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With more advisors chasing high-net-worth clients, family offices have officially entered buyer's market territory, which is bad news for those who dislike tending to the nonfinancial demands of ultrawealthy clients. One of the earmarks of a...
Even with the reduction in capital gains taxes and the possibility of a permanent repeal of the estate tax, wealthy individuals are showing increased interest in charitable giving. This new wave of donors typically wants to retain some say-so over...
This column lives up to its tag only insofar as it addresses a frequent shortcoming in advisors of my age group. I'm talking about putting the Web to good use in a financial advisory practice. For all the search engine technology out there, the...
Q: Like many brokers, I switched firms three years ago, joining a wirehouse offering a seven-year forgivable loan as upfront payment. Since hiring on at the new firm, my production has nosedived. I may be fired or, because I'm so frustrated, leave...
Estate planners live in uncertainty. Historically, the strongest selling point for their services has been helping clients minimize estate taxes. But with increases in the estate tax exemption and the possible outright repeal of the estate tax...
What remedies are available when an unexpected death short-circuits an estate plan, leaving heirs to pay more taxes than they would have had their benefactor lived a little longer? In wrongful death cases, one state may now permit estate-tax...
Since the passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, publicly traded companies have had to comply with strict new governance standards. A significant part of the Act increased the role board members must play in terms of the firm's financial dealings and...
Defined-benefit plans are making a comeback but with a twist. The employer-managed retirement vehicles were a staple benefit at large companies until the mid-1990s, when many fell victim to aggressive cost-cutting. Now, capitalizing on rules set...
If saving for college were a race, it'd be a marathon, and even those 26-mile races culminate in a hard push for the finish line. So it is that college saving does not end when the kid enrolls as a freshman at State U. In fact, in the years that...
