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SECURE Act Tax Planning Alert For Year-End 2019 And 2020 Hot
At live CPE webinars for CPAs and webinars CFPs® can replay for CE credit 24/7, Bob Keebler, CPA/PFS, for months has warned repeatedly that a sweeping new tax bill was likely to be adopted into law before the end of 2019 and that it would drastically alter the landscape of retirement investment planning. That happened.
After months of delay and doubt, the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act of 2019 (SECURE Act) was hastily passed by both houses of Congress and signed into law by the President. Only two weeks ago, it seemed unlikley SECURE Act would be enacted in 2019, and then it all happened in a flash.
As usual, Congress showed no consideration for the holiday havoc it would wreak on a tiny fraction of mass affluent and UHNWI taxpayers, and their financial advisors -- CPAs, CFPs, CIMA, CFAs, EA, RICPs, who now must deal with these important last-minute, year-end tax chores instead of enjoying the holidays with their familes.
Advisors who attend A4A continuing professional education webinars for Certified Financial PlannerTM professionals have been well-prepared all year long for SECURE Act and now is the time to act. According to Bob, three client situations require action before January 1, 2020.
1. Individuals who can lower their 2019 tax bracket by converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA.
2. Clients who previously had set up a conduit trust for their beneficiaries.
3. Clients who suffered the loss of a spouse within the past nine months and are who might be doing a rollover of an IRA from their deceased spouse.
In this 23-minute video, Bob Keebler specifies urgent last-minute, year-end tax planning steps for professionals to consider and summarizes planning actions for 2020 under SECURE Act.
A final call to action will be posted for lead generation campaigns late today or tomorrow. While the deadline for action is urgent, it is geared to prospects and referral sources. Advisors who subscribe to Advisor Products' FINRA-reviewed news for clients were warned several times, many months ago that SECURE Act might not be passed until late December in other emails, articles, videos, social updates and GIFs.
SECURE Act's scope is sweeping. In addition to creating an entirely new regime of tax planning strategies for individuals in 2020, SECURE Act affects plan sponsors, and, most importantly, opens 401(k) plans to insurance products that guarantee income for a lifetime. This changes the landscape of planning solutions for retirees.
If history is a guide, SECURE Act's insurance industry bonanza seems sure to spawn a new generation of expensive insurance products, sales abuses, and maybe even some failed carriers whose creditworthiness turns out to based on underestimating the cost of annuity benefits. To be clear, I've seen this movie before. A few times. The last time was only a year ago, when Opportunity Zones first were adopted in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, signed into law in late 2018.
Bob says it will take months for the full impact of SECURE Act to unfold and be understood fully. Insurance products that guarantee income for life are invitations to fraud. For fee-only advisors and fiduciaries trying to make sense of the drastically altered landscape, A4A is all over it.
Want to manufacture a low-expense guaranteed income insurance solution for fee-only fiduciaries who are A4A members? Contact me. Or leave a comment if you have a recommendation for such a product.
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