By Elaine Floyd, CFP ® If you did not work long enough to qualify for a Social Security benefit based on your own earnings—or if your benefit is significantly less than your spouse’s benefit—you may qualify for a spousal benefit based on your spouse’s earnings. But you’ll need to know the rules! To qualify for a […]
By Elaine Floyd, CFP ® Health savings accounts (HSAs) are such excellent savings vehicles that people rarely ask about distributions, or how to take money out without it being taxed. They’re too focused on putting money in—as they should be while they’re healthy and working. In 2025 an HSA-eligible person (meaning: not enrolled in Medicare) who
Spending HSA Funds Read More »
By Elaine Floyd, CFP ® Imagine getting a letter from SSA saying that they overpaid you, that you were not entitled to the benefits you’ve been receiving, and that you must now repay $59,000 in benefits that should not have been paid to you. This is what happened to the client of one of our financial
By Elaine Floyd, CFP ® COBRA is the temporary insurance that allows people to remain insured for 18 months (or sometimes longer) after leaving employment. It is designed to give people time to get another job or find a different health plan. Aside from the expense—terminated employees must now pay the entire premium themselves—it works well
Medicare and COBRA Read More »
By Elaine Floyd, CFP ® Changes in marital status always call for a review of the financial plan. As you’re considering how taxes, estate planning, and retirement goals may be impacted by marriage, divorce, or death of a spouse, don’t forget about Social Security and Medicare. Here’s a rundown of common marital events among baby boomers
By Elaine Floyd, CFP ® Oops. It’s easy to violate a rule when the rule doesn’t make much sense to begin with. We are talking, in this case, about the rule that prohibits contributions to a Health Savings Account for anyone enrolled in any part of Medicare. As HSAs have become the plan of choice for
Correcting Excess HSA Contributions Read More »
By Elaine Floyd, CFP ® The decision on whether to sell or rent your home is trickier than other financial decisions because of the emotional ties you have to your home. To make the best decision possible, evaluate the income, growth, and tax advantages of selling vs. renting and how it would advance your long-term goals.
Sell or Rent: Deciding What to do With Your Home Read More »
By Elaine Floyd, CFP ® Divorce is never easy, but collecting information and thinking through some of the issues before you even meet with an attorney can help you move through this life transition as smoothly as possible. Here’s a checklist outlining the information you’ll need to gather and why. Divorce can be devastating—both emotionally and
A Pre-Divorce Checklist Read More »
By Elaine Floyd, CFP ® Most baby boomers will face seven key events in their last stage of life that will color their finances and investments. Prepare for these events by thinking about them now. It can be dangerous to generalize about the baby boom generation, but there are seven key events that nearly everyone will
Get Ready for 7 Serious Life Transitions Ahead Read More »
By Amy E. Buttell and Elaine Floyd, CFP® As super storms and natural disasters continually remind us, it’s important to have an emergency plan ready to go so when disaster strikes, your most valuable assets are protected. Financial planning typically involves anticipating future expenditures like retirement, for example, or paying college tuition bills, and then
Disaster Planning: Steps for Guarding Your Assets Read More »