Starting a Business 101: the top seven tips to starting a business
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Thursday, August 20, 2009
Monday, August 3, 2009
Market week: Up again and a July to remember
The direction of the stock market was positive during the last week despite easing off the sharp increases of the prior two weeks. The DOW had its best month since October 2002 and the end of July marked the fifth straight month of gains in the S&P 500.
The economic news like sales of new homes, home price index, continuing unemployment claims and new auto sales continue to be less bad and that's a start to a recovering economy. The stock markets may be discounting that news as the markets typically look forward 6-9 months. The auto boost is attributed to the exuberant adoption of the "cash for clunkers" program.
See all the statistics here in my market week newsletter along with last weeks headlines and an eye on the week ahead.
Market Week: August 3, 2009
If you liked this article you may find these articles interesting...
Maryland tax amnesty: tax delinquents get a second chance
You're not too busy for a financial plan
Financial tips for recently married couples
Send your child to summer camp and receive a tax credit
Tom Taylor, CPA is a fee-only, independent Financial Planner and Certified Public Accountant and can be contacted at Chesapeake Financial Advisors or Taylor & Company in Towson, MD. He is a member of NAPFA and the MACPA and AICPA.
The economic news like sales of new homes, home price index, continuing unemployment claims and new auto sales continue to be less bad and that's a start to a recovering economy. The stock markets may be discounting that news as the markets typically look forward 6-9 months. The auto boost is attributed to the exuberant adoption of the "cash for clunkers" program.
See all the statistics here in my market week newsletter along with last weeks headlines and an eye on the week ahead.
Market Week: August 3, 2009
If you liked this article you may find these articles interesting...
Maryland tax amnesty: tax delinquents get a second chance
You're not too busy for a financial plan
Financial tips for recently married couples
Send your child to summer camp and receive a tax credit
Tom Taylor, CPA is a fee-only, independent Financial Planner and Certified Public Accountant and can be contacted at Chesapeake Financial Advisors or Taylor & Company in Towson, MD. He is a member of NAPFA and the MACPA and AICPA.
Market week: S&P 500 up 4.13%, focus on company earnings
The stock market's short-term rally continued into its second week with all major indexes posting gains of 4% or more.
Year to date that brings the big three (Dow, Nasdaq and D&P 500) stock market indexes into positive territory for the year. See all the statistics here in my market week newsletter along with last weeks headlines and an eye on the week ahead.
Market Week: July 27, 2009
If you liked this article you may find these articles interesting...
You're not too busy for a financial plan
Financial tips for recently married couples
Send your child to summer camp and receive a tax credit
Tom Taylor, CPA is a fee-only, independent Financial Planner and Certified Public Accountant and can be contacted at Chesapeake Financial Advisors or Taylor & Company in Towson, MD. He is a member of NAPFA and the MACPA and AICPA.
Year to date that brings the big three (Dow, Nasdaq and D&P 500) stock market indexes into positive territory for the year. See all the statistics here in my market week newsletter along with last weeks headlines and an eye on the week ahead.
Market Week: July 27, 2009
If you liked this article you may find these articles interesting...
You're not too busy for a financial plan
Financial tips for recently married couples
Send your child to summer camp and receive a tax credit
Tom Taylor, CPA is a fee-only, independent Financial Planner and Certified Public Accountant and can be contacted at Chesapeake Financial Advisors or Taylor & Company in Towson, MD. He is a member of NAPFA and the MACPA and AICPA.
You're not too busy for a financial plan
Don't wait until you are in the midst of a financial crisis to begin your planning process. Often times a crisis is very emotional and that is not the best time to start thinking and planning for your future. The reality is that most people find a decline in their account values, prospects of retirement, death of a family member or change in careers as a time to begin the planning process. However, starting early will give you the road map (the plan) and gatekeeper (the financial planner) to help you face any crisis head on and present options so you can make the right decisions for you and your family. More importantly a financial plan provides financial peace of mind.
See my Financial Planning Guide for beginners at the link below. You'll be surprised how easy it is to get started.
Financial Planning - Helping You See the Big Picture
Financial planning comes in many shapes and sizes and is tailored to your individual needs. It may be as simple as setting an education or retirement savings goal or as complicated as creating credit shelter trusts. No matter, having a plan is critical to your success. For instance, many investors have a "guy" or "gal" that handles their investments. You receive monthly statements and often see buy and sell transactions in your accounts. But do you know where your accounts are headed? Do you have a goal in mind of how much money you will need to retire and maintain your standard of living? For instance, what value will your accounts grow to if you earn 6% a year? Or, what if you add an additional $1,000 to your 401k or IRA each year, what affect will that have on meeting your goal sooner? These are very real questions and scenarios that you should be seeking from your financial advisor.
Many financial plans include a review of your current property and casualty and life insurance coverage. Approach this an opportunity to shop your current coverage and see if you can save money. Any savings can go toward meeting a retirement goal. Couple this with tax planning and you may be able to increase your tax deductions and decrease your taxable income.
