There’s high drama in Washington, D.C. We’ve been glued to the news. These are wild times and yet, as Ecclesiastes 1:9 says, “There is nothing new under the sun.” How does one move forward with a plan for 2020 when it appears that everything around us is unpredictable? Especially during an election year?

Our suggestion … go back to the numbers. Today, Dennis and Heidi will cover the stats of 2019 with strategic ways to approach the New Year. Tune in, call in and weigh in with your plans.

How did you fare under the Trump tax plan? If you’re not sure, now would be the time to look instead of waiting until April 15, 2020, which is why we have special guest, Jon Sluis, CPA President of Intrust CPAs on the air with us today. He will share why there is a certain level of urgency for the self-employed and small business to consider your tax position before year-end.

If you’re retired, you’ll need to look at RMDs and qualified charitable distributions, and how those affect your tax bracket. For those of you still working, you’ll want to know how contributing to your retirement account, HSAs, and other tax saving strategies can help your tax game.

There will be a lot to discuss with very little time. We’ll see you on the air! If you want to follow along, here’s a great article we found in Forbes.

Can you believe that 2020 is less than a month away? It seems like yesterday that we were worried about Y2K! Time flies when you’re having a good time, so what happens when you’re not? Maybe you’ve put in the time, paid your dues and now it’s time to retire. You’ve even endured a “few extra years” to build up the nest egg, and now it’s time to fly solo … this is the YEAR!

We want to help you take the leap into the highly anticipated and great unknown.

Today, we’re going to give you a checklist of “to-do’s” before you mark your career “to-done.” There’s never been more retirement responsibility on YOU than today. Relax, it’s what we like “to-do.”

Retired lawyer Doug Godbe has a few things to share after his nearly 42-year career as a probate and estate planning attorney. In fact, he might surprise you with some of his thoughts about estate planning. Doug never practiced law in Michigan, his legal career was in California only. Accordingly, his statements today are merely observations of general probate and estate law. You should always consult with a licensed lawyer in your state for legal advice. For the last 31 years of his practice, Doug was a sole practitioner in Orange County, California. He has also authored five books on estate planning, probate and financial powers of attorneys.

Tune in, and you might be pleasantly surprised by some of his ideas like: “Don’t leave NOTHING to your least favorite relative. Leave them SOMETHING with a ‘no contest’ clause. It will be more painful for them to lose the money they’ve inherited contesting it than it will be for them to lose nothing contesting what they didn’t receive.”

Do you want to retire but you’re not sure if you can afford health care once you do? You’re not alone! A 65-year-old couple retiring in 2019 will spend approximately $390,000 out-of-pocket on medical expenses during their retirement years. And this does not include dental care, which Medicare does not cover. If you’re concerned about retiring for these reasons, your fear is not unfounded. Local health insurance expert, Laverna Witkop, is joining us this week to give us updates on Medicare and open enrollment for individual health plans. She’ll also explain how COBRA and HSA plans work.

This is a show you can’t afford to miss. Plus, we will explain why including your health insurance professional in your retirement planning is as imperative as including your CPA and attorney.