As high-net-worth investors discuss plans for charitable giving and investing with their financial advisors, it is absolutely crucial for them to be on the same page in terms of the outcomes desired, both financially and philanthropically. For this reason, advisors and their clients need a set vocabulary of terms going into the first meeting. Only then can they discuss goals (and ways of achieving them) without stumbling over communication roadblocks.
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It is near certain there will be sweeping tax legislation in 2017, but not of the sort many expected. Looking back over 2016, there were a few significant tax changes but many proposals and much speculation concerning tightening of regulations and new taxes. Prior to the election, there were expectations of the proposals coming to fruition under a Clinton administration.
History has typically played out such that the president and at least one of the houses of Congress are of different political parties. President-elect Trump, however, will benefit from a “unified government,” which has been an important driver of overall post-election market reactions. With a clean political party sweep, much of what Trump campaigned on will at the very least make it to the bargaining table. What will be the likely impact of a Trump administration on current regulations and legislation, and the potential implications for capital markets?
We often think of Thanksgiving and Giving Tuesday as ushering in the year-end charitable giving season. Year end is not only a time for gratitude, as families gather for the holidays, but also a time to start organizing financially for the close of the calendar year. But year-end giving does not need to be short-term giving. So even as you strive to be tax-efficient and timely in your year-end giving, those gifts can be part of a longer-term charitable giving strategy.
New findings in brain science and neuroplasticity provide clues on how to create and sustain better leaders, especially within family enterprises. Consider some of the roles and functions we commonly associate with effective leadership in such enterprises: clarifying vision; leading change; creating strong connections between disparate groups; making decisions; and overseeing the big-picture perspective. Each of these aspects of leadership requires elaborate orchestration of various neural networks across the brain structures.
There has been so much attention this fall on the presidential election that the end of the year has rapidly come upon us. Regardless of the outcome of the election, neither candidate will be able to change the current tax law this year, so most of the usual year-end tax planning strategies remain the same. However, one recent development has caused us to move the always-important “Review your estate plan” to the top of the list.
Donald Trump will become our 45th President, and the Republicans will retain hold of Congress. Based on the Republican Party platform, this could result in dramatic tax code changes. Looking at President-elect Trump’s proposed changes to the tax code, we assess their likelihood of being passed in the next two years.
The nonconsensus outcome happened, and Donald Trump will become President. Investors should bear in mind that stock markets will eventually focus on the economic and earnings outlook over the next six-to-18 months, more than politics. We look at the near-term and long-term implications.
The upset presidential election victory of Donald J. Trump and the Republican hold of the House of Representatives and the Senate signal major changes ahead in both the federal government’s approach to growth and the Federal Reserve’s approach to monetary policy. Most evident will be a return of supply-side tax cuts, large operating fiscal deficits, and a move back toward more traditional monetary policies that, over time, should lead to higher short- and long-term interest rates.
With Republicans controlling both houses of Congress and the White House, there are three things to know about heading into 2017: (1) expect tax reform to be a high priority; (2) individual tax reform will focus on lower rates but expect to lost some deductions and credits; and (3) business tax reform will focus on rates, depreciation and international taxes.