Your Unbiased Advisor

Friday, October 16, 2020

This is why you can’t afford to ignore fees

When returns on investments are low, paying your advisors fees can kill your account growth. If your investments are earning 6% but your fees, commissions and expense ratios total 2%, your account will grow HALF as much as it could have over time. Example: You invest $250 a month for 35 years with costs of 2% per year. You end up with only $229,194. If your 6% a year on average only cost you 0.07%, you would end up with $352,216. That is $123,022 more—HALF again than with advisor fees. You can always hire an advisor when you have a problem. Your advisor pockets the $123,022. Most of us are correct in assuming advisors are a luxury item. We can’t afford to give away that much of our nest egg. Plus it could be tax-FREE.

https://www.amazon.com/You-Can-Afford-Retirement-TAX-FREE/dp/1517738253

Is your employer’s 401k right for you?

There are situations where you are better off NOT using your employer’s pension plan. Your employer may have picked the wrong fund options or they do not match your contributions. If the only options are expensive funds and there are many extra plan expenses, you can gain the same tax advantage with lower costs elsewhere. Your total accumulations will be greater. If there is no match, there is no advantage to using a 401k or 403b. In fact, some types of employer plans may end up losing your money. Single-employer pension plans are better protected than multiemployer plans by using available pension insurance. Use Brightscope to assess your plan. If you are paying more than 0.15% total costs (fees, charges, expense ratio, bookkeeping, annual statement fee, etc) and you do not receive a match to your contribution, you will be worse off in retirement. A Target Date fund may be the right choice. And you can avoid retirement income taxes too by using a special IRS account available at the largest fund firms.

Consider the better options: https://www.amazon.com/Robbing-You-Blind-401k-fees/dp/1493588966

Is a robo right for you?

A robo-adviser is a computer algorithm that invests your money based on your answers to a few questions, such as when you need the money, your tolerance for risk and how much you have to invest. You pay for the website process and you pay for the funds the robo puts your money into. So you must decide your risk tolerance (how much market volatility you want) and when you need the money (when you will retire or buy your dream vacation). You must also decide how much to invest even though this is one of the hardest decisions to make. You can pay extra for “tax-loss harvesting” although mutual funds pass on gains and losses every year without much control over your taxes. You can pay up to 1% a year for a robo account. An easier alternative is a Target Date fund which does the same things for 0.14%. Save yourself $ thousands over time.

https://www.amazon.com/Best-Robo-Advisor-Ultimate-Automatic-Management/dp/1537111957

Another way the wealthy avoid paying their fair share

Trump caught inflating value of his woods: tax avoidance of $21 million. Did you obtain a tax break when you bought your home simply by claiming you would not build in your back yard? No of course you didn’t. The wealthy use these kinds of tricks and politicians don’t fight it. Usually because the wealthy help the pols get what they want too and nobody goes to jail. First, you have your company buy the property. Then you hire an appraiser who makes a report that IF a new owner were to develop the land, it would be worth double current values. The appraiser who also does deals with you makes up “unsupported assertions and misleading conclusions that boost the value of [your] charitable gift — and [your] tax break.” Another example is the private museum of Peter Brant in CT. Operated by a nonprofit charitable foundation created and controlled by Mr. Brant, this cozy museum with old bicycles is tax-exempt. Wealthy collectors save $ millions in federal taxes by donating art and money to museums and foundations. But for Mr. Brant’s center and a growing number of private tax-exempt exhibition spaces like it is that their founders can deduct the full market value of any art, cash and stocks they donate, even when the museums are just a quick stroll from their living rooms. The museum is not open to the public however. So you could set up a museum of your old baseball cards in your shed but the lawyer set up will cost you. Or you could just use your legal tax shelter which costs nothing to establish.

Start now: https://www.amazon.com/Trump-Tax-Shelter-Avoid-taxes/dp/1985448300

Why is compounding the key to your investing success?

Warren Buffett credits compounding as key to his success in accumulating over $80 billions. “My wealth has come from a combination of living in America, some lucky genes, and compound interest.” Without compounding Buffett’s securities could not propel his assets to that level. We can only achieve our long-term goals by using compounding. Compound interest of 1% at a bank provides $125,762 after investing $250 a month for 35 years. Since inflation runs about 3%, we are losing money! Only compounding securities’ dividends/interests can we accumulate $1,243,368 in 35 years. Since we don’t have Buffett’s genes, buying a low-cost stock index fund is our best and easiest way to take advantage of compounding.