Additionally, most people don't realize that they can move an annuity (tax free) from one insurance company to another in order to lower your fees. Your existing provider won't tell you this because it is not in their best interest...however, it is in your best interest. That is critical to your success and an independent financial planner will review potential savings with you.
So start today. Financial planning is the process that can help you reach your goals and achieve financial peace of mind...isn't that worth it?
Find a fee-only independent financial planner in your area by going to www.NAPFA.org. There's no cost to do a search and you will receive contact information for multiple planners in your area. You can even do an advanced search for planners that specialize in certain areas, like providing hourly advice, tax planning or ongoing investment management.
Tom Taylor, CPA is a fee-only, independent Financial Planner and Certified Public Accountant and can be contacted at Chesapeake Financial Advisors or Taylor & Company in Towson, MD. He is a member of NAPFA and the MACPA and AICPA.
See my Financial Planning Guide for beginners at the link below. You'll be surprised how easy it is to get started.
Financial Planning - Helping You See the Big Picture
Financial planning comes in many shapes and sizes and is tailored to your individual needs. It may be as simple as setting an education or retirement savings goal or as complicated as creating credit shelter trusts. No matter, having a plan is critical to your success. For instance, many investors have a "guy" or "gal" that handles their investments. You receive monthly statements and often see buy and sell transactions in your accounts. But do you know where your accounts are headed? Do you have a goal in mind of how much money you will need to retire and maintain your standard of living? For instance, what value will your accounts grow to if you earn 6% a year? Or, what if you add an additional $1,000 to your 401k or IRA each year, what affect will that have on meeting your goal sooner? These are very real questions and scenarios that you should be seeking from your financial advisor.
Many financial plans include a review of your current property and casualty and life insurance coverage. Approach this an opportunity to shop your current coverage and see if you can save money. Any savings can go toward meeting a retirement goal. Couple this with tax planning and you may be able to increase your tax deductions and decrease your taxable income.
Additionally, most people don't realize that they can move an annuity (tax free) from one insurance company to another in order to lower your fees. Your existing provider won't tell you this because it is not in their best interest...however, it is in your best interest. That is critical to your success and an independent financial planner will review potential savings with you.
So start today. Financial planning is the process that can help you reach your goals and achieve financial peace of mind...isn't that worth it?
Find a fee-only independent financial planner in your area by going to www.NAPFA.org. There's no cost to do a search and you will receive contact information for multiple planners in your area. You can even do an advanced search for planners that specialize in certain areas, like providing hourly advice, tax planning or ongoing investment management.
Tom Taylor, CPA is a fee-only, independent Financial Planner and Certified Public Accountant and can be contacted at Chesapeake Financial Advisors or Taylor & Company in Towson, MD. He is a member of NAPFA and the MACPA and AICPA.
Financial tips for recently married couples
Avoiding stress at tax time is hard enough and why many people rely on the advice of a CPA or tax preparer to take on the task of filing out all the right forms and maximizing deductions. A CPA can provide financial peace of mind and with the stress of the wedding over, who wants to handle combining two sets of tax returns and financial records.
If you have recently married or plan to get married by the end of the year, there are some simple steps you can take to make your life easier and come tax time, less stressful. Oh by the way, chances are your income tax bracket will increase because of joint income so you or a CPA should run the numbers to see if it makes sense filing "married filing separately" your first year. In some cases it does.
The IRS is out with summertime tips # 4 and it's all about tips for married taxpayers. Follow the link below but to summarize...
Tax Tips for Recently Married Taxpayers
1) update your social security number with any name change. If you normally get a refund and don't do this, your refund will most likely be delayed.
2) notify the IRS of any address change by filing form 8822
3) notify the US Postal Service so all your tax forms (and LL Bean catalog) will be forwarded in a timely manner
4) notify your employer of any name and address change to ensure a proper W2 is received
5) check to make sure your withholding is correct to avoid penalties or tax due at the end of the year
Check out this handy Withholding Calculator.
Tom Taylor, CPA is a fee-only, independent Financial Planner and Certified Public Accountant and can be contacted at Thoma Capital Management or Taylor & Company in Towson, MD. He is a member of NAPFA and the MACPA and AICPA.
If you have recently married or plan to get married by the end of the year, there are some simple steps you can take to make your life easier and come tax time, less stressful. Oh by the way, chances are your income tax bracket will increase because of joint income so you or a CPA should run the numbers to see if it makes sense filing "married filing separately" your first year. In some cases it does.
The IRS is out with summertime tips # 4 and it's all about tips for married taxpayers. Follow the link below but to summarize...
Tax Tips for Recently Married Taxpayers
1) update your social security number with any name change. If you normally get a refund and don't do this, your refund will most likely be delayed.
2) notify the IRS of any address change by filing form 8822
3) notify the US Postal Service so all your tax forms (and LL Bean catalog) will be forwarded in a timely manner
4) notify your employer of any name and address change to ensure a proper W2 is received
5) check to make sure your withholding is correct to avoid penalties or tax due at the end of the year
Check out this handy Withholding Calculator.
