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With Republicans appearing to have secured a sweep of the White House and both chambers of Congress, the most immediate question for many financial advisors and their clients is what impact the election results will have on the scheduled expiration of the Tax Cuts & Jobs Act (TCJA) at the end of 2025. https://bit.ly/48Ow3Lx Kitces Senior Financial Planning Nerd Ben Henry-Moreland, CFP?, EA breaks down some areas: -The current 7 tax brackets and increased standard deduction that have been in effect since 2018 are expected to remain largely unchanged -The $10,000 limit on SALT deductions is much more likely to become a negotiating point -The Child Tax Credit, which is currently capped at $2,000 per child, with some bipartisan support to raise it at least to the pandemic-era $3,600 maximum -The AMT could be amended as part of SALT cap negotiations to kick in at lower income levels for households with high SALT deductions -The Section 199A deduction for Qualified Business Income (QBI) for pass-through owners, which could conceivably be increased if Congress pursues Trump's proposal to cut corporate tax rates from 21% to 15% in order to preserve the proportionate difference between pass-through and corporate tax rates -The gift and estate tax exemption, which appears likely to remain at its current elevated level, reducing the urgency for high-net-worth households to gift assets or implement trust strategies to reduce their taxable estate before 2026 More in the link.

Struggling to communicate the full value of your financial planning services?The Kitces.com Financial Planning Value Summit gives you the tools to show clients exactly why they should trust your advice. Get a behind-the-scenes look at what’s working for advisors like you and apply those techniques to your own practice. ?https://bit.ly/3A5sumZ ??Presenting A Clear Menu Of Planning Services And Fees To Close Prospects In One Meeting, With Yohance Harrison BFA?, CRPC?, Founder, CEO & Behavioral Financial Advisor, Money Script Wealth Management, PLLC? ??Using A Structured Meeting Agenda and Proposal Playbook To Explain The Value To Prospects, With Kristen Hull, Director of Financial Planning, Duncan Financial Group ??Creating A Written Implementation Plan To Clearly Show A New Client What Will Be Accomplished Together, With John Froberg, CFP?, Private Wealth Advisor, IronBridge Wealth Counsel, LLC ??Systematically Creating Year-End Planning Summaries to Document Achievements And Next Action Steps, With Brian O., Founder, Winged Wealth Management and Financial Planning LLC ??A Structured Process That Turns Initial (Paid) Planning Clients Into Ongoing (AUM) Clients, With John Mason, CFP?, President & Lead Financial Planner, Mason & Associates, LLC ? ??Building A Complexity-Based Fee Calculator To Ensure You Charge What You're Really Worth, With Emily Biehler, CFP?, CEPA?, Co-Founder, TrailWise Financial Partners Purchase your pass today to secure your spot for our live virtual event!? ?? Event Date: Thursday, December 12, 2024? ?? Time: 12:00 - 4:00 PM EDT? #KitcesValueSummit?

No matter the size or directness of the conflict, it still needs to be disclosed to clients, at a minimum on the advisor's Form ADV Part 2A brochure. And given the sheer number and scope of potential conflicts that do exist in the advisory industry (where a wide range of providers seek to incentivize advisors to recommend their products and services to clients), there's a vanishingly small number of RIAs that don't have at least some form of actual or potential conflict to disclose. https://bit.ly/3C0mtsm In this article, Kitces.com Nerd Ben Henry-Moreland, CFP?, EA shares: -RIAs' Obligation To Disclose Conflicts Of Interest -The SEC's Enforcement Actions Against Firms Advertising "Conflict-Free Advice" -Finding A Better (And More Compliant) Marketing Descriptor Than "Conflict-Free" #advicers

Although advisors' self-reported wellbeing levels dropped by only 3% between 2021 and 2023, a closer look reveals more significant declines among 3 underrepresented groups: women, racial minorities, and advisors aged 18-34. https://bit.ly/47TL6mn This is particularly surprising and concerning given that the 2021 study took place during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, a period of great disruption. Despite considerable efforts to recruit these groups, the findings suggest that firms may not be providing adequate training or support post-recruitment. Want to learn more? Access our 2023 Advisor Wellbeing Study for free on our website.

Question to #Advicers: who do you know that’s the very best at conducting client discovery meetings, or financial plan presentation meetings? At Kitces, we’re developing two new courses for 2025, and we're looking for Subject Matter Experts (to help develop the curriculum) and Instructors (to deliver best practices on camera). This is a chance (and a paid opportunity!) to help shape courses that guide the next generation of financial planners. Tag someone you know who might be interested, or get more details yourself about how to get involved here: https://bit.ly/3Y5DASn

The SECURE 2.0 Act created a new option for surviving spouses (effective starting in 2024) that changes the calculus for deciding which option to choose from. The new rule allows spousal beneficiaries who leave the account in the decedent's name to elect to use the Uniform Lifetime Table to calculate their RMDs rather than the Single Life Table as was required under the existing rules. Which means that spouses who choose to keep the account in the decedent's name for any reason will no longer be forced to take higher RMDs for doing so. Kitces.com Senior Financial Planning Nerd Ben Henry-Moreland, CFP?, EA breaks down: -Calculating RMDs Under The Spousal Election -Distributions After The Surviving Spouse's Death -Spousal Election Vs No Spousal Election Vs Rollover https://lnkd.in/eChMFQQ4

Fall conference season is here! Have you booked your conference for fall or even in 2025? Get inspiration from our Master List Of Financial Advisor Conferences - whether you're looking for a large, national advisor conference, or a more intimate gathering, there is likely a conference on the list for you! https://bit.ly/3AQSOS1

The results are here! Earlier this year, Kitces.com Research surveyed hundreds of financial advisors about how they market their services. This research study is now publicly available here: https://bit.ly/4bLGz61 Advisors reported marketing expenditures have risen sharply between 2022 and 2024 in significant part due to growing client acquisition costs. Indeed, the typical client acquisition cost jumped 71% to 3,800 in 2024 as new client growth has steadily decreased. Differentiating oneself in a crowded landscape proved crucial for advisors' ability to stand out. For instance, CFPs' saw greater returns on their marketing efforts than non-CFPs--a trend stronger among newer advisors. Further, the most successful practices are much likelier to deploy typically less traditional tactics, including seminars, videos, and building their firm’s brand through media appearances to get in front of clients who might not have otherwise been aware of the firm. For more information on how advisors are marketing their services and the tactics employed by the most successful advisors, check out our 2024 Marketing study.

Kitces IAR Ethics CE Day, August 29th 11AM - 6PM ET Fulfill your entire 6 hours of IAR Ethics CE In traditional Kitces style, this event will include no vendors and no sponsors. Just 6 hours of high-quality CE content to learn relevant information from experts in the field, while satisfying your IAR and CFP Ethics CE obligations. We have an exciting agenda lined up for you with Shelitha Smodic (Kitces.com), Jaqueline Hummel (SEC Compliance Consultants, Inc. (SEC3)), Chris Stanley (Beach Street Legal LLC), Gail Bernstein (Investment Adviser Association), Leila Shaver (My RIA Lawyer), Max Schatzow (RIA Lawyers), Terria Heng (XYPN). Sign up for Kitces IAR Ethics CE Day in the link: https://bit.ly/4cumNgo

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