Use Buffett’s strategy: https://www.amazon.com/MasterClass-Buffetts-SIMPLE-Strategy/dp/1983485268

Is “professional” money management right for you?

Investors are questioning whether the promises of the large Wall Street firms are really fulfilled. You may remember when Yale Endowment’s use of ‘alternatives’ was the answer to every investor’s dream of “beating” market returns. Well, guess what? It was a myth. Studies have concluded: “…we find no evidence that the average endowment is able to deliver alpha (market beating returns) relative to public stock/bond benchmarks.” Another study found, “little positive evidence supports the conclusion that private equity as an asset class is able to deliver alpha.” But ultimately, they concluded, “We do not resolve the question of whether private equity and hedge funds deliver alpha.” As to other sources of alpha they flatly stated, “We find no evidence that manager selection, market timing, and tactical asset allocation generate alpha.” Even without taxes, “Non-profit endowments badly underperform market benchmarks, with median annual returns 4.46 percentage points below a 60-40 mix of U.S. equity and Treasury bond indexes, and statistically significant alphas of -1.10% per year.” In English, that means “professional” money management is not worth the $ thousands we are paying over our investing lifetime. The fees are subtracted from our account whether there is a gain or loss.

Compare Vanguard’s low-cost lineup: https://www.amazon.com/Vanguards-Top-Ten-mutual-funds/dp/150073909X

Is it ever time to buy a new car?

What is the difference between a new car and a slightly used version? You must consider that the luxury cars have dependability problems so they lose over 40% value in the first to third year of ownership. Manufacturers use owners for a FREE testers—some of us must return these expensive babies over and over to work out the kinks. If you don’t want to be their guinea pig, look to the used market to save on value. For example: BMW 7. Average new price, $109,231. One-year depreciation, 43.4 percent. Average year-old price, $61,784. Audi A6: Average new price $63,931, One-year depreciation, 41 percent. Average year-old price, $26,199. Jaguar XE: Average new price, $50,371. One-year depreciation, 40.9 percent. Average year-old price, $29,786. Compare Honda Civic hatchback: Average new price, $25,390. One-year depreciation, 11.9 percent. Expected average year-old price, $22,686. If you are still not convinced, price the Porsche SUV (contradiction in terms?) at $127,800 for the Cayenne Turbo. The used 2020 SUV is a ‘bargain’ at $106,000.

Buy right insurance for it: https://www.amazon.com/Vehicle-Insurance-Beware-Double-Coverage/dp/1480027634

Most of us have no idea how much money we need

An overwhelming majority of us are heading into retirement without any idea of how much money we will need. New survey: 71% of adults within 20 years of retirement have not run a projection on how long their savings will last based on their life expectancy. Moreover, 53% of that group said they expect to retire with less than $100,000 in savings. But averages don’t mean a lot. We now have tools to help us get a better idea of our retirement spending levels without paying a planner to make a big printout. We can estimate how our savings/investments will grow over time and then how long they will last. Combine that with the Social Security benefits estimate using current earnings (https://www.ssa.gov/OACT/quickcalc/) and we will have a rough guess of our retirement income. If we do it now we still have time to fix it.

https://www.amazon.com/You-Can-Afford-Retirement-FEE-FREE/dp/1517738253

You could save $3,000 a year on financials

Our financial industry Insiders show you the "tricks of the trade" so you save up to $3,000 every year on banking, mortgage, education, mutual funds, securities, annuity, insurance-life, health, disability, long term care, vehicle, homeowner's, lawsuit--vehicle purchase, estate legacy, wealth transfer, retirement spending . . . almost any service. You buy the best financial services and avoid high fees and commissions. Your savings builds your Wealth Reserve over time. You buy where we Insiders buy! Our Insider's Guides help you find the savings so you can build your Wealth Reserve to protect your lifestyle, now, and into the 21st Century. Your Unbiased Advisor: "Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime." Our Insiders show you how to SAVE $3,000 every year by buying your financial services DIRECTLY--using Insider's Guides for each financial product/service.

https://www.amazon.com/Insiders-Guides-Discount-Financial-Services/dp/143480593X

**********ACCOUNTABILITY**************

Like 1776, this period is a test of democracy—do we really want a Dictator?