Tom Taylor, CPA is a fee-only, independent Financial Planner and Certified Public Accountant and can be contacted at Thoma Capital Management or Taylor & Company in Towson, MD. He is a member of NAPFA and the MACPA and AICPA.
Send your child to summer camp and receive a tax credit
Most understand that paying for daycare expenses either at your home or at a daycare facility outside the home, qualifies you for a tax benefit if the purpose of the care is so the taxpayer can work.
However, many families are leaving additional childcare expenses on the table that could qualify them for additional tax savings. Summertime is peak season for camps. Soccer camps, lacrosse camps, baseball camps and yes, the old favorite, chess camps. The cost of the camp can count as an expense towards the child and dependent care credit so long as it is a day camp. Expenses for overnight camps do not qualify. So if you send your child away for two weeks to Camp Wanna-be-a-star, the expenses do not qualify if the child stays overnight.
The IRS is out with a recent Summertime Tax Tip that discusses five tax facts about summertime child care expenses. In addition, find out more about Child and Dependent Car Expenses here.
So hold onto all your receipts or substantial records that show you paid for summertime day camps for a child...it's deductible!
Tom Taylor, CPA is a fee-only, independent Financial Planner and Certified Public Accountant and can be contacted at Thoma Capital Management or Taylor & Company in Towson, MD. He is a member of NAPFA and the MACPA and AICPA.
However, many families are leaving additional childcare expenses on the table that could qualify them for additional tax savings. Summertime is peak season for camps. Soccer camps, lacrosse camps, baseball camps and yes, the old favorite, chess camps. The cost of the camp can count as an expense towards the child and dependent care credit so long as it is a day camp. Expenses for overnight camps do not qualify. So if you send your child away for two weeks to Camp Wanna-be-a-star, the expenses do not qualify if the child stays overnight.
The IRS is out with a recent Summertime Tax Tip that discusses five tax facts about summertime child care expenses. In addition, find out more about Child and Dependent Car Expenses here.
So hold onto all your receipts or substantial records that show you paid for summertime day camps for a child...it's deductible!
Tom Taylor, CPA is a fee-only, independent Financial Planner and Certified Public Accountant and can be contacted at Thoma Capital Management or Taylor & Company in Towson, MD. He is a member of NAPFA and the MACPA and AICPA.
Quarterly stock market review - 2nd quarter 2009
Chances are you may be more ready to open your account statements then you have been in the past year. With the rapid stock market declines in October and November of 2008, followed by a near-term market bottom in March 2009, most investors stuck their heads in the sand and refused to open brokerage, IRA and 401k statements. As it appears the economy is no longer on the brink of destruction and the recession is nearing an end, the stock market has discounted a more positive environment and investors may be more inclined to "take a look."
While I believe any financial advisor would not recommend doing so, I concur that it's a natural human reaction to not deal with all the negativity. However, now is the time to talk to your financial advisor to make sure your financial plan is on target and investment strategy is consistent with your risk tolerance, time horizon and goals.
The second quarter of 2009, ending on June 30, 2009 was a different story. The S&P 500 rallied 15.2%, the Dow rallied 11.0% and the leader of the major market indexes, the NASDAQ rallied 20.0%. These gains pale in comparison to the rise in crude oil prices, which gained 44% in the quarter. If you owned a good Energy and Natural Resources fund in your portfolio, chances are you experienced nice gains for the second quarter.
Here's a link to my recent newsletter that covers the quarterly stock market and other market activity during the second quarter. Included is an economic overview and some interesting "investor almanac" data such as what asst class outperforms the S&P 500 the year following each of the last six recessions.
Quarterly stock market review - 2nd quarter 2009
Tom Taylor, CPA is a fee-only, independent Financial Planner and Certified Public Accountant and can be contacted at Thoma Capital Management or Taylor & Company in Towson, MD. He is a member of NAPFA and the MACPA and AICPA.
While I believe any financial advisor would not recommend doing so, I concur that it's a natural human reaction to not deal with all the negativity. However, now is the time to talk to your financial advisor to make sure your financial plan is on target and investment strategy is consistent with your risk tolerance, time horizon and goals.
The second quarter of 2009, ending on June 30, 2009 was a different story. The S&P 500 rallied 15.2%, the Dow rallied 11.0% and the leader of the major market indexes, the NASDAQ rallied 20.0%. These gains pale in comparison to the rise in crude oil prices, which gained 44% in the quarter. If you owned a good Energy and Natural Resources fund in your portfolio, chances are you experienced nice gains for the second quarter.
Here's a link to my recent newsletter that covers the quarterly stock market and other market activity during the second quarter. Included is an economic overview and some interesting "investor almanac" data such as what asst class outperforms the S&P 500 the year following each of the last six recessions.
Quarterly stock market review - 2nd quarter 2009
Tom Taylor, CPA is a fee-only, independent Financial Planner and Certified Public Accountant and can be contacted at Thoma Capital Management or Taylor & Company in Towson, MD. He is a member of NAPFA and the MACPA and AICPA.
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