As an advisor who works in taxes, it is interesting, and at times infuriating to see the costs some brokers will impose on their client’s portfolios. The tax piece is important in any investment plan, and unfortunately I see many brokerage created investment plans that appear to be based on what is profitable and convenient, and not what is in a client’s best interest. The cost to one client in particular I met with were actually staggering given the relatively simple fix tha

Filing your taxes is not easy and finding someone to help you can be even more difficult but here’s some guidance on finding a tax preparer you can trust. As an independent financial advisor, I recommend clients consider working with an independent tax professional is separate from their financial advisor. There are two reasons I have come to this as a “best practice” for choosing a tax professional. First, having a background at various CPA firms, advisory firms, and retail

Tax filing season is underway and while you still may not have all of your forms, below are a few of the biggest mistakes I’ve seen in preparing returns this year: Not keeping records. People generally panic when the IRS inquires about items on their returns. As long as you claimed a legitimate expense and have the records to prove it, then items generally can be cleared up through a well-crafted response complete with copies of your receipts, etc. It can be impossible to rem

Originally published 4/16/2010 at the Financial Planning Association's All Things Financial Planning Blog Robert Schmansky, CFP(r) Roth conversions have increased this year, thanks to the elimination of qualifying income limits. But on the flip side, so have mistakes, according to recent articles in Financial Advisor magazine and by personal finance columnist Humberto Cruz. What do investors need to know before deciding if a conversion makes sense? Because of the complexity a