Supremes decide election … again? “Follow the money”

Dictator affirms Qnon ‘domestic terror’ threat

Dictator: I order Barr to indict Biden over the Russia ‘hoax’

Dictator: I blame veterans’ families, not ‘consort’ Hope

Dictator: “I’m immune” “I’ll kiss everybody” killed H Caine

Dictator: “virus less deadly than flu” 218,000 so far!

How Govt wastes our money: Our Representatives gives 3.7 Trillion to the wealthy!

Trump’s tariffs destroying good jobs in MI: trade war caused loss of 175,000 manufacturing jobs.

Trump used his office to help over 200 businesses who secretly paid him thru his properties

GOP has "no appetite" for a $1.8 trillion bill: Senators not hungry: they still have jobs/insurance

MI sheriff speaking for terrorists plotting overthrow MI gov: out of state terrorists for Trump

Police buying every anti-personnel item: police costs tripled as crime rates fall: fear makes $

Trump’s accusations of Obama conspiracy proved false: Barr finds nothing

Trump gave PPP money to aviation firms AFTER they laid off workers: paid to owners

Trump withholds fire disaster funds from CA: political revenge

House on vacation again: no-show jobs Washington style: 898,000 file unemployment

SCAMS/SPINS:

Health insurance costs increase faster than wages: workers are losing ground to insurers

Revealed: GOP health care plan finally, we know what is in the plan: just promises!

Over 20 million will lose coverage if Trump’s Supremes vote down ACA

How the ‘Hoax’ hit 15 relatives from one TX family: TX Gov OKed small groups

Trump calls Regeneron a "miracle" “cure”: Trump owns stock in maker: he pushed up price 60%

Scientists: Trump ‘cure’ remdesivir has "little or no effect on mortality" for patients hospitalized

Trump is contagious: Virus remains for 28 days: McConnell avoids WH and rally killed H Caine

Trump put 2 political hacks at CDC to bend virus information: its what dictators do

domestic terrorism threat is rising: Armed Trumpers at polls: guard him in WH after loss

Supremes halt census: Constitution: “The actual Enumeration [count] shall be made every 10 yrs

Supremes nominee indoctrinated in male authoritarian propaganda: decisions biased

Supreme Court biased by political clubs and lobbyists for the wealthy: revenge of right

Supremes’ Citizen United makes election about money: Adelson rescues Trump with $75M

Millions with low-income locked in poverty: a tiny raise can cancel benefits given for poor

Robinhood Users Say Accounts Were Looted, No One To Call: hackers cashed out stocks

Phillip Kenner AZ caught $17 million scheme: promised HI land developments: jail

Securities firms caught hiding their RR disciplinary histories from us on CRS forms

Nissan caught misleading, deceive, overcharging, holding items ransom fine $4 million

Midland Funding caught suing for loan collection late & without documents, notice, etc

Robert Smith: how tax evaders stay out of jail: lawyers and a little ‘help’ to their friends

Car fluid flush: mechanics do scams too: Find a new shop if you are hit with these scams.

5G phone on today’s networks like Ferrari on neighborhood streets: wait: maybe in 2025

Social Security benefits up 1.3% but Health care costs up 3%; rising every year

Is it a scam? Check AARP scamline 877.908.3360.

Check IRS: https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/dirty-dozen-part-1-taxpayers-should-be-on-the-lookout-for-these-scams

https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/dirty-dozen-part-2-thieves-work-all-year-to-scam-taxpayers

Check Social Security: https://blog.ssa.gov/

Jobs

Fidelity Investments To Hire 4,000 People In Next Six Months

Wages stopped growing relative to productivity in the 70s for most of us: we can’t retire

Trump still has a job: 898,000 new week unemployment claims

Who owns your account now?

BMO Harris Financial Advisors moved to LPL

Vanguard gets out of China institutional money management: focus on individuals.

Miracles:

Killers loose: MI terrorists AR weapons never get asked for license or background check

WI police never disarmed 17 yr old AR weapon: killed 2: terrorist not ‘militia’: Tombstone law?

Arizona COVID-19 cases fell 75% after mask mandates: family denial no masks 14 sick

AZ heat over 100 HALF the year: living indoors is the future in the desert and on Earth

Voting in some GOP states: It takes 11 hours in GA: Will Dems take a day off work?

Trump PO DeJoy claims reverse all the service and equipment destroyed in Apr by Nov 3

IAN

41 Watchung Plaza, B242

Montclair, NJ 07042

973.746.2014

www.InsuranceAdvisorsNetwork.com

Alerts available at http://dankeppel.blogspot.com/

Friday, October 9, 2020

Is life insurance in your estate plan right for you?

