A Worthwhile "Retirement"

Market drops are normal. Keep "market money" in the market.

(Not investment, legal, or tax advice.)

Long time, no see! But let's go over some major changes before the 2025 tax year is over.

• Up to $6k senior deduction (through 2028)
• SALT cap increased from $10k to $40k (through 2029)
• TCJA numbers made permanent (increased standard deduction, tax brackets, estate/gift exemption)

1. Dividends often discourage people from selling stocks. In my opinion, this more rigid philosophy leads to retirees who are more prone to discomfort in uncertainty.
2. Dividends tend to be viewed as "magic money" that just appears in addition to stock appreciation. This even permeates financial outlets that the public perceives to be experts.
3. Dividends are taxably inefficient. They limit our ability to fill up long-term capital gains brackets, and they limit our ability to make roth conversions.

This is general financial information and is not intended to be taken as personalized legal, tax, or investment advice for anyone's particular situation. Please consult with a professional before you make any changes based off of something you heard on a podcast.

What's the purpose of a Donor Advised Fund (DAF)?

• another method of gifting appreciated stock
• a potentially simpler method, if many recipients are involved
• and it comes with a potential tax benefit

Now, tax benefits come with temptations to consumers... Making money comes with temptations to the DAFs...

At the very least, we should be mindful in our participation with this tool.

This episode is not investment, legal, or tax advice. The opinions stated here are my own and are not necessarily that of my firm.

"We become the average of the 5 people we spend the most time with..."

Are we one of somebody's 5? What kind of person are they becoming by spending time with us?

Are we a distraction? Or are we grounding them in truth?

Link to my 2 favorite reasons to file EARLY: https://youtu.be/RViqvYxeJD0?si=ehpy2sBDRwuKTLNk

WHEN DO WE FILE?

Why you might choose 70?

• benefit maximization over the long term
• caring for the lower-earning spouse
• good hedge against inflation
• can be a better position for Roth Conversions
• don't want to worry about the earnings limit

Why 67?

• when it doesn't benefit to delay (spousal benefits anyway)

Why 62?

• you need the money now; can't afford to delay
• you want to open up someone else's ability to draw off of your benefit (dependents or spousal benefit)
• your spouse isn't expect to live their full lifespan

This is not a comprehensive list; there are some of what I find most notable. This is not personalized advice; rather, general financial education.

I want to know what you know! Shoot me an email with things that you love to spend money on, at [email protected].

Here are links to some of what I referenced:

• https://seats.aero/
• https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07F87YRYF (pants)
• https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.stayfocused&hl=en_US&pli=1 (productivity app)

"A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children..." - Proverbs 13:22

What is God's intention for what we leave behind and how?

We recently sold our house. This means we had some decisions to make around what to do with the proceeds. Here's what we did...

When you were deciding how you would determine your investment allocation, what mental inputs did you use to make that call? Where did you start? And was it the wrong starting point?