Radio Shows

College tuition might be fresh on your mind now that the kids and grandkids have been back to school for a while. You may be considering helping a child, grandchild or loved one with the cost of higher education.
Record-high tuition costs have many families exploring the various options available to them, including 529 plans and Coverdell accounts, but many fail to realize that a Roth IRA could also be a viable option to help fund a college education. Roth IRAs provide a flexible alternative to 529 plans, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they are for everyone. FAFSA eligibility, taxes, as well as account limitations and requirements are all factors that should be considered in order to select the investment options that best fit you and your loved one’s needs.

Ed Slott created The Complete IRA Care Solution Year End Checklist and in today’s show Dennis tries to share as much of it as possible. Listen to Dennis as he discusses checklist items such as ensuring all RMDs have been satisfied, to include year of death RMDs for multiple beneficiaries. Also discussed are deadlines for Roth conversions, qualified charitable distributions and the splitting of inherited accounts.

Dennis is back from his adventures to the great Northwest. Guess what else is back? October deadlines. Yup. You heard us right. Here’s the list:
October 1, 2017
Deadline for self-employed persons or small employers to establish a SIMPLE IRA for the year 2017.
October 16, 2017
Final deadline to file individual tax returns for the year 2016 (Forms 1040, 1040A, 1040EZ).
Last day the IRS will accept an electronically filed tax return for the year 2016. If filing after October 15, you’ll have to mail in your tax return for processing.
Final deadline to fund a SEP IRA or solo 401(k) for tax year 2016 if you requested an automatic extension of time to file.

The headline read, “People in rich countries are dying of loneliness.” I couldn’t resist, I had to read it and I had to know why. Turns out, this is a blurry issue without hard lines drawn between demographics. Instead, it’s about emotional isolation. We are living longer, moving away from our families, marrying less and living in a culture that promotes autonomy over community. This is the perfect storm for loneliness. In its wake is the higher risk of Alzheimer’s, depression, obesity and early death.
Think this is a problem just for single people? Think again. According to The New York Times, “It is not the same thing as being alone: 62.5 percent of older adults who reported being lonely in this new study were married.”
Grant Porteous, local therapist and life coach, joins me (Shea) in the studio today to talk about how to identify loneliness and cope with it. He says, “You need to look at your 401(k) but you also need to look at this … you need to look at your emotional health.”

I was born an old soul, preferring adult conversations over play dates with my peers. One conversation I remember my grandmother and mother having went like this: “Well, you know. They didn’t have a rainy day fund, so they lost everything.” In my five-year-old mind I couldn’t understand how a rainy day could be more expensive than a sunny one, but it sounded awful.
This literal interpretation has context today as we watch the devastation in Houston. It also has the intended metaphorical context when we look ahead into retirement. The unexpected storms of life take preparation and sometimes, despite what we have done, it’s not enough.
Today, we are going to talk about the ways to protect your financial assets and documents should a disaster occur. We will also discuss how to be prepared for the unexpected health expenses that will more than likely happen while you’re in retirement.

This week, I lost a good man. I lost my Papa. In truth, we started losing him slowly about 10 years ago when Alzheimer’s crept in. It was sly and unsuspecting, but when it became more obvious, my grandmother needed help from everyone. Their five children (who live out of town) rotated their time and talent to compensate for each other, despite having children and grandchildren of their own. People in this situation are considered the “Sandwich Generation,” that is, they take care of both their parents while raising their own family.
According to Pew Research Center, one in seven middle-aged adults (15%) is providing financial support to both an aging parent and a child. Join us today as we discuss the “Sandwich Generation” and hear from our guest Prout Financial Design’s very own Heidi Thompson, who is currently a member of this group.

Over the last few weeks, we have been deep-diving into the world of estate planning, and will continue part of last week’s show in our conversation today. We are also going to get back into some retirement account technicalities from Ed Slott’s August Newsletter for advisors. This is the “inside scoop” for those of you wanting to understand required minimum distributions, Social Security, taxes and the oh-so-famous Roth IRAs! Not associated with or endorsed by the Social Security Administration or any other government agency.

Last week Dennis talked about an ice cream scoop of his mother’s that he wanted after his parents passed away. Though it wasn’t inherently valuable, it held much sentimental value – and many memories – for him. For me (Shea), it was my grandmother’s Renaissance painting, a reprint with no name. It reminds me of her and my time at the family farm. When it comes to liquidating the “stuff” (heirlooms are apparently a thing of the past), it’s important to know that the “IKEA generation” probably doesn’t want it. But if they do, you might want to make a plan.

As a kid, it was always a race to ride in the front seat of my parents’ car. When it was time to go somewhere, we would hurtle ourselves toward the car yelling, “SHOTGUN!” Regardless of who said it first, it was the kid who made it to the car first who won. As the oldest, I had a clear advantage until my little brother’s athleticism won out. By then, though, I had my driver’s license … the ultimate ticket to freedom!

I (Dennis) have spent the summer nurturing my garden. Just last week my asparagus plant began to show off its leaves. For reasons unknown to me, there is an incredible sense of accomplishment in watching a garden grow. This year, I’ll have enough produce to share with friends and family, which gives me an even deeper level of satisfaction. Your investments aren’t much different. After years of labor and attention, they can produce enough for you to live on. If you’re intentional, it can be something for you to share.