3 Retirement Account Takeaways from OBBBA

By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education On July 4, 2025, President Trump signed into law the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” (OBBBA). This mammoth domestic policy and tax law is hundreds of pages long and will impact many people in all kinds of ways. What...
Weekly Market Commentary

Weekly Market Commentary

A barrage of tariff letters sent to over 20 countries by President Trump yielded very little movement in the financial markets.  Trump announced that there would not be additional extensions to negotiations and that tariff levels sent in these letters would go into...

OBBBA: No IRA Changes, but More Roth Conversions?

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Hopefully Ed Slott and Company is your trusted, go-to source for all things IRA and retirement plan related. Let’s be clear about the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act of 2025” (OBBBA), enacted on July 4. There is no “SECURE 3.0” in this...

How Company Plan Loans Work

By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst Most company retirement savings plans, such as 401(k), 403(b) and 457(b) plans, are allowed to (but not required to) offer plan loans. According to a survey by the Employee Benefits Research Institute, as of the end of 2022, 52% of 401(k)...
Weekly Market Commentary

Weekly Market Commentary

The holiday-shortened week produced another week of gains for US equity indices.  The S&P 500 was up 10.6 % in the 2nd quarter, while the NASDAQ composite rose 17.8%.  Trump’s reconciliation bill was passed by the Senate and subsequently approved by the House,...
Planning to retire in 2025? Do these 7 things now

Planning to retire in 2025? Do these 7 things now

A wonderful retirement is the goal of many people, and you want it to come off without any major snags. But retirement plans always face challenges, whether it’s the volatility of the markets, the affordability of healthcare or the risks posed by inflation. Plus,...

Pro Rata, Not “Double Tax”

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst The pro-rata rule dictates that when an IRA contains both non-deductible (after-tax) and deductible (pre-tax) funds, then each dollar withdrawn (or converted) from the IRA will contain a percentage of tax-free and taxable funds...
Weekly Market Commentary

Weekly Market Commentary

The S&P 500 and the NASDAQ joined the NASDAQ 100 in forging new all-time highs in an extremely busy week for Wall Street.  A de-escalation of the Iran-Israel-US conflict happened on the twelfth day after Israel’s initial strikes.  The US bombed three key...
3 Retirement Mistakes That Can Still Be Fixed in 2025

3 Retirement Mistakes That Can Still Be Fixed in 2025

Retirement planning is rarely perfect. Life throws curveballs—health issues, market downturns, career changes—and even the most diligent savers can stumble along the way. If you’ve made financial missteps or feel unprepared as you approach retirement, you’re not...

Double Your Pleasure – The 457(b) 2x Catch-Up

  By Ian Berger, JD IRA Analyst If you’re in a 457(b) plan and are nearing retirement, you may want to consider an often-overlooked rule that could allow you to defer twice the usual annual elective deferral limit (for 2025, $23,000 x 2 = $47,000) in the three...

Moving Your Roth Account

  By Sarah Brenner, JD Director of Retirement Education The year 2025 has been a turbulent time for the economy. Whether due to job loss or persons seeking better investment opportunities in volatile markets, retirement account funds are on the move more than...
Weekly Market Commentary

Weekly Market Commentary

Despite there being plenty for investors to consider, the holiday-shortened week ended pretty much where it started. Israel and Iran continued to exchange missile attacks, while global leaders tried to find a resolution to the conflict. President Trump opened the door...
8 Ways to Keep From Going Broke in Retirement

8 Ways to Keep From Going Broke in Retirement

Budgeting, saving and investing tips to help make your money last as long as you do No matter how diligently you’ve been saving for retirement, it’s hard not to worry about outliving your money. But you can take several steps to contain your expenses, manage your nest...

Bad Advice Turns Me Into the Hulk

By Andy Ives, CFP®, AIF® IRA Analyst Before he transformed into the Incredible Hulk, Bruce Banner once said to his antagonist, “Don’t make me angry. You wouldn’t like me when I’m angry.” That’s a little how I feel when I hear stories about lazy financial professionals...