IRS audits the poor not the rich

IRS admits it can’t audit Trump and friends: the wealthy avoid paying their fair share and they get away with it. The wealthy pay lawyers to outwit the IRS: Congress keeps cutting the IRS budget. The top 10% of earners have accounted for most of the revenue gap, experts say, by underreporting their liabilities, intentionally or not, as tax avoidance or outright evasion. Those with annual incomes under $25,000 are audited at a higher rate (0.69%) than those with incomes up to $500,000 (0.53%), according to the IRS data. Trump will never reveal his taxes since his audit will never be done. The IRS will fail to collect nearly $7.5 trillion in taxes owed between 2020 and 2029, according to one study. Poor Mississippi Blacks are the most audited target. White Alaska Denali is least audited region. Working Americans have one last IRS-approved tax shelter. Why pay the taxes due from the wealthy?

Start now: https://www.amazon.com/Trump-Tax-Shelter-Avoid-taxes/dp/1985448300

Is life insurance in your estate plan right for you?

Some agents make the mistake of selling you life insurance on your spouse’s life but naming your child as beneficiary. When your spouse dies, the death benefit may be taxable to you. Why? To the IRS, since the husband was the owner of the policy, he has given a gift of the benefit to his son – making it a taxable gift amount. Your agent should know that the spouse must own the policy to avoid this blunder. Obviously, your spouse as owner can use your funds to pay the premiums. Another mistake more common today is when you find you don’t need your policy benefit or can’t afford the premiums and you wish to sell. So you sell your policy but the buyer does not tell mention that you must pay tax on the death benefit as income to you. For example, if you sell a life insurance policy with a $250,000 death benefit for $5,000 and you have paid $10,000 so far, the amount subject to income tax would be $235,000 ($250,000-$10,000-$5,000). You sold an asset so you must pay tax on the gain. If the agent suggests naming your estate as beneficiary, don’t sign until you have checked with an estate lawyer. Finally, your agent must follow specific rules to transfer your policy from one insurer to another. Have a lawyer check the contract before signing. Most agents are not tax lawyers. You may have to pay commissions again. You may have a surrender charge if you transfer an annuity.

https://www.amazon.com/Drop-Your-Insurance-Only-What/dp/1448623391

Is your advisor treating you intelligently?

Is your advisor wasting your time? Here are five things smart advisors never say. If they say, “I think you might want to consider…” it sounds like they don’t know if this item is right for you. What do they mean when they say, “Let me know if you ever want me to take a look…”? Clearly they are fishing and don’t know how to help you. When they say, “I can offer you a no-obligation…” think: what can this really cost? Do I have time to watch a canned presentation? Advisors are taught to stay in front of clients: “I just wanted to touch base…” without any planned next step, this is time waster. When they say, “If I don’t hear back from you…” they mean they will keep bothering you until you take the initiative. They don’t know, specifically, what they can offer you. Another time waster! Don’t forget: Your advisor is a salesperson not a personal friend, ever.

https://www.amazon.com/What-Your-Advisor-Really-Means/dp/1542964520

Is America already a socialist country?

Our central bank, the one that sets interest rates and creates new money, has taken the unprecedented step of controlling the way banks can use their profits. Thirty-four banks cannot pay higher dividends nor buy their own stock back changing the value of the stock owned by our pension fund etc. The Fed just extended what it’s been doing since June. It limited bank payouts because banks failed their stress tests: they don’t have emergency funds to cover loses. Another example of socialism: the Fed is using our future tax money to give bailouts to struggling companies. Another: the president demands a commission from his deal for a US company to buy TikToc, which he has ordered us not to use. We are subsidizing coal, oil, gas, agriculture firms and Congress gets perk from their lobbyists. Trump’s new postmaster got employees to make contributions to the GOP, which is illegal. Trump has diplomats and fat cats stay at his Washington hotel to gain access to him. Americans expect to be paid by the government when they are laid off. Only company lobbyists have access to citizen representatives in Congress. Gov aid to small business went mostly to larger employers or GOP favorites. Doesn’t this sound like a 3^rd world country dictatorship? Socialism: we pay for losses; elites take the profits.

https://www.amazon.com/Americas-Socialism-Rich-little-people/dp/1535218584

Another way the wealthy avoid paying their fair share

Using some of the tricks of the tax laws promoting clean energy, one company CEO became a “utility company” to avoid taxes on salary bonus and real estate investments. Solar tax credits and accelerated depreciation rules were combined so every dollar of solar energy investment translated into more than a dollar of tax credit. Tax credits were used to move taxable 401k assets into non-taxable assets for life-long tax-free income. This particular trick costs us taxpayers approximately $1.3 million in taxes for 2020 alone. Why should we pay for this person’s fair share of taxes?

