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In the News

Economy’s Cold Reality Has Created Some Hot Properties

October 2, 2009
grave decision

We’ve noticed a really unusual real estate trend lately as families look for ways to increase their cash reserves by selling off long-held properties.
They’re not selling vacation cabins or those condos they bought as investments. Frankly, the residential real estate market has not recovered enough for anyone to make decent money doing that.
Instead, some clients [...]

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Health Care Reform is Center Stage

September 24, 2009
Photo by telethon

Health care reform dominates the current political and media landscape. The only clear direction out of Washington appears to be a one year band-aid to patch the no-estate tax year of 2010 with a $3.5 million exemption for one year.
The logic of the band-aid strategy would be to capture the revenue that would be lost [...]

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Estate Tax Hokey Pokey

September 24, 2009
Photo by goldberg

The future of the Federal Estate Tax remains clouded.
We have been keeping our ear to the ground (actually we have been calling people and searching the Web for clues) to help our advisors predict what will happen with the Estate Tax.
As most of you know, under the 2001 Economic Growth and Tax Reconciliation Act, the [...]

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Andy Kessler is Right (Again)

July 16, 2009
The Bernanke Market

I always enjoy Andy Kessler’s perspective. He is a former hedge fund manager and wrote a great book called “Running Money.” I am spreading the word about a terrific analysis of the current stock market.
In his Op-Ed piece on the WSJ.com site, “The Bernanke Market”, he simplifies a complex issue. If you are interested in [...]

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A Stake in the Heart of Small Business

July 15, 2009
Photo by mugley

It is undisputed that the majority of job growth comes from small businesses.
Logically, one would think that the best strategy in the current economic environment would be to help the small business owner.
However, the TARP bailout funds have been lavished upon major banks, who used the money to improve their balance sheets and pay bonuses [...]

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Feds Rate Nursing Homes Online

June 3, 2009
Photo by consumerfriendly

This is an idea that should have been brought to fruition a long time ago. The federal government has a tool consumers can use to evaluate nursing homes: medicare.gov/NHCompare
According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS,  started ranking facilities in December based on government inspection [...]

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Cut Benefits or Jobs? You Pick!

May 27, 2009
Photo by Stephen Edmonds

Check out another trend that our small business owners are suffering under.  Do you cut jobs or do you cut benefits?
The recession is pounding on the small business community.  It is ugly, and will get uglier this summer.
The newspapers are not reporting it. I doubt you will ever see this in the New York Times, [...]

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Are Your Charitable Annuities At Risk?

May 15, 2009
Photo by DavidDMuir

As the jagged ripple of our economic situation continues to influence every aspect of our lives, a recent Wall Street Journal article on Gift Annuities caught my eye.
The article, “Donors Find Gift Annuities Can Stop Giving,” reviews how the market’s turmoil has sapped some charities’ ability to pay out promised yields.
This is an issue that [...]

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Small Businesses Being Crushed By Bank Credit Crisis

April 27, 2009
bailoutburger

I have heard this over and over from small business owners: The banks are pulling out of the small business market.
Lines of credit are being rescinded left and right. I am aware of several cases where the bank called the small business owner and said, “We are pulling your line of credit.”
It did not matter [...]

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Small Biz Owners Skipping Salary in Bad Economy

April 24, 2009
Photo by craigfinlay

The Wall Street Journal published an article about business owners scrambling to stay afloat in the tough economy by skipping their own paychecks, sometimes for months at a time.
Those interviewed for the story already had cut staff, dipped into personal savings, reduced their own salaries and renegotiated bill payments with suppliers. Have you had to [...]

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