All things STOCKS

#1,201
#1,201
Boca Vol said:
Thank guys. On our business it's just my wife and I. No employees. It's a home office based business. No kids at home. No college. Finding expenses is a challenge, at times. I though Roth IRA's had some income limitations. I think I need to talk to our CPA and a financial advisor.

We've never been in a position to invest because of debt. Now we're debt free for the most except for 2 mortgages on our properties.
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You being covered by a retirement plan will also affect things. Talk to a CPA.
 
#1,202
#1,202
And don't let that CPA steer you into annuities. Only consider them if every other retirement option is maxed out and you're making more money than you know what to do with. CPAs might be required (not sure if they are or not) to be fiduciaries, but that wouldn't stop a crappy one from introducing you to his slick brother-in-law insurance broker that sells annuities. Heck, I'm not up on the ethics rules... some CPAs might even sell annuities themselves these days.

Looking into purchasing some long term disability insurance is a great idea. Not as exciting as investing in equities, but not having it could be catastrophic.
 
#1,203
#1,203
I'd also suggest picking a good sized local or regional CPA firm. There are certainly lots of great 1 or 2 person practices, but they can't be experts in all things. A bigger firm has enough staff and resources to get everything set up right. You might even want to hire a separate CFP to set up an individual plan. CPA firms should have CFPs on staff.
 
#1,204
#1,204
Thunder Good-Oil said:
And don't let that CPA steer you into annuities. Only consider them if every other retirement option is maxed out and you're making more money than you know what to do with. CPAs might be required (not sure if they are or not) to be fiduciaries, but that wouldn't stop a crappy one from introducing you to his slick brother-in-law insurance broker that sells annuities. Heck, I'm not up on the ethics rules... some CPAs might even sell annuities themselves these days.

Looking into purchasing some long term disability insurance is a great idea. Not as exciting as investing in equities, but not having it could be catastrophic.
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Annuities suck. Well annuities suck except for the person that is selling it.
 
#1,205
#1,205
Go aeiou said:
Annuities suck. Well annuities suck except for the person that is selling it.
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There are some advantages, but they are expensive and complicated with lots of confusing options. The tax advantages are huge selling points, but aren't really that good. They only defer taxable gains, treat the growth as ordinary income when withdrawn, and do not benefit from a stepped up basis for the annuity contract owners beneficiaries like appreciated stock holdings do. But annuities can be used to buy an income stream for life or give a slight tax advantage for those with high incomes that have already maxed out other retirement strategies. Plus they are pretty clean at settling estates. The beneficiaries are named in the contract and the funds by-pass probate (but not the IRS).
 
#1,206
#1,206
Thunder Good-Oil said:
I'd also suggest picking a good sized local or regional CPA firm. There are certainly lots of great 1 or 2 person practices, but they can't be experts in all things. A bigger firm has enough staff and resources to get everything set up right. You might even want to hire a separate CFP to set up an individual plan. CPA firms should have CFPs on staff.
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Retirement plans are pretty simple. CPAs are necessary because of their knowledge of revenue laws, fed and state. Most people can't just say "I want half in a SEP and half in a Roth. There are limitations, and good and bad income years make a difference. Conversions and recharacterizations may be possible in later years.

If you believe 2019 is the lowest income tax backet you will be in you might want to contribute as much as allowed to a Roth. Do you expect your income in retirement will be more or less than now? When do you expect to retire and at what age. Same question for Social security. Too many varibles, and things change. Laws and people.
OP might get by with an initial visit to a CPA, and just tweaking after that. An account at Fidelity or Vanguard might be the way to go for investments. At least they are less likely to sell someone a product with a 6% load and other fees.

OP should not spend a lot of money if only saving $3000/yr.
Yep some small firms are primarily tax prep firms. It's hard to determine what the OP needs without more information.
 
#1,207
#1,207
A growing business will benefit from a good CPA firm. They can get things properly structured on the front end. At some point the books will need annual audits by a CPA firm in order to have access to capital to expand. People can hire separate tax preparers, auditors, legal advisors, and financial planners or they can get those things through a CPA firm. They'll suggest a 3rd party attorney for some stuff.

There are real good small CPA practices, but most provide the basics (taxes and write up/bookkeeping) There are some real expensive ones that cater to the wealthy. One in Knoxville has some famous country music clients.

Pugh and Company, PY, and LBMC are good options for a growing business.
 
#1,208
#1,208
Agree, but I got the idea that OPs business is very small, and was addressing issues based on that.

When I was in public accounting I had several clients like that.

firms here, Nashville, have country music clients. Saying is "you can't throw a dead cat out the window without hitting a country music star, songwriter, band members, etc".
 
#1,209
#1,209
Go aeiou said:
Agree, but I got the idea that OPs business is very small, and was addressing issues based on that.

When I was in public accounting I had several clients like that.

firms here, Nashville, have country music clients. Saying is "you can't throw a dead cat out the window without hitting a country music star, songwriter, band members, etc".
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Yes. A good fee-only Certified Planner could be a good option for smaller operations. Once revenues start getting into 6 figures a good CPA practice becomes more important.
 
#1,210
#1,210
Thunder Good-Oil said:
There are some advantages, but they are expensive and complicated with lots of confusing options. The tax advantages are huge selling points, but aren't really that good. They only defer taxable gains, treat the growth as ordinary income when withdrawn, and do not benefit from a stepped up basis for the annuity contract owners beneficiaries like appreciated stock holdings do. But annuities can be used to buy an income stream for life or give a slight tax advantage for those with high incomes that have already maxed out other retirement strategies. Plus they are pretty clean at settling estates. The beneficiaries are named in the contract and the funds by-pass probate (but not the IRS).
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My aunt has one, she relied heavily on my dad for investing advice but when he died she opted for an annuity. Not my first choice but to her the steady nature of income was the selling point. Some people are willing to leave money on the table in exchange for peace of mind. Her mom lived to 91 and she’s in much better shape so they may lose their shirt on her.
 
#1,211
#1,211
DancingOutlaw said:
My aunt has one, she relied heavily on my dad for investing advice but when he died she opted for an annuity. Not my first choice but to her the steady nature of income was the selling point. Some people are willing to leave money on the table in exchange for peace of mind. Her mom lived to 91 and she’s in much better shape so they may lose their shirt on her.
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Outliving what the actuarial tables predict for life expectancy make those types of annuities work well for certain individuals. The insurance agencies and sales people also get to peel off huge fees every year.
 
#1,217
#1,217
Just flipped some out of the money PCG calls I picked up for dirt cheap yesterday. More than made up yesterday's dip in the portfolio from those trades, and now it's nice to see equities back in the green. Just moved some money from GLD back into SPY calls.
 
#1,221
#1,221
headhunter15 said:
Anyone use the Acorns app for investing? Have never invested but keep seeing the ad and commercial.
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Yeah I’ve used it as a short term savings/emergency fund since 15’. I’ve averaged about 3.5% return which is better than my bank savings account. Takes 3 days to get your withdrawals. Charges $1 a month. I really don’t have any complaints but I don’t let it round up charges on my card. Some people might like that function but I just send over $30 week from my paycheck
 
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#1,222
#1,222
GoVolsDR said:
If you want to use an app for investing, most retail investors can't go wrong with Robinhood. Zero commissions and a mobile friendly interface.
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Some people might prefer the simple options. You pick your investing style and they pick the etfs with the appropriate risk. No stock picking involved at acorns. Of course you could duplicate their strategy at a place like Robinhood. But I think acorns also takes care of rebalancing for you too.
 
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