-dealers and investment advisers -- no less stringent than currently applied to investment advisers under the Advisers Act – [be applied whenever] those financial professionals provide personalized investment advice about securities to retail investors.” This would be a major change from current regulatory policy. Read the full article
Fri, January 21, 2011
Last March, I predicted that Congress would close the door on the Social Security “interest-free loan” loophole strategy that has been discussed in various publications over the last couple of years. I was almost right: the Social Security Administration (SSA) itself has taken the initiative to clamp down on this practice by severely restricting the circumstances under which it can be done. Read the full article
Tue, January 18, 2011
One of the provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 was a requirement for the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) to study whether the financial planning profession needs to be regulated differently. While the GAO’s report, issued today, did identify some concerns about the delivery of financial planning services, it concluded that no additional regulation is needed. Read the full article
Wed, January 12, 2011
With so many provisions in the The Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010, not much has been said about the extension of the IRA charitable rolloever. This rule has been extended through Dec. 31, 2011, and in an unusual twist, charitable distributions for the 2010 tax year can be made through the end of January 2011.
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Wed, January 05, 2011
Meir Statman has had a distinguished career studying the way that real people make economic decisions. His new book walks the reader through a litany of the reasons that many investment and financial decisions go awry. Read the full article
Wed, December 29, 2010
Toward the end of this year, the IRS began warning Congress that last-minute changes to the tax laws could result in delays for taxpayers. Since the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 did not come into being until Dec. 17, the IRS has announced that many taxpayers will have to wait until mid-to-late February 2011 before they can their 2010 Federal returns. Anyone who needs to file Schedule A will have to wait, as will taxpayers claiming various other deductions and credits. Read the full article
Tue, December 28, 2010
The Case-Shiller Index, the leading benchmark for housing prices, today reported new data updated through October and the news is less than cheerful. Boston housing prices showed a slight year-over-year decline, and several major housing markets slipped to price levels last experienced in spring of 2009. Read the full article
Fri, December 17, 2010
Now that Congress has extended lower tax rates through 2012, taxpayers should have an easier job deciding which taxation option to take for the conversion. Read the full article
Fri, December 17, 2010
Both the House and Senate have passed the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010, and the bill is expected to pass into law soon. What goodies does it hold for taxpayers? Read the full article
Tue, November 30, 2010
Today we're honored to participate in the Fall 2010 Blog Tour for Meir Statman's new book, What Investors Really Want, with a post written exclusively for the FFS Blog by Professor Statman. Read the full article
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