Make your income tax-FREE too: https://www.amazon.com/Tax-FREE-Retirement-code-lifetime-income/dp/1475206976/

We work as long as it takes to save for retirement

Some people say they will work till they die. They are able to work now and they see no reason to quit. Others work even though they could quit and live off their savings. They are able to work now and don’t believe they have enough money to quit. There are people who look at their savings and know they cannot quit. Some think they need $1.9 million to retire. They have an idea that until they reach their retirement nest egg, they must work. Since most of us never learned the power of compounding—the time value of money—we have no idea how long or how much to save. When I was a child my parents put money in a permanent life insurance plan, mistaking insurance for a savings plan. They knew nothing of investments. If my parents had known about the power of compounding the dividends of common stocks they could have retired earlier. If they had known about Anne Scheiber who earned $4,000 a year and kept buying stocks like Coca-Cola, Paramount, Schering-Plough, they could have retired when they wanted to. You can leave $22 million to your favorite charity like she did IF you know about the power of compounding dividends over time. Her returns match the 500 index fund which you can buy and start compounding today. It is time and patience that made Anne wealthy.

Learn about the Miracle of Compounding: https://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Compounding-Turn-day-into/dp/1470176513

Do investors still need an advisor to stop them making big mistakes?

This is the mantra of every paid professional in the business. How else could they justify fees that could take away from us up to 63% of what we would have had? Morningstar’s annual “Mind the Gap” report estimates the impact of investors’ behavior on their investments. The report found that investors captured every bit of their funds’ return and then some. Because investors have learned not to panic, we may be better off long term WITHOUT the middle people taking their money. Sure, when we need help we can pay a just one fee to a fee-only planner. That is what industry people do themselves. Of course we don’t know how many investors will “stay the course” when we have a long bear market. Another report finds that “the average investor’s appetite for equities has remained unchanged throughout the Covid crisis.” Investors have embraced the strategy of buy and hold by filling up Target Date funds.

https://www.amazon.com/Robbing-You-Blind-401k-fees/dp/1493588966

Show your child how to invest like Warren Buffett

Teach your child to invest the Buffett way. Success with money starts early. Compounding over time assures your child of security. You have a great opportunity to teach your child how to become successful with money. They can learn to take care of themselves and even become wealthy from your guidance TODAY. You can show them how to take advantage of the greatest power in finance: compound interest and the time value of money. Warren Buffett, who turned his paper route savings into $60 billion, credited compounding for his wealth. "My wealth has come from a combination of living in America, some lucky genes, and compound interest.” A special IRS-approved account makes their $1 million tax-FREE. Tax-FREE is like a $300,000 bonus from Uncle Sam.

Start today at home in 30 min: https://www.amazon.com/Where-can-your-child-invest/dp/1492164240

**********ACCOUNTABILITY**************

Like 1776, this period is a test of democracy—do we really want ‘low-IQ’ Mobster?

Philly DA: we have an “authoritarian dictator."

Dictator: I order Barr to indict Biden over the Russia ‘hoax’

Dictator: disdain for masks, ended in hospital

213,000+ die; finally Dictator “gets it” but did he really?

Dictator: “virus less deadly than flu”

Dictator: “I'm a perfect physical specimen”

Dictator: stimulus on or off today “I don’t know”

How Govt wastes our money: Congress gives 3.7 Trillion to the wealthy!

Jeff Sessions to border DOJ: “We need to take away children”—crime against humanity

Trump’s trade deficit climbs to the highest level in 14 years: promised to eliminate it

This is where our virus tax money went: fracking firm execs $55 millions: 133 other firms too

Trump’s letter re: drug discount costs us $19 million; card costs $51 million; card sent later?

