Always Finance

 So, you have just got your living trust set up. You feel good about it because you know when you pass away, the assets in that trust will pass directly to your heirs instead of going through probate. This is a win for team you!  This is a great first step to planning your estate. After all, we do not want the gov't getting their grubby little hands on your assets and benefiting from your death...at least I do not want that for myself. Do remember though, you actually have to fund your trust with your assets. Your trust must own your assets that you wish to bypass probate and go directly to your beneficiaries. Otherwise it is just an empty trust that you wasted your hard earned money on But contrary to what you might think, your estate planning not complete yet..... When you die, the assets in your trust will pass directly to your heirs...this is true. But did you know that when the trust distributes those assets, your heirs will be on the hook for the income taxes? Meaning th...

  Every big or small business has those key employees that make the business run. They take more responsibility and they make sure other employees are doing their job correctly and efficiently. They take it upon themselves to make sure your business runs at it's highest level. When they work, they lighten your load as the business owner. They put out fires as they come. It makes sense that you pay these people well, because you don't want to lose them....you want them to be loyal to your business. So you know how to keep them loyal. But how do you deal with the risk of losing them when the circumstances are beyond your control? Such as getting an illness that takes away their ability to work... or they pass away.  If one of these people pass suddenly or are unable to work due to illness or injury, what would that do to your business?....  How much time would it take to find and train a replacement for that person?...  How much money would it cost?... Would it be sign...

  If you are starting to think about life insurance and trying to learn more about the different types of life insurance policies out there, you will have undoubtedly come across the term “Whole Life”, and you might have come across the term “Universal Life”. You have probably read up a little on both and might wonder which one is better for you. Well, I am going to elaborate why I think Universal Life, or Indexed Universal Life (IUL) to be more specific is the better choice for most. With that being stated, an IUL may not always be the best option for everyone. Careful consideration must be taken of your specific situation with your financial professional. But, I will take a “bell curve” perspective with this article and give you my top 4 reasons why I prefer an IUL.         1. IUL’s are less expensive than Whole Life Policies Because IULs and Whole Life policies are structured differently (will explain later in article), the IUL will become less expensive over...

You have so many investment options for planning your retirement. Stocks, Mutual Funds, ETFs, and more. You can invest in your 401k, you can open an IRA and manage the investments for yourself…..or pay an advisor to do it. But have you heard of an IUL? IUL stands for Indexed Universal Life, and it is a life insurance contract. “Wait….we were just talking about retirement, then you bring life insurance into the conversation?!?” Yes, life insurance can be used as an investment for retirement, education planning, and just about anything you would need to invest for. Let’s go into 5 reasons an IUL might be the best financial tool for you to plan and protect your financial future. An IUL puts you in the driver’s seat. When you invest in an IUL, you are in control. You see, an IUL is non-qualified. Meaning that you are not held back by low contribution limits or required minimum distributions. Though there are contribution limits to an IUL, they are much higher than a qualified retirement ac...