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Considering contributing to a 529 plan for their college education, or making them your life insurance beneficiary. But when that generosity comes at the cost of depleting your own retirement savings, the prospect becomes a lot less compelling. At current levels, most American families will have absolutely zero interaction with federal estate taxes. Amorello explained: "Gifting money actually can help grandparents lessen their own net worth to lower estate taxes. Because if you're leaving behind an inheritance, but half of it is going to the estate taxes, that can be a daunting realization."

Persons: Kathryn Amorello, Don, It's, Amorello, you've, they're, we've, — Organizations: Service, Financial, Internal Revenue Service Locations: Wall, Silicon, Amorello

☆ This Is The Best Debit Card for Teens Who Want to Try Their Hand at Investing
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-05 | by ( Kerri Anne Renzulli | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

With Fidelity’s Youth Account, teens can experience firsthand the risks and rewards of investing. There are other debit card accounts available to under 18-year-olds that also offer investing services, but most charge a subscription or other fee to take advantage. Greenlight, our pick for best overall debit card for kids, for example, costs $9.98 a month if you want access to its investing platform. Chase’s First Banking debit card, our pick for best free debit card for younger children, also offers a range of spending controls. How we pickedTo pick Buy Side from WSJ’s Best Debit Cards for Kids, we looked at card options available to those under the age of 18, including prepaid debit cards, checking account-linked debit cards, secured credit cards and brokerage account-linked debit cards.

Persons: Kerri Anne Renzulli, Roth Organizations: Fidelity, Learning, Fidelity ZERO

☆ The Best Debit Cards for Kids and Teens
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-02 | by ( Kerri Anne Renzulli | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +15 min

Banks, credit unions, financial technology companies and even investment firms all offer debit cards geared toward under 18-year-olds. With Greenlight, children receive a physical debit card with their name on it. In addition to its abundance of customizable features, Greenlight also rises above other kids debit cards thanks to the educational tools and games included in its app. This is possible because the Step Visa Card is not technically a debit card, though it functions very similarly. How we pickedTo pick Buy Side from WSJ’s Best Debit Cards for Kids and Teens, we looked at card options available to those under the age of 18, including prepaid debit cards, checking account-linked debit cards, secured credit cards and brokerage account-linked debit cards.

Persons: Kerri Anne Renzulli, they’ve, Banks, we’ve, Greenlight, Chase, it’s, Side’s, —, Equifax, Roth Organizations: Community Federal Savings Bank, Capital, Teens, Chase, Teen, Fidelity, Learning, Kids

☆ This safety net for the elderly and disabled comes with strict rules on savings. That may change
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Lorie Konish | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Today, those thresholds are just one-sixth of their 1972 value, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities notes, and their worth declines further each year with inflation. How SSI's asset limits may be raisedIn new research, the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities considers the effects of raising or eliminating the asset limits SSI has for beneficiaries. That $100,000 threshold would be in line with the amount eligible SSI beneficiaries are currently allowed to hold penalty-free in ABLE accounts, tax advantaged savings programs for people with disabilities. Another change — excluding the consideration of retirement accounts — could also help bolster SSI program eligibility. Eliminating the asset test entirely would raise participation in the program by 6%, the nonpartisan research and policy institute found.

Persons: Tom Grill, Kathleen Romig, Romig, Sen, Sherrod Brown, Rob Portman, Portman, Brown, —, Kristen Dama Organizations: Center, Budget, Finance, GOP, Social Security, Sherrod Brown Democratic, Democrat, Republican, Community Legal Services of Philadelphia, Social Security Administration Locations: Ohio, Dama

☆ A New Front in Reparations: Seeking the Return of Lost Family Land
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( Audra D. S. Burch | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

For much of their lives, the Jones siblings had passed by a parking lot on the campus of the University of Alabama in Huntsville without giving it much thought. Then one day, a relative casually pointed to the spot and said she thought it was once owned by their ancestors, who had farmed the land since the 1870s. The Joneses want it back. “For our family and others, it’s not just about the taking of the land, it’s about the taking of our ability to build wealth,” said Michael Jones, 63, the youngest of five brothers and sisters. African American families across the country — particularly in the South — are pushing for the return of land they say was taken in government seizures, an emerging attempt to provide economic restoration for the long saga of Black land loss and deprived inheritances.

