A direct-indexing proposal usually arrives with an impressive number attached. “We harvested 5% in losses last year.” “This strategy can add 1% to 2% in after-tax return.” For a seven-figure taxable account, that is hard to ignore. But a harvested loss is not a return, and a tax deduction today
A woman in Grapevine loses her husband of 31 years. Within a week, someone tells her to “just call Social Security.” Within a month, someone else tells her to take the survivor benefit right away because she’s entitled to it. Neither piece of advice is quite right, and the gap
If you own a home in Southlake, Colleyville, Grapevine, Keller, or Westlake, the property tax bill is probably one of the biggest checks you write each year. Turning 65 is the moment Texas starts giving some of it back. Some of it can arrive on its own, but not all
Every fall, millions of retirees look forward to an announcement that can affect their household budgets for the year ahead: Social Security’s annual cost-of-living adjustment, commonly known as the COLA. The adjustment is designed to help benefits keep pace with inflation, but the percentage increase announced in the headlines does
DOWNLOAD THE PDF U.S. stocks inched higher in the third quarter and finished near record highs, while bonds and real estate lost ground. Investors stayed focused on artificial intelligence, record corporate profits and a resilient U.S. economy, and they looked past higher oil prices and plenty of uncertainty around the
The policy you bought for the kids did its job. You probably bought term coverage in your thirties so a mortgage and two tuition bills would never land on one income. Now the kids have jobs, the mortgage balance shrinks every month, and the premium notice looks like a bill
The third quarter of 2026 delivered mixed results across the major markets. The U.S. stock market led the major equity markets with a 1.41% gain, followed by International Developed markets at 0.89%. Emerging Markets declined slightly by 0.37%, while Global Real Estate experienced a larger decline of 6.03%. Fixed income
A guide to the safe harbor 401(k) notice deadline, which plans still need an annual notice, and how amendments change the timing. Why December 1 Gets Employers’ Attention It is early fall, and the owner of a growing Fort Worth company is walking through year-end items with her controller. Headcount
If you’ve recently retired, you may be sitting in the lowest tax brackets you’ll see for the rest of your life. The paychecks have stopped. Social Security may not have started. Required withdrawals from your IRA are still years away. For a lot of DFW retirees, that stretch is the
“When should I take Social Security?” is one of the most common questions we hear from clients in Southlake and across the DFW area. It’s also one of the easiest to oversimplify. Search online and you’ll find dozens of break-even calculators that spit out a single age and call it