CRESCENDO NOTES Special Needs Financial Planning

A New Year!

Hopefully, everyone is off to a great start in 2019! Yes, I know it's already February, but I am curious if you set any New Year's resolutions? What about financial goals? Below are the results of the tenth annual New Year Financial Resolutions study conducted by Fidelity Investments. Are any of the financial resolutions below ones that you hope to tackle this year?

Crescendo Financial Planning: What makes our firm different? After sharing the Fidelity Investments study above, I thought it would be beneficial for me to explain how a Financial Advisor can help you Save More, Pay Down Debt and Spend Less. Traditionally, when people think of a Financial Advisor, I believe most people think of an investment manager - years ago, most were known as Stockbrokers. While investments are a piece of your financial puzzle, they are not the only area where individuals need professional advice. Yes, when we talk about saving more, this usually means saving more in an investment vehicle like a 401(k) Retirement Savings Plan through your employer, or an Individual Retirement Account (IRA). Knowing HOW MUCH to invest is just as important as WHERE TO INVEST . This is just one example of how working with a Financial Planning firm like Crescendo can help you beyond the investments and will help you reach your goals. Below is one of our marketing pieces that communicates how traditional Financial Advisors are focused either on investments or insurance .

If the Advisor leads with investments , it's usually because this is how an Advisor collects their fee - by managing your investment accounts . Otherwise, an Advisor can work by selling you a product like insurance , where they are not paid until you purchase insurance from them. This may be a form of Financial Planning, but at Crescendo we believe there is a conflict of interest here. Within some firms, the Advisor is providing advice or guidance based on how they are compensated - not based on what you need.

But, at Crescendo, we do it differently. We believe the focus should be on providing financial advice and consulting based on what the client needs. Are you going through a job change and need advice with understanding and managing new employer benefits? Did you recently receive an inheritance and aren't quite sure how this impacts your financial goals? Do you understand the impact to tax diversification at retirement if you saved in a ROTH (IRA) Individual Retirement Account? Click here to visit our website and learn more about our Financial Planning Services.

Financial Planning for a Loved One with Special Needs The main difference with Traditional Financial Planning and Special Needs Planning is the fact that as a parent of a loved one with Special Needs, your child may be dependent on you financially beyond your lifetime.   I share my personal example of our life before our youngest daughter Emily was born with Down syndrome. My husband and I with our two older girls were planning for their college, making sure we had enough money in an emergency fund, and planning for retirement.  Everything completely changed when Emily was born. Now we must make sure that we have made the financial decisions today like purchasing permanent life insurance ,and c ommunicating our estate plan to our Guardians and Trustees to insure that Emily is taken care of when we are no longer alive to do so.

More On Special Needs Planning... Should a Special Needs Trust buy a home for a beneficiary? I have written a lot about the challenges with housing for disabled individuals, and this question comes up often when working with my clients. The Special Needs Alliance is a great resource for all things related to Special Needs and I wanted to share this article - c ontinue here for more informatio n . Impact of 2017 Tax Law for Individuals with Disabilities It’s that time of year again, time to plan for filing your taxes.  A change in the tax law, and higher exemptions, have made it possible for clients to plan for the loved one’s care while ensuring protection for the family. Click here to read more on this topic.

ABLE Updates for 2019 It’s a New Year for the 529 ABLE Accounts too! It’s important to stay updated on the features and benefits of these very important savings accounts. Don’t forget that The ABLE to Work Act was passed at the end of 2017, allowing individuals with earned income to contribute BEYOND the $15,000 Maximum Contribution Limit. Check out the Top 3 Questions in 2019 for ABLE Savings Accounts on the ABLE National Resource Center’s website to learn more.  The ABLE to Work Act is over a year old.  Click here to learn more about how one company is putting this Act in action by making contributions to an ABLE Account through their workplace.

1st 2019 Crescendo Special Needs Planning Webinar Sign up here to join us!

You are invited to join a Webinar that I am conducting with Sumeeta Krishnaney, Attorney at Law Petrie and Pettit , titled: Special Needs Trusts - from creation to understanding how to fund one, as well as managing the distributions. You will learn: The basics of a Special Needs Trust and why one is needed How to plan for two generations by using a Special Needs Trust Utilizing Life Insurance to fund the Trust Understanding the importance of managing distributions from the Trust Date/Time: March 13, 2019 – 12:00pm to 1:00pm After you click on the registration button on our website, you will receive an email 24 hours before the event date with information needed to access the Webex Webinar. Please contact us at  [email protected]  with any questions and we would be pleased to assist you! 

Parents United NEW DATE - RESCHEDULED DUE TO WEATHER When: Wednesday, February 28, 2019 at 9:00am Where: The Ingleside Hotel - Pewaukee (old Country Springs) What: Special Needs Trusts and ABLE Accounts

Securities and Advisory Services offered through JW Cole Financial , a registered investment advisor. Member FINRA/SIPC.  Advisory Services offered through J.W. Cole Advisors, Inc. (JWCA). Crescendo Wealth Management and JWC/ JWCA are unaffiliated entities. The information contained in this email message is being transmitted to and is intended for the use of only the individual(s) to whom it is addressed. If the reader of this message is not the intended recipient, you are hereby advised that any dissemination, distribution or copying this message is strictly prohibited. If you have received this message in error, please immediately delete. Content in this material is for general information only and not intended to provide specific advice or recommendations for any individual, nor intended to be a substitute for individualized legal advice. Please consult your legal advisor regarding your specific situation.