Airlines’ lobbyists came through with more: airline bailout talks back on, says Dictator

Jared’s Covid team: 3M encouraged to sell masks to China then we paid 10x for same

FBI pursue/grab domestic Terrorists: Terrorists to overthrow government are not militia

Trump encourages MI terrorists: aiding and abetting the overthrow of gov is treason

SCAMS/SPINS:

TV adverts waste of our money: Political ads have almost no impact at all on swaying voters

Facebook/Twitter ‘news’ can be faked: check real news sources before you believe

Black terrorists NFAC protest another police shooting: TX cop kills Black “good Samaritan”

Drug pusher wins: Killing thousands with addictive drug and yet keep $ billions without jail

Supremes ready to turn back time: Court to make white evangelical world the norm: revenge?

Early voting in limited SC sites creates 1 hour lines: GOP must keep voters away to win.

Trump tells 50K supporters be poll watchers: illegal to intimidate at polls: fake “ballot security”

Supremes help SC GOP make voters obtain witness to “secret” ballot: no ‘secret’ anymore

Supremes to help PA GOP make votes invalid due to Trump’s PO mail delays. MI delays too.

On-time delivery of first-class mail is plummeting: PO documents in Fed court: GOP cheers!

GOP halts FL ex-felons from registering to vote even after fines, fees paid

Trump given drugs made from fetal cells: Religionists were silent: OK aborted fetus for Leader not us

Trump: virus is “a blessing from God” kills 213,000 Americans!

Trump’s “herd immunity” works in reverse: more states, assistants GOP, Jt Chiefs get sick 34

Trump’s TV crew reshoots his entrance into the White House without a mask: stand-in double?

Trump’s insurance covered multi-treatments by 5 doctors: is your coverage as comprehensive?

“Hydroxychloroquine is not on the list of medications” taken. Trump pumping up its maker stock

Trump changing FDA safety standards vaccine use to get votes by Nov 3

Trump blames Gold Star veteran families for his virus infection: “cemetery filled with losers”

Fradin-Read thymosin not approved for virus: $400 cost for ‘wellness’ docs unproven claims

Router WiFi black holes? WiFi Range Extender may help some areas

Expensive; Least dependable cars: Land Rover, Jaguar, Volvo ($77K): 200+ mistakes

Ford bets on trucks, CVs after losing $ billions on cars: new CEO to lighten costs worldwide.

Joseph Gargan Pension Co stole $9,117,165 from annuity owners due from malpractice suits

Germany’s Allianz sued by pension funds: failing to safeguard investments during coronavirus.

Richard Baldwin jeweler ordered pay back $2.1 million insider-trading case; avoided jail

John McAfee antivirus software Spain indicted tax evasion using fake accounts/names on assets

John McAfee caught promoting cryptocurrency on twitter disguised as financial advice

Adam Hochfelder, caught Ponzi scheme $400,000 Merchants workers

Gerald Eaton MA caught stealing $3.7 million faking ID, signature, over 20 yrs; prison.

Casey Kemerly VA caught stealing clients from advisors; moved from state to state

Trump to let hedge funds hide what investors are buying: even hedge funds are against plan

Trump to allow unregistered advisors to solicit us for high-risk private placement: BEWARE

Trump donor charged with being a foreign country agent: Malaysian and Chinese paid $ millions

Is it a scam? Check AARP scamline 877.908.3360.

Check IRS: https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/dirty-dozen-part-1-taxpayers-should-be-on-the-lookout-for-these-scams

https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/dirty-dozen-part-2-thieves-work-all-year-to-scam-taxpayers

Check Social Security: https://blog.ssa.gov/

Jobs

Jobs that will continue to grow: health care, computer-based, construction

3.8 million people have lost their employment for good. No GOP retraining plan in sight.

Teachers take more risks for less pay than college jobs: 20% less so must be mission

Job losses could be permanent: start searching the adverts now before the crowd: Indeed

Who owns your account now?

Eaton Vance to Morgan Stanley

Miracles:

Trump does not want another ‘debate’: Rally is better to scream in: reverse negatives?

Some Christians have been saved from burning in hell: saying ‘NO’ to more kids in cages

Blood Test for Alzheimer’s in reach: 2-3 years diagnosis test; not cure

GOP, except one, wearing masks: surge of infections hits South; West

2000 year old brain cell still intact after volcano heat and quick cool

“Don Jr. thinks Trump is acting crazy”: Jr fails to convince family. “They’re all worried.”

