Financial Planning and Money Management
Financial Planning and Money Management
Get the straight facts about: -Retirement plans -Investment strategies -Investment products -Fees and anything else that is rarely discussed by the financial industry.
Blog By:
Kon Litovsky
Kon Litovsky

Much of the information available on the internet covers individual or ‘solo’ 401(k) plans. Not a lot is written about Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) 401(k) plans where in addition to owners (who are highly compensated employees, or HCEs) there are also non-highly compensated...  Read More
When it comes to personal financial planning, the industry is starting to move towards , which is a welcome development for doctors and dentists who are high earners and high net worth (though not necessarily at the same time). When charged for personal financial planning services,  can be even...  Read More
As a small practice owner or a partner in a medical or dental practice, minimizing taxes and building your retirement savings are two of your biggest financial goals.  Many doctors and dentists have a relatively late start and often have significant student debt upon graduation, and they also may...  Read More
Your CPA informs you that profits for the year will top expectations, and that you should start thinking about using a retirement plan to shelter some of that income from taxes because you will be in the highest federal and state .  After doing some research, you find that there are two types of...  Read More
It is well-known that the majority of retirement plan providers that serve the small and mid-sized retirement plans are bundled platforms that make most of their money via asset-based fees.  Many plan providers do not offer the best available solutions to small solo and group practice plans, and...  Read More
If you are going to set up a 401k or a Cash Balance plan, should you hire an ERISA 3(38) fiduciary for your plan? The following article has the answers:   Read More
Ever wonder what your retirement plan total cost over time is?  If you have an asset-based fee component, the cost of your plan will increase exponentially, and eventually you will be paying significant money for nothing. You can estimate the actual cost of your 401k and/or a Cash Balance plan over...  Read More
At first glance, the only difference between small practice and large company retirement plans is the number of participants. Everything else would seem to be identical – both plans have a Third Party Administrator, a record-keeper, a custodian, an investment adviser, mutual funds,...  Read More
Retirement plans for solo owners (no non-spouse employees) and contractors: - See more at: http://www.dentaltown.com/Dentaltown/Blogs.aspx?action=VIEWPOST&b=143&bp=2572#sthash.OatIFcZT.dpuf Retirement plans for solo owners (no non-spouse employees) and contractors: - See more at:...  Read More
My QuantiaMD presentations on retirement plans for small practices with important information that very few plan providers and vendors will ever share with you before you start a small practice plan (audio + slides, 15 minutes): http://quantiamd.com/player/ygrmdgmtk?cid=1467  Read More
Here's everything you ever wanted to know about retirement plans, whether you are an employee, contractor or a practice owner. 1) Retirement plans for employees (hospitals, universities, other practices): 2) Retirement plans for small practice owners: 3) Retirement plans for solo owners (no...  Read More
It is part of human nature to avoid disturbing something that works well: “if it ain’t broke – don’t fix it”. While this can be a sound rule of thumb, when applied to retirement plans, it is exactly the opposite: if you haven’t had your plan reviewed by an...  Read More
As your revenues and profits increase, so do the taxes you pay on your earnings. If you are considering opening a retirement plan for your business to minimize taxes, you are on the right track.  There are three major reasons for opening a retirement plan:     Provide a valuable perk to your...  Read More
Whether you are a do-it-yourself investor or you work with an adviser, there are several basic principles you should be aware of that can help improve your investment performance. Even though many of these are considered ‘common sense’ by those who are educated about investing, not...  Read More
Many bundled 401(k) plans offered to small practices can have very high fees, which include mutual fund fees and other asset-based fees. Fees average about 1.5% but at the high end of the spectrum fees can be as high as 4%. These AUM (assets under management) fees always grow as your account grows....  Read More
When we talk about retirement plans, specifically the 401k plans, we always have in mind participant-directed plans in which all plan participants get their own personal account and are responsible for managing their own investments. It turns out that participant-directed plans aren’t the...  Read More
Fiduciary liability and hiring a fiduciary to run your plan The best way to help yourself and your employees achieve better investment results is to offer individualized investment advice. When hiring an adviser for your plan, there are several things to keep in mind: 1) A 3(38) investment...  Read More
Hedge funds, managed futures, commodities, private placements, oil and gas exploration, non-listed REITs…what do all of these have in common? The sellers usually claim that their product will provide the necessary diversification for your portfolio. They claim they have numbers to prove it,...  Read More
This chart can put everything in context: Figure 1. Missing ten best days. All this says is that markets are extremely risky, with majority of gains and losses coming in a very short period of time. So anyone planning to retire and make withdrawals better manage risk, or else: Figure 2....  Read More
Whether you have student loans, practice loans or a mortgage, one of the most common questions asked is whether it makes sense to pay out your loans early. Opinions always vary. Some say you should repay your loans quickly. Others say invest your money in stocks instead. Does your loan interest...  Read More
Whether you have an existing plan, looking to open a new plan or upgrade the plan you already have, there are four things you need to consider that can significantly improve the quality of your plan: having the right plan design, minimizing plan cost, managing your fiduciary liability as a plan...  Read More
Majority of today’s advisers, whether they are fee-only (that is, they are paid only by the client, not by third parties for selling products), or fee-based (having a mix of fees and commissions from product sales) are compensated by charging a percentage of assets under management (AUM)...  Read More
Since the crash of 2008, many investment advisers and financial commentators pronounced that 'buy and hold' is dead. At the lowest point, the S&P500 fell as much as 50%, and even today most portfolios never recovered from the fall experienced by domestic and international markets, which both...  Read More
So you are now ready to open a retirement plan for your business. Whether you are looking to minimize taxes or provide a valuable perk to your employees, there are many different choices available depending on what you are trying to accomplish. Which plan should you open? SEP IRA? SIMPLE IRA?...  Read More
Total Blog Activity
997
Total Bloggers
13,451
Total Blog Posts
4,671
Total Podcasts
1,788
Total Videos
Sponsors
Townie Perks
Townie® Poll
Have you ever switched practice management platforms for your practice?
  
Sally Gross, Member Services Specialist
Phone: +1-480-445-9710
Email: sally@farranmedia.com
©2024 Dentaltown, a division of Farran Media • All Rights Reserved
9633 S. 48th Street Suite 200 • Phoenix, AZ 85044 • Phone:+1-480-598-0001 • Fax:+1-480-598-3450