Category: Estate

Knock, Knock (No Joke)

Compliments to one of my colleagues for highlighting this disturbing trend – under the heading, “this could never happen to me”:

Apparently, there is a new trend emerging in the ever-evolving landscape of fraud. In this case, fraudsters are showing up at victims’ homes or arranging in-person meetings with the aim of collecting physical cash, gold bars or other valuables. This in-person, “show up at the door” version of fraud is a significant shift from digital scams – where the victim’s financial and other assets and data are at risk – to a scenario in which the victims could end up in imminent danger of physical harm.

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TGIF Meets OBBBA (One Big Beautiful Bill Act) Inbox

The One Big Beautiful Bill, now OBBB Act, was…. big. TGIF 2 Minutes is all about giving as complete and concise a message as possible. There will be follow-ups to the OBBBA, and as one analyst concluded, the “2026 Surprise” will come with “patches” to various wordings and actual applications of parts of the OBBBA, similar to the Secure Act – in particular referencing “patches” that came over time to the Secure Act for required minimum distributions from Inherited IRAs.

The OBBBA is far too BIG to be summarized by any one person. Although several nuggets can be highlighted, followed up by more highlights and so on. Here are a handful of major topics, with brief explanations. These are meant to spur questions and conversations that are relevant and unique to each client and each person.* Also, important – please keep in mind that due to the relatively higher wealth and income of most folks reading today, income phase-outs of lots of these provisions make a number of them less impactful (perhaps a “quality problem” to have?).

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Critical Mid-Year Tax-Related Ideas

Mid-Year is an important time to review several significant saving and spending decisions, possibly affecting taxes too. With just under 6 months remaining in the tax year – there’s still time to make a meaningful difference. Consider:

  • Confirming amounts being deferred pre- or post-tax into 401k and other retirement accounts (and whether to max out?)
  • Evaluating savings goals versus reality
  • If not begun yet, giving savings goals a jump start
  • Quantifying college savings account contributions
  • Creating and funding Trusts

These and other important decisions can be evaluated or adjusted – think of the process as forming goals or “mini-goals”.

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Tariffs, Car Payments & Cell Phones

Tariffs. Car payments. Cell phones. What do these three things have in common? All three are currently on most people’s minds, and two are expensive considerations for every person’s or family’s financial plan.

As for tariffs, the uncertainty around where tariffs, and now also tax legislation, will settle in is on most people’s minds. Tariff “policy” is still in the throes of global negotiation and lack of clarity. Will the US consumer benefit in any way? Will tariffs lead to continued painful inflation in the US? What about future economic relationships between the US and the rest of the world? Much is up in the air. Certain companies and business owners are in flux regarding future investment and decision-making. Meanwhile, overall, employers and consumers seem to be plodding along in a net-net positive direction.

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Mid-Year Tax Tips

The calendar is about to turn to June – and that means nearing the halfway point of 2025. For those contributing to 401k, 403b and TSP accounts, adjustments or tweaks at this time can make a real difference overall for the current tax year and future savings overall.

The most basic considerations are in the dollar amount and tax classification of how 401k/403b/TSP contributions are made.

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Checking in on New Year’s Resolutions

It may be a key time – before mid-year – to check in on goals made back in January. These goals could have focused on saving more or differently, spending reduction or realignment and areas of investment focus and diversification.

How is your progress on certain goals? Can tweaks be made? Can specific ones be scrapped and new goals or ideas formed?

One particular goal from January was something I nicknamed FSP:

“Focus on Saving in order to maintain Patience” – in the event of the inevitable market decline, or volatility similar to that of 2025.

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Recession or Not?

Check out two really good slides.

The first slide outlines the vast difference of when a recession really occurs and markets anticipate the recession and react, versus when the government (the NBER, National Bureau of Economic Research) “declares” a recession.

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Optimism & Caution Wrap Up 2024

Anything could have happened in 2024. The uncertainties were immense:

  • Outcome of the US Presidential election
  • Trajectory of US interest rates and inflation
  • At least two active wars with an element of US involvement
  • Trajectory of US stocks in this environment
  • The US Fed’s interest rate policy (did I say interest rates twice?)
  • Numerous other personal and world economic and social events.

The results – to date – in several of these categories have been positive or on-the-way-to-becoming-positive.

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Top of Mind Issues in US Presidential Transition

Today’s edition could be a risky one to write, as anything related to the recent US Presidential election can stir up division. BUT – there are a healthy handful of issues that unite all Americans. These issues, ironically, are similar to those facing the 2016 version of President-Elect Trump.

Below are excerpts (in italics) from a November 2016 edition of TGIF 2 Minutes with thoughts on updates for 2024 (in bold) –

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Fraud is Trending

If you clicked on and are reading this edition of TGIF 2 Minutes, give yourself credit for being smart! Awareness of the following is of paramount importance.

Fraudsters are targeting high-net-worth people and non-profit organization accounts.

A “fraud trend” (yes, there is such a thing) currently taking place is with bad actors using social engineering tactics to collect personal information and then using that information to open new credit card, investment, and bank accounts in a person or organization’s name. The fraudster then attempts to use these new, false accounts to take over high net worth people’s existing accounts and withdraw those accounts’ funds.

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