Blog

Read our latest thoughts on Estate Planning, Trust Services and Mutual Funds.

Trust 4/29/2021

IRA Planning for a Beneficiary Affected by Substance Abuse

Many parents will name children as beneficiaries of their IRAs, but when one of those children has had a substance abuse problem, estate and inheri... READ MORE

Financial Advisors 4/27/2021

Update: IRS Says “Oops” About Their IRA Error

Last week an IRS spokesperson said the calculations shown in IRS Publication 590-B are incorrect and will be revised. READ MORE

Trust 4/22/2021

Establishing an IRA Trust for a Special Needs Child

While IRA owners may name their special needs child as the beneficiary of their IRA to prepare for their child’s future, doing so may have unforese... READ MORE

Financial Advisors 4/20/2021

It's Time to Discuss the 99.5 Percent Act With Your Clients

Senator Bernie Sanders has introduced a bill called the “For the 99.5 Percent Act.” This bill will include a change in the estate tax exemption tha... READ MORE

Financial Advisors 4/15/2021

SECURE Act 10-Year Rule May Require Annual RMDs

Since the SECURE Act’s passage in 2019, the industry has worked under the assumption that the 10-Year rule provided designated beneficiaries with o... READ MORE

Financial Advisors 4/13/2021

Building Your Business Post-COVID May Seem a Lot like Pre-COVID

As we emerge from the COVID era, you may find that people are eager to meet with you, to shake your hand. You may begin to see a keen interest in b... READ MORE

Trust 4/8/2021

Is Giving IRA to Charity the Only Alternative to Paying the Tax?

Homer wrote about the dilemma Odysseus faced as he crossed the strait of Messina. For investors with large IRAs, the SECURE Act poses a similar, Od... READ MORE

Financial Advisors 4/6/2021

How Financial Advisors Use Backlinks to Improve Their Website's SEO

SEO for financial advisors comprises of many strategies. Here are 5 ways to get backlinks to boost your website’s search ranking and bring more tra... READ MORE

Trust 4/1/2021

Eliminating the SECURE Act Tax on an IRA

Although the SECURE Act eliminated the stretch IRA strategy, IRA owners who are updating their estate plans may find a potential substitute for the... READ MORE

Financial Advisors 3/30/2021

Look Back on Your Accomplishments

The job of a financial advisor can be likened to climbing a ladder. We look upwards and are sometimes dismayed by how far away our goals seem to be. READ MORE

Trust 3/25/2021

How Leaving an IRA to Your Spouse Could Disinherit Your Kids

Leaving your IRA to your spouse may be a problem if they remarry. Assigning your spouse as the beneficiary may lead to unintentionally disinheritin... READ MORE

Client Retention 3/23/2021

Why Isn't Everyone Rich?

Many people think investing is easy. In this article, Bryce Sanders discusses seven reasons why everyone isn't rich, and how individual investors m... READ MORE

Trust 3/18/2021

IRA Planning to Capture Large IRA Assets

An Individual Retirement Account (IRA) may be one of your client’s largest assets. When leaving an IRA to a beneficiary, your client will likely tu... READ MORE

Financial Advisors 3/16/2021

Designing Your Website for Prospect Leads

As a financial advisor, you likely have a website. That’s great. But, what does it do? And how are visitors using your site? In this post, we’ll gu... READ MORE

About Us 3/12/2021

Dunham Receives Refinitiv Lipper Fund Award for Best Real Estate Fund Over the 3 Year Period

We are excited to announce that Dunham’s Real Estate Stock Fund has won the 2021 Lipper Fund Award for Best Real Estate Fund over the 3 year period. READ MORE

Financial Advisors 3/2/2021

5 Lessons Rookies Learn and Veterans Forget

Years ago, I heard some excellent trainers remarking on coaching experienced advisors. “List your top 20 clients and how you got them.” READ MORE

Financial Advisors 2/23/2021

How is Cryptocurrency Taxed?

Before investing or trading in that cryptocurrency for your newest purchase, you’re probably going to want to ask yourself this: how is it taxed? READ MORE

Financial Advisors 2/16/2021

How Wealthy Clients Could Achieve Early Retirement

Last year was a rough year for many people. People think about their own mortality. Jobs no longer seem secure. Your client tells you they want to ... READ MORE

Financial Advisors 2/9/2021

How Do I Respond to a Client's Questionable Investment Ideas?

If I had a dollar for every time a client approached me with a dubious investment pitch, it would cover a few coffee orders. READ MORE

Financial Advisors 2/1/2021

A Game Stopper in Less Than 180 Seconds

For the longest time I thought that GameStop was an intervention group for parents whose children obsessively play video games. Just Kidding! READ MORE