IAN

41 Watchung Plaza, B242

Montclair, NJ 07042

973.746.2014

www.InsuranceAdvisorsNetwork.com

Alerts available at http://dankeppel.blogspot.com/

Friday, October 2, 2020

Advisors fail to educate us about retirement needs

The main reason people continue to pay advisors is for advice. However, we don’t seem to be educating us. Study after study show the lack of financial literacy even after years of paying fees and commissions for help. Advisors don’t seem to know how to help us understand how much income we will have in retirement. Eight in ten respondents failed a retirement income literacy quiz according to an industry education group. More than half the folks underestimate the average life expectancy of a 65-year old (and thereby underestimating the amount of time they will need to stretch their assets). Investors do not recognize how to properly evaluate asset risks in the first place. But that is what we pay advisors to do, right? Most advisors do not even know how to weigh the risks themselves. Most learn to sell products. Advisors blame us: “clients preparing for retirement often underestimate the need to make sure retirement income comes from different sources. Too many assume that they can rely on dividend-paying stocks to fund their retirement,” one argued. Most focus too much on portfolio management as opposed to factors that will likely have a greater impact on their financial wellbeing, like health care expenses and long-term care needs. Only three in ten respondents have a plan in place. Learn what your advisor doesn’t tell you before it’s too late to fix it.

https://www.amazon.com/Lies-Financial-Advisors-Told-alternatives/dp/1478281545

Investors who did NOT panic ended 2019 with $360,000

Fidelity Investments’ 401(k) customers who stayed in the market during the 2008 crash saw their account balances rise, on average, from $79,000 in 2008 to $360,000 by the end of 2019. Although people who got out of stock funds in 2008 reentered the market and continued to save, their average balance performed worse, rising only to $276,000 by 2019. That’s a panic loss of $84,000 or 30%. A Vanguard study showed the same result: Vanguard just analyzed the panic factor from Feb to May and found the “panickers” earned less than those that did nothing. “Doing nothing” has been the hallmark of Warren Buffett’s attitude: “We continue to make more money when snoring than when active."

Do Nothing; keep contributing: https://www.amazon.com/Snoring-Best-Way-Create-Wealth/dp/1466408928

Is using an advisor right for you?

Every day investors hear the so-called professional ‘advisors’ predicting opposites: The "no matter what happens—stocks" advice and the “more downside risk for the U.S. equity markets than upside potential” advice. Many studies say advisor-managed investments just don’t help us long term. In fact, if we pay 2% in fees, commissions, bad market timing trades and being out of the market, we can give away “63 percent of what we would have had.” This is not to say that we don’t need specific financial advice once in awhile. We could just pay a fixed fee like we pay lawyers and doctors. They don’t ask for 2% of our assets every year for life. So I paid $750 for a professionally prepared financial plan so I know, within certain boundaries, how much my family will have to live on for the next 30-40 years. The alternative was $15,000 + a year for at least 30 years or over $450,000 total. And that is not tax deductible anymore. That savings will cover any long-term care needs and final state and federal taxes and expenses. Many index investors obtain advice from fee-only financial planners since they have been burned by bad advice. Brokers and advisors are trained and paid to sell. As their manager in a former life, I decided what they told clients to maximize the firm’s revenue not theirs. Stop paying for guess work: https://www.amazon.com/Pimps-Wall-Street-money-middlemen/dp/151525254X

Trump like many corporations pays little tax

Even after getting paid for income garnered from President-branded activities, Trump paid only $750 in taxes. That means he claimed income of just $7,500 in 2016 and 2017. We know his FL club took in $ millions from new memberships. Since he now controls the IRS as part of Treasury, his IRS audits are over. Audits of using suspicious losses to pay $0 taxes for decades have a limit of 3 years unless his DOJ lawyer can prove tax fraud. Not likely. In fact we paid Trump $72,900,000 in tax refunds he claims from years of losses on business failures and bankruptcies. For instance, he claimed losses of near $1 billion ($915,729,293) on his 1995 personal income tax returns. His casino companies made four trips to bankruptcy court, letting bondholders take the losses, while he took millions. He continues to claim business losses to reduce his taxes: “losses are more accounting magic” he says. In 2018, for example, Trump announced in his official disclosure that he had made at least $434.9 million. But his accountants say he lost $47.4 million. His New Jersey golf club increased admin expenses fivefold from 2016 to 2017. Most of Mr. Trump’s core enterprises — from his golf courses to his WH hotel — report losing tens of millions of dollars year after year. Like many corporations, Trump increases business expenses or losses to avoid paying taxes. We pay for their losses and refunds. Socialism for the rich: You and I pay for their failures!

Socialism for the Rich: https://www.amazon.com/Americas-Socialism-Rich-little-people-pay/dp/1535218584

IRS audits the poor not the rich

IRS admits it can’t audit Trump and friends: wealthy avoid paying their fair share. Wealthy pay lawyers to outwit the IRS: Congress keeps cutting IRS budget. The top 10% of earners have accounted for most of the revenue gap, experts say, by underreporting their liabilities, intentionally or not, as tax avoidance or outright evasion. Those with annual incomes under $25,000 are audited at a higher rate (0.69%) than those with incomes up to $500,000 (0.53%), according to the IRS data. Trump will never reveal his taxes since his audit will never be done. The IRS will fail to collect nearly $7.5 trillion in taxes owed between 2020 and 2029, according to one study. Poor MS Blacks are the most audited target. White Alaska Denali is least audited county. Working Americans have one last IRS-approved tax shelter. Why pay the taxes due from the wealthy?

https://www.amazon.com/Trump-Tax-Shelter-Avoid-taxes/dp/1985448300

How to avoid taxes like the President of the United States

He pays no taxes. "That makes me smart." We pay his tax refund; that makes us dumb? Actually, his accountant is the savvy one. Trump knows “virtually zero,” he said.

You too can use tax credits and depreciation just like he does. But only if you use his special accounting firm and accounting “magic” and many legal tricks to delay IRS audits and lawsuits. Trump audit has been ongoing since at least 2015: no end in sight.

“He put up little of his own money, shifted personal debts to the casinos and collected millions of dollars in salary, bonuses and other payments.” The burden of his failures fell on investors and others—local contractors—who had bet on his business ‘acumen.’ “He put a number of local contractors and suppliers out of business when he didn’t pay them.” Like his “university,” that cost folks seeking a valid education, his businesses are run like a confidence game. For instance, his New Jersey golf club increased admin expenses fivefold from 2016 to 2017. He convinced Congress to allow his wealthy friends and business people to avoid paying taxes on real estate projects if they claim they made “investments” in special zones like New Jersey waterfront properties. If you don’t have enough money or inclination for tax avoidance from real estate, you can use two simple techniques yourself. Anyone can deduct expenses against regular income by showing a loss from any small business. Among Trump’s deductions: $70,000 to style his thined hair. And anyone can use the IRS-approved tax-FREE investment account. Stop paying for their share.

Your move: https://www.amazon.com/Tax-Credit-Class-your-credits-ZERO/dp/1539462382

Are long-term care premiums right for you?

Less than one in 10 individuals thinks it is 'very likely' they will need long-term health care in retirement, according to a recent study. According to some insurance advisors, 70% will need some care. Unfortunately, the sellers are overstating the facts to make the sale. 1.4 million Americans live in nursing homes—about 2.8% of 49.2 million adults over age 65. Many people stay in nursing homes immediately after a hospitalization. During these short-term stays, Medicare often covers the costs. Unless you have a large estate you wish to pass on, most people self-insure their needs when they need help. Usually family provides assistance of all types. If living independently becomes impossible and you have used all your funds, Medicaid will pay for nursing home stays. For the wealthy, the average annual cost of a nursing home room is around $85,776 per year for a semi-private room or $97,452 for a private room. And according to the American Association for Long Term Care Insurance, only about 12% of people stay in nursing homes for more than five years. Costs vary a lot so shop multiple salespeople. Those who buy a couple policy before age 60 may end up paying $5,000 for 25 years or $125,000 and never use the benefits. Further, a typical stay is generally shorter if you're married than if you're not, likely reflecting the fact that one member of a couple often functions as a caregiver for the other as they age, delaying the need to move to the nursing home. Most people want to stay at home and will pay to make that work for them. Do your research first: Premiums go up and coverages are limited over time.

https://www.amazon.com/Long-term-Care-Insurance-Updated-2013/dp/148274001X

**********ACCOUNTABILITY**************

Like 1776, this period is a test of democracy—do we really want ‘low-IQ’ Mobster?

Philly DA: we have an “authoritarian dictator."

Dictator: “done a very good job” only 209,000 dead

Dictator: I pay no taxes. "That makes me smart."

Dictator: ‘Genius’ of the ‘Big Con’

Dictator: I won debates but

I got Hope’s Hoax

Dictator: Make America White Again

How Govt wastes our money: Congress gives 3.7 Trillion to the wealthy!

Trump troops use chemical weapons: Politicians not Army decide who gets gassed