Persons: Jones, it’s, ”, Michael Jones Organizations: University of Alabama Locations: Huntsville

The last few years have been hard in our marriage, and he sometimes says he's considering a no-fault divorce. But if you live in a community property state, your husband will be entitled to half. Is your state a fault or no-fault state? You mentioned in your letter that your husband has specifically threatened a "no-fault" divorce, but according to Costas, it isn't up to him. If you live in a no-fault state, outside of criminal factors, it won't matter whether one partner cheated or left.

☆ Bernie Sanders once again wants to raise taxes on rich heirs
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sanders wants to expand the estate tax to 45% on estates worth at least $3.5 million. The amount exempted from estate tax essentially doubled under Trump's 2017 tax legislation. Sanders, alongside Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Rep. Jimmy Gomez, is introducing new legislation targeting heirs who receive over $3.5 million. The Tax Policy Center similarly found that fewer than 0.1% of people who would die in 2020 would owe estate tax. However, like Sanders' previous attempts to hike taxes on the rich, the proposal is unlikely to make it far.

Diverse hiring helps life insurance companies connect with underserved communities. Life insurance companies are focusing on community and product development. Many of the largest insurance companies have historically denied Black applicants, given them lower-value life insurance than white applicants who paid the same amount, and engaged in other discriminatory activity. Research from William G. Gale, a Brookings Institution economics expert and co-author of "Racial Discrimination in Life Insurance," found that while Black families were 3% more likely than their white counterparts to have a life insurance policy, the differences in inheritances (often including life insurance payouts) accounted for 10-20% of the wealth gap. Aside from eliminating blatantly discriminatory underwriting, Guardian Life has opened the door to life insurance for people with HIV.

☆ Bernie Sanders says teachers should be paid at least $60,000 — and thinks that money should come from higher taxes on the wealthy
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Bernie Sanders wants teachers to make a minimum of $60,000, and to pay for it with taxes on wealthy estates. Sanders' proposal to address that is higher pay, offset with changes to the estate tax. But one of the primary reasons is the pathetically low pay teachers receive. Sanders' plan to pay for higher teacher salaries hinges on the estate tax, which he wants to make both broader and higher. But Sanders thinks it's necessary to deal with the state of teacher pay, noting that childcare workers fare even worse, making less than doggy daycare workers.

☆ Over half of millennials expect to inherit money: Take 3 steps to be ready
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Kamaron Mcnair | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Over half of millennials are expecting to receive an inheritance, recent research shows. Aside from potential tax obligations, a cash inheritance may sound like a sweet deal for the recipient. "Many people don't realize that as they're going through the grieving process, they may make unfortunate decisions," Miura says. Along with the expected emotions around the death of a loved one, feelings about the money itself can create an emotional conundrum for an inheritance recipient. Sometimes people feel guilty about receiving an inheritance based on the assumption that you should work hard to earn money, Miura says.

In January 2021, my net worth was -$15,000. Despite this, my net worth increased from -$15,000 to $15,000 since January 2021. Together, these accounted for an increase of $12,000 in my net worth. In the end, these different sources accounted for an additional $5,000+ that I invested over the last six months — which has allowed me to surpass my original net worth goal for this time period. Three years ago, I made the first deposit into my Roth IRA and today that account makes up a substantial portion of my net worth.

☆ Smarter taxes could ease UK productivity crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Francesco Guerrera | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Britain’s sluggish productivity – the amount of output per hour worked – deters investment and limits growth, in turn depressing wages. After keeping pace with other developed countries for decades, UK productivity has grown by 0.3% a year since 2008. That is a third of the 0.9% averaged by G7 members, and well below the 1.2% rate recorded by the United States, according to figures from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. In 2021, gross fixed capital formation, a measure of investment, accounted for 17% of UK GDP, compared to 24% in France and 21% in the United States, according to the World Bank. Despite a long-standing scheme for research and development, UK businesses still only fund 55% of total R&D spending, below the 63% of the United States, according to a Cambridge University study.

☆ What Is a Robo Advisor, and Do I Need One?
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( ) www.wsj.com time to read: +9 min

That’s where a robo advisor can help. A robo advisor is a digital, automated service that makes investing easy because it picks securities for you. How to start investing with a robo advisorGetting started investing with a robo advisor is designed to be easy. Robo advisor accounts are well-suited for anyone who is comfortable being online but needs a nudge to invest and would rather not do it themselves or doesn’t have the means to hire an individual financial advisor. Betterment and Wealthfront, for example, offer savings accounts, which pay substantially more than traditional bank savings accounts, as well as checking accounts and debit cards.

☆ 'Company loyalty will make you poor': Early retiree credits his $1 million net worth to these 7 ‘unpopular opinions'
▼ + stars: | 2022-08-18 | by ( Steve Adcock | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The self-made millionaire says he got rich the "old-fashioned way"—by investing wisely, marrying the right person, and living a frugal life. At the time, I had $900,000 saved, and within a few years was able to accumulate a $1 million net worth. Here are seven unpopular opinions that helped me retire early as a millionaire:1. I chose to wait until I found someone who shared the same financial values — and it was one of the best life decisions I ever made. Today, I have a supportive spouse who just as enthusiastic as I am about investing and living a frugal lifestyle.

Persons: Steve Adcock Organizations: Employers, Ramsey Solutions, Ivy League

According to RenoFi, the average price of a single-family home in the U.S. could reach $382,000 by 2030. For example, the average price of a home in New York City this year is $795,000, but the average price around Albany in Upstate New York is $227,500, according to Redfin trends. It projects that San Francisco will have the highest average home value in the country at a staggering $2,612,484. For example, Betterment doesn't require clients to maintain a minimum investment account balance, but there is a ACH deposit minimum of $10. So if you want to buy a $400,000 home in 2030, you've got 9 years to start saving.

Inheritances are useless by the time they're received, writes Bill Perkins in "Die with Zero." Gifting money earlier when it will do the most good is a smarter move, Perkins writes. In his book, "Die with Zero," he explains how he hopes to spend all the money he has before he dies. For that reason, Perkins writes that the money could be better used earlier in life. This pattern of later-in-life inheritances is something that Perkins hopes his "Die with Zero" strategy reverses.

Persons: they're, Bill Perkins, Perkins, Bill Perkins isn't, he'd, inheritances, Inheritances, Lincoln Plews, doesn't, Get Organizations: Service, Wall, Federal Reserve, United Income, Capital Locations: Wall, Silicon

Miami financial advisors Gerald Grant Jr. and Gerald Grant III say anyone who wants to pass assets to their family needs an estate plan, but too many people don't get around to creating one. AdvertisementWhether you plan to leave your heirs $10,000 or $10 million, you need an estate plan. That might seem like an obvious statement, but it's a common blind spot among clients of Gerald Grant III and Gerald Grant Jr., father-son financial advisors at Equitable Advisors in Miami. An estate plan is a way to formalize your intentions for the assets you leave behind when you die. For example, they'll ask someone to update their beneficiaries or finish filling out a document for their estate plan within 30 days.

Persons: Gerald Grant Jr, Gerald Grant III, —, Grant Jr, Grant III, it's, I've Organizations: Finance, Service, Equitable Advisors Locations: Miami

Our experts answer readers' credit card questions and write unbiased product reviews (here's how we assess credit cards). Almost 80% of the millionaires who the author Thomas J. Stanley interviewed for "The Millionaire Next Door" are first-generation affluent, or self-made millionaires who didn't inherit wealth. Many self-made millionaires also shied away from assisting their adult children financially, as it can hurt both the parents and the children. He also identified three money habits that successful self-made millionaires avoid at all costs. But according to Stanley's research, that's not the card most self-made millionaires turn to — most go for lower-fee credit cards instead.

Persons: Thomas J, Stanley, —, that's, That's Organizations: Service, Millionaires

Gerald Grant Jr. and Gerald Grant III are financial advisors in Miami and coauthors of a new book about building generational wealth. This article is part of "Money That Lasts," an ongoing series about generational wealth from Personal Finance Insider. In conversation with Business Insider, Gerald Grant Jr. and Gerald Grant III, father-son financial advisors at Equitable Advisors in Miami, said there are at least two ways Black Americans can start building wealth for themselves and their kids today. Income also appears to be a key factor in stock-market participation for Black Americans, according to a survey by Ariel Investments in 2015. About 57% of Black Americans earning between $50,000 and $100,000 were invested, while 81% earning $100,000 or more were invested.

If you're unable to decide how to divide your assets during a divorce, the courts will do it for you. Most US states observe equitable distribution, meaning all property acquired during the marriage is divided fairly at a judge's discretion. Nine US states observe community property law, where marital assets are split 50-50. Which states are community property states in a divorce? In community property states, marital assets — and debts incurred by either spouse during the marriage — are divided